The Constitution (Eighty-sixth Amendment) Act, 2002 inserted Article 21 A in the Constitution of India which envisages free and compulsory education for all children in the age group of six to fourteen years as a Fundamental Right in such a manner as the State may, by law, determine. Consequentially, the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009 entitles every child of the age of six to fourteen year with the right to free and compulsory education in a neighbourhood school till completion of elementary education.

Other Major provisions of Right to Education Act, 2009

• Children with disabilities including mental illness, mental retardation, blindness, and hearing loss, shall also have right to education.
• A child above six years of age who is not enrolled in school or was unable to complete his education shall be enrolled in an age appropriate class. Furthermore, these children have a right to receive special training in order to reach their peer group level.
• Recently, the Act was amended to empower the central or state government to allow schools to hold back a child in class 5, class 8, or in both classes. Earlier, no child could be held back in any class until the completion of elementary school (classes 1-8).
• The Act also lays down the Pupil Teacher Ratio

1.  Primary Level – 30:1
2.  Upper Primary Level – 35:1
3.  Secondary Level – 30:1 (According to Rashtriya Madhyamik Shisksha Abhiyan)

• No child shall be subject to physical punishment or mental harassment.
• Schools shall constitute School Management Committees (SMC) comprising local authority officials, parents and guardians, and teachers. The SMC shall monitor the school and utilisation of government grants, prepare a school development plan, and perform any other functions as prescribed.
• Private schools have to set aside 25% quota for students belonging to weaker sections and disadvantaged groups from their neighbourhoods for free education.

Issues with RTE ACT, 2009

• It provides for the right to schooling and physical infrastructure but does not guarantee the quality of education.
• Even the teacher’s duties are only related to punctuality, attendance, etc, and not to learning achievements of their students.
• Despite a number of government programmes including Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, data shows that many students are performing well below their grade levels.
• Provision of neighbourhood schools has led to poor learning outcomes due to lack of physical infrastructure, untrained teachers and poor pupil teacher ratio.

Way Forward to Improve School Education

• A time-bound program should be launched so that all children should have age appropriate basic literacy and numeracy skills.
• The RTE Act made a range of other promises such as upgrading infrastructure, upgrading quality of teaching and regular assessment through CCE. It has to go hand in hand.
• Education quality in India could be improved by hiring and assessing teachers on merit, rigorous mapping of learning outcomes and rewards for schools that do well.
• NCERT has developed learning indicators to determine expected learning outcomes of all classes covering all subjects.
• NCERT has also developed a framework for Performance Indicators for Elementary School Teachers (PINDICS) and shared it with States.                     • There should be consequences if schools fail to meet the minimum learning outcomes like free tutoring, public school choice, school restructuring, firing of teachers, or school closure.
• Introduction of technology based study models so that pupils passing out secondary school have the required skill to carry out daily tasks in an increasingly technology driven world.
• RTE should cover the entire spectrum of 18 years. Guaranteed inclusion will empower those in the 14-18 years and will help them getting vital foundational knowledge in order to get inclusion in the workforce.
• Drop-out cases involving lack of funds and loss of interest must be creatively tackled. Policies such as free bicycles in Bihar have been successful in increasing enrolment by improving mobility of training of teachers, monitoring, availability of basic infrastructure, school and home environment etc.