School Choice National Conference

Via School Choice

School Choice Campaign, a policy reform initiative of Centre for Civil Society organises a national conference on education reforms. The third annual School Choice National Conference will bring together top-level academicians, policy makers and education experts on 21 December 2011 (Wednesday), starting at 9:00am and ending with cocktails at India Habitat Centre, Delhi to discuss, debate and formulate innovative policy ideas to achieve quality education for all the children.

While India has an estimated 400 million children under the age of 18, over 240 million of these are between the ages of 6 and 14. And although 95% of these children are enrolled in primary school, only 45% finish their elementary education and 28.4% complete secondary school. These numbers are indicative of a sector that presents us with an immense opportunity but is crippled by complex challenges. Discourses around universalisation of access to education over the past years have been dominated by elementary education and most recently around the passage and implementation of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act. An increased focus on secondary education coupled with concerted efforts of the government and the private sector are needed to meet goals of access, quality and equity. 

The Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA), an initiative of the MHRD meant to give an impetus to secondary education, emerging public private partnership models across India and innovative technology enabled interventions that promise scale are deserving of robust conversations that would align and steer stakeholders from the government and civil society towards Education for All .