What is Shikshagiri?

Shikshagiri is an initiative that brings children, the primary stakeholders of policies on education, to discuss and contribute to influence policy-making. It started in 2016 when Praxis (www.praxisindia.org) hosted a Ground-Level Panel of 16 children from diverse backgrounds to look at the inputs for the Draft National Education Policy from the lens of their lived experiences and came up with a children’s charter to enrich the education policy. 

 

The National Education Policy, first framed in 1986 and subsequently modified in 1992, is due for revision in 2016. The Government of India’s stated aim in bringing a new Education Policy was to meet the changing dynamics of the population’s requirement with regards to quality education, innovation and research, aiming to make India a knowledge superpower by equipping its students with the necessary skills and knowledge and to eliminate the shortage of manpower in science, technology, academics and industry. A ground-level with 16 children (Please see video above) was one of the first initiatives of Shikshagiri. The children belong to different caste and religious backgrounds – such as religious and caste minorities, Dalits, children with disability, children from varied educational experiences – such as students of government schools as well as private schools.

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