Bhopal, May 5: Government schools in Madhya Pradesh are likely to have 10am-5pm “office timings” from July to improve students’ performance.

M.M. Upadhaya, the state principal secretary for school education, said a panel of principals had concluded after a survey that many government-run schools were squeezing hours to do two shifts that resulted in poor performance by students, particularly in board examinations.

“It is a recommendation under consideration,” Upadhaya said. “There are many public and private schools being run on this pattern, so I do not see any problem with it.”

B.R. Naidu, the commissioner for school education, said government schools now held six classes a day, but if the 10-to-5 routine happened, schools would have eight classes a day. “We are increasing infrastructure, too,” Naidu said. “A sum of Rs 60 crore will be spent on increasing the number of rooms in schools.”

The first session in government schools that have two shifts begins at 7.30am and goes on till 1.30pm. The second shift runs from 2.00pm to 5.30pm, without a lunch break or long prayer sessions.

When the “office timings” kick in, students will get about an hour’s lunch break, but will also have longer periods.

The measure will affect over 8,000 institutions in Madhya Pradesh, of which capital Bhopal alone has 1,263 government-run primary, middle and higher secondary schools. There are also over 1,200 madarsas, which receive government grants. They, too, will have the 10am-5pm timings.

But the proposal has divided educationists, teachers, school counsellors and parents.

Anil Sadgopal, a former head of the department of education at the Maulana Azad Centre for Elementary and Social Education, University of Delhi, said if the idea was “holistic”, he would welcome it. “But if the motive is not to improve the quality of education, I am not sure if spending more time in school will improve performance,” Sadgopal said. “If a ward spends most part of the day in school, will he or she have enough time to pursue painting, sports, music, etc, which are critical to all-round personality development?”

Sadgopal said he was also concerned about lack of infrastructure. “It is all right to say that double-shift schools are being closed. But would government authorities add school buildings, playgrounds, laboratories, libraries, teaching and non-teaching staff proportionately?” he asked.

School administrator Ahmad Kamal, too, sounded sceptical. “I am concerned about health, food and hygiene. Would students from Class I to XII get proper lunch or mid-day meal?” he asked.

Pooja Mehta, a psychological counsellor with Sharda Vidya Mandir, a private school, said: “The proposal is bad on all counts. First, it is an established fact that students’ performance cannot be improved by increasing the number of hours in school. There is a limit to how long a student can concentrate. Moreover, if a student is going to come home after 5pm, how will he or she get the time to attend coaching classes, which are crucial for professional courses?” she asked.

Mehta said there would be other repercussions too. “If schools start at 10am, the students will get up late and miss the morning hours that are best for studies. Frankly, the 10-to-5 timing makes no sense.”