Students who fail not denied re-entry:

DoE

NEW DELHI: Sixty-six per cent of students in classes IX to XII of Delhi government schools who failed in 2017-18 have now gone out of the formal schooling system. Out of a total of 1,55,436 students who failed, only 52,582 were readmitted in the same class, official documents reveal.Most of these students had failed in classes X and XII. In class X, 42,503 students could not clear the examination in 2017-18, out of which only 3,812 were readmitted. So, 91% of the students probably went out of the schooling system. In class XII, out of 10,566 students who failed, only 943 were readmitted, indicating that another 91% may have dropped out of the school system.Similarly in class IX, out of a total of 73,561 students who failed, 35,534 were readmitted and in Class XI, out of 28,806 who failed, 12,293 were readmitted.Last year, Justice for All, an NGO working in the right to education space, had filed a petition after class X students, who had failed, were being denied readmission in the schools. The Delhi high court had in August 2018 directed Delhi government to re-admit these students. "Despite the high court order, a large number of students failed to get admission and now they are out of the school system. It is a very easy process, the school just has to put the names of these students in the register. But the government has complicated the system. This is because they want to push these students out of the school so that they can show better results," said lawyer Ashok Agarwal of Justice for All. The readmission data is in an affidavit submitted in the Delhi high court by the Directorate of Education (DoE).According to the Delhi school education rules, if a student who has failed approaches the same school for readmission, the student has to be re-admitted and admission cannot be denied.Sanjay Goel, director at the Directorate of Education, said students who have failed and want to join back in school are not denied admission."For class IX, those who fail and want to save a year, we give them an option to go to the National Institute of Open Schooling or continue in class IX at the school. Those who fail more than twice have to obligatorily join the NIOS system. But for other classes, whichever child comes back, he/she is readmitted in the same class," said Goel. However, educationists say the percentage of failed students being readmitted is extremely low and shows that a number of students are being pushed out of school system."What happened to the rest who failed and were not readmitted? It's a matter of concern that such small number of students are being taken back. It seems this is because the schools want to show good results in the boards. Now, the state government is sending students to NIOS. Earlier, they had sent a large chunk to the CBSE's correspondence section. But there, the poor performance was showing in the board results. By sending these students to NIOS, they become invisible," said Anita Rampal, professor of elementary and social education at Delhi University.