India: Marginalized Children Denied Education

Object 1

Use Monitoring, Redress Mechanisms to Keep Pupils in School

APRIL 22, 2014 (New Delhi) School authorities inIndia persistently discriminate against children from marginalized communities, denying them their right to education, Human Rights atch said in a report released today! "our years after an am#itious education law went into effect in India guaranteeing free schooling to e$ery child ages % to &', almost e$ery child is enrolled, yet nearly half are li(ely to drop out #efore completing their elementary education! )he **+page report, ,-)hey Say e.re Dirty./ Denying an 0ducation to India.s 1arginalized,2 documents discrimination #y school authorities in four Indian states against Dalit, tri#al, and 1uslim children! )he discrimination creates an unwelcome atmosphere that can lead to truancy and e$entually may lead the child to stop going to school! ea( monitoring mechanisms fail to identify and trac( children who attend school irregularly, are at ris( of dropping out, or ha$e dropped out! India.s immense pro3ect to educate all its children ris(s falling $ictim to deeply rooted discrimination #y teachers and other school staff against the poor and marginalized,2 said 4ayshree 5a3oria, India researcher and author of the report! ,Instead of encouraging children from at+ris( communities who are often the first in their families to e$er step inside a classroom, teachers often neglect or e$en mistreat them!2 Detailed case studies e6amine how the lac( of accounta#ility and grie$ance redress mechanisms are continuing o#stacles to proper implementation of the Right to

0ducation 7ct! Human Rights atch conducted research for this report in the states of 7ndhra 8radesh, 9ttar 8radesh, 5ihar, and Delhi, inter$iewing more than &%: people, including children, parents, teachers, and a wide range of education e6perts, rights acti$ists, local authorities, and education officials! )he Indian go$ernment should adopt more effecti$e measures to monitor the treatment of $ulnera#le children and pro$ide accessi#le redress mechanisms to ensure they remain in the classroom, Human Rights atch said! 7ccording to the go$ernment, nearly half o$er ;: million children drop out #efore completing their elementary education! In drafting the Right of <hildren to "ree and <ompulsory 0ducation 7ct, the central go$ernment recognized e6clusion of children as the ,single most important challenge in uni$ersalizing elementary education!2 5ut many education department officials at state, district, and local le$els ha$e #een unwilling to ac(nowledge or accept that discrimination occurs in go$ernment schools, let alone attempt to resol$e these pro#lems, Human Rights atch said! )he teacher tells us to sit on the other side,2 said ,8an(a3,2 an eight+year+old tri#al #oy from 9ttar 8radesh! ,If we sit with others, she scolds us and as(s us to sit separately! )he teacher doesn.t sit with us #ecause she says we -are dirty!.2 1arginalized groups continue to face discrimination in India despite constitutional guarantees and laws prohi#iting discrimination, Human Rights atch said! School authorities reinforce age+old discriminatory attitudes #ased on caste, ethnicity, religion, or gender! <hildren from Dalit, tri#al, and 1uslim communities are often made to sit at the #ac( of the class or in separate rooms, insulted #y the use of derogatory names, denied leadership roles, and ser$ed food last! )hey are e$en told to clean toilets, while children from traditionally pri$ileged groups are not! Non+discrimination and e=uality are fundamental to the Right to 0ducation 7ct and yet the law pro$ides no penalties for $iolators,2 5a3oria said! ,If schools are to #ecome child+friendly en$ironments for all of India.s children, the go$ernment needs to send a strong message that discriminatory #eha$ior will no longer #e tolerated and those responsi#le will #e held to account!2 1ost state education departments ha$e failed to esta#lish proper mechanisms to monitor each child, and inter$ene promptly and effecti$ely to ensure they remain in school, Human Rights atch said! 5ecause there is no common definition for assessing when a child is considered to no longer #e attending school, $arious states ha$e different norms/ in >arnata(a, students are regarded as ha$ing dropped out of school after se$en days of une6plained a#sence, in 7ndhra 8radesh it is a month, and in <hhattisgarh and 5ihar it is three months! )his lac( of a common definition hinders efforts to recognize and address the pro#lem! )he Right to 0ducation 7ct pro$ides that children who ha$e dropped out of school or older children who ne$er attended school should #e offered ,#ridge courses2 to #ring

them up to speed so they can return to mainstream schools in an age+appropriate class! 5ut state go$ernments do not maintain proper records of these children, pro$ide the additional resources needed for appropriate #ridge courses, or trac( these children through completion of elementary schooling once they are in an age+appropriate class! <hildren of migrant wor(ers, many #elonging to Dalit and tri#al communities, are most $ulnera#le to dropping out due to lengthy a#sences from school while searching for wor( with their parents! ?et the state go$ernments do not (eep trac( of these children in any systematic manner to ensure that they continue their education! )he la#or departments at state le$el are not properly carrying out programs meant for #ringing child la#orers #ac( to school! 7nd state education departments are not following up once a child is admitted to a mainstream school, which often results in the child.s return to wor(! <entral and state authorities are not ade=uately supporting creati$e community+#ased mechanisms en$isioned under the Right to 0ducation 7ct such as ,school management committees!2 8arents told Human Rights atch that they do not ha$e ade=uate representation on these committees, and so they do not complain when there is in3ustice against their children #ecause school authorities ignore the complaints or e$en reprimand the students! @uidelines adopted to address grie$ances ha$e often not #een implemented! India is a party to core international human rights treaties that protect children and pro$ide for the right of e$eryone to education, including the International <o$enant on 0conomic, Social and <ultural Rights and the <on$ention on the Rights of the <hild! International law also prohi#its discrimination on the #asis of religion, ethnicity, social origin, or other status! )he <on$ention on the Rights of the <hild o#ligates India to ta(e measures to encourage attendance and reduce dropout rates, and ensure that the rights of the children are protected through effecti$e monitoring! 8rior to the national elections in India in 7pril A:&', the ma3or national parties made commitments in their election manifestos to impro$e elementary school education! )he central and state go$ernments should create clear indicators to detect and address discrimination in schools, and to lay out appropriate disciplinary measures for those found responsi#le, Human Rights atch said! )he go$ernment should create a system to monitor and trac( e$ery child from enrollment through completion of elementary schooling, up to @rade BIII! )he go$ernment should initiate proper training of teachers, so that they end e6clusion and facilitate greater interaction among children of different socio+economic and caste #ac(grounds! India.s political parties focused on education during the election campaign,2 5a3oria said! ,5ut whoe$er ta(es office will need to do more to ensure that children attend classes! 7n important law is set to fail unless the go$ernment inter$enes now!2 Selected Cuotes

)he names and identifying details of inter$iewees ha$e #een withheld to protect their safety! 7ll names of children used in the report are pseudonyms! hene$er the teachers are angry, they call us 1ullahs! )he Hindu #oys also call us 1ullahs #ecause our fathers ha$e #eards! e feel insulted when they refer to us li(e this!2 4a$ed, a &:+year+old 1uslim #oy, Delhi ,)he teacher always made us sit in a corner of the room, and would throw (eys at us Dwhen she was angryE! e only got food if anything was left after other children were ser$edF! D@Eradually DweE stopped going to school!2 Shyam, a &'+year+old Dalit #oy, 9ttar 8radesh , e were as(ed to massage a teacher.s legs! If we refused, he used to #eat us! )here was a toilet for teachers, which is the one we had to clean!2 Naresh, a &A+year+old Dalit #oy, 5ihar