Amending “No Detention Policy”

The latest amendment reinforces that no child shall be expelled from school until the completion of elementary education ensuring every child’s right to education

The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, envisions a comprehensive revision and revamping of the education system, including its governance and regulation. The government says that the Department of School Education & Literacy remains committed to supporting students in achieving better learning outcomes, thereby ensuring an inclusive and effective education system.

In line with this commitment, the Central Government, through notification (G.S.R. 777(E)) dated 21st December 2024, published in the Gazette of India, has amended the rules under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, as revised by the RTE (Amendment) Act, 2019.

The amended rules, titled the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Amendment) Rules, 2024, introduce significant changes to promote student learning while ensuring equity and inclusion.

The amendment is the introduction of a revised “Detention Policy” applicable to students in Grades 5 and 8 of schools established, owned or controlled by the Central Government, or the administrator of the Union Territory, having no legislature.

Under this, if a student fails to meet the promotion criteria after annual examination, he or she will be provided additional instruction and an opportunity to appear for a re-examination within two months of the declaration of results. In the event the student does not meet the promotion criteria even after the re-examination, he/ she will be continued in the same grade. During this period, the class teacher will actively engage with the student and the parents, providing specialized guidance and addressing identified learning gaps through targeted interventions.

Though the RTE Act was amended in 2019 it was decided to await finalisation of National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 and National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCFSE), which was put up in public domain on 23.08.2023. After due consultation with stakeholders, the rules have been notified.

As reported by States and Union Territories, 18 States/UTs have issued notification for implementation of provisions of RTE(Amendment) Act, 2019, these include Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, NCT of Delhi and Dadar & Nagar Haveli & Daman & Diu. State of Haryana and UT of Puducherry are yet to take a decision in the matter.

The States/UTs of Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Manipur, Mizoram, Odisha, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Andaman & Nicobar Island, Chandigarh, Ladakh and Lakshadweep continue to follow the no detention policy from Class I to VIII.

When the amendment Bill was introduced in Parliament, the statement of objects and reasons read that section 16 of the Act was “not showing healthy results.” “It is seen that children are routinely being promoted from one class to the higher one without any linkage to the learning they have attained. There are instances where the children’s attendance has been very less and consequently, they were not able to learn meaningfully. This defeats the purposes of the Act,” it read.

The Bill was referred to a standing committee that recommended removing the no-detention policy. It was then passed in 2019.

In 2012, the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE), the highest education advisory body, constituted a sub-committee to examine the implementation of CCE in the context of the no-detention provision. Headed by then Haryana Education Minister Geeta Bhukkal, the sub-committee called for “more flexibility” in the no-detention system, meaning it should allow for detaining students who are “lagging behind”.

Its report pointed to two “key trends” in the quality of education in government schools. Based on data from the NGO Pratham’s Annual Status of Education Report, it found “declining learning levels”. There was a 10 percentage point drop from 2010 to 2013 in standard 5 students who could read a standard 2 text in government schools in rural areas. It also noted “migration towards private schools.”

It identified “root causes” for the declining learning levels, including “lack of assessments”. It said while the ‘no detention’ clause is trying to achieve laudable objectives such as inclusiveness, minimising the dropout rates and removing the fear of failure among students, it is often misinterpreted in schools as “no assessments” or “no relevance of assessment”. Further, it pointed to low student motivation as the “general message is that ‘performance does not matter’”, and “low teacher accountability.”

Not everybody on the sub-committee concurred. Some argued that there was no evidence to show detention enables learning. Prof. Nargis Panchpakesan noted that “the child is failing because of the system” and “that most of the children presently going to government schools are from marginalised groups and will be affected under detention policy.” There was no comparative study to point to learning achievements before and after the no-detention policy was introduced, she added.

In 2015, the sub-committee report was submitted to the CABE, which then asked states/UTs to share their views. Of the 23 States/UTs which did, 18 suggested the policy be modified. States like Madhya Pradesh and Punjab suggested that board exams be introduced in Classes 5 and 8 since no detention “has an adverse impact on academic performance”.

A few states like Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh said that the no-detention policy should continue to ensure a minimum of eight years of school education and that otherwise, the dropout rate would increase. They recommended strengthening the CCE system instead.

In 2016, the CABE passed a resolution for scrapping the policy, concluding it meant that students were not being serious about their studies.

Meanwhile, in 2016, the TSR Subramanian committee submitted a report on the New Education Policy 2016, which said that the no-detention policy should be continued but only till Class 5.

The committee said, “no-detention policy has resulted in a fall in the drop-out rates in elementary school and has kept children in the learning cycle for 8 years. A comparison of the CBSE and other State Boards’ results for class 10 and class 12 for the years 2009, 2012 and 2013, shows that the pass percentage has increased in respect of most of the States…this empirically validates the utility of the no-detention policy. Empirically, there has been a steady rise in the GER (gross enrolment ratio) at the elementary level, for both boys and girls, as well as for Scheduled Castes, Tribes and other marginalised sections since the coming into effect of the no-detention policy. In a deeply fragmented society such as India, this is a significant gain which should not be reversed.”

When the Parliamentary Standing Committee that considered the RTE Amendment Bill called for suggestions, arguments they received against scrapping no-detention included the lack of evidence that the policy itself had caused a decline in learning outcomes, which can also be attributed to other aspects like infrastructure in schools and teaching.

As of now, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Manipur, Mizoram, Odisha, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Ladakh, Lakshadweep, Chandigarh, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands (and Haryana and Puducherry, where a final decision on the policy has not been taken) continue to implement the no-detention policy. Tamil Nadu School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi also said the state’s schools will continue it.

Meanwhile, Delhi, Punjab, MP, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Bihar and Gujarat have scrapped the policy.