'State govt move to bring back public exam in Class 7 violates RTE Act'

Bengaluru: Niranjanaradhya VP, a senior fellow at the Centre for Child and the Law, National Law School of India University, Bangalore said that the state Government’s move to introduce public examination for the students of class 7 from next academic year in a violation of the Right To Education (RTE) Act.

Speaking on the issue he said, “The Karnataka government’s decision to bring back public exams for class seven student is a violation of UNCRC, the Constitution and RTE Act. It will have serious implications on marginalized children, particularly from SC/ST and minority communities.

He further added that this move of the state government will affect a child’s self-esteem, inflict stigma of ‘failure’ and push him/her to leave school before completing elementary education.

Meanwhile, S Nayana Tara, former faculty at IIM Bangalore’s Centre for Public Policy, felt it would keep teachers on their toes.

“Children face no exams till class 10. A public exam will help create seriousness among kids and teachers,” she added.