The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 (RTE for short) is certainly a landmark development in India’s attempts to universalise elementary education. However, there is some confusion in its pedagogical and curricular vision, which, if not cleared in time, can mar its potential for achieving its objectives.

There is much more to the Right to Education than mere reservations for underprivileged children.

Educational issues usually attract headlines when a controversy emerges. Controversies have differing levels of substance, ranging from the truly important to the totally irrelevant. There has been a clutch of such issues that have grabbed headlines in the past months. These include, poor learning levels in our schools, cartoons boiling the feelings of a few and getting expunged, and a list of holidays in a school book determinedly ignoring all holidays other than the ones related to religious festivals of the “majority” community, among other issues.

Tripura's proclaimed progress in ensuring high attendance and sufficient numbers of teachers doesn't stand up to scrutiny. There are many holes in the numbers as well as quality.

The hard thing is that you cant infuse jaan by donating books or legislating, it can come only from love.