Syllabus head (iv) — Educational policies | Chapter 4 of 18
57questions, every one explained
1items in the 2022 paper drew on this chapter
Why this chapter matters
Educational policy questions made up ~15–20% of the 2022 paper when combined with NEP/RTE items (Chapter 5 covers those). The historical half — constitutional provisions, colonial milestones and the great commissions — is beloved by every exam in this family (KVS, NVS, DSSSB, NET Paper II) because it converts perfectly into matching and ordering items.
This chapter takes you from the Charter Act of 1813 to the Adiseshiah Committee of 1978. Chapter 5 continues from NPE 1986 to NEP 2020.
Three questions from this chapter, solved
Every one of the 57 items is written this way — the answer, and why each wrong option is wrong.
Assertion (A): The 42nd Constitutional Amendment (1976) transferred education from the State List to the Concurrent List.
Reason (R): Before 1976, education fell under Entry 11 of the State List.
(a) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A
(b) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A
(c) A is true, but R is false
(d) A is false, but R is true
Answer (b).
Both statements are true, but R merely states the pre-1976 position — it does not explain why the transfer happened (that was the 42nd Amendment's centralising design during the Emergency).
Match List-I (milestone) with List-II (association):
List-I
List-II
1. Macaulay's Minute (1835)
A. Multipurpose schools, diversified courses
2. Wardha Scheme (1937)
B. Downward filtration through English
3. Sadler Commission (1917–19)
C. Basic education / Nai Talim, Zakir Husain Committee
4. Mudaliar Commission (1952–53)
D. Calcutta University Commission
(a) 1-B, 2-C, 3-D, 4-A
(b) 1-B, 2-D, 3-C, 4-A
(c) 1-C, 2-B, 3-D, 4-A
(d) 1-B, 2-C, 3-A, 4-D
Answer (a).
Macaulay = downward filtration; Wardha 1937 = Gandhi's basic education drafted by the Zakir Husain Committee; Sadler = Calcutta University Commission; Mudaliar = multipurpose schools.
Assertion (A): The Hunter Commission (1882) reviewed the working of Wood's Despatch, with special emphasis on primary education.
Reason (R): The Hunter Commission was the first education commission of independent India.
(a) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A
(b) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A
(c) A is true, but R is false
(d) A is false, but R is true
Answer (c).
A is true. R is false — Hunter (1882) is colonial-era; the first education commission of independent India is the Radhakrishnan/University Education Commission (1948–49).
EDUCATION IN THE CONSTITUTION
A.1 The big structural fact: education is CONCURRENT
Originally, education was a State subject.
The 42nd Constitutional Amendment, 1976 moved it to the Concurrent List (List III, Entry 25) — both Parliament and State Legislatures can now legislate on it (which is how a central RTE Act became possible).
Entry 66, Union List: coordination and standards of higher education remain with the Centre.
A.2 The right to education: the 86th Amendment package (2002)
One amendment inserted/changed three provisions — learn them as a set:
Provision
Text (essence)
Type
Article 21A
The State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children aged 6–14
Fundamental Right
Article 45 (substituted)
The State shall endeavour to provide early childhood care and education for all children until age 6
Directive Principle
Article 51A(k)
A parent or guardian shall provide opportunities for education to his child/ward aged 6–14
Fundamental Duty
Original Article 45 (1950): free and compulsory education for all children up to 14 years within 10 years of the Constitution's commencement — the promise the commissions kept chasing. After 2002 it speaks only of the under-6 age group.
Article 21A became operational through the RTE Act 2009, in force 1 April 2010 (details in Chapter 6).
The trap set: 21A = right (6–14) · 45 = ECCE (0–6) · 51A(k) = parental duty (6–14). Questions swap the age bands and the article numbers.
A.3 The other education articles
Article
Content
28
No religious instruction in institutions wholly maintained out of State funds
29
Protection of interests of minorities — right to conserve language, script, culture; no denial of admission on grounds only of religion, race, caste, language
30
Right of minorities (religious or linguistic) to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice
15(5) (93rd Amendment, 2005)
State may reserve seats for socially/educationally backward classes, SC/ST in private unaided institutions (minority institutions excluded)
46
Promote educational and economic interests of SCs, STs and weaker sections (DPSP)
350A
Facilities for instruction in the mother tongue at primary stage for linguistic-minority children
350B
Special Officer for linguistic minorities
343, 344 & 351
Official language: Hindi in Devanagari is the official language of the Union (343); the Official Language Commission and Committee (344); the duty to develop Hindi (351)
Frequently asked one-liner: which is a Fundamental Right, which a Directive, which a Duty — 21A vs 45 vs 51A(k).
The rest of this chapter
PREREQUISITES
EDUCATION IN THE CONSTITUTION
PRE-INDEPENDENCE MILESTONES (1813–1944)
THE THREE GREAT POST-INDEPENDENCE COMMISSIONS
NICKNAMES, QUOTES AND FIRSTS (the direct-recall bank)
