Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Amendment) Bill

•  The Lok Sabha has passed the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Amendment) Bill.

Highlights of the bill:

• The Bill amends the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 by extending the deadline for teachers to acquire the prescribed minimum qualifications for appointment.
• Under the Act, if a state does not have adequate teacher training institutions or sufficient number of qualified teachers, the provision to possess minimum qualifications is relaxed for a period not exceeding five years i.e. till March 31, 2015.
• The Bill further adds to this provision by stating that those teachers who do not possess the minimum qualifications as on March 31, 2015 will acquire the minimum qualifications within a period of four years i.e. by March 31, 2019.

Analysis:

• Many new schools had come up in the days of educational expansion under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and the RTE, and many teachers who were hired did not have requisite degrees, some having studied only till school.
• They were given five years to train themselves, and many did, but 5-6 lakh private schools teachers and 2.5-lakh government school teachers still did not have the requisite degrees. The qualifications are deemed necessary to ensure that teachers are well-qualified to ensure quality of education.
• The RTE Act was enacted to provide free and compulsory education to all children between the age of six and 14 years. The central government subsequently received requests from states for extension of the period to enable them complete the training process for in-service untrained teachers.

By: Vishal