If you are a citizen who is concerned about a child’s right to good education and want to check how government schools are functioning, here is your guide. You will need interest and passion. But as recent backlash faced by citizens participating in the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP)’s School Thik Karo (Fix the School) campaign suggest, that is not enough. Seeking accountability means challenging established interests, questioning accepted ways of working, and, oftentimes, asking uncomfortable questions of government duty bearers.It means you need to know the law.A checklist can tell a citizen what to look for in a school. But it is the law that tells us why that checklist matters. The legal provisions governing elementary education give citizens a basis for asking questions, and they give government officials a mandate, and a responsibility to act.Also read: With Its Bare Minimum Standards, the RTE Act Fails India’s Most Vulnerable StudentsThe Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 (RTE Act) and the RTE Rules, 2010 provide the larger legal framework. Section 3 of the RTE Act establishes the right to free and compulsory elementary education. Section 19, read with the Schedule to the Act, lays down norms and standards for schools, while Section 21 provides the framework for the School Management Committee. For citizens trying to monitor a government school, four areas are particularly important.Is the school accessible?The RTE framework requires elementary education to be provided through a neighbourhood school. The norms prescribed are that a school should be within one kilometre for classes I–V and three kilometres for classes VI–VIII.These specific distance norms are provided under Rule 4 of the Central RTE Rules, read with Section 6 of the RTE Act.But distance on a map is not the same thing as access.A school may technically be within the prescribed distance and still be difficult or dangerous for children to reach. What happens when there is a river to cross, a landslide-prone road, flooding, or no safe route to the school?The RTE framework recognises that difficult terrain and other risks can require alternative arrangements, including transport or residential facilities.For a citizen, the questions are therefore simple:Is there a neighbourhood school within the prescribed distance?Can children reach it safely?If the prescribed distance cannot be met, has the appropriate authority made an alternative arrangement?Does the school meet basic infrastructure standards?The RTE schedule lays down norms and standards for school infrastructure. These include an all-weather building, classrooms, an office-cum-store-cum-head teacher’s room, barrier-free access, separate toilets for boys and girls, safe drinking water, a kitchen where the school meal is cooked, a playground, and a boundary wall or fencing.For citizens, however, a statutory checklist should be the beginning rather than the end of an inspection.Is the building structurally safe? Are the walls and ceilings in good condition? If the school has multiple floors, are the stairs safe and fitted with railings? Can children with disabilities enter and move around the school?Are the classrooms adequately lit and ventilated? Is electricity available and safely installed? Are fans functional where they are needed? Are toilets functional, usable, and separate for boys and girls? Is drinking water actually available to children?Does every class have a classroom? Is there a usable blackboard or whiteboard?These questions translate an apparently abstract statutory requirement into the everyday experience of a child.Are there enough teachers?The RTE Act provides for pupil-teacher ratios under Section 25, with the detailed staffing norms set out in the Schedule.For classes I–V, the Schedule provides for a ratio of one teacher for every 30 children, subject to the staffing structure specified in the Act. Schools with more than 150 children are also required to have a full-time head teacher.For classes VI–VIII, the framework requires at least one teacher per class, teachers for Science and Mathematics, Social Studies and Languages, a ratio of at least one teacher for every 35 children, and part-time instructors for areas such as Art Education, Health and Physical Education and Work Education.This gives citizens another set of concrete questions:Does the school have enough teachers for its enrolment?Are teachers available for the required subjects at the upper-primary level?Are teachers regularly present?Do the teachers have the qualifications required for their posts?Is the School Management Committee functioning?One of the most important and powerful provisions of the RTE Act is the School Management Committee, or SMC.Section 21 of the Act provides for an SMC in the schools with at least 75% of its members being parents or guardians, and 50 per cent of its members have to be women. The committee includes representatives of the local authority, parents or guardians, and teachers. Also read: Education Has Not Failed Indian Children Everywhere – Why?The SMC functions include monitoring the working of the school, preparing and recommending the School Development Plan, and monitoring the utilisation of grants received by the school.Citizens can therefore ask:Does the school have an SMC?Does it meet regularly?Are minutes of its meetings maintained?Has the SMC prepared a School Development Plan?Does the plan reflect the school’s actual needs?Is the committee involved in monitoring school grants and the functioning of the school?Step by stepThe first step to inspecting a school is to file an application for inspection with the government school’s designated Public Information Officer under Section 2(j) of the Right to Information Act, 2005. This section gives citizens the right to inspect work, documents and records held by public authorities. The Public Information Officer (PIO) will notify you a time for inspection within 30 days. On the day of the inspection, collect records and evidence related to the aspects you want to evaluate. If you see gaps, the next step is to file a grievance redressal application with the education department. All the evidence you collect should be incorporated into the application. Get a complaint registration number. Follow up. It may take time and effort. But it is be the most important thing you will do as a citizen – turning a legal guarantee into something a child can experience every day – a school that is accessible, safe, adequately staffed, and accountable to the community it serves.Vinita Singh is the founder of We the People, a non-profit organisation dedicated to expanding active citizenship in India.