Parents allege that Bandra school Rizvi Springfield has made them sign undertaking on what they can and can't wear on the premises, warns of consequwnces if their dress isn't 'decent'
Parents outside Springfield School today. Pic/ Pradeep Dhivar
Students warned over conduct? Check. Students disciplined over attire? Check. Parents questioned over what they wear on the school's premises? What! Bandra's Rizvi Springfield School, say parents of students studying here, handed them an undertaking, which listed dos and don'ts regarding their attire on the premises.
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Parents say they were in for this rude shock when they reached the school on Thursday morning to collect their wards' exam results.
Apart from the attire clause, parents allege that the school has also asked them to submit their phones and electronic gadgets at the reception if they intend to enter the school building for a function.
Also Read: Students told to cover up 'fully' and not 'distract' others
Anger in the air
A parent, who shared a copy of the undertaking with mid-day, said, “When I went to collect my child's report card, the vice-principal handed it to us. We were asked to read it once and sign before we left.”
“How can the school tell us what to wear? Most parents here are Muslims. Some of the women come here in burqas. I am yet to come across a parent in indecent attire. The school should focus on teaching students, rather than improving our dress sense,” fumed another parent.
The undertaking also mentions that if a parent wants to discontinue his/her child's education after April 1 in the new academic year, or if a student is dismissed for misbehaviour, s/he can't claim the security deposit given and will also have to pay all dues owed to the school.
Parents explained why they couldn't object while signing the undertaking. “I am a single mother. I asked the teacher to let me take the letter home and consult the elders of the family. But, I was told to sign and submit it on the spot,” said a parent.
Another said, “We knew what we were being made to was unethical, but we couldn't object, we are worried about our kids' future.”
The undertaking parents were made to sign
Is this legal?
“It is ridiculous to take such an undertaking from parents. Who has given them the right to deprive a child of education in the middle of the academic year for 'misbehaviour'? Moreover, once a child enters the school premises, s/he is the school's responsibility. This appears to be a foolish attempt made by the school authorities to show their superiority,” said Ramakant Pande, director of Bal Bharti School in Wadala.
“How can a school decide parents' attire? There is no question of consequences; an education institution holds no authority over parents. Schools should treat parents with respect; even in cases of misbehaviour on the part of parents, they can't ask them to sign a letter of this sort.”
“Being an unaided minority school, a school does hold the right to frame its own rules, but it can't go against the Right to Education Act and against democracy. Here, the school has gone overboard. In some schools, parents are asked to switch their phones off or keep them on silent, but submitting them at the reception is wrong,” said Seema Shaikh, principal, Pragnya Bodhini High School, an unaided Muslim minority school in Goregaon.
President of the Parent-Teacher Association forum, Arundhati Chauhan said, “When a school lacks experience of conflict resolution with parents and students, or fails to manage it well, it ends up issuing such circulars. No matter what, a school can't take away parents' right to resolve matters.”
When mid-day contacted the director of the school, Rubina Rizvi, she refused to comment.
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