What is homeschooling and why it is catching up in India?
Coronavirus pandemic not only moved work to computer screens but the entire life’s activities actually shifted to screens. Although the migration to laptops in offices was obvious, the epidemic also paved the way for education to move to computer screens. And among parents of millennials, the switch from regular schools to screens at home has resurrected a time-honored idea of education: homeschooling. The idea of homeschooling in India has actually been around for millennia.. As a result of the demand for a learning system that was centered on passing exams, homeschooling was abandoned over time.
Evolution of Homeschooling in India
Education was provided at home by a “guru” during India’s legendary age. The guru included teachings that were deemed appropriate for personal development in his lessons. Then followed teaching at the “gurukul,” which established a classroom-like setting. However, even gurukuls stuck to the principle of imparting lessons that promoted personal growth and were taught in public. The sole foundation of this antiquated educational system was parent and teacher-led instruction in a comfortable setting.
At the start of the 20th century, a variety of reformers and educational theorists pushed for a strong and blatantly distinct educational system. This educational model was in conflict with British classroom instruction. For instance, Rabindranath Tagore’s Visva-Bharati University chose open-air education over the Western educational approach that held courses inside of four walls because Tagore had reservations about it.
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Gradual Rise of Homeschooling in India
There had been a community of parents who had already chosen a different path even before the pandemic brought home-schooling back into the conversation for parents. Pallavi Deshpande, who began homeschooling her daughter Mrunal in 2014 when she was 12 years old, is one of the leading figures in the homeschooling movement in India. Mrunal was homeschooled by her parents for six years before graduating from the Institute of Technology, Kharagpur. The focus of Mrunal’s homeschooling, according to her parents, was on learning rather than merely passing tests to advance in rank.
While Pallavi Deshpande serves as one such illustration, there is a whole new generation of parents who are adamantly opposed to the culture of rote learning.
Current scenario of homeschooling in India
The Indian government is supportive of homeschooling since it upholds every child’s “Right To Education.” Homeschooling is still a legitimate educational option in India and does not contravene any RTE 2009 clauses or provisions.
When it comes to aspiring homeschoolers, there are really many groups of Indian parents who are providing the answers, solutions, and support they need. According to the non-profit Swashikshan—Indian Association of Homeschoolers, there are an estimated 2,000 homes across the country that homeschool their children. Additional homeschooling support organizations in India include Alternative Education India, Pune Homeschoolers, Cascade Family Learning Society – A Society for Home Schooled Children in Chennai, Montessori Worldwide School, Homeschooling by Handholding, and Playgic childhood freedom campaign.
Homeschoolers are now eligible to sit for board exams as private students in Maharashtra, which legalized homeschooling in January 2019. Students who do not attend traditional schools are supported by the Karnataka state board. The state of Bangalore similarly permits private applicants to take the class 10 exams.
