Schools in the State of Himachal Pradesh

I’ve spent the past few days in the Himalayas, in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, in the capital city of Shimla. This was where the British government, which occupied India throughout the nineteenth century and into the first half of the twentieth century, moved all of their offices during the summer to escape from the heat of Delhi. And I can see why – not only is the weather cool and breezy, but the whole area is surrounded by stunning mountains.

This region of India is known for having one of the most successful public education systems in the country – the government estimates that 90% of the children in the region attend school, which is quite an accomplishment in India. I visited four schools, and captured three of them on tape. The first is a government-run boarding school for girls who live in villages that aren’t large enough for a local school. The second and third schools are a preschool and an elementary school which are also run by the government.



Bishop Cotton Boarding School, in Shimla.
The children of the country's elite attend school here.



The city of Shimla.



Girls from the government-run boarding school - all Indian school children who attend public school wear uniforms.



The school cafeteria at the government-run elementary school - all students receive a free lunch every day.



Questions to Consider:

1. Neither of the second two schools had electricity, which is the norm in India. (In fact, 50% of schools in India do not have toilets.) So needless to say, there are no computers, projectors, fancy art supplies, etc. The floors are bare concrete – some students get to sit on mats, and two lucky classrooms had desks. The teachers make all of their instructional materials themselves. On the other side of the world, our school has in comparison a wealth of material advantages and conveniences. So, my question is – why is this the case? Why does our school have so much, and theirs’ so little? Or to cut to the heart of the matter, why does our country have more than theirs?

2. What do you think the dance from the first school is about?

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