Mumbai: Chaos looms in schools over age norms for Std I

The Union governmentrsquos recent directive to states and Union Territories UTs stipulating a minimum age requirement of six plus years for children seeking admission to Std I starting from the 202425 academic session has reignited a longstanding debate With the proposed rule slated for implementation in the 202425 academic year school managements argue that the combination of the Union ministryrsquos mandate and the state governmentrsquos failure to update regulations will disrupt the preprimary sections of schoolsMany schools in the city say if implemented this academic year many students may have to repeat classes which could prompt the parents to agitate This is because Maharashtra remains among the few states that have not altered the entry age in school for preprimary allowing many children to enter Std I at the age of 5 or 52 yearsFoundation yearsThe Ministry of Education in its latest notice on February 15 2024 reminded all states that Std I admission age should be sixplus years aligning with the National Education Policy NEP 2020 and Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education RTE Act 2009Also Read Mumbai School bus operators resist state govtrsquos 9 am class start time decisionIn its latest notification dated February 15 2024 the Union Ministry of Education reiterated to all states and UTs that the age of admission to Std I should be sixplus years aligning with the provisions outlined in the National Education Policy NEP 2020 and the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education RTE Act 2009NEP 2020 states a foundational stage of 5 years for ages 38 including 3 years of preschool followed by Classes 12 In Maharashtra nursery admission requires a child to be 3 by December 31 leading to some starting at 25 This contrasts with NEPrsquos recommendation of a minimum age of six for Std I entryECArsquos recommendationsThe Early Childhood Association ECA has been complaining about the disparity in age criterion in school admissions in Maharashtra for years now Swati Popat Vats President of ECA said ldquoThe age of entry to Std I across all states and UTs in India is six years at the beginning of the academic year To ensure this states and UTs must ensure the age of nursery children is three years at the beginning of the academic yearrdquoldquoWe have been bringing this to the attention of the respective departments in the government and have written to the Governor of Maharashtra about it too However the state government is yet to take a call on this serious matterrdquo she added Following the union ministryrsquos notification the association is now considering writing to the president of India ldquoAge is not only a number age implies developmental readiness and when children below three years are starting nursery it impacts them socially and emotionally which can have a lasting impact on their foundation of learningrdquo Vats explainedSchools fear chaosSchools demand that the state government should seek some relaxation in the norm as implementing it from 202425 would be chaotic for all schools students and parents ldquoThe backandforth on school entry age has been ongoing since 201415 Initially the state mandated a nursery entry age of three years and class 1 entry at six years aligning with the RTE act However subsequent changes led to a sixmonth relaxation implementing a December 31 cutoff for admissions Despite appeals for correction the authorities remained unresponsive Frustrated the school considered legal action against the government but with subsequent changes the uncertainty continues The current dilemma is how to implement the Centrersquos notification for the upcoming academic year foreseeing potential chaosrdquo said a principal in South MumbaiHighlighting potential school chaos Rohan Bhatt chairman of the Childrenrsquos Academy Group of Schools expressed concern ldquoStarting from this academic year could lead to KG I and 2 students repeating Ideally the entry age change should begin from Nursery in the next academic year Implementing the centrersquos notification from 202627 would avoid issues but doing so earlier may force Sr KG students under six to repeat causing parent agitation and a 3040 percent reduction in students reaching class I forcing schools to cut divisionsrdquoSuraj Mandhare state commissioner of education said ldquoI have seen the issue being discussed on social media but I havenrsquot seen the Union ministryrsquos letter yet Once I see it we will see what can be donerdquo Officials from the education department at Goa have decided to write to the Union ministry of education and literacy seeking some relaxation to the rule this year Goa too is one of the states which is yet to follow the sixyearplus age criteria for admission to Std I