Two years ago, 10-year-old Madhu walked up to the microphone at a public hearing and related how she was chased away from a government school in Patna by teachers because she was a Musahar Dalit and considered “dirty” by them.
Dozens of parents and children from marginalised communities had gathered to share their grievances at that hearing called by visiting officials from the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights in charge of monitoring the implementation of the Right to Education Act. After hearing Madhu’s story, the commission intervened and 50 Dalit children from her slum were enrolled in an adjoining government school.
But a year later, while the school’s register included the names of the Dalit children, nearly all of them were out of the classroom, working as rag pickers. They were just not welcome there.
Madhu’s story and countless such tales highlight an important lesson learnt from the last set of global education goals: providing access alone is insufficient. There have to be concerted efforts to keep marginalised children in school and ensure their learning by providing quality education.