Right to Education.

Introduction.
Right to Education Act (RTE)
• Was passed by the Indian Parliament on 4 August
2009.
• Provision of free and compulsory education for
children between 6 and 14 in India under Article 21A
of the Indian Constitution.
• India became one of 135 countries to make
education a fundamental right of every child when
the act came into force on 1 April 2010.
 History
 2003: The Free and Compulsory Education For Children
Bill, 2003

 2004: The Free and Compulsory Education For Children

Bill, 2004

 2005: The Right to Education Bill, 2005 (CABE Bill)

 2005: The Right to Education Bill, 2005 (August)

 2006: The Model Right to Education Bill, 2006

 2008/9: The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory

Education Bill, 2008, introduced/ passed in Rajya Sabha
 The Bill: Child rights
• Right of Children to free and compulsory admission, attendance and completion
of EE.

– Defines ‘free’ as removal of any financial barrier by the state that prevents a
child from completing eight years of schooling
– And defines ‘compulsion’ as compulsion on the state, rather than targeting
parents.

– Not enrolled/dropout children be admitted to age appropriate class

• Special training to enable such children to be at par with others
• Child so admitted entitled to completion of EE even after age 14
– Softens barriers like birth certificate, transfer certificate, etc

– No child shall be psychologically abused by calling him/her ‘failed’ in any

class up to class 8, or expelling him/her from school
– Bars corporal punishment, mental harassment
 Teachers
• Qualification for appointment of teachers to be laid
down by academic authority authorised by Central
Government

– To address the problem of untrained teachers

• Lays down academic responsibilities of teachers

• Prohibits private tuition by teachers

• Prohibits deployment of teachers for non-education

purpose, except decennial census, disaster relief and
elections
 Schools
• Norms and standards specified
– Infrastructure
– School days; working days for teachers
– Facilities

• Community participation ensured through SMC

comprising elected reps, teachers and parents
– ¾ members from among parents of children in the school; 50% women
– Proportionate representation to weaker and deprived sections
– SMC to plan, manage and monitor – in collaboration with the local
authority
 Schools
• No capitation fees
– Penalty: fine upto 10 times the capitation

• No screening for admission

– Penalty: fine of Rs 25,000 for 1st contravention and Rs 50000 for each
subsequent contravention

• No school without recognition

– Penalty: Rs one lakh; in case of continuing contravention, penalty of Rs
10,000 for day

• All unaided schools to provide free education to at

least 25% children from the neighbourhood – as a
measure of ensuring common schooling
– Costs reimbursed @ per child expenditure incurred by the State or actual fee
charged, whichever is less
 Appropriate Government, Local Authority
• Ensure free and compulsory education
• Provide schools in neighborhood within 3 years
• Children belonging to weaker sections and disadvantaged
groups not to be discriminated against
• Infrastructure, school building, teaching staff, learning
equipment
• Special training for previously not enrolled or drop out
children to enable them to be en par with others
• Monitoring of admission, attendance, completion of EE
• Good quality EE conforming to specified norms and standards

• Timely prescription of curriculum, courses of study, teachers’

training
 Curriculum
• Curriculum by prescribed academic authority should:
– Conform to constitutional values
– Make child free from fear, trauma and anxiety
– Be child centred, child friendly; provide for learning
through activities
– Medium of instruction – child mother tongue to the extent
possible
– Provide for comprehensive and continuous evaluation
• No Board examinations till completion of EE
 Protection of Right
• Bill assigns NCPCR/SCPCR additional functions
– Examine and review safeguards for rights under this Act,
recommend measures for effective implementation
– Inquire into complaints relating to child’s right to free and
compulsory education
• NCPCR/SCPCR have powers assigned under Section 14
and 24 of the Commissions for Protection of Child
Rights Act
• Where SCPCR not constituted, appropriate
Government may constitute an Authority
 Commonly raised issues
Exclusion of 0-6 Bill derived from the 86th Constitutional Amendment.
age group; also Hence restricted to 6-14 age group.
suggestions for
extending Bill to
age 18

No explicit Clause 8 casts a compulsion on the State to provide

reference to child free and compulsory education to every child.
labour
Explanation to Clause 8(a): ‘compulsory education’
means obligation of the appropriate Government to
provide free compulsory education and ensure
compulsory admission, attendance and completion of
EE by every child.

Far better way of curbing child labour – by legally

declaring that every child has to be in school.
 Commonly raised issues
On the Forefront of all controversies.
inclusion of One view: Article 21-A states that ‘the State shall provide
private free and compulsory education’ means that schools which
schools
receive no financial aid from the Government should be
kept outside the purview of the Bill.

Another view: ‘State’ does not merely mean governmental

system, but includes government and private systems.
Private fee-charging schools are an impediment to the
concept of ‘common school system’, and should be brought
within the ambit of the legislation.

The Bill avoids both these extreme positions: provides for

25% admission to children belonging to weaker sections &
disadvantaged groups in the neighbourhood
 Commonly raised issues
Adequacy of norms This is a beginning. Clause 20 of the Bill also
and standards provides for the Central Government to amend the
schedule by adding to or omitting from the schedule.
As we progress the norms and standards can be
enhanced.

Inclusion of parents Most children who do not attend school are from
in the compulsion weaker sections and disadvantaged groups.
laws. Penalising their parents would be tantamount to
penalizing poverty.
Why is there no
provision for
Many children are first generation learners, deprived
punishment for
parents? of a learning environment at home, and drop out
because of difficulty in coping with the curriculum.
Inflicting penalties on parents because their children
have have been pushed out of the education system
would be discriminatory.
 Commonly raised issues
Why no detention, no Examinations are known to produce mental
examinations? Wouldn’t trauma. Fear of failure, particularly at a
quality suffer? tender age, leads to loss of self esteem.

‘No detention policy’ does not imply

abandoning procedures that test the learning
abilities of the child;

‘No detention policy’ implies putting in place

a continuous and comprehensive procedure
of child evaluation and recording it so that the
teacher can use it as a guide in helping each
child reach desired levels of educational
achievement.