Thanks to RTE, there goes the neighbourhood school: Parents

The government’s Right to Education (RTE) Act may have got schools fuming, but it has also irked parents in the city.

With Bethany High School in Koramangala making headlines for a circular to parents stating: “Once this Act is enforced, a child could beat up your child, smoke on the campus, misbehave with a girl or a teacher and the school will have to watch helplessly. But, after the Act is in place even if such incidents occur, we will not be in position to take any action”, parents across the city are nodding in agreement.

Many parents whose children study in private schools have opposed the neighbourhood school concept framed in the RTE Act.

“We are not happy with the government’s decision to allow any child from the neighbourhood to join a school," said Disha R Batija, a parent. "There are things like hygiene and manners that we parents really bother about. If they want to implement this concept, they should do so from the nursery level.”

Robert Khin, headmaster of Bethany school, said that most parents have agreed with the school’s stance.

One parent, on condition of anonymity, said, “Currently, my daughter is getting a good education at Bethany and we want her to continue. I am not against admitting children from the economically weaker sections of society. But being a parent, my worry is, what if the school environment changes?”

The parent continued, “What if my daughter learns bad words by mingling with those children? It sounds silly, but if they start learning bad words, they lose their grip on the language.”

Another parent, whose daughter also studies at Bethany, said, “I think the spirit of the bill is noble. Somewhere along the line we have forgotten the aim of education.

"The school's concerns are genuine, but I think we can all tread a middle path and work with the government to iron out creases while extending education to more than the few with the means.”

But some parents are fine with the concept of a neighbourhood school. “The letter sent to us is confusing," said one parent. "So, I cannot comment on that, but we are okay with the government's decision.

"I studied in a school where children from all backgrounds attended. Even my wife studied in such a school, so we don't have a problem with it.

"But my son is getting a good education at Bethany and we don't want to spoil it.”