Rishikul Open Schooling

Not every student can attend school between eight and two. Some are training seriously at a sport, some are needed at home or in the family trade, some have been schooled at home, some have particular needs, and some simply did not get on with a regular classroom. Open schooling exists for all of them, and it carries no stigma.

It asks more of the family than a regular school does. A parent has to know the student’s strengths and interests, be involved in the week, and resist the temptation to take over. Where that happens, it works well.

NIOS is the national board for open schooling, set up by the Government of India in 1989 and run as an autonomous body. Its secondary and senior secondary examinations are equivalent to those of CBSE and CISCE, and it is on par with the other national and state boards.

As of 2016 some nineteen lakh students across the country were studying at secondary, senior secondary and vocational level under NIOS.