3.3.6 Account Books

1. Admission and Withdrawal Register

This is one of the most important school registers. The head of the institution is personally responsible for its sanctity. According to departmental rules, it is to be kept permanently and therefore it should be specially got bound and arrangements made for its safe custody. Entries should be made as soon as a pupil is admitted or at any rate before the close of the day. Every admission or re-admission made in any part of the year should be entered in it. Successive numbers should be given to the pupils on admission. Each child should retain this number as long as he remains in the school. A new entry should be made if a pupil leaves a school and rejoins it with a leaving certificate issued by another school.

This register contains the following information:

• The number of the child in theregister
• Date of admission or re-admission
• Name of the child in full
• The exact date of birth of the child
• Name and address of the parent or guardian.
• The class to which admitted
• The date of leaving and the class in which the child was at that time

Special care is to be taken in recording the date entry birth of every child. Many heads have invited trouble due to lack of proper care in recording date of birth. The once made should not be altered unless authorized by competent authority and that too in writing. The entries are to be made both in words as well as in figures. The exact day month and the year of the birth should be recorded. This entry regarding date of birth is very important as it is often required as evidence in important matters.

2. Pupils' Attendance Register

Each class has its own register showing the names of the pupils on the rolls of a class during a month. As far as possible only one attendance register should be kept by any one teacher. Attendance should be marked both for the beginning of the school day in the morning and its end towards the evening. Ink should be used for marking attendance. No blanks should be left. It is also not a good practice to put dots. The students are to be marked as 'leave 'or 'sick' only when their leave applications are sanctioned by the competent authority. Holidays should be indicated in red ink. The name of the students who has been absent without leave for consecutive attendances should be struck off the rolls. The reason for this action should be given in the remarks column against the name of the boy or girl and the necessary information should be given to the school clerk. The entries thus made should be got signed by the Headmaster simultaneously both in the attendance register and withdrawal register. On the last working day of each month, the summary at the end of each page in the register should be carefully prepared and the register got checked by the teacher deputed for this purpose and then got countersigned by the Headmaster. All amounts received by way of fees and funds must be entered in the register immediately on their receipt.

Truants should be noted particularly and their cases reported to the Headmaster and parents concerned.

Leave application for long sick periods should be supported by medical certificates.

3. School Calendar

It is drawn up at the beginning of each school session. If possible all schools in the same area should have a uniform school year so that the migrating children are not handicapped and put to inconvenience. It should contain the following items of information:

• General, partial and local holidays.
• Dates for the submission of monthly, quarterly,half-yearly and annual reports and returns.
• Dates of public and school examinations.
• Dates of meeting of School Committees, Teachers, Associations, Local Excursions, School Tournaments, etc.
• Dates of the monthly tests and the subjects in which they will be held.

The school calendar is very conducive to the better and more systematic organization of school activities.