543 out-of-school kids identified

PUDUCHERRY: A total of  543 out-of-school children in the age group of 6 to 14 years have been identified so far by the Education department as Puducherry gets ready for implementation of Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act, following the notification of its rules  on October 27.The department has appealed to voluntary organisations and the common man to provide information about such children to the Sarva Sikha Abhiyan so that they could be enrolled in schools.  These children would have to be given special training based on specially designed age- appropriate learning material that has been approved by the Academic Authority. The minimum duration would be three months to two years based on periodical assessment of learning progress. Printing of modules has begun and applications from NGOs have been called for imparting education through residential facilities.At present the department is involved in mapping of schools, the command areas and feeder schools to enable admission of students into various neighbourhood schools. As per the rules, in respect of children of classes I to IV, a school would be established within a walking distance of one kilometre of the neighbourhood and for children in classes from VI to VIII, a school would be established within a walking distance of three kilometre in the neighbourhood. As of now there are 188 schools in the Union territory, which include 46 higher secondary schools, 87 high schools and 55 middle schools.For the purpose of determining and for establishing neighbourhood schools, the directorate of school education will undertake school mapping and identify all children, including those in remote areas, with special needs, belonging to disadvantaged groups, belonging to weaker sections and children referred to in section 4 of the Act within a period of one year from the commencement of the Act and every year thereafter. Among the 543 out-of-school students identified, a few are differently-abled. Already 2900 differently-abled children are studying in government and government-aided schools in the UT,  government sources said.The Act mandates that the school (unaided private) will provide reservation of minimum 25 per cent in class I for children of disadvantaged groups and children of weaker sections from the neighbourhood area.  The government has already sent circulars to schools for providing the reservation, said the government source. However, there are teething problems in implementation of the Act. The school fee would require regulation, gradation of schools  and feeder schools would have to be declared, to mention a few.  Besides there are several contentious issues which would have to be addressed and decisions taken before the Act becomes a reality.