Page 116 - EW November 2023

Special Report

NCF 2005: Pious intent of Quota cloud over private Reservation shadow over Taxes down the drain: Little
liberation charter? schools campus India learning in government schools
The National Curriculum On June 30, 2005, a On April 5, 2006 Union The Annual Status of
Framework (NCF) 2005 special committee chaired human resource devel- Education Report (ASER)
for School Education by legal luminary Kapil opment minister Arjun 2005 — the country’s first
was put under a micro- Sibal recommended that Singh announced that the independent nationwide
scope. While lauding NCF 25 percent of capacity 17-party coalition UPA survey of rural primary
2005 for being brilliantly in elementary education government has approved education — published by
written and “connecting (class I-VIII) in private his ministry’s proposal the Pratham Education
knowledge to life outside schools should be reserved to reserve an additional Foundation confirmed
the school; ensuring that for poor children in their 27 percent capacity in suspicion that post-inde-
learning is shifted away neighbourhoods. Our all Central government- pendence India’s elemen-
from rote methods; en- cover story warned this promoted universities tary (primary) education
riching the curriculum to government quota would and institutes (JNU, IITs, effort has been a mas-
provide for overall devel- become the thin end of IIMs, AIIMS, etc) for OBC sive failure. ASER 2005
opment of children rather a wedge for incremental (other backward classes/ revealed that almost 60
than remain textbook cen- government interference castes) students. The percent children in classes
tric, and making examina- in the administration and ramifications of this addi- V-VIII of rural schools
tions more flexible and operations of India’s pri- tional reservation proposal cannot read a simple story
integrated with classroom vate schools. (EW Septem- which threatened to dilute of class III level difficulty.
life”, we criticised it for ber 2005) academic standards were The report and EW’s
fudging the vital question examined in detail in this detailed story prompted a
of the resource mobilisa- cover feature. (EW May national debate on finding
tion effort required to 2006) solutions to the problems
implement its recommen- of deficient infrastructure,
dations. (EW July 2005) unsatisfactory learning
outcomes, and chronic
teacher absenteeism in
EducationWorld India’s Most rural schools. (EW March
Respected Schools 2006)
The inaugural Education-
World India’s Most Re-
spected Schools Rankings
field-based survey rating
and ranking 83 schools
was published. Since then,
this annual survey has
evolved into the annual
EW India School Rank- 4,000 schools in 434 cities
ings — the world’s largest and towns countrywide
and most comprehensive across 14 parameters of
school rankings survey — K-12 education excellence. To read EW turning point lead features visit EW Archives on
rating and ranking over (EW August 2007) www.educationworld.in

116 EDUCATIONWORLD NOVEMBER 2023