2019-08-01_Reader_s_Digest_India

infrastructure. The fraction of schools

with usable girls’ toilets doubled,

reaching 66.4 per cent in 2018, ac-

cording to Aser Centre’s Annual Status

of Education Report (ASER), the only

source of information on children’s

learning outcomes in the country.

The proportion of schools with

boundary walls registered an increase

of 13.4 percentage points to stand at

64.4 in 2018. The percentage of schools

with a kitchen shed increased from

82.1 to 91. Schools with books, other

than textbooks, increased from 62.6 to

74.2 per cent over the same period, the

NGO’s report added.

KEY SHORTCOMINGS

Its biggest failings have remained low

learning levels, the lack of qualified

teachers and compliance with section

12(1)(c) of the RTE law, that requires

private schools to reserve 25 per cent

of seats for underprivileged children.

According to ASER, numeracy and

literacy standards remain sub-par,

and are, in many instances, lower than

standards recorded in 2008.

72 august 2019

The RTE was enacted at

a time when India was

already on a path to achieve

steady enrolment rates.

The RTE law has helped

in improving infrastructure

and quality of schools but

it has failed to bring about

a focus on improving

foundational skills.

The RTE Act did not

undermine learning

outcomes, but it failed

to explictly focus on

this challenge. India’s

education system is

reaching that trajectory

now. What the RTE did

was that it started a conver-

sation around education in

this country. But there was

a complete disconnect

between imagination of

the law and its

implementation.

Yamini Aiyar,

President & Chief Executive,

Centre for Policy Research

Lack of social inclusion is one

of the biggest failings of the

RTE law. The beneficiaries of

the Act are facing various

challenges. There are three

categories of schools in India.

Elite schools, middle- and

lower-income schools. The

Saleem Khan

Director,

SAARAS Foundation

Reader’s Digest