Education
in India
India is home to one-seventh of all humans on earth,
numbering over one billion people. It is a youthful population, with approx. 64%
of them (aged between 15 and 64) employed in some manner. This is expected to
rise to 67% by 2020, while China is expecting a decline from 2014 onward to
2050. The median age of an average Indian employee is 28 years, as opposed to
37 and 44 years from China and japan, respectively. India has the world’s third
largest reservoir of Science and Technology manpower. These facts are testament
to the education sector’s success in India and abroad, from primary schools to
post-graduate institutes.
While this paints a very vibrant picture of Indian
Education, it doesn’t paint a complete picture. For example it doesn’t tell you
that while primary education in India is widespread and free, only 15% reach
secondary school. And of them only 7% graduate.
Literacy in India (as of 2011) stands at 74%; where 82%
males are literate and 65% females are literate. That may be acceptable figures
considering the burgeoning population of India, but compared to other
economically much poor nations it isn’t acceptable. Vietnam has a literacy rate
of 90%, Zambia 80%, Botswana (84.5%) and Gabon (88.4%). If the coming
generations are to fuel the nation’s prosperity and take the nation to new
heights then education is the most crucial instrument to drive that growth.
The literacy rate of India in 1901 was 5%. In 1947 it was
20%. Now it’s roughly three quarters of our whole population. It has improved
in recent years but it has yet to achieve its potential. There are countless
government schemes and NGOs that are working to educate the illiterate yet
millions of people are still “absolute illiterates”. Moreover female literacy
is not receiving the desired response that is being expected. Several reasons
have been provided for such failures:
- Teacher Absenteeism: In many schools across the country teachers take a lethargic approach to teaching. During many surprise visits to randomly selected schools across 20 states it was found that in about 25% of those schools the teacher was absent on that day without a compelling reason. This rate is worse in comparison to some other nations like Bangladesh (16%) and Zambia (17%). While Maharashtra and Gujarat record lower absenteeism rates; 100% literate Kerala and economically prosperous Punjab share surprisingly high absenteeism rates with Jharkhand and Bihar. In some places like Assam it was found that only a single teacher was found running an entire school by themselves.
- Commute: Distances of schools from most settlements are too far and cumbersome for most children to commute. And road connectivity is seldom good if available.
- Electricity: Electricity is hardly ever present in the surrounding areas, let alone schools, making education very basic and slow.
- Basic Amenities: In a study of 188 government-run primary schools, 59% had no drinking water and 89% had no toilets. Those that did have toilets did not have toilets especially for girls. According to data from National Institute of Educational and Planning and Administration, only 3.5% of primary schools in Bihar and Chhattisgarh had toilets for girls. In Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh, the rates were between 12-16%.
- Bad Conditions: The schools are often poorly constructed and offer little protection from the elements, like rain, making studies very troublesome.
- Puberty: 70% of Indian women can’t afford sanitary napkins and 23% of Indian girls (12-18) drop out of school because of menstruation-related problems caused by inadequate protection. This is according to a study “Every Woman’s Health Right” conducted by AC Nielson, reviewed and endorsed by Plan India. Prevalent societal taboos make it difficult for the girls to discuss their problems with family members, leaving them with no choice but to drop out of school altogether.
These are some of the problems that are preventing India
from achieving greater literacy rates. Solutions of said problems are not very
difficult to implement either.
- The Youth of India can volunteer themselves to teach the children basic subjects like English, maths and Computers; Subjects that will help them in life. Technology can be utilized for teaching, such as “Khan Academy” tutorial videos. Book donations can also help schools get material they need to teach the children properly.
- A community van/bus can be hired to ferry the children to school and back, saving them hours of trouble.
- Solar Lamps and generators can help generate relevant light and electricity needed to power a light bulb, fan or a projector.
- Communities and Charities can donate requisite funds needed to provide the school with basic amenities like drinking water and toilets. The classrooms can also be renovated the same way. A healthy environment can do wonders for the teachers and the students. A report, led by Indian economist-activist Jean Dreze, had drawn attention to the fact that a majority of parents who kept their children away from school, did so only because there were no schools of minimal quality in their vicinity.
- Recognising the need for sanitation during menstruation, the Union health ministry announced a scheme in June 2010 to increase access to and use of sanitary napkins by adolescent girls in rural areas. Under the scheme, a pack of six sanitary napkins will be supplied to below the poverty line (BPL) girls at a nominal cost of Re 1 per pack. Girls in the above the poverty line (APL) category would be charged Rs 5 per pack.
- A Unicef initiative that has proved popular was installing a sanitary napkin vending machine in schools in Kanchipuran district, in Tamil Nadu, making a napkin available for Rs 2. The napkins are made by the Tiruvidenthai Akshaya Self-Help Group.
- Another innovation is a low-cost sanitary napkin-manufacturing machine invented by a Tamilian entrepreneur that produces 120 napkins per hour. It has not only increased the base of women users but has also helped create a number of small manufacturing businesses. Around 100 machines have been installed across India. The machine has to be bought from its inventor, A Muruganantham, a Class 10 dropout, who refuses to sell his patent and wants his invention to help rural women. Several small businesses manufacturing sanitary napkins on his machine have come up in Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Uttarakhand.
- A further action the youth can undertake is to educate the communities about sex education and women’s sexual hygiene education. The taboos prevalent in our society can only be broken if the youth take the initiative and break the bonds of ignorance, for which AIESEC as a youth organisation is well placed for such social upliftment. Kerala can be cited as a successful beacon for female education. For example, female and child mortality rates declined dramatically in the 1960s, when girls schooled according to the education reforms after 1948 began to raise families. In addition to the potential for literacy to increase wealth, wealth may promote literacy, through cultural norms and easier access to schools and tutoring services.
.
The NDTV-Coca-Cola “Support my School” campaign addressed many of
the above issues, and already large positive results have emerged. If more
people contributed in the same manner then we certainly will be a step closer
towards educating one-seventh of all mankind.
Sources:
SUMANT AGNIHOTRI
