In a major decision, a provision of ‘no detention, no exam’ till Class VIII under Right to Education (RTE) is likely to be reviewed with many States opposing the contentious provision. Many States feel that the provision has failed to achieve its purpose and is hampering the quality of school education.
A study by HRD Ministry has also suggested that commitment of students to education has declined at the primary level and they were scoring less in Board examinations. Sources in the HRD Ministry said that as many as 19 States have opposed the existing system with strong indications that the Ministry will seek a review of the provision. Sources also said that the committee is likely to suggest a system of screening students since the policy of “no exam” at primary level is making students lackadaisical and teachers non-serious. The continuous promotion provision was made part of the RTE law as educationists felt detaining a child in a class would affect motivation.
The sub-committee, headed by Haryana Education Minister Geeta Bhukkal, will submit the report to HRD Ministry’s Department of School Education and literacy later this month to deliberate on the issue. “Unfortunately we have done away with the traditional system of assessment but have not been able to substitute it with the required contentious and comprehensive evaluation in classes as conceived in the scheme of things,” Bhukkal told The Pioneer.
The sub-committee report has highlighted a study, including one by NCERT, which suggested a downward trend at primary level and Board results where pass percentage has dipped since children are facing their first public examination at Class X level. The RTE Act has to be amended in the event of the Government going with her report. Tripura Government has already passed a resolution in the State Assembly opposing it. A study by NGO Pratham too has found that the learning outcome of children has gone down in the past three years, the period during which the RTE Act came into force.
“The committee feels a student may not be motivated to work hard to learn if he or she is aware that promotion to the next grade is guaranteed. The committee would like the HRD to rethink its policy of automatic promotion up to Class VIII,” said another member of the sub-committee, requesting anonymity.
A Parliamentary Standing Committee on HRD has already pointed that automatic promotion till Class VIII “may hamper children’s attitude to learning and has suggested a policy rethink”. The panel highlighted continuous promotion as a threat to motivated learning among children. Under the RTE, no child should be detained up to Class VIII but this system of continuous promotion can be done away with by amending the RTE Act, said a HRD Ministry official. Bhukkal said the sub-committee, which she heads, would meet the Parliamentary panel in this regard.
While rule does not abolish examination at elementary levels, the RTE says that schools can introduce continuous and comprehensive evaluation (CCE), a series of tests throughout the year to assess the scholastic and extra-curricular aptitude of children. With regards to CCE, Bhukkal said even this is not feasible in view of vacancy of teachers in Government schools in all the States.