Mains Paper 2: Governance | Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections.
Q.) “Scrapping the no-detention policy, one of the most controversial features of the Right to Education Act, is a first step towards mitigating some of its worst consequences.” Discuss.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Prelims level: Particulars of the RTE Act
Mains level: Some days ago, we published a newscard that gave facts against the decision of scrapping the NDP. This article is just opposite of that. It is important to know both side of the story.
- The article supports scrapping of No Detention Policy, under the RTE Act
Situation after RTE Act
- RTE was supposed to bring millions to school
- Building the foundations upon which a modern, progressive and prosperous nation was to rise
- But after 7 years, Education level is deteriorated and schools are being closed
- According to some experts, the RTE has proved to be a disastrous piece of legislation
- But Government decision to scrap the no-detention policy (NDP), is an important first step towards mitigating some of its worst consequences
Deteriorating Educations standards due to NDP
- According to the “Annual Status of Education Report” (Aser), less than 48% of children in class V can read a class II-level textbook
- Only 43.2% of class VIII students in rural India can do simple divisions
- Only one out of every four students in class V could read an English sentence
Views of Other Government Authorities on NDP
- The NDP has also been found to be faulty by the comptroller and auditor general as well as the Central Advisory Board of Education
- More than 20 states and union territories have asked for the policy to be either scrapped or modified
Arguments in favor of NDP
- NDP supporters claim that the objective of the policy was to keep students in school and prevent dropouts and in that, it has succeeded
- But, What is the point of students staying in school if they are barely learning anything at all?
Other issues with RTE that worsen the effect of NDP
- One of the main issues with the RTE Act is that it heavily focus on inputs while effectively ignores outputs
- It doesn’t offer any benchmarks for learning outcomes or link teacher assessment to student performance