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REVIEW OF EDUCATIONAL ACTS AND BILLS

A bill is proposed legislature under consideration by a legislature. A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature and in cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an Act or a Statute.

The constitution of India came into force on January 26, 1950. It includes quite naturally Education as the right to each and every citizen of India to fulfil the hopes and aspirations of the individual and the nation.

The constitutional provisions regarding education in India includes several acts and bills which includes the following

1)      Article 21 A – Education as the fundamental right

The 86^th constitutional amendment bill adds the new article i.e.., Article 21A it states that ‘The state shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of 6 to 14 years in such a manner as the state may, by law, determine.’

2)     Article 28 – The freedom as to attendance at religious instruction or worship in educational institution.

Sub articles of Article 28

a)     Article 28 (1) states ‘no religious instruction shall be provided in any institutions wholly maintained out of state funds’

b)     Article 28 (2) states ‘nothing in clause (1) shall apply to an educational institution which administered by the state but has been established under any endowment or trust which requires that religious instruction shall be imparted in such institutions.’

c)      Article 28 (3) states ‘no person attending any educational institution recognized by the state or receiving aid out of state funds shall be required to take part in any religious instruction that may be imparted in such institutions or to attend any religious worship that may be conducted in such institutions or in any premises attached thereto unless such person is a minor, his guardian has given his consent there to.’

3)     Article 29 – Equality of opportunity in educational institutions

‘No citizens shall be denied admission into any educational institution maintained by the state or receiving aid out of state funds on grounds only of religion, caste, race, language or any one of them.’

4)     Article 30 – Right of the minorities to establish and administrate educational institutions

5)     Article 45 – Free and compulsory education up to the age of 14

6)     Article 46 – Special care to the promotion of education and economic interests of the scheduled caste and scheduled tribes and the weaker sections of the society.

‘The state shall promote with special care the educational and economic interest of the weaker sections of the people and in particular of the scheduled caste and scheduled tribes, and shall protect them from social injustice and all forms of exploitation.’

7)     Article 337 – Special provision with respect to educational grants for the benefits of Anglo Indian community

8)     Article 350 – ‘ it shall be the endeavour of every state to provide adequate facilities for the instruction in the mother tongue at the primary stage of education to children belonging to linguistic minority group and the president may issue such directions to any state as he considers necessary or proper for securing the provision of such facilities.’

a)     Article 350 A – Facilitate for instruction in mother tongue at primary stage.

b)     Article 350 B – Special offer for linguistic minorities.

9)     Article 351 – Development and promotion of the Hindi language.

‘It is the special responsibility of the centre to develop the national language i.e.., Hindi so that it may serve as a medium of instruction for all the elements of the composite culture of India.’

10) Article 14 – Equality before law

       Equal educational bearing

11)  Article 15 – Education for women

a)     Article 15(1) states ‘the state shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of sex.’

b)     Article 15(3) states ‘the constitution empowers the state to make special provision for women including their education.’

The seventh schedule of the Indian constitution contains legislative powers under three Lists

1)      Union list –

a)     Entry 13 – provide educational and cultural relations with foreign countries

b)     Entry 62 – the institutions known at the commencement of the constitution as national library, the Indian museum, the imperial war museum, the Victoria memorial and Indian war memorial. Any other such institutions financed by the Government of India wholly or in part and declared by the parliament by law to be an institution of national importance.

c)      Entry 63 – Institutions of national importance

d)     Entry 64 – scientific and technical education financed by the Government of India having national importance

e)      Entry 65 – agencies and institutions for professional, vocational or technical training including the training in police officers, promotion of special studies or research etc

f)       Entry 66 – coordination and determination of standards in the institutions of higher education and research and scientific and technical institutions.

2)     State list – Entry 12 – All libraries, museum and other similar institutions controlled or functioned by the state, ancient and historical monuments and records other than those declared by or under law made by the parliament to be of the national importance.

3)     Concurrent list –

a)     Entry 20 – Economic and social planning.

b)     Entry 25 – Education includes technical education, medical education and universities subjects to provision of entries 63, 64, 65, 66 of union list.

c)      Entry 34 – Newspapers, books and printing presses.

INDIAN EDUCATION ACTS

Education act (with its variation) is a stock short title used for legislature in Australia. Hong kong, india, Malaysia, new Zealand, the united kingdom and the united states that relates to education. The bill for an Act with this short title will have been known as education bill during its passage through parliament.

The education Acts may be a generic name either for legislation bearing that short title or for all legislation which relates to education. A number of Acts were passed regarding the educational developments in India following the Saddler commission.

The Saddlers commission introduced a new scheme of educational procedure in India. Moreover due to the Montague Chelmsford Reports of 1919, the department of education was transferred to the control of the popular ministers in the various provinces. The main objective of the commission was ‘to inquire into the condition and prospects of the University of Calcutta and to consider the question of a constructive policy in relation to the question it present’. The central government ceased to take direct interest in the field of educational reforms. The department of Education in the government of India was merged with the other departments. Above all the grant of five crores by the central government was discontinued. The financial difficulties prevented the provincial governments from taking up ambitious schemes of educational expansion or improvement. Despite all these hazards here was a considerable development in the field of education mostly by the philanthropic effort. The commission recommended for

·         Creation of board of secondary education in the provinces

·         Making education a provincial subject

·         Separation of secondary education from the university education

·         Establishment of university grants commission

The Hartog committee, 1929, this committee was appointed to survey the growth of education in British india. It ‘devoted far more attention to mass education than secondary University Education. The quantitative increase of the education subsequently reduced to the quality of the education of the education provided in the Indian schools, colleges and universities. There was a continuous dissatisfaction about the entire system and the procedure of education. The Indian statutory commission appointed a commission to survey into the whole system. After a prolonged review the Hartog committee submitted its report. The Hartog committee emphasized primarily on the national importance of primary education. Instead of expansion of the education the commission recommended for the consolidation and the improvements of the education procedure. For secondary education the commission reported that the system was dominated by the matriculation examination. As a result many undeserving students considered it the path to the university education. As a result the education system was hampered. The commission therefore recommended for the selective system of admission. Criticizing the policy of university education it recommended improvement of the university work so that sit could provide proper instructions of the students. The important measures suggested are

·         Adoption of the policy of consolidation in place of multiplication of schools

·         Fixation of the duration of primary course to four years

·         Improvement in the quality, training, status, pay, service condition of teachers

·         Relating the curricula and methods of teaching to the conditions of villages in which children live and read

·         Adjusting school hours and holidays to seasonal and local requirements

·         Increasing the number of government inspection staff.

Wardha schemes of basic education the government of India Act 1935 introduced the provincial autonomy and popular came into power in seven provinces. The ministers started functioning from the year 1937. The congress party sought to devise a national scheme of education for the country. The scheme aims for the Free and Compulsory Education for 7-14 years boys and girls. In 1937 mahatma Gandhi proposed for the scheme of basic education in his paper “The Harijan”. This scheme of basic education was known as Wardha schemes of basic education. The main principle the basic education was learning through activity. The Zakir Hussain committee worked out the details of the schemes of basic education. Moreover the committee also planned for the detailed syllabi for a number of crafts. The committee also made suggestions for the training of the teachers, supervision, administration and examination. The core the basic education scheme was manual productive work. The scheme of basic education envisaged a seven-year course in vernacular languages. The outbreak of the war in 1939 and the resignation of congress ministers led to the postponement of the scheme.

Sergeant plan education in 1944 the central Advisory board of education drew up a national scheme of education popularly known as the sergeant plan. The scheme was named after sir john sergeant, who was the educational advisor to the government of India.

The sergeant plan recommended the junior and the basic level of education. The plan at the time envisaged the introduction of universal free and compulsory education for all children between the ages of 6-11years. Moreover the sergeant scheme also recommended for the school of courses to the children between age groups of 11 and 17. According to the plan the high schools would be of two kinds- academic and the technical or vocational. However the sergeant plan also recommended the abolition of the intermediate course and the addition of any extra year at the high schools and the college stage. The sergeant scheme envisaged a forty years educational reconstruction plan for the country.

·         Education provision for physically and mentally disabled children

·         The organisation of compulsory physical education

·         Provision to social and recreational activities

·         The creation of department of education in the centres and in the states

·         The use of  mother tongue is to be used as the medium of instruction in all high schools

Radhakrishnan committee in November 1948 the government of India appointed a commission under the chairmanship of Dr. Sarvepilli Radhakrishnan to submit report on the university education and to suggest for the improvements of the universities. The important recommendations made by the committee were submitted in august 1949. The commission recommended for a twelve year of pre university educational course. According the commission working days in the university should not less than 180 in the years exclusive of the examination days. The commission proposed for a strategy of higher education. The higher education proposed by the commission should have three main objectives; general education, liberal education and the occupational education. More emphasis should be given on the subjects like agriculture, commerce, education, engineering, technology, medicine and law. Important measures should be taken to improve the condition and standard of the existing engineering and the technical colleges. The commission declared that only the university degree would not be considered as the essential eligibility for the administrative services. The scale of pay of the university grant commission should be setup to look after the university education in the country.

University grant commission prior to the recommendations of the Radhakrishnan commission, the university grant commission was constituted in 1953. The commission was given an autonomous statutory status by an Act of parliament in 1956. The commission was principally entrusted with the charge of the matters related to the education. This included the determination and co-ordination of the standard and the facilities for study. The commission was asked to make a thorough research about these matters. The central government annually places at the disposal of the university grant commission adequate funds. The funds were required to implement the new development schemes.

Kothari education commission To review the national condition of education and to plan developmental schemes for the education, an educational and to plan developmental schemes for the education, an education commission was appointed by the government of India under the chairmanship of Dr. S Kothari in July 1964. The Kothari commission was also instructed to advise the government about the principles and policies to be adopted for the development of education. The commission recognized that education and research were crucial to the entire development and progress of socio-economic and the cultural progress of the country. At the same time the commission also condemned the rigidity of the existing system of education. The commission recommended for the introduction of the work experience and the social services as the integral part of general education. Emphasis was given on the moral education, which could inculcate a sense of social responsibility. The commission also recommend vocationalisation of the secondary education and strengthening the centres of advanced study to set up the universities providing education of international standard was recommended by the commission.

Apart from this commission, there was National policy on education and New Education policy, which were appointed by the government of India with the aim to develop the standard and the condition of education in India.

KERALA EDUCATIONAL ACT

The educational bill was introduced in the Kerala assembly by Professor Joseph Mundasseri, who was then the education minister for the first elected (1957) communist party of India government. This bill was aimed at eradicating the malpractices prevalent in the private sector educational institutions and attempts to regulate the educational institution’s functions, including standardizing syllabi and pay structures. The Syrian Christian church and Nair service society, along with opposition parties, including Indian National congress, started the liberation struggle to overthrow the E.M.S. Namboodiripad government. This bill along with land reforms ordinance and other agricultural legislation, imparted drastic changes in Kerala society, and paved the way for the natural death of feudalistic society in Kerala.

·         To give the departmental rules and practices legal sanction so that the department is in a position to enforce its afforded to teachers.

·         To regulate the choice, appointment, conditions of service, etc, of teachers in private schools without curtailing the supervisory powers of managers.

·         To secure authority for government to proceed effectively against grossly mismanaged schools.

·         To set up a high-level advisory board to guide Government in the matter of framing educational policies and to constitute, at district level, local authorities comprising elected representatives of local educational interests to assists the departments for the better conduct of educational affairs.

Even though the education bill failed to pass through the assembly many of its provisions were later implemented by subsequent governments with amendments.

The right to children to free and compulsory education act or right to education act also known as RTE, is an act of the parliament of India enacted on 4 august 2009 which describes the modalities of the importance of free and compulsory education for children between 6-14 in India under article 21A  of the Indian constitution. India became one of 135 countries to make education a fundamental right of every child when the act came into force on April 2010.

The right to children to free and compulsory education act

REFERENCE

Aggarwal,  J.  C.  (2004).  Landmark in the History of Modern Indian Education.                                                        pp(77-83),  Vikas Publishing  House,  Newdelhi.

Bhatt,  B.  D.  (1995).  Modern Indian Education Planning and Development.                                                    Kanishka Publishers Distributors.

http://www.education.tas.gov