Maharashtra government plans to review school names to prevent misinterpretation

The Maharashtra government has planned to review and regulate the names of schools to curb misleading or misrepresentative terminology. According to a senior official of the education department, the decision comes after several institutions were using words such as 'international', 'global' and even 'CBSE' in their names without meeting the criteria.

The state's directorate of secondary and higher secondary education said there is wide variation in school names, with some schools affiliated to the state board, Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) and Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) using terms that could create confusion among parents, students and the public.

"Existing schools with such names will also be reviewed. Unless schools have branches in two or more countries, they cannot call themselves global. Moreover, schools not affiliated to Cambridge International Education or the International Baccalaureate (IB) should not use the word 'international'," the official pointed out.

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School names to be reviewed individually

The circular stated that while assessing new proposals for school recognition in future, a detailed examination will be done for the school's name, board affiliation, medium, and whether it operates other schools at the national or international level. If a name is found to be misleading, it will be asked to change it before the proposal is forwarded to the state authority for approval.

"The department has highlighted the names of 11 new schools from across Maharashtra where the word 'international' has been used, and field officers have been asked to verify before submitting revised proposals. In such circumstances, the possibility of misleading the government, society, parents and students with such names cannot be ruled out," the circular added.

The issue was discussed at a meeting held on December 10, when a state-level authority was reviewing proposals for approval and upgradation of new self-financed schools. The panel concluded that the use of misleading terms in school names could mislead parents and students, and decided that such institutions should be directed to change their names

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Furthermore, the circular added that some schools approved as Marathi-medium institutions are using the term “English medium” in their names. It added that words such as “global” or “international” should be used only by schools with overseas branches and affiliation to a recognised international board.

"The use of the term 'CBSE' in school names is not legally appropriate, as it refers to the Central government's examination board," the circular adds. With inputs from PTI