The bench of Supreme Court was hearing an appeal from a group of parents who were contesting the Kendriya Vidyalaya’s minimum age requirement of six years for admission to Class 1 for the coming academic year.

The Supreme Court on Monday took a pessimistic perspective of parents’ concerns about schooling, ruling that children should not be put to school at an early age for their psychological well-being.

“There seems to be a rush to get kids into school.” Parents prefer to begin as soon as their children reach the age of two years. “This may not be good for their mental health,” said a bench of justices led by Sanjay Kishan Kaul and MM Sundresh.

The bench was hearing an appeal from a group of parents who were contesting the Kendriya Vidyalaya’s minimum age requirement of six years for admission to Class 1 for the coming academic year. The parents claimed that the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sanghathan (KVS) abruptly modified the entrance requirement for class 1 to six years just four days before the admission process began in March 2022, in defiance of a Delhi high court decision dated April 11. Five years was the previous criterion.

“There are research that demonstrate there is an appropriate age to admit a child to school,” the bench continued. Don’t put too much pressure on the child. It could have an effect on his ability to grasp and read. It’s possible that there will be a psychological effect.”

The petitioners contended that changing the age requirements without prior notice is harmful to the interests of children who have the right to participate in the admissions process, as well as violating their right under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009.

The Supreme Court, on the other hand, remained unconvinced. “The issue is that every parent believes his or her child is a genius who can adjust to any situation at any age. Consider the child’s psychological well-being. There is an appropriate age to begin anything, including schooling. In fact, certain studies demonstrate that youngsters do better when they do not start too early,” the bench informed council and group’s of parents.

The judgement also praised the mandate of the National Education Policy (NEP), which established age standards in order to maintain uniformity in entrance age. During the court, the central government’s counsel stated that under the NEP, which took effect in 2020, 21 states have implemented the six-plus regime for Class 1 and that the programme has not been challenged.

The court then dismissed the appeal, upholding the Delhi high court’s decision. The HC rejected the parents’ appeal on April 11 in the same instance, ruling they had not been banned from requesting admission.

“”The only effect of the impugned guidelines is to shift their eligibility to the following academic year, which in my opinion cannot be a reason to interfere with the impugned guidelines, especially when the respondents have already received over 7 lakh applications for admission to Class-I for the academic year 2022-2023,” the HC wrote.

“Early learning builds an excellent basis for achievement at school,” said educationist Meeta Sengupta, “but it must be led with respect and care.” Early childhood education systems that foster curiosity, inquiry, and other skills are beneficial, but those that push children to memorise and perform at an early age are not. Getting the appropriate age to begin school is really more of a matter of finding the appropriate care. Care and guided inquiry may wait for schooling essential.”