According to the ‘Education for All (EFA) Global Monitoring Report 2010’ (UNESCO), India’s rank was 105 among 128 countries. And it continues to figure, along with a lot of African and one or two Asian countries, such as Pakistan and Bangladesh, in the group of countries with a low educational development index(EDI).
In India, that is, as much as 34 percent of the children enrolled in Grade I drop out before reaching Grade V. Children drop out because of unattractiveness of school, economic constraints and lack of a tradition of going to or continuing in schools.
In the rural areas one government school is not there within a 3 km radius. Even in urban areas, there are many slum settlements without access to schools. About 14 percent of the schools have a single classroom each, and single-teacher schools constitute a similar proportion. While the national norm is one teacher for every 40 students in primary schools, 30 percent of the schools have a ratio above this norm. Only 85 percent of the schools in the country have drinking water facilities; 37 percent do not have toilets; only 44 percent have separate toilet facilities for girls. Hardly one-fourth have electricity connection; only 5.7 percent have a computer. Facilities such as separate toilets for girls and boys and clean
drinking water are rare.
One of the main reasons cited for the poor state of government schools is lack of funds. The government invests only 3 percent of GDP, a far less from 6 percent, recommended by the Kothari Commission as early as 1964.
Even where the physical infrastructure is better, teachers in many parts of the country have to deal with huge and multi-grade classes. Teachers are often forced to teach subjects for which they are pedagogically not prepared, with only the barest minimum of basic teaching aids. So, it is not particularly surprising that the quality of education in such circumstances is sub-standard. Schools also compromise on quality; with high rates of teacher absenteeism, unfilled vacancies of teachers, absence of teaching material and shortage of trained, motivated teachers, education becomes a farce in government schools. Not only is the quality of education in these schools abysmal (it is common to find Class V students unable to read or write), but they work for hardly 150 days a year against the stipulated 250 days. This is because, apart from declared holidays, teachers are often assigned other jobs -
Census survey or election work.
The curriculum and teaching methodologies stand obsolete and outdated, with the emphasis being on rote-learning and merely developing reading and writing skills instead of holistic education. Lack of vocational training and non-availability of such courses renders students with barely any employable skills at the end of their schooling.
Clearly, a substantial increase in public spending is a condition for improving the quality of education. A part of money should be utilized for necessary expansion in schooling facilities. We need good quality teachers in sufficient numbers. Professional development programs for Heads of Secondary/Higher Secondary Schools should be started. The objective of schools should be to encourage student to undertake the curriculum enrichment projects in the areas such as Science, Environment, Population Education, Human Rights, Languages, Fine Arts, Music, Folklore, Yoga, Sports activities, etc. Co-curricular activities such as Poster/Painting/Debate/ Elocution/Essay Competitions/ Quiz contest/ Special Interactive Lectures should be organized at the district/sub-divisional/block headquarters. These may be organized while observing World Population/AIDS/Environment/Women Day and other International/National Days/Events.
System in which the schools are owned by the government but managed and operated by
the private sector is a workable alternative. The government could bear the costs of running the institution, with suitable incentives to the private players willing to invest in such a venture (possibly in the form of tax benefits to the private organization); while the management and operation of the school would be in the hands of the private organization/establishment. While this would ensure an exponential increase in the quality of education that is accessible
to the masses, but it may drive up the government’s expenditure on education. However, a public-private partnership in education is the most suitable scenario to check corruption, ensure efficiency and proper utilization of allocated funds. Besides the touching faith in the efficiency of the private sector, there is also the presumption that non-governmental organizations (NGOs) can ensure credibility and accountability.
I could produce whatever was in my capability. Brilliant opinions are invited....
In India, that is, as much as 34 percent of the children enrolled in Grade I drop out before reaching Grade V. Children drop out because of unattractiveness of school, economic constraints and lack of a tradition of going to or continuing in schools.
In the rural areas one government school is not there within a 3 km radius. Even in urban areas, there are many slum settlements without access to schools. About 14 percent of the schools have a single classroom each, and single-teacher schools constitute a similar proportion. While the national norm is one teacher for every 40 students in primary schools, 30 percent of the schools have a ratio above this norm. Only 85 percent of the schools in the country have drinking water facilities; 37 percent do not have toilets; only 44 percent have separate toilet facilities for girls. Hardly one-fourth have electricity connection; only 5.7 percent have a computer. Facilities such as separate toilets for girls and boys and clean
drinking water are rare.
One of the main reasons cited for the poor state of government schools is lack of funds. The government invests only 3 percent of GDP, a far less from 6 percent, recommended by the Kothari Commission as early as 1964.
Even where the physical infrastructure is better, teachers in many parts of the country have to deal with huge and multi-grade classes. Teachers are often forced to teach subjects for which they are pedagogically not prepared, with only the barest minimum of basic teaching aids. So, it is not particularly surprising that the quality of education in such circumstances is sub-standard. Schools also compromise on quality; with high rates of teacher absenteeism, unfilled vacancies of teachers, absence of teaching material and shortage of trained, motivated teachers, education becomes a farce in government schools. Not only is the quality of education in these schools abysmal (it is common to find Class V students unable to read or write), but they work for hardly 150 days a year against the stipulated 250 days. This is because, apart from declared holidays, teachers are often assigned other jobs -
Census survey or election work.
The curriculum and teaching methodologies stand obsolete and outdated, with the emphasis being on rote-learning and merely developing reading and writing skills instead of holistic education. Lack of vocational training and non-availability of such courses renders students with barely any employable skills at the end of their schooling.
Clearly, a substantial increase in public spending is a condition for improving the quality of education. A part of money should be utilized for necessary expansion in schooling facilities. We need good quality teachers in sufficient numbers. Professional development programs for Heads of Secondary/Higher Secondary Schools should be started. The objective of schools should be to encourage student to undertake the curriculum enrichment projects in the areas such as Science, Environment, Population Education, Human Rights, Languages, Fine Arts, Music, Folklore, Yoga, Sports activities, etc. Co-curricular activities such as Poster/Painting/Debate/ Elocution/Essay Competitions/ Quiz contest/ Special Interactive Lectures should be organized at the district/sub-divisional/block headquarters. These may be organized while observing World Population/AIDS/Environment/Women Day and other International/National Days/Events.
System in which the schools are owned by the government but managed and operated by
the private sector is a workable alternative. The government could bear the costs of running the institution, with suitable incentives to the private players willing to invest in such a venture (possibly in the form of tax benefits to the private organization); while the management and operation of the school would be in the hands of the private organization/establishment. While this would ensure an exponential increase in the quality of education that is accessible
to the masses, but it may drive up the government’s expenditure on education. However, a public-private partnership in education is the most suitable scenario to check corruption, ensure efficiency and proper utilization of allocated funds. Besides the touching faith in the efficiency of the private sector, there is also the presumption that non-governmental organizations (NGOs) can ensure credibility and accountability.
I could produce whatever was in my capability. Brilliant opinions are invited....
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