Tamil Nadu Revokes ‘No Detention Policy’ Up to Class VIII

Highlights

• Tamil Nadu amongst the first which have withdrawn their ‘No Detention Policy’.
• It will now conduct a board exam for class V and class VIII students.
• The state scrapped the policy following the poor performance of students.

Mumbai, Maharashtra: As reported by India Times, it was announced in Rajya Sabja that, Tamil Nadu government has done away with its ‘no-detention policy’ till class 8, after much contemplation.  Furthermore, it has also introduced board exams for class V and VIII students. The former education policy of ‘no detention’ took decades to advance and become child-friendly, however, it has been revoked within merely 7 years.

The people in support of the common examination believe one-year detention will benefit students and help them improve. The students who fail their exams must take a retest two months after the results are declared. Although the government states that they will not expel any child until they complete their elementary education, several educationists and parents remain worried.

The ‘no-detention policy’ supports to admit dropouts into age-appropriate classes to make sure every child gets an education. Therefore, the combination of this policy along with the noon meal scheme brought down dropout rates. Detaining students in earlier classes may take a psychological toll on the students as it often results in a sense of shame. The chances of a dropout are higher amongst students coming from deprived backgrounds due to detention.

Moreover, class X and XII students already experience anxiety and stress. Some people worry the same will happen with class V and VIII students too following this decision. The scrapping of the policy is done due to the poor performance of students in various surveys. However, these surveys merely assess the output. It remains devoid of learning inputs of teaching quality and classroom environment.

The scenario of government primary schools is worrying as teachers are overburdened. Thus, the government must first arrange for quality education by guaranteeing the availability of teachers and an encouraging learning environment.

Anila Ghufran

Anila Ghufran studied Journalism and is an avid writer and a concerned citizen who aims to smash the patriarchy.