Right to education and homeschooling
Just came across an news item on RTE and Mr. Sibal’s views on it.
Kapil Sibal’s views on RTE Here is the extract from there
"The right of children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act 2009, wants every child to be in school, but if somebody decides not to send his/her children to school, we are not going to interfere. The compulsion is on the state and not on parent. Parents are free not to send their children to school, but teach them at home. We can not be micromanaging"
This seems to me an open ended statement without answering questions and concerns as listed below:
How does one certify home educated students when they have to enter into college or for formal education. Is there any system to grade them? Is there any system to ensure schools themselves don’t differentiate? Is there any system that ensures well laid out common curriculum for different classes across the country? Is there any bar on age, if no, then why there is so much fuss about minimum age admission?
Does it mean, govt. want to absolve themselves of responsibility of even rendering primary education to all kids in the country?
Then at later point in the same news, when parents insisted to make a provision in the act for homeschooling he said:
"He didn’t feel that govt should enact or provide any specific needs of “gifted and talented” children…"
Lets look at the positive side, sometimes given the state of education in schools in metros and the competition, I believe we ourselves can do a better teaching than schools at much lower the costs, if there is a framework and clearly laid out path for such scenarios. OR take our kids through tutions only which cater to smaller group and near to our home with more rigour and flexibility of timings..
I guess these changes are to come, given the cost of education and dirth of teachers. When state can’t do things for their citizens, masses have to do it on their own or private institutes run these services. I wonder how services like education and hospitals are getting commercialized which should have been state sponsored. Gurgaon is a live example of this. Checkout the article printed in Newyork Times Checkout following extract from there
more than half of urban Indian families pay to send their children to private schools rather than the free government schools, where teachers often do not show up for work
Recently, 100% cut-off related news for college admissions made headlines. I happen to meet a parent whose daughter got 73%. It seems for him all doors are closed, or the system is in denial mode? It feels very sad, when students/children who are productive hands for our poor country are not guided for their appropriate career or are denied of becoming capable to serve the nation. Where would such people go…Obviously they will remain unemployed not because of dirth of jobs but dirth of education opportunities.
I believe people in govt. positions don’t do their job or are overloaded or don’t even think about common man…That’s when civil disobedience, frustration slowly brews up…(it is just education, there are so many things..)
