While the controversy about providing 25 per cent reservation to students from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds in private schools under the Right to Education Act continues, Kendriya Vidyalaya schools might well be an example of how inclusive education can indeed be the norm and an ideal. A member of the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan told The Hindu that they have been providing 15 per cent reservation to Scheduled Castes and 7.5 per cent reservation for the Scheduled Tribes for many years. He said: “We get applications every year and students are chosen by lottery and are exempted from paying fees.”
The brief
V.M. Karkal, principal of Kendriya Vidyalaya, Jalahalli, said: “Our schools mainly focus on providing education to children of Central government employees (who have transferable jobs). But we have been advertising and trying to fill vaccines for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds.” This is to bring such students into the mainstream, he added.
Another senior Kendriya Vidyalaya principal said: “In each standard we have 160 students, 40 of whom are from the lower socioeconomic backgrounds.”
Confidential process
Shibala Singh, principal of the Kendriya Vidyalaya at DRDO, said that the application process is confidential and details are not revealed to any of the students.
Asked if students are being discriminated against, he said: “We have been following this for years now. We are oriented and trained to see that there is no discrimination.”
Principals from these schools said that filtering the applications and choosing the most eligible student has always been a challenge. A senior principal said that they give preference to those whose parents work for the Central and State governments, and autonomous bodies.
“After these categories are filled, we provide scholarships to students from other backgrounds,” the senior principal added.
A question
However, some students from the low income groups cannot afford to pursue their education in reputed institutions after they finish their school. On this, a senior principal said: “Once students finish their basic education, we believe they are capable of sustaining themselves.”
Keywords: RTE Act, school education
Moral hazards and lack of focus on racial issues can not be erased
despite different reservation status for most deprieved sections which
is being dominated by socio politico mafias which is totally impossible
because every positive commencement should have its own origin from its
own charter which should be like charity begins at home... Till social
learning is not there then conventional learning will have had the
vicious effect in the educational system..... So horrible.
Brilliant results by KV's every year are a signal of their success.
Kudos to KV's for making quality education affordable.
Sir,
Let the Central Govt opens as many kendriya vidyalayas as possible in each and every village for national integeration as well providing quality basic education.
Education be made central subject. States provide substandard education and so centre should intervene and open schools in all villages.
Nation building needs to be the priority of our educational institutions across our country. Our Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan Schools are showing the way. Good initiative.
It is very very important of a society that every kids must have education and it must be free to all. Sorry, we Indian are becoming more and more hopeless, we do discrimination with our own race. Education and Medication is a fundamental right of everyone and must be free for all and not to only few rich, it is against Indian Culture our great Rishis and Sadhus dedicated their Ashrams to teach equally to all. Each school must be of state and must provide high quality education, Like we have been successful like IIT and other government institutes.
Even though contractual system of appointment is in the process with payment on hours and working days basis (of course without job security ) and no other perquisites the daily wage for a newly appointed teacher is many fold higher than private schools where in teachers have put in decades of service . Here merit and originality speaks i think .
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