Effectiveness Of The Right To Education Act In Bridging Up The Social And Gender Gaps In Odisha

Abstract

Education is the cornerstone of one’s life and makes an individual skillful. Thus, this is considered the key component in shaping the personal, professional, social, emotional, and spiritual life of a human being. In contemporary times, elementary education is the backbone of the entire education system. It is the foundation of the cognitive growth of a child and provides him/her with the various abilities, competencies, and skills that aid in structuring a successful future. So elementary education is crucial for every country to concentrate on delivering high-quality services and skill-based education at the elementary level to children, especially in marginalized groups, and empowers them to participate in the socio-economic process. The Right to Education Act is meant for providing barrier-free schooling for children of 6 to 14 years. Inserted as Article 21 A, in the Constitution of India, the Right to Education is meant to provide education as a part of the Fundamental Right guaranteed by the Constitution of India.

The Act is aimed to herald a new era in formal education imparted by the government of India. Education is mentioned as a subject in the Concurrent List in the Constitution. The State and Union governments carry joint responsibilities in the implementation of the same. The objective of the paper is to examine the effectiveness of the implementation of the RTE Act in bridging social and gender gaps. The paper intends to measure the effectiveness of the implementation of the Act, covering all targeted children, providing quality education, and bridging the learning gaps by tracking different gender and social groups.

The paper also examines the realisation of the objectives of the Right to Education Act in bridging the social and gender gaps in access, retention, and learning level through provisioning several interventions like girls’ education, education of children of SCs & STs categories, and minority children learning enhancement programme and inclusive approach of education of Children with Special Needs. Regardless of the encouraging progress made in the elementary education sector in the State of Odisha; gaps in access, retention, and learning outcome continue to be quite significant in the State.