One school of thought says the core issue private schools have with the ?Right to Education? Bill is that of bringing ?students from economically weaker sections (EWS) to speed in terms of aptitude level?. The Bill puts the onus of this on private schools. Educationists add that most private schools are not equipped to deal with ?first generation learners? or ?learners with very little home support?. Currently, economically well off parents can supplement what is not being done by the school through tutorials or home coaching but parents belonging to EWS may not be able to provide this additional support to their children. Clause four of the Bill says, ?Where a child is directly admitted in a class appropriate to his or her age, then, he or she shall, in order to be at par with others, have a right to receive special training, in such manner, and within such time limits as may be prescribed?. While the rules by the drafting group will provide guidelines for the ?special training? mentioned in the Bill, ?the remediation required for children to make up at every level of elementary education would need to be within the school system?.
This also means that the 25% admissions may not simply start from class one but if a nine- or ten-year-old EWS child were to seek admission he/she would be given ?age appropriate? admission and also ?special training? from the school to come up to speed with the class. Private schools such as Apeejay and Vasant Valley while supporting the Bill hold the opinion that the success of enacting this Bill in private schools would depend on how the government engages with the private schools. For instance, private schools would like less of a ?diktat? from and a more ?inclusive dialogue? with the government.
The Bill once passed in Lok Sabha will provide ?model subordinate legislation? to support its enactment and state governments, in turn, will ?work out their own requirements to implement the provisions of the Bill?.
Private schools have long been vocal on their concerns regarding the Bill and it is the top three categories, including the 100 ?elite category? schools that encompass top boarding schools and rich schools with international boards, and the 2,000 ?premium schools? such as DPS and ?DPS+ clones? whose ?boards? are mostly CBSE/ICSE, along with the ?middle class? schools whose fee levels are Rs 400 to Rs 1,200 and total 5,000 to 15,000 that have a problem. The 3,00,000 ?low income? that charge less than Rs 400 and also include unrecognised schools, ?are the the only private school category that matters from a widespread social impact viewpoint. In other categories ?school owners? may get effected because of the 25% EWS reservation, but that is a bit of a storm-in-a-tea-cup. RTE, if enforced, can change the face of low-income schools,? says Ashish Rajpal, co-founder & managing director, iDiscoveri. This is because low-income schools have the least to lose and most to gain in terms of administration, content and governance consistency from the enforcement of this Bill. While the upper tier private schools are ?concerned about where will the balance reimbursement for admitting 25% EWS? over and above government?s contribution come from, low-income private schools mostly stand at par with government schools on per child spend. Other private schools, whose spend per child will be more than the government?s reimbursement and who are unwilling to raise the fees of the remaining 75% economically well off families or undertake this expense as part of their own budget, will have to reach an agreement with the government.
Even while the government is working out the categorisation of EWS, private schools say reimbursement aside admitting 25% students from economically weaker sections would require ?social conditioning on the part of parents, students and even school staff and administration?. While schools such as Amity International do conduct afternoon classes for female students from economically weaker sections, these are conducted separate from regular day classes. The Bill is trying to change this bias and replacing it with more equity that represent the country?s social fabric.
Going hand in hand with the above issues is the issue of quality and whether the education being propounded by the Bill will allow a child to ?actualise potential?. Looking at districts such as Alwar in Rajasthan, where Board exams at elementary level have been a mere sham, the clause, ?no board exams during elementary education?, seems to be on track. However, ?awarding a certificate on finishing elementary education? and the ?no-detention policy? needs further elucidation by the government to ensure that neither schools nor the students are losers at the end.
?malvika.chandan@expressindia.com