Bhubaneswar, Oct. 22: Education officers in various districts have started adopting schools as part of the recently launched Ujjwal scheme, said school and mass education department secretary Ranjana Chopra.

Around 6,300 education officers in the state will adopt at least two schools and closely supervising their functioning.

The scheme, launched by the state government in April, aims to attain basic competencies in arithmetic and language, including written and spoken English.

According to the programme, each school will have one dedicated teacher to address the needs of students, who lack competencies in English, Odia and mathematics. Those lagging behind will be made part of a separate group, and it shall be the responsibility of the dedicated teacher to conduct remedial classes to help them. A separate register will be maintained, and the periodic progress of the students in this group will be recorded on a daily basis.

Besides, the teachers' performances will also be monitored following specific indicators set by the National Council of Education Research and Training, the national academic authority.

During the Ujjwal review meeting, chaired by chief secretary A.P. Padhi, officials said the department was also going ahead with enhancing the capacity of hostels to facilitate students hailing from the remote areas.

Eight new hostels will be built for underprivileged students residing in urban areas. The strength of four Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas will be increased, said the officials.

This apart, 50-bed hostels will be built in Bargarh, Cuttack, Gajapati, Kalahandi, Kandhamal and Malkangiri districts. In Mayurbhanj and Rayagada, the seat capacity will be enhanced from 50 to 100 and that of four Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas from 100 to 150.

"Learning indicators for the children in English and mathematics have already been prepared. Modules have been developed for teachers to ensure improved performance in classrooms," said an education department official.