KREIS schools for underprivileged prove merit need not be privilege, with 71 state ranks

Hindustan Times

04-05-2025

Bengaluru, Sixteen-year-old Bhumika Suresh Vokkalinga is one among the 34,984 students from Karnataka Residential Educational Institutions Society schools who appeared for the SSLC exams this academic year, held between March 21 and April 4.
Bhumika, who has scored 624 out of 625, is also one among the three second state rank holders from KREIS schools, which saw 71 students secure state ranks .
KREIS is an association of residential educational institutions in Karnataka that provides free residential education to socially and economically disadvantaged children.
The schools under KREIS which at present stands at 788 have consistently outperformed not only government schools but also unaided private schools, said S S Nagesh, Joint Director, KRIES.
This academic year, for instance, KREIS schools boast a pass rate of 91 per cent, 28.66 per cent more than the state average of 62.34 per cent.
The school targets children like Bhumika, said Nagesh.
Bhumika, who is from a tiny village called Harekoppa in Siddapura taluk in Uttara Kanada district, is the first in her family to have passed SSLC.
Both her parents are labourers who work for daily wages.
Bhumika said it was her village elders who suggested she apply to KREIS school, seeing that she was good at her studies.
"Because it was a residential school, I could devote all my time to studies. Had I been at home, I would have had to chip in with household chores and help my mother in looking after my younger siblings," Bhumika told PTI over the phone.
Nagesh said KREIS schools specifically cater to the children of most marginalised communities.
"These include nomadic tribes, sanitation workers, former Devadasis, rescued bonded labourers, differently-abled individuals, crematorium workers, single parents, rag pickers," added Nagesh.
Speaking to PTI, Social Welfare Minister H C Mahadevappa, under whose jurisdiction the KREIS schools fall, said the students of KREIS schools may have come from marginalised communities, but have consistently excelled academically, outperforming their peers across the state.
Of the 31,726 passed this year, 34.10 per cent secured distinction marks, while 55.90 per cent of students got first class, said an educational consultant to KREIS schools, tasked with preparing a report of comparative analysis of the performance of KREIS schools and colleges.
"The average score stood at 78 per cent, reflecting the students' outstanding performance," he told PTI, on condition of anonymity.
Mohan G M, from Gullahalli in Banglore Rural, who is studying in Morarji Desai Residential School in Bengaluru Rural said he learnt to study smartly, thanks to his teachers.
"My life changed when I joined KREIS five years ago. Before that I was a day scholar at GHPS Gullahalli," said Mohan, who has obtained third rank in the state with a score of 623 out of 625.
Mohan said Maths used to be his weakest subject.
"But with the help of my teachers, who made me go through previous years' question papers and model question papers, I managed to fix my weakness and score 100 per cent," said Mohan, whose father is a daily labourer too and mother a housewife.
Mohan said as far as he could remember he aspired to become an IAS officer.
But it is only after he joined KREIS school, he could give a concrete shape to his dream.
"Now, I have got it all planned. After I graduate, I will take the Civil Services Examination. I am already watching all the YouTube tutorials on UPSC exam preparation," added Mohan.
Mohan credits the career counselling in his school for his confidence.
Bhumika, on the other hand, nurses the dream of becoming a doctor someday.
Bhumika, who joined Kittur Rani Chennamma Residential School in Kvanchur in Class Seven, said her family could hardly afford the treatment for her ailing grandfather.
"I kind of made a vow to myself: That I will break the cycle of poverty and will also become a doctor. That has been my motivation to spend 10 to 11 hours almost every day preparing for my examinations," said Bhumika.
Over the years, the residential schools have gained popularity due to their quality education, benefiting lakhs of children, added Nagesh.
But although KREIS schools have consistently scored more than state average since 2019-2020, the pass percentage of the schools have also fallen from 99.10 per cent in 2021-2022 to 91 per cent in 2024-2025.
Nagesh said this is because, during and just after the Covid pandemic, students were getting grace marks. "This year, the government has completely done away with grace marks because Karnataka School Examination and Assessment Board has introduced a three-exam system for SSLC to provide students with multiple opportunities. This is one of the reasons for the fall in the pass percentage of KREIS schools," added Nagesh.
According to him, this is the overall trend prevailing in the state.
"Yes, there's room for improvement. But the fact that KREIS schools managed to outshine even private schools in the state by 15.41 per cent shows that we are on the right track," he added.