The Centre has revised the financial allocation under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act over the next five years. As against the Rs.1,71,000 crore suggested earlier, the Finance Ministry has now approved an allocation for Rs.2,31,000 crore.

The Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC) under the Finance Ministry has also agreed to increase the Centre's share effectively to 68 per cent and reduce the State share to 32 per cent for implementing the Right to Education (RTE) Act, which makes elementary education compulsory for children in the age groups of six to 14 years.

The total outlay approved by the EFC includes Rs.24,000 crore allocated to the States by the 13{+t}{+h} Finance Commission. The Centre's share of this amount will be at 65 per cent and that of the States at 35 per cent. However, when the Rs.24,000 crore awarded by the Commission is taken into account, the Centre's share effectively works out to 68 per cent, while that of the States' is 32 per cent.

State governments had been demanding a higher share from the Centre while expressing their inability to implement the Act. The higher allocation of Rs.2,31,000 crore was required on account of the cost of harmonising the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) with RTE norms.

The National University of Educational Planning and Administration initially estimated that the requirement of funds for implementing the RTE Act over five years would be Rs.1,71,000 crore.

The RTE Act requires primary classes to have a pupil-teacher ratio of 1:30 and upper primary classes a ratio of 1:35, against the SSA ratio of 1:40. The Act also has the norm of one classroom per teacher, which increases the number of classrooms and teachers required, and implementing these norms would increase fund requirement.

The EFC gave its seal of approval to providing a one-time grant to help States ensure that all primary schools have five grades — classes one to five — and upper primary, classes six to eight.

Financial support will also be provided for residential schools in thinly populated areas and urban centres, where the focus would be on street children and migrants' children. In sparsely populated areas, support will also be provided for transport systems for students.

The new academic session has been momentous for Harini’s parents. The LKG student has overcome her disability (she has mild Down’s syndrome) to get admission into Children’s Garden Higher Secondary School. “It was always our wish to see her go to a regular school. Seeing her travel on bus, taking part in activities and lessons with 20-25 children in her class and slowly getting to play with other children makes us happy,” says S. Bharathi, the child’s mother.

Harini’s case is an example of mainstreaming, thanks to the intervention of parents and the Madhuram Narayanan Centre for Exceptional Children where she was groomed.

While many children have been successfully mainstreamed, thanks to the efforts of non-governmental organisations or government body, very little has happened from an educational institution per se, say activists. The School Education Department’s circular to schools issued a few days ago also asks managements to implement the RTE Act.

The Act says free and compulsory education must be provided to all children, including disabled children in the 6-14 age group.

A couple of awareness drives this week aim to address this message – if some schools can go for inclusive education; all can do. Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) in association with the Spastic Society of Tamil Nadu carried a drive in north Chennai on Tuesday. A puppet show was part of the awareness programme. On Wednesday, VidyaSagar will conduct an awareness drive in Corporation Primary School, CIT Nagar.

“But, it is not easy to mainstream children with varying levels of disabilities, parents expectations and school’s requirements,” says Jaya Krishnaswamy, Director, Madhuram Narayanan Centre for Exceptional Children. “It takes three years for a child to be mainstreamed. We have cases were teachers cannot cope, they need to have a missionary zeal,” she says. From sending children to Children’s Garden School, Ms. Krishnaswamy says today parents have started identifying more schools and the preparation goes on for a year.

In 2004-2005, Lady Andal Venkatasubbarao Matriculation Higher Secondary School enrolled three children with cerebral palsy. Shalini Pillay, Principal, says the school continues to enrol such children and it is possible because of the restricted number of students in each class (30) and disabled-friendly infrastructure added over the years.

“Photocopies of class notes are provided to them at the time of exam and teachers coach them separately if need be. They are just like normal children, sometimes they get hyperactive. For those who cannot do experiments or manage to study 10 subjects, we send them to the National Institute of Open Schooling,” she says. SSA has been streamlining over 5,000 children every year to various intervention centres such as government schools, home based education and day care centres, but more community awareness needs to be created, add officials.

As the speakers addressed the gathering at Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan Senior Secondary School, Nungambakkam for the second of a series of inaugural programmes of The Hindu Newspaper in Education (NIE) programme on Monday, some students meticulously took down notes.

A few such as Vasudha Mishra were prepared to write a report. “I contribute for a children's website . Also, for events conducted in school a few of us prepare a report and read it out at the assembly,” said the class VIII student, who reads the newspaper regularly to follow up on stories.

This got underscored by the speakers at the event, too. Chief guest and Registrar of Tamil Nadu Dr. MGR Medical University Sudha Seshayyan said if the reading habit is cultivated in the right way, it can help even during times of crisis. “Reading contributes to wholesomeness of an individual,” said Dr. Seshayyan.

Mrs. Y. G. Parthasarathy, Dean and Director PSBB Group of Schools, said writing and reading are two habits one must inculcate. She asked students not to be carried away by media hype, and to empathise and respond to stories that genuinely touch them. Mohan Rajan, Director, Rajan Eye Care Hospital, recalled gathering news during his student days for the ‘Journal Club'. Apart from the host of activities that The Hindu NIE conducts for schools, this year it also plans to conduct a musical programme for teachers in August and a workshop of parents.

In a unique initiative to make up for the shortage of teachers in schools, the District Magistrate has launched a campaign ‘Vidyadaan’ under which district officials are visiting government-run educational institutes and teaching students.

The number of students enrolled in government-run schools is very high and there has been an acute shortage of teachers in these educational institutes.

Under the new campaign, all government officials have been directed to teach the students of government schools once a week, District Magistrate Mukesh Meshram told PTI.

There are about 400 primary and middle schools run by the government in the city catering to around 30,000 students. The teacher-student ratio in these schools is 1:100 and in some cases a single teacher is in charge of an entire school, he said.

Taking inspiration from the move, many NGOs and educated women from various households are coming forward to teach these children.

The DM is not only teaching but also providing students with stationery items such as pencil box, lunch box and school bags.

On being asked whether teachers will be recruited, he said, “It will take some time to recruit teachers. Meanwhile, government officers will educate children.” On whether there is a shortage of teachers in schools situated in villages, he said that surprisingly there are enough teachers in villages and only the city schools have inadequate number of teaching staff, and that is why the campaign has been specifically initiated in city-based schools.