Why is India still a developing country and what is stopping it from being a developed country? This particular question strikes me every time when I read something about India’s education system. I see India’s education system as a stumbling block towards its objectives of achieving inclusive growth.
Let me inform you about certain startling facts. India is going to experience a paradox of nearly 90 million people joining the workforce but most of them will lack requiste skills and the mindset for productive employment according to a report in DNA. India has about 550 million people under the age of 25 years out of which only 11% are enrolled in tertiary institutions compared to the world average of 23%.
I wouldn’t be laying too much emphasis on the drawbacks of India’s public education system because it has been an issue well debated over in the past and the main flaws have already been pointed out before. I will be focussing on how the education system’s failure is leading to another social issue of income inequality and hence, suggest certain policies to improve India’s education system and reduce inequality.
The really critical aspect of Indian public education system is its low quality. The actual quantity of schooling that children experience and the quality of teaching they receive are extremely insufficient in government schools. A common feature in all government schools is the poor quality of education, with weak infrastructure and inadequate pedagogic attention.
The present day education system in India has come a long way and the age old traditions have undergone a makeover to produce an ecosystem that is evolving every single day.
Initiatives like the Right to Education Act have provided an impetus to growth and progress by laying special emphasis on elementary education in India. Combined with policy changes like making child labour illegal the being government is working ensure that the seeds of education are planted in both the rural and less privileged sub-urban areas of the country though there are a number of pressing challenges at hand that hamper the proliferation.
Key Challenges for the Indian Education System
25% of the Indian population is illiterate.
Only 7% of the population that goes to school managed to graduate and only 15% of those who enrol manage to make it to high school and achieve a place in the higher education system.
A few reasons why education in India is given less importance in some areas are as follows:
80% of schools are managed by the government. Private schools are expensive and out of reach of the poor.
More hands to earn remains the mentality amongst many families and therefore little kids are set out to fend for the family over going to school to garner an adequate education, in the most literal sense of the word.
Infrastructure facilities at schools across rural areas and in slums dispense very poor quality of education.
The teachers are not well qualified and therefore not well paid and therefore are not willing to work hard enough. This has been a classical Catch-22 problem that the government has been trying hard to fight against.
An Overview Of The Levels of Education in India
The type of education systems in India can be classified as:
1) Pre primary education in India: Pre-primary school education in India is not a fundamental right and is divided into two levels – Lower KG ( for children between 3 – 4 years) and Upper KG ( for children between 4 – 5 years).
2) Primary Education in India: This serves as the link between primary school and elementary education. However, not much emphasis is laid on this level by the prevailing education system and policies in this regard continue to exist solely on paper.
3) Elementary Education: The Government has made elementary education compulsory for children between the age group of years 6 and 14.
4) Secondary Education in India: Serves as a link between elementary and higher education in the Indian education setup, which draws a blank again as far as policy is concerned.
5) Higher Education in India: Under graduate and post graduate level: After completion of secondary education, students can choose fields of their interest and pursue undergraduate and then post graduate courses.
RECENT TRENDS IN EDUCATION SYSTEM
With a spate of new reforms taking place in the education sector of our country, I have been compelled to take up the pen and put to paper all the recent changes and developments that are affecting us all. Recently with CCE- Continuous & Comprehensive Evaluation being implemented in Class IX and above classes, the students will be evaluated for their scholastic as well as co-scholastic performance from next month, resulting in grades instead of marks. This means that schools following CBSE pattern, will henceforth conduct formative and summative assessment of Class IX students in their second term. With two formative and one summative assessment in each term, the weightage of these two assessments in a year will be 40% and 60%, respectively. These formative assessments will be gauged through quizzes, conversations, interviews, oral testing, visual testing, projects, practicals and assignments.
Many schools like DPS Pinjore have since its inception laid stress on co-curricular activities and formative assessments of their students but the other schools which have till date only restricted a child’s assessment to only the paper-pencil test, will face difficulty in adapting themselves to the new pattern laid down by the Board. Aiming at “holistic assessment of a learner”, the circular issued by the Board stresses that CCE “will motivate learning in a friendly environment rather than in a fearful situation.” With a greater focus on learning rather than teaching to test, DPS Pinjore and a handful of other schools like Shemford Group Of Schools score a point over the others, as they are already following a similar education pattern.
The CBSE Board has also woken up to the need to train its teachers and impart the required teaching practices to its teachers but in private schools like DPS Pinjore, it is mandatory for teachers to complete a set of training modules before joining the school. The basic aim behind this is to ensure that the teachers inculcate the same set of values in their own selves before stepping into the student’s realm and guiding them.
When talking about the latest reforms, why leave behind ICT usage? Use of videogames to make learning more interesting, computer aided teaching and active graphics are rigorously being used these days to grab and sustain the child’s attention. With modern technology getting more advanced day by day, there is an even greater need to introduce the child early on, to this new dimension of education and try and build his interest in the same.
Especially the way in which mathematics is presented to school children, many of them find it a difficult and dry subject. Many national bodies like NCERT and teacher associations like AMTI are making efforts to make mathematics teaching more alluring by organising trainings, workshops, seminars, bringing out journals, producing resource material, conducting Mathematical Olympiads, etc. But all said and done, in the end, the onus of improving the quality of teaching mathematics lies on the individual teacher.
I personally believe that all children are a Goldmine- a goldmine of hidden talents! And the onus of discovering their talents rests not only on the parents but also on the schools. These talents have to be discovered at an early age, when the little buds are still blossoming into flowers. Keeping this in view, the Government has proposed to introduce new courses in the current curriculum being followed at schools all over the country.
With the HRD Ministry all set to introduce new courses in areas like Fine Arts, Music, Carpentry and other skills at the school level, schools are all geared up to cater to the new tidal wave of interests shown in their curriculum by the governing bodies. It is a well known fact that for any industry or sector to flourish, it is very important to have Government support and the reform policies to be actively implemented. With the new Education Minister, Mr Kapil Sibal, taking an active interest in the Educational Reforms of the country, India’s Education Sector is set for major reforms that were long pending. The government’s intervention in major issues has sparked a series of intellectual debates among all classes of the society and finally, it seems that unheard pleas are being heard!
After having made Board Exams optional in Grade X, the schools are further rejoicing in the knowledge that CBSE will now be internationally recognized and will cater to a much wider audience in terms of outreach. Just like the International Baccalaureate (IB) and the Cambridge International Examinations, the ‘International CBSE’ would reach out to students across the world as an alternate system of learning and evaluation – Definitely news worth rejoicing!
With US Secretary Of Education, Arne Duncan’s ample praise for India’s secondary education system, the idea of taking our CBSE Board which is already recognized globally, to an international level, has streamed forth. But first, the current CBSE curriculum would have to be revamped totally in order to customize and tailor it to the requirements of the global student community and this would definitely take some time and ample research.
In the meanwhile, the results of the recent reforms implemented, are visible from this term itself, with schools all over Delhi agreeing to open the registrations from Dec 15. With de-bureaucratisation in the Admissions Procedure of schools, the parents of children seeking admissions have a little less to worry about this term. With the annual admission time being one of the most harrowing times of all, parents have literally breathed a sigh of relief on the Government’s timely intervention and lauded the efforts of Sibal.
Starting with the Grading system to Introduction of new diverse courses in schools, from the Right to Education Bill being passed to the Teacher Training Program being implemented at a nation wide scale, Mr Sibal has been doing a commendable work since day one of his term and I wish him all the best for his future endeavors.
Let me inform you about certain startling facts. India is going to experience a paradox of nearly 90 million people joining the workforce but most of them will lack requiste skills and the mindset for productive employment according to a report in DNA. India has about 550 million people under the age of 25 years out of which only 11% are enrolled in tertiary institutions compared to the world average of 23%.
I wouldn’t be laying too much emphasis on the drawbacks of India’s public education system because it has been an issue well debated over in the past and the main flaws have already been pointed out before. I will be focussing on how the education system’s failure is leading to another social issue of income inequality and hence, suggest certain policies to improve India’s education system and reduce inequality.
The really critical aspect of Indian public education system is its low quality. The actual quantity of schooling that children experience and the quality of teaching they receive are extremely insufficient in government schools. A common feature in all government schools is the poor quality of education, with weak infrastructure and inadequate pedagogic attention.
The present day education system in India has come a long way and the age old traditions have undergone a makeover to produce an ecosystem that is evolving every single day.
Initiatives like the Right to Education Act have provided an impetus to growth and progress by laying special emphasis on elementary education in India. Combined with policy changes like making child labour illegal the being government is working ensure that the seeds of education are planted in both the rural and less privileged sub-urban areas of the country though there are a number of pressing challenges at hand that hamper the proliferation.
Key Challenges for the Indian Education System
25% of the Indian population is illiterate.
Only 7% of the population that goes to school managed to graduate and only 15% of those who enrol manage to make it to high school and achieve a place in the higher education system.
A few reasons why education in India is given less importance in some areas are as follows:
80% of schools are managed by the government. Private schools are expensive and out of reach of the poor.
More hands to earn remains the mentality amongst many families and therefore little kids are set out to fend for the family over going to school to garner an adequate education, in the most literal sense of the word.
Infrastructure facilities at schools across rural areas and in slums dispense very poor quality of education.
The teachers are not well qualified and therefore not well paid and therefore are not willing to work hard enough. This has been a classical Catch-22 problem that the government has been trying hard to fight against.
An Overview Of The Levels of Education in India
The type of education systems in India can be classified as:
1) Pre primary education in India: Pre-primary school education in India is not a fundamental right and is divided into two levels – Lower KG ( for children between 3 – 4 years) and Upper KG ( for children between 4 – 5 years).
2) Primary Education in India: This serves as the link between primary school and elementary education. However, not much emphasis is laid on this level by the prevailing education system and policies in this regard continue to exist solely on paper.
3) Elementary Education: The Government has made elementary education compulsory for children between the age group of years 6 and 14.
4) Secondary Education in India: Serves as a link between elementary and higher education in the Indian education setup, which draws a blank again as far as policy is concerned.
5) Higher Education in India: Under graduate and post graduate level: After completion of secondary education, students can choose fields of their interest and pursue undergraduate and then post graduate courses.
RECENT TRENDS IN EDUCATION SYSTEM
With a spate of new reforms taking place in the education sector of our country, I have been compelled to take up the pen and put to paper all the recent changes and developments that are affecting us all. Recently with CCE- Continuous & Comprehensive Evaluation being implemented in Class IX and above classes, the students will be evaluated for their scholastic as well as co-scholastic performance from next month, resulting in grades instead of marks. This means that schools following CBSE pattern, will henceforth conduct formative and summative assessment of Class IX students in their second term. With two formative and one summative assessment in each term, the weightage of these two assessments in a year will be 40% and 60%, respectively. These formative assessments will be gauged through quizzes, conversations, interviews, oral testing, visual testing, projects, practicals and assignments.
Many schools like DPS Pinjore have since its inception laid stress on co-curricular activities and formative assessments of their students but the other schools which have till date only restricted a child’s assessment to only the paper-pencil test, will face difficulty in adapting themselves to the new pattern laid down by the Board. Aiming at “holistic assessment of a learner”, the circular issued by the Board stresses that CCE “will motivate learning in a friendly environment rather than in a fearful situation.” With a greater focus on learning rather than teaching to test, DPS Pinjore and a handful of other schools like Shemford Group Of Schools score a point over the others, as they are already following a similar education pattern.
The CBSE Board has also woken up to the need to train its teachers and impart the required teaching practices to its teachers but in private schools like DPS Pinjore, it is mandatory for teachers to complete a set of training modules before joining the school. The basic aim behind this is to ensure that the teachers inculcate the same set of values in their own selves before stepping into the student’s realm and guiding them.
When talking about the latest reforms, why leave behind ICT usage? Use of videogames to make learning more interesting, computer aided teaching and active graphics are rigorously being used these days to grab and sustain the child’s attention. With modern technology getting more advanced day by day, there is an even greater need to introduce the child early on, to this new dimension of education and try and build his interest in the same.
Especially the way in which mathematics is presented to school children, many of them find it a difficult and dry subject. Many national bodies like NCERT and teacher associations like AMTI are making efforts to make mathematics teaching more alluring by organising trainings, workshops, seminars, bringing out journals, producing resource material, conducting Mathematical Olympiads, etc. But all said and done, in the end, the onus of improving the quality of teaching mathematics lies on the individual teacher.
I personally believe that all children are a Goldmine- a goldmine of hidden talents! And the onus of discovering their talents rests not only on the parents but also on the schools. These talents have to be discovered at an early age, when the little buds are still blossoming into flowers. Keeping this in view, the Government has proposed to introduce new courses in the current curriculum being followed at schools all over the country.
With the HRD Ministry all set to introduce new courses in areas like Fine Arts, Music, Carpentry and other skills at the school level, schools are all geared up to cater to the new tidal wave of interests shown in their curriculum by the governing bodies. It is a well known fact that for any industry or sector to flourish, it is very important to have Government support and the reform policies to be actively implemented. With the new Education Minister, Mr Kapil Sibal, taking an active interest in the Educational Reforms of the country, India’s Education Sector is set for major reforms that were long pending. The government’s intervention in major issues has sparked a series of intellectual debates among all classes of the society and finally, it seems that unheard pleas are being heard!
After having made Board Exams optional in Grade X, the schools are further rejoicing in the knowledge that CBSE will now be internationally recognized and will cater to a much wider audience in terms of outreach. Just like the International Baccalaureate (IB) and the Cambridge International Examinations, the ‘International CBSE’ would reach out to students across the world as an alternate system of learning and evaluation – Definitely news worth rejoicing!
With US Secretary Of Education, Arne Duncan’s ample praise for India’s secondary education system, the idea of taking our CBSE Board which is already recognized globally, to an international level, has streamed forth. But first, the current CBSE curriculum would have to be revamped totally in order to customize and tailor it to the requirements of the global student community and this would definitely take some time and ample research.
In the meanwhile, the results of the recent reforms implemented, are visible from this term itself, with schools all over Delhi agreeing to open the registrations from Dec 15. With de-bureaucratisation in the Admissions Procedure of schools, the parents of children seeking admissions have a little less to worry about this term. With the annual admission time being one of the most harrowing times of all, parents have literally breathed a sigh of relief on the Government’s timely intervention and lauded the efforts of Sibal.
Starting with the Grading system to Introduction of new diverse courses in schools, from the Right to Education Bill being passed to the Teacher Training Program being implemented at a nation wide scale, Mr Sibal has been doing a commendable work since day one of his term and I wish him all the best for his future endeavors.
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