School Upgradation- The only way to ensure 8 years of schooling to all children under RTE

School Upgradation- The only way to ensure 8 years of schooling to all children under RTE

 [Note: this article is in process... ]

Some Important Facts before I start writing  Sample Size •      Number of villages covered= 151 •      Number of blocks= 21 •      Number of districts= 6 •      Number of Primary Schools= 101 •      Number of Upper Primary Schools= 39 •      Total Schools under RTE= 140 •      Teachers Appointed under RTE in 2015-16= 95 •      Total teachers in 140 schools= 509 •      Children in the age group of 6-14 years= 24424 [M- 12911 + F- 11513] •      Children (6-14 yrs) in school= 22223 [M- 11743 + F- 10480] •      Children (6-14 yrs) out of school= 2201 [ M- 1168 + F-1033] •      9 % children (6-14 yr) are out of school. •        •      Children in the age group of 14-18 years=  9500 [M- 5181+ F- 4368] •      Children (14-18 yrs) in school=  5212 [M- 2873 + F- 2339] •      Children (14-18 yrs) out of school= 4288 [ M- 2308 + F-1980] •      45 % Children (14-18 yr) are out of school. •      13 % Children dropped out of school after 5th standard. 1482 passed primary school but only 1285 continued in 6th Standard. 197 left school. •      34 % Children dropped out after 8th standard. 916 passed but only 600 got admission in 9th. 316 left school. Data from one partner is missing in it. •      31 % Children dropped out after 10th.   555 passed but only 379 continued in 11th. 176 left school. Note:  These are primary data collected by activists working in these 151 villages. About

There is a basic flaw in the government approach to ensure compliance of RTE (The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009) by ensuring 8 years of education to children in the age group of 6-14 years. 

Some Facts & thoughts to be used in this article.

“”He further said that a critical appraisal of the functioning of the Right to Education reveals that large gaps exist in its implementation including the quality of education being provided; the high number of drop-outs and out of school children and the absence of equity in education. The Vice President said that quantity, quality and equality are the three sides of the triangle required to ensure Right to Education. The decline in State funding in the key social sector programmes, including education, is of particular concern, he added.:  

On 31 March 2016, we will mark six years of the coming into force of the Right to Education. An audit is therefore appropriate, particularly to locate deficiencies that exist, and chart out a course for the future.

One of the most stringent criticisms of the RTE has been the quality of education being provided. The Global Monitoring Report 2012 ranked India a low 102 out of the 120 countries on the Education for All (EFA) Development Index, based on progress in universal primary education, adult literacy, gender parity and the quality of education. Some surveys have revealed that while enrolment in elementary education in our country has increased, there has been a decline in the education outcomes, with abilities in reading, writing and other comprehensive skills deteriorating among children between the ages of 6 and 14. For instance, only a fourth of all children in standard III could read a standard II text fluently, a drop of more than 5% over five years, according to the 2014 Annual Status Report on Education Report (ASER). About Rs 1,15,625 crore ($17.7 billion) has been spent on Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA)—the national programme for universal elementary education and a core element for implementing the RTE—over the last five years, so the decline in the quality of learning is particularly disturbing. Low learning and falling quality of education imparted to children has grave implications for the future of our society and the country. This should be a cause for serious concern to the government.””