NEW EDUCATION POLICY DRAFT CLASHES WITH RTE

 Background

• The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, which represents the consequential legislation envisaged under Article 21-A, means that every child has a right to full time elementary education of satisfactory and equitable quality in a formal school which satisfies certain essential norms and standards. Article 21-A and the RTE Act came into effect on 1 April 2010.
• It is seen as the most historic development in universalisation of elementary education in the country. It implies that every child in the age group of 6 to 14 years has Right to elementary education. They are entitled for free and compulsory education.
• Several recommendations in the draft National Education Policy, 2016 will require amendments to the Right to Education Act, 2009.

Salient features of RTE :

• The RTE Act provides for the right of children to free and compulsory education till completion of elementary education in a neighbourhood school.
• It clarifies that ‘compulsory education’ means obligation of the appropriate government to provide free elementary education and ensure compulsory admission, attendance and completion of elementary education to every child in the six to fourteen age group. ‘Free’ means that no child shall be liable to pay any kind of fee or charges or expenses which may prevent him or her from pursuing and completing elementary education.
• It makes provisions for a non-admitted child to be admitted to an age appropriate class.
• It specifies the duties and responsibilities of appropriate Governments, local authority and parents in providing free and compulsory education, and sharing of financial and other responsibilities between the Central and State Governments.
• It lays down the norms and standards relating inter alia to Pupil Teacher Ratios (PTRs), buildings and infrastructure, school-working days, teacher-working hours.
• It provides for rational deployment of teachers by ensuring that the specified pupil teacher ratio is maintained for each school, rather than just as an average for the State or District or Block, thus ensuring that there is no urban-rural imbalance in teacher postings. It also provides for prohibition of deployment of teachers for non-educational work, other than decennial census, elections to local authority, state legislatures and parliament, and disaster relief.
• It provides for appointment of appropriately trained teachers, i.e. teachers with the requisite entry and academic qualifications.
• The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) is the main vehicle for implementation of the RTE Act. It is one of the largest programmes of its kind in the world. It is primarily funded from central budget and it covers the whole country.
• Under SSA, special attention has been given to urban deprived children, children affected by periodic migration and children living in remote and scattered habitations. Attempts have also been made to reach out to children suffering from autism. It involves their identification, preparation of individualized Education Plan, teacher training on Autism and therapeutic support.

About the New Education Policy

• The draft National Education Policy insisting on “consolidation”, proposes merging “small, non-viable” schools. This subverts the RTE Act on neighbourhood schools being located “within a walking distance of one kilometre” for children attending Classes 1 to 5.
• The draft emphasizes “school mapping” – as opposed to RTE’s “child-mapping” – but stresses that for children attending “non-viable” schools, transport must be provided.
• The proposal to extend the 25% economically weaker section quota in private schools to minority institutions will also need an amendment. The committee notes that number of schools claiming religious or linguistic minority status has increased tremendously.
• The RTE mandates a no-detention policy -banning grade-repetition -till Class VIII; the draft wants it limited to Class V. Its recommendations cover remedial classes “by school teachers or volunteers” and supplementary examinations.
• The committee suggests amending the RTE to “provide, in addition to infrastructure, learning outcome norms that affect quality of education”, a longstanding private school demand.

By: Mona Kaushal