New Delhi: Amid confusion among schools
about admission norms, Government has made it clear that
children or parents should not be subjected to "testing and
interview" and there should be no profiling based on education
qualification of parents.
Though the fresh guidelines issued under the Right to
Education Act state that the admissions will be based on
`random selection`, it allows schools to frame their own
admission policy to categorise students "on rational,
reasonable and just basis".
The clarification comes after several unaided and
aided schools sought clarification on procedure to be followed
for admission as section 13(1) of the Right to Education Act
states no school or person shall subject the child or his/her
parents to any "screening procedure".
According to the guidelines issued, admission
to 75 per cent seats in respect of unaided schools and
specified category schools, and for all the seats in the
aided schools, each school should formulate a policy under
which admissions are to take place.
"This policy should include criteria for
categorisation of applicants in terms of the objectives of the
school on a rational reasonable and just basis".
"There shall be no profiling of the child based on
parental educational qualifications. The policy should be
placed by the school in the public domain, given wide
publicity and explicitly seated in the school prospectus," the
guidelines said.
It further said there shall be no testing and
interviews for any child or parent falling within or outside
the categories, and selection would be on a random basis.
"Admissions in class 1 (or pre-primary class as the
case may be) in unaided and `specified category` under section
12(1)(c) of the RTE Act should be based on a system of `random
selection` out of the applications received," a statement said.
This procedure should be followed for filling the
pre-determined number of seats in that class, which should not
be not less than 25 per cent of the strength of the class.
Section 12(1)(c) of the Act states that unaided
schools and specified category schools shall admit at least 25
per cent of children belonging to weaker section from the
neighbourhood and provide them free and compulsory education
till completion of elementary education.
On madrassas and vedic pathshalas, the HRD Ministry
issued guidelines clarifying that as these institutes are
protected under Article 29 and 30 of the Constitution, the
"RTE Act will not come in the way of continuance of such
institutions or the rights of children in such institutions".
Bureau Report
