THE HINDU Editorial Vocabulary - July 26, 2018 - Topic 1

Detention no cure: on RTE Act amendment

The legislation to amend the Right to Education Act to give States the power to detain students who fail an examination in Class 5 or 8 is a negative measure. Although many States want such a change, the amendment passed by the Lok Sabha goes against the view of many educationists, who argue that it would weaken one of the progressive features of the RTE Act, which is to guarantee the continued presence of the child in school during the formative learning phase. 

The proposed change will allow State Boards to declare a student failed and detain her on the basis of an examination, although Section 30(1) of the RTE Act holds out the assurance that no child shall be required to face any Board examination till completion of elementary education. There are genuine concerns on learning outcomes produced by India’s schooling system. But these are determined not only by a student’s effort but also by the number and quality of teachers, processes for continuous assessment and, crucially, active engagement of parents and the community in encouraging excellence. It is the lack of attention to some of these determinants that has created what Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar calls a “broken” school education system. Detaining already disadvantaged children can only break it further, and render the RTE Act a dead letter.

The case to replace the no-detention provision with one that reintroduces examinations in grades 3, 5 and 8 was made by a sub-committee of the Central Advisory Board of Education set up to review the provision, but its assumptions were faulty. For one, it concluded that the crucial guarantee could be implemented only under ideal conditions, and these were not available, while the pioneering RTE Act wanted to extend it to all grades within its purview. Yet, the provision is central to the objects of the law, since it seeks to check dropouts and enable all children to attend school in order to derive benefits that go beyond rote-learning. In fact, in 2016 the NITI Aayog found, based on a study in Punjab, that bringing back detention in elementary schooling would increase the dropout rate, impacting the poor and Dalits the most as they depended on government institutions. Besides, the proposed ‘cure’ may make another problem worse: when parents are unable to ensure regular attendance of children due to social circumstances, it is inconceivable that detaining them for non-performance will act as an incentive to attend school regularly. The move to introduce examinations as filters has not been fully thought through, and may be a hasty response to demands from State governments which want to be seen as acting firmly in favour of quality. Tinkering with the RTE Act without sufficient thought will erode a major constitutional achievement.

Vocabulary

Detain: keep someone in official custody, typically for questioning about a crime or in politically sensitive situations.

Example: She was detained without trial for two years

Synonyms: hold, take into custody, take (in), confine, imprison, lock up, put in jail

Against: physical contact with something, typically so as to be supported by or collide with it.

Example: She stood with her back against the door

Synonyms: touching, in contact with, up against, on, adjacent to

Progressive: happening or developing gradually or in stages; proceeding step by step.

Example: A progressive decline in popularity

Synonyms: continuing, continuous, increasing, growing, developing, ongoing

Although: in spite of the fact that

Example: Although the sun was shining it wasn't that warm

Synonyms: in spite of the fact that, despite the fact that

Determine: ascertain or establish exactly, typically as a result of research or calculation.

Example: Officials are working with state police to determine the cause of a deadly bus crash

Synonyms: ascertain, find out, discover, learn, establish, calculate, work out

Review: a formal assessment or examination of something with the possibility or intention of instituting change if necessary.

Example: A comprehensive review of defense policy

Synonyms: analysis, evaluation, assessment, appraisal, examination, investigation

Provision: the action of providing or supplying something for use.

Example: New contracts for the provision of services

Synonyms: supplying, supply, providing, giving, presentation, donation

Purview: the scope of the influence or concerns of something.

Example: Such a case might be within the purview of the legislation

Circumstance: a fact or condition connected with or relevant to an event or action.

Example: We wanted to marry but circumstances didn't permit

Synonyms: situation, conditions, state of affairs, position, events, turn of events

Erode: gradually wear away soil, rock, or land

Example: The cliffs have been eroded by the sea