State to act against schools evading RTE: Education secretary
The Times of India, 02 July 2012

NAGPUR: Government aided minority schools in Nagpur which refused to admit students in the free 25% quota as mandated under the Right To Education (RTE) Act will face action. In a meeting with officials on Saturday in Nagpur, state school education secretary JS Saharia gave instructions to start a crackdown on schools which closed doors on students this academic year. Institutes like SFS High School, Tata Parsi etc claimed exemption from RTE, saying they come under the 'unaided minority' category.

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RTE just on paper; only 100 poor kids get admission
Daily News and Analysis, 28 June 2012

MUMBAI: Four-year-old Shubham Pal did not shed a tear on his first day to school. He was too busy admiring the surroundings, examining other children wearing the same uniform and polished shoes and carrying attractive water bottles. However, not everyone is as lucky as Shubham. DNA found that most private schools in Mumbai have been unable to fill quota seats despite RTE guidelines. The city has over 2,200 schools, but barely 100 students have secured admission under the 25% mandatory quota.

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Only 2 out of 2,500 schools apply for RTE
The Times of India, 01 July 2012

NAGPUR: While the mammoth Right to Education (RTE) Act's implementation is being pushed through by state government from this academic year itself, local authorities are struggling to find support from schools. On Saturday the deadline to apply for a certificate of recognition (COR) ended but only two out of the approximately 2,500 schools in the district had sent in their application. The COR is a mandatory document for all schools regardless of the board they are affiliated to.

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Nagpur leading from front on RTE: Darda
The Times of India, 29 June 2012

NAGPUR: Even as schools across the state cry themselves hoarse about the challenges of implementing the 25% free seat quota Right To Education (RTE) Act, Nagpur city schools are already in final stages of completing admissions for the same. While on a visit to the city school education minister Rajendra Darda appreciated that "Nagpur has led from the front in RTE implementation."

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Karnataka is ‘not so serious’ about RTE
Daily News and Analysis, 02 July 2012

Both the Karnataka state government and private schools were not prepared to implement the Right to Education (RTE) Act at the start of this academic year. Sadly, they are still not. Confusions and contentions are galore among private schools in Karnataka, said D Shashi Kumar, organising secretary of the Karnataka State Private School Management Federation, adding that the government has failed to consider the complaints of the school managements—the primary stakeholders in the implementation of the Act.

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Court exposes holes in RTE Act
The Times of India, 03 July 2012

CHENNAI: Exposing holes in the Centre's showpiece legislation, the Right to Education Act, the Madras high court on Monday expressed its inability to direct schools to admit poor students and give them free education. Dismissing the petitions of five parents who sought the court's help to get their wards admitted in schools of their choice, Justice K Chandru raised questions which have no answers in the Act.

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RTE: 128 schools have zero EWS student count, deadline extended
Indian Express, 01 July 2012

PUNE: With the deadline to admit 25 per cent economically and socially backward students under the Right to Education (RTE) in private schools ending, 128 schools have not admitted even a single student under the quota, and now the deadline has been extended by 15 days, according to the Pune Municipal Corporation’s Education Board. The Board officials have warned of “strict action” if the rule is not complied with.

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Why has RTE hit a roadblock in Andhra Pradesh?
The Times of India, 28 June 2012

HYDERABAD: Nithin Gollamudi, a city student dreams to be a doctor and secretly wants to be the state topper in medical entrance examination. Belonging to an economically and socially backward family, the 12-year-old who was helping his father in a masonry shop in Chotuppal till two years ago even while going to a nearby government school says that it would have been impossible for him to dream this big till recently. With the implementation of the Right to Education (RTE) act, 2009, Nithin along with his twin brother Nikesh got admission in a reputed city school located in Begumpet and are now doing well on their own in a class of 40 students. What the RTE gave them is an ability to dream big.

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As private school vouchers expand in New Orleans, eyes turn toward state for accountability plan
The Times-Picayune, 01 July 2012

Since the flooding that followed Hurricane Katrina, two public school systems have grown side by side out of the wreckage in New Orleans, one operated by the state, another by the local school board. Now, a third school system of sorts, still comparatively small but growing, is elbowing its way into the mix, not entirely public but subsidized by millions of taxpayer dollars. These are the more than two dozen private schools in the parish that have opted to take part in the state's voucher program, accepting students who qualify for public funding to pay their tuition.

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The Role of Awareness, Information Gathering and Processing in School Choice
Authors: Ghazala Azmat and José Garcia Montalvo

Abstract: This paper studies the determinants of school choice, focusing on the role of information. We consider how parents’ search efforts and their capacity to process information (i.e., to correctly assess schools) affect the quality of the schools they choose for their children. Using a novel dataset, we are able to identify parents’ awareness of schools in their neighborhood and measure their capacity to rank the quality of the school with respect to the official rankings. We find that parents’ education and wealth are important factors in determining their level of school awareness and information gathering. Moreover, these search efforts have important consequences in terms of the quality of school choice.

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RTE: Hyderabad Public School gets it right
Hyderabad Public School, one of the most prestigious schools in the state, changed its admission process right after the Right to Education (RTE) Act came into existence in 2009. Click here to read more

2 years on, only 5% schools follow RTE guidelines
According to RTE Forum national convener, Ambarish Rai, with nine months to go, about 95 percent of the schools don’t comply with the Act. Click here to learn more

Role of Technology in Education
One of the primary objectives of the Mathematics Laboratory and Technology Centre at Delhi Public School, R K Puram, has been to explore the use of technology and their relevance in Indian classrooms. Click here to know more

To initiate and continue the discussion amongst concerned groups and individuals on the issue of right of education and monitor the implementation
of the RTE Act, an RTE Coalition has been formed. Join the coalition to make universal elementary education a reality in India.

Log on to www.righttoeducation.in
for more information

Skill Vouchers - Global Experiences and Lessons for India

Leah Verghese and Parth J Shah

A study of the role that skill vouchers can play in catalysing demand for quality skill development services. This study examines global experiences with skill vouchers and draws lessons for India from these experiences.

For more click here

Reservation in Private Schools under the Right to Education Act: Model for Implementation

Shekhar Mittal and Parth J Shah

Through this document the Centre for Civil Society seeks to highlight the lacunae in the current framework for 25% reservation for weaker and disadvantaged groups in unaided private schools and seeks to provide inputs on effective implementation of the same.

For more click here

School Vouchers for Girls

400 girl children from poor families of North East Delhi receive school vouchers for a period of 4 years.
For details visit our website

For more details on how to support, log on to www.schoolchoice.in or email us at [email protected]

Please write in with your feedback at [email protected]

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