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The Chandigarh Administration has rightly sought permission from the Centre to implement the changes made to the Right to Education Act. Due to the no-detention policy, the standard of education has fallen. Many Class VIII students are unable to do basic mathematics.
MPS Chadha, Mohali
Review policy, focus on weak students
The no-detention policy should certainly be reviewed. For poor results, teachers, parents and students should be equally blamed. Those failing in the annual exam should be given a mid-term chance to improve their result. During the summer break, dedicated teachers should be deputed to take classes of weak students. Teachers should be rewarded for their good work.
Harish Kapur, Chandigarh
Promote good students to higher classes
The Chandigarh Administration has sought the nod of the Ministry of Home Affairs to implement the amendments made to the Right to Education Act-2009 as it wants to hold back tho students who fail in Classes V and VIII from the next academic session. The decision should be welcomed. The no-detention policy should be scrapped. Education is the right of all. The government is providing facilities to educate people of the country. The rest depends on children. They need to work hard, gain knowledge and improve their capabilities. The no-detention policy has benefited non-performers, deteriorating the quality of education. Only hard-working students should be promoted to higher classes.
Rashi Srivastava, Chandigarh
Detain worst performing
Primary education is a fundamental right of every citizens, for which the state government should provide the required facilities. The decision of holding back the students who fail in the exam is a laudable step. If promoted to the higher class despite poor results, students won’t study seriously. Therefore, the no-detention should be scrapped.
SS Arora, Mohali
Will improve standard of school education
Detaining the students whop fail in examinations is a good move. The no-detention policy had made students careless. This also laid a weak foundation. The policy should have been discontinued earlier as the standard of education had fallen due to it. Students had started missing their classes and parents had got relaxed. On the other hand, teachers were stressed to give better results. The discontinuation of the policy will go a long way in improving the literacy level among children. It is also expected from teachers to pay a full attention to their students so that they do not fall into the trap of tuitions.
Col KJ Singh (retd)
Need good teachers, check dropout rate
The no-detention policy impacted the quality of education. This was done to check the dropout rate. Only in rare cases, students improve their result. There is also a need for quality teachers so that students study properly. Our policy at present is to bring the maximum number of children to schools. So, the present policy should continue.
Bharat Bhushan Sharma
Current policy lays a weak foundation
Detaining students for failing the exam in Classes V and VIII is a good and progressive step. The no-detention policy only spoiled children, weakening their foundation. They had taken their promotion to higher classes for granted, making them careless and disinterested in studies. It was difficult for teacher to make weak students catch up with the course. The fear of detention will force them to take studies seriously. It is good that sanity has been restored.
Vidya Sagar Garg, Panchkula
Let school kids face fear of failure
The decision of the Chandigarh Administration should be appreciated. Those who do not perform satisfactorily should be detained. This should be done to maintain the quality of education. Had there been no check in the form of board examinations, teachers and students would not have cared about the annual examinations. The no-detention policy rendered the whole system ineffective.The quality of education at the primary and secondary levels should be improved. This will instil confidence among students and make them string enough to take up the challenge of higher education. Promotion to the higher class without assessment through exams is akin to cheating students.
Bhupinder S Sealopal, Mohali
Can’t compromise on standard of education
As a teacher, I feel holding back the students who fail in Classes V and VIII class is a right decision. Having taught in schools for the past 30 years, I have seen both sides of the coin. When you promote a to higher classes, the figures may look impressive but not children. When a Class VIII student is unable to read or write properly or fail to do simple calculations, what use is the education has for him? So, we will produce a literate youth with an illiterate mind and misplaced feelings. So, lets respect the concept of merit and promote only those who deserve. This will bring realism and shake parents, who need to take more interest in studies of their children. Teachers, too, should go an extra mile to help weak children despite compromising on educational standards.
Madhu Singh, Ambala Cantt
Make education part of union list
It is a matter of shame that still after more than 70 years of Independence, the country is experimenting with education and its curriculum. The no-detention policy will destroy the nation. I don’t know what our HRD Ministry is doing? The HRD Ministry will have to decide as to what kind of country it wants. Only then a policy should be decided. Immediately, education should be made a part of the union list. Every child has different aptitude and attitude.
PK Patpatia, Ambala
Stick to stance
The decision of the Chandigarh Administration to hold back the students who fail in Classes V and VIII from the next academic session is a step in the right direction. Students are the future of any country. If nor property education, the future of the country will be in the dark. It is necessary to filter undeserving students at Classes V and VIII. They should be detained on failing to perform satisfactorily in the examinations. The talent never goes waste. There should also be strict control over cheating in examinations to ensure that undeserving students are not promoted at the cost of deserving students. The Chandigarh Administration should stick to its stance in the interest of students and the country.
Rajendra Kumar Garg, Zirakpur
Hold back students in rarest of rare case
Only those students should be detained who perform poorly in the exams. Detention will hurt them mentally and physically. One should be very careful in detaining them in the same class. This policy should be used in the rarest of the rare cases.
RK Kapoor, Chandigarh
Weak students require extra care by teachers
I am of the firm opinion that we should not hold back those students who fail in Classes V and VIII from the next academic session. It is a sort of punishment for them. Instead, special care should be taken to bring them on a par with brilliant students. Weak students should be brought under good teachers, who should be rewarded for better results.
Tarlok Singh, MHC, Mani Majra
Be sincere in dealing with situation
The no-detention policy adversely impacts the future of a child. The policy should be scrapped as it has a negative impact on the standard of education. Teachers, too, lack interest in teaching. There is a need to maintain sincerity while dealing with the situation. It is high time to to remove the flaws that plague out education system.
Gunjan Sahota, Pinjore
Decision taken in haste
The UT Administration’s proposal is a welcome move. However, it seems the decision has been taken in a haste without much consideration. Only students belonging to Classes VIII and X should be detained, not of Class V. It is a fact that none of the students fail in Class V. This happens only in higher classes, mainly due to non-serious attitude of students towards studies. The HRD Ministry needs to amend it’s directive. The detention in primary classes can have a psychological impact on a children. They won’t be able to understand the implications of such a decision.
Rajiv Boolchand Jain, Zirakpur
Implement idea from current session
Government institutions work at a snail’s pace. The proposal should have been implemented from the current academic session. It will make teachers accountable and improve the quality of education, especially in government schools. The ill-conceived no-detention policy has ruined the school education.
KC Rana, Chandigarh
Delayed amendment
The government took almost a decade to amend the RTE Act. The delay wasted resources and children dropped out after failing in Class X. The policy also made children non-serious in studies and a decline was witnessed in the learning level. It is right to detain weak students. The need is to supplement teaching in lower classes with persuasion, incentives, motivation and attention. Causes behind poor results should be addressed, which are more of social and financial factors. Nevertheless, government’s efforts in this direction are laudable, only their pace requires to be accelerated.
Lalit Bharadwaj, Panchkula
Fear of failure a great motivator
I passed Class VIII in 1960. My Class VIII certificate was framed and hung on a wall at my parental home. Those days, passing Class V and VIII were prominent events in one’s life. One used to get employment after passing Class X. Today, the scenario is dismal. Most of our graduates, including engineering graduates, are unemployed. The reason for this is our weak education system. In an effort to increase the gross enrolment ratio, the government experimented with it and introduced the no-detention policy. The has hit the quality of education with students not being able to do simple mathematics and read properly. Today, there are many diversions for students to pursue. They are glued to cellphone games and TV, knowing that they will be promoted to the next class. So, education is not a priority for them. The fear of failure is a great motivator. It prompts us to work hard. It also motivates schoolteachers. This will also improve the character, personality and health of students. The no-detention policy was an error which should be removed. The Chandigarh Administration has taken a right step.
Gursharan Bedi, Mohali
Form committee to detain students
There is no harm in detaining week students. They will not be able for bear the pressure of higher classes, if promoted. They may drop out, feeling mentally disturbed. The decision to hold back student should be taken by a panel comprising the DO, Principal and a schoolteacher, subject to an approval from seniors officials.
Anokh Singh Kahlon, Mohali
Improve teaching methods in schools
The amendment has aimed at improving learning outcomes. However, it doesn’t target the crux of the problem. It’s good to test students at a young age and hold them back in the event they fail their exam, but the real problem is not the absence of exams or lack of detention, it’s the method of teaching and inadequacy of teacher-training programmes. The lack of focus on critical thinking is one of the problems. A Bill can’t fix the problem.
Sanjay Chopra, Mohali
Open House response
QUESTION
The excessive use of paver blocks has posed a threat to the greenery in the city. Should the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation stop the use of paver blocks and switch over to other options?
Suggestions in not more than 70 words can be sent to openhouse@tribunemail.com
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