MODULE
5 - Issues in contemporary Education
Prepared by
SABARISH-P
M.Sc., M.Ed., JRF & NET
Assistant Professor in Physical Science, Arafa Institute for Teacher Education
Attur, Thrissur.
Gender Issues
·
India
is reputed to have a progressive education policy with regard to the focus on
gender.
·
Despite
over three decades of commitment to gender equality and the universalisation of
education, the ground realities are still grim, especially in the context of
girls from marginalised groups and rural areas.
·
National-level
surveys and data also show that nine out of every ten girls ever enrolled in
school could not complete schooling; and, only one out of every 100 girls
enrolled in Class I reaches Class XII in rural areas and 14 out of every 100
girls enrolled in Class I reach Class XII in urban areas.
·
The
likelihood of an urban girl continuing in school is low, and of a rural girl
reaching Class XII very unlikely. In real terms then, what matters is not just
access or enrolment but retention.
·
One
of the major reasons why children, both boys and girls, in both rural and urban
areas drop out is lack of interest in studies, hostile environments, poor
teaching, non-comprehension and difficulties of coping.
·
The
values, norms, social practices, customs and rituals that underlie the
connection between gender socialisation and formal process of education at
school need to be understood.
·
Once
girls are given access to schools, the assumption is that as girls and women
have entered the public sphere, empowerment will follow implicitly.
·
The
content, language, images in texts, the curricula, and the perceptions of
teachers and facilitators have the power to strengthen the hold of patriarchy.
·
The
school becomes an enclosed space, like the domestic sphere where
discriminations and violations are not talked about or questioned.
·
The
issues of gender equality constantly take on new configurations specially in
the context of the challenges brought on by changes in the economy in the last
15 years.
Cultural Issues
·
The
term, “issues” refers
to the conflicts, misinterpretations and/or miscommunications that take place
in the classroom.
·
Culture
is a broad and comprehensive concept that includes all the ways of being.
Culture is learned throughout life as one participates in family and social
networks.
·
Cultures
have several components, including values and behaviour styles; language and
dialects; non-verbal communications; and perspectives, worldviews, and frames
of reference.
·
Cultural
practices are shared within a specific group and may or may not be shared
across groups. It is important to recognize that cultures are always changing
because individuals, groups, and the surrounding environment are always
changing.
·
In
every culture, subgroups may form. Subgroups can differ by any of the components
of culture, including ethnicity, language, class, religion, and geography.
·
All
students are culturally diverse regardless of their ethnicity, race, or
socioeconomic status.
·
Multicultural
and multilingual classrooms have become the norm in many educational settings due to changing immigration patterns caused by globalization.
·
Analyzing
cultural issues can shed light on some of the unconscious processes that shape
individuals’ perceptions of reality as well as patterns of interaction,
including language use and communication.
·
The
analysis of cultural issues may benefit teachers as well as learners by raising
awareness of the hidden cultural assumptions and biases that they bring to the
classroom.
·
It
is not unusual to find classrooms where three or four different languages and
cultures are represented.
·
In
order to educate the future generations of our society effectively, the
education system must be successful teaching all children to communicate and
interact with people from different backgrounds and with different abilities.
·
Educators
must find ways to offer an excellent education to all students regardless of
their background.
·
For
culturally and linguistically diverse students, issues of diversity,
difference, and disability can be quite complex and challenging for classroom
teachers.
·
Understanding
the role that culture plays in the classroom is essential to
effective teaching, learning and communicative interaction in general.
·
Designing
programs for diverse audiences is not an easy process. It involves much more
than mere linguistic translation, although language is important.
·
Moreover,
programs must be designed to be sustainable within the communities they seek to
involve.
Social and Economic Issues
·
Socio-economic
status (SES) is often measured as a combination of education, income and
occupation. It is commonly conceptualized as the social standing or class of an
individual or group. When viewed through a social class lens, privilege, power,
and control are emphasized.
·
SES
is relevant to all realms of behavioural and social science, including
research, practice, education and advocacy.
·
Low
SES and its correlates, such as lower education, poverty and poor health,
ultimately affect the society as a whole.
·
Research
indicates that children from low-SES households and communities develop
academic skills more slowly compared to children from higher SES groups.
·
Initial
academic skills are correlated with the home environment, where low literacy
environments and chronic stress negatively affect a child’s pre-academic
skills.
·
The
school systems in low-SES communities are often under-resourced, negatively
affecting students’ academic progress.
·
Inadequate
education and increased dropout rates affect children’s academic achievement,
perpetuating the low-SES status of the community.
·
Improving
school systems and early intervention programs may help to reduce these risk
factors, and thus increased research on the correlation between SES and
education is essential.
·
Families
from low-SES communities are less likely to have the financial resources or
time availability to provide children with academic support.
·
Children’s
initial reading competence is correlated with the home literacy environment,
number of books owned and parent distress.
·
However,
parents from low-SES communities may be unable to afford resources such as
books, computers, or tutors to create this positive literacy environment.
·
Research
indicates that school conditions contribute more to SES differences in learning
rates.
·
Schools
in low-SES communities suffer from high levels of unemployment, migration of
the best qualified teachers and low educational achievement.
·
A
teacher’s years of experience and quality of training is correlated with
children’s academic achievement.
·
Children
in low income schools are less likely to have well-qualified teachers.
·
The
following factors have been found to improve the quality of schools in low-SES
neighborhoods:
§
A
focus on improving teaching and learning.
§
Creation
of an information-rich environment.
§
Building
of a learning community.
§
Continuous
professional development.
§
Involvement
of parents and increased funding and resources.
Environmental Issues in Education
·
A
healthy environment needs well-trained leaders capable of executing creative
solutions to future challenges.
·
Environmental
education build awareness of the way of life that conserves resources for
future generations.
·
Educational
programs aimed at children and adults are critical in fostering a healthier and
safer planet.
·
If
the youth don’t have a basic understanding of science and ethics, they will not
be able to handle the environmental challenges that they may face at some stage
of their lives.
·
Environmental
education programs reconnect children to nature and foster an appreciation of
the earth.
·
Environmental
education, a vital component of efforts to solve environmental problems, must
stay relevant to the needs and interests of the community and yet constantly
adapt to the rapidly changing social and technological landscape
·
Environmental
educators must come up with new knowledge and techniques that address the
demands of a constantly evolving social and technological landscape, while
ensuring that environmental education stays relevant to the needs and interests
of the community.
·
These
challenges to environmental education require that we reexamine the way we do
research and train environmental professionals and educators, as well as the
way we communicate environmental information to the general public.
·
Effective
and meaningful environmental education is a challenge that needs to be taken
seriously if the future generations are to enjoy the benefits of the natural
heritage.
·
Environmental
problems have become increasingly difficult to understand and to evaluate.
·
Reasonable
treatment of environmental concerns often falls prey to the political agendas
of those who have a vested interest in an unsustainable, resource-extractive
approach to economic development.
·
Environmental
education must teach about science itself and about the use of the scientific
methodto help evaluate and respond to environmental threats.
·
Educational
materials that omit the important role of science and the general rules of
scientific inquiry are damaging to the field of environmental education.
·
The
need to include science in educational efforts does not, however, excuse
educators from the obligation to communicate in an understandable way that
invites further inquiry from those who might be intimidated by scientifically
complex subjects.
·
Environmental
education need to keep pace with changing audience, as the overall
environmental movement will benefit by staying relevant to future generations
and by inspiring individuals to take action to conserve natural resources and
protect the environment.
·
To
become involved in respecting nature and protecting the environment over the
long term, people need to have a sense of hope and gratification from
environmental education.
·
Building
programs that merely catalog harm without advancing the sense that
accomplishments can be made will not offer the kind of fun and enriching
learning environment that creates a sustainable commitment to environmental
protection.
·
While
the study of nature would be incomplete without discussing the threats to the
natural world, an appreciation of nature should not be lacking in environmental
education programs.
·
It
is teaching about the miracles of the natural world, more than anything else,
that will engender a sustainable and creative learning environment.
·
Although
great strides have been made in protecting aquatic resources, human population
growth and industrial use will continue to pose significant challenges to the
protection of these basic resources.
·
While
environmental education is sometimes characterized as soft and gets less
attention than other aspects of environmental protection, it is through
environmental education that future environmental advocates and problem solvers
are created.
·
To
generate new leaders in the environmental field over the new century, and to
foster the general public's knowledge and concern for the environment,
environmental education should recognize and begin responding effectively to
several major challenges.
·
These
include changes in demographics and experience, effective integration of newer
sources of information with experiential learning opportunities, the effective
communication of environmental issues to the public, and the avoidance of the
psychology of despair.
Education for Sustainable
Development
·
Education
for Sustainable Development (ESD) is about the learning needed to maintain and
improve the quality of life and the quality of life of generations to come.
·
ESD
is about equipping individuals, communities, groups, businesses and government
to live and act sustainably; as well as giving them an understanding of the
environmental, social and economic issues involved.
·
ESD is a
lifelong process from early childhood to higher and adult education and goes
beyond formal education.
·
As values,
lifestyles and attitudes are established from an early age, the role of
education is of particular importance for children.
·
Since learning
takes place at different stages in people’s lives, ESD has to be considered as
a life-wide process.
·
ESD should
permeate learning programmes at all levels, including vocational education,
training for educators, and continuing education for professionals and decision
makers.
·
ESD
has become an important element of environmental policy making and sustainable
development strategies.
·
The
four thrusts of ESD are as stated below:
§
Improving
access to quality basic education.
§
Reorienting
existing education to address sustainability.
§
Increasing
public understanding and awareness of sustainability.
§
Providing
training for all sectors of the economy.
·
Learning
to live more sustainably is perhaps the major challenge facing advanced
industrialised societies.
·
To
realise sustainable development, ESD needs to reorient radically by shifting
the emphasis from the past, industrialism, modernity and the nation state, to
the future, post-industrialism, post-modernity, and global society.
·
ESD
may need to embrace new forms of knowledge, new ways of organising knowledge,
and new ways of teaching and learning.
·
The
core themes of education for sustainability include lifelong learning,
interdisciplinary education partnerships, multicultural education and
empowerment.
·
Special
attention should be paid to the training of teachers, youth leaders and other
educators.
·
Even
in countries with strong education systems, there is a need to reorient
education awareness and training so as to promote widespread public
understanding, critical analysis and support for sustainable development
·
The
authority of the teacher who seeks to instill basic human and environmental
values, such as respect and care for the community of life, in pupils rests on
the wide acceptance of those values and the fact that they can be rationally
defended.
·
Classroom
talk plays a key role in ESD for it is through dialogue that pupils, with
guidance, can decide what is technically possible, culturally appropriate, and
morally and politically right.
·
Language
enables students to critically evaluate discourse, judge knowledge claims, and
arrive at consensus about those forms of technology and governance that may
enable people to realise their common interests in sustainability.
·
ESD
requires that the ground rules for classroom talk are made visible; and
ultimately the discourse of citizenship education (ESD) itself needs to be made
visible to pupils so that they can critique its underpinning social values and
beliefs in order that they may become active transformed citizens.
·
Such
ideas are indeed challenging for curriculum developers and for teachers in
school, for it would entail developing articulate, well-informed pupils who
would be able to critique any curriculum on offer.
·
In
order to critically evaluate discourses of sustainability, and thereby further
develop sustainability as a frame of mind, pupils require a considerable amount
of knowledge and understanding from the natural and social sciences, the arts
and humanities.
·
Academic
knowledge should be selected, classified and taught in ways that enable pupils
to gain integrated or holistic perspectives on the environment and development,
although the possibility of one single ‘true’ or ‘right’ perspective should be
viewed with extreme caution.
·
The
philosophy of knowledge is a key consideration in the construction of ESD as a
theme across the curriculum and this section reviews insights that academics
provide.
Value Crisis
·
Values
constitute an ethical skeleton only when an individual integrates these
standards into everything he does to such an extent that he feels consciously
able to actively govern his own life.
·
The
projection of these values in society, to greater extent, relies upon their
having been acquired in the schools.
·
It
is always believed that schools are the first and foremost abodes to inculcate
the values in the children which they exercise in society afterwards. Hence,
the education system plays an indispensable role in this respect.
·
The
solidarity of the education system insures the solidarity in the fostering of
certain values in a child.
·
Whatever
a child learns at the school becomes his life’s determining factor.
·
Though
home is the very preliminary place to nurture certain values in a child but it
is the school where a child is exposed to a virtual society or a society in
miniature giving him encouraging ambiance to learn and experiment
simultaneously.
·
The
education system is facing value crisis due to the following reasons:
§
Rate
of illiteracy.
§
Less
numbers of teachers.
§
Higher
drop-out rate of pupils.
§
Lower
education spend by the concerned authorities.
·
Education
for the youth has a very limited purpose, as their priority is to score good
marks in the examinations and to utilize their mark sheets for insuring
lucrative jobs.
·
Students
are content with bookish knowledge only required for passing and do not bother
to nurture any value for the upliftment of the society.
·
The
status of morality among pupils is deplorable and complexities of their age
also leaves a question on the kind of education they are imparted.
·
As
the students lose all their faith in the school system and in teachers, they
get more conscious about their individuality.
·
Students
get swayed by modern ways, caring little to the means to attain their ends as they
aim only at the results.
·
With
the rapid increase of globalization and modernization the teacher-student
relation has also reached a level of professionalism.
·
The
students hardly bother to pay their teachers any respect. Actually gone are the
days when there used to be a kind of rapport between them.
·
Students
reflected the strong relationship cherished with their teachers. The way they
executed their lives manifested clearly the inculcation of values during their
learning process.
·
The
teachers used to be the guide, friends, anchors and inspirational sources for
students. But in the resent scenario there has been a breach between them which
keeps on widening.
·
Students
have so much exposure to the information of the world and an easy access to
internet because of which they possess prior knowledge of anything they are
going to be taught.
·
If
teachers fail to establish a rapport with the students, they are responsible
for the degradation of values.
·
The
other major degradation in values is evident in the way the school,
particularly public schools, are run.
·
Majority
of the schools are run in the form of autonomous body with a separate
management. They frame their own set of rules, code of conducts, norms to be
followed and a separate philosophy to work with.
·
Unfortunately,
their philosophy is to run these schools to serve their monetary purpose or to
turn their black money into white. Their criterion to admit the students
reveals that they themselves lack values.
·
Child’s
financial status is preferred to his caliber and capabilities. Even in many
cases a child fails to get admission in a good school only because his parents
are less educated or illiterate.
·
Moreover,
running after money becomes so much important for the school that everybody who
can afford the school fee is given admission irrespective of his temperament
and attitude.
·
The
classes are so over-crowded that imparting value education and inculcating values
in students becomes quite difficult.
·
The
inculcation of values in the youth is the end product of value education which
builds character, influences their decision making in life, and helps them grow
by building healthy relationships in society.
·
The
school curriculum has to contain components that communicate essential values
in their totality.
·
Ethical
and psychological principles can aid the school in the greatest of all
reconstruction, the building of a free and powerful character. Only knowledge of
the order of connection of the stages in psychological development can ensure
this.
·
Education
is the work of supplying the conditions, which will ensure the psychological
function to mature in the finest and fullest manner.
·
Education
must teach a person what life is and what its goal is. It must purify the heart
and clarify the vision. It must promote virtues to raise the moral, spiritual
and social standards of the educated.
Education for Peace
·
Education
for peace acknowledges the goal of promoting a culture of peace as the purpose
shaping the enterprise of education.
·
If
implemented with vigour and vision, education for peace can make learning a
joyful and meaningful experience.
·
Education
for Peace requires a reduction in curriculum load.
·
Peace
offers a contextually appropriate and pedagogically gainful point of coherence
for all values.
·
The
need to do justice to teachers is also argued and the setting up of Teachers’
Tribunals is proposed to address this basic need.
·
The
major frontiers of education for peace are:
§ Bringing about peace-orientation in
individuals through education;
§ Nurturing in students the social
skills and outlook needed to live together in harmony;
§ Reinforcing social justice, as
envisaged in the Constitution;
§ The need and duty to propagate a
secular culture;
§ Education as a catalyst for activating
a democratic culture;
§ The scope for promoting national
integration through education; and
§ Education for peace as a lifestyle
movement.
·
The
major issues and concerns needed for an effective implementation of education
for peace include:
§ Teacher education
§ Textbook writing
§ School setting
§ Evaluation
§ Media literacy
§ Parent-teacher partnership
§ The need to address the practical
implications of integration as the preferred strategy.
·
A
teacher’s prime responsibility is to help students become good human beings,
motivated to fulfill their true potential not only for their own benefit but
also for the betterment of the society as a whole.
·
Good
teachers are models of peace values, such as, the art of listening, the
humility to acknowledge and correct one’s mistakes, assuming responsibility for
one’s actions, sharing concerns, and helping each other to solve problems
transcending differences, even if they do not preach peace.
·
A
teacher who, from a peace perspective, can critically evaluate his/her
attitudes, habitual modes of thinking, and approach to teachingis an asset for
education for peace.
·
In
peace-oriented pedagogy, the focus is not merely on retention of concepts,
memorisation of texts, or achieving individual goals and excellence but on
learning to reflect, share, care, and collaborate with each other.
·
The
methods of teaching should be creative, child-centred, largely experiential,
and participatory.
·
The
teaching methods may include creation of appropriate learning experiences,
discussion, debates, presentation, and group and cooperative projects,
depending on students’ maturity levels and the subject content.
·
The
teacher and school may devise other context-specific strategies to develop
among students a sense of openness and comprehension about diverse cultures,
histories, and fundamental shared values.
·
Some
peace values may be more appropriately inculcated while teaching a particular
subject at a particular stage or grade, while others are better integrated with
other subjects in a different grade.
·
For
education for peace, a great deal depends on the peace-motivation of teachers,
especially in the integrated approach.
·
Teachers
have to be alert to peace opportunities and creative in appropriating them in
respect of the curriculum as a whole.
Value Education
·
From
a historical viewpoint, a value may be defined as a thing that is good.
Operationally the concept of values may be defined as ‘factors which affect
human behavior’ intellectually, value may be defined as a concept which is
accepted· by the sub-conscious mind, is understood by all and perceived by the
individual.
·
Categories
of Values
§
Personal
Values: Personal values mean the desires of individual whatever they are in the
social relationship. Some of the personal values are excellence, honesty,
self-confidence, self-motivation, punctuality, ambition, courage, creativity,
imagination etc.
§
Social
Values: Individual cannot live in the world without having interaction
with others. People want social values like love, affection, friendship, peer
group, reference group, imparity, hospitality, courageous, service, justice,
freedom, patience, forgiveness, coordination, sympathy, tolerance etc. Social
values are more important for healthy, good environment for every organization.
§
Moral
Values: Moral values impart respecting others and ourselves, respecting
the right of others, keeping promises avoiding unnecessary problems with others
avoiding cheating and dishonesty, showing gratitude to others and encourage
them to work.
§
Spiritual
values: The ultimate ethical value is called spiritual value. Spiritual
values are piety, meditation, yoga, self-discipline, control, purity, and devotion
to God etc. Spiritual values highlight the principles of self-restraint,
self-discipline, contentment, reduction of wants, freedom from general greed
and austerity.
§
Universal
Values: It is universal values that indicate the essence of the human condition.
It is through Universal Values that we link ourselves with humanity and the
cosmos. Universal Values can be experienced as life, joy, brotherhood, love,
compassion, service, bliss, truth and eternity.
§
Cultural
Values: Cultural values are concerned with right and wrong, good and bad,
customs and behavior. Cultural values are reflected in language, ethics, social
hierarchy, aesthetics, education, law, economics, philosophy and social
institutions of every kind.
·
Value
education is preferred to the traditional approaches such as moral education,
religious education, social and character education, moral and spiritual
education.
·
Good
education and environment acts simply as catalysts of value development.
·
Environmental
stimulation and opportunities to learn and interaction with human beings are
the essential requirements in the development of capacity for moral or value
judgment which is the main aim of value education.
·
Value
development is not a sudden transformation of personality of the individual.
Values are not only caught but should also be developed systematically through
planned efforts.
·
Values
are not just about one’s general obligations; they are an intrinsic part of
one’s relationship with oneself, with others and with one’s surroundings.
·
It
is an imperative need in the present context of things that the whole of
educational system should be restructured to include value education in the
process of education.
·
Value
education, both formal and informal, may encourage students to:
§
Develop
their own personal moral codes and have a concern for others.
§
Reflect
on experiences and search for meaning and patterns in their experiences.
§
Have
self-respect and respect for commonly held values such as honesty, truthfulness
and justice.
§
Make
socially responsible judgments and to be able to provide justification of
decision and actions.
·
With
regard to teachers:
§
Teachers
are predominant in theoretical, social, religious and economic values.
§
Gender,
educational training, and experience do not influence teachers’ values.
§
Teachers
of urban schools have higher moral and economic values than the rural schools.
So, location of the school influences teachers’ values.
§
Teachers
differ in their values because of the type of schools and as such it influences
the students’ values also.
§
The
age influences the teachers’ aesthetic values.
§
Co-curricular
activities provided and the practice followed in inculcating values to students
influence students’ value.
·
Teaching
Values – An Experiment in Education
·
Education
is a process that develops the personality of a student to make him/her an
ideal citizen.
·
The
different aims of education can be listed as follows:
§
To
impart the practical knowledge, necessary to level a useful life.
§
To
preserve, transmit and enhance the values from one generation to another.
§
To
create new values.
§
To
boost self-expression, self-preservation and. self-confidence.
§
To
help individual to adjust physically and mentally.
§
To
enable individuals to control environment and fulfil responsibilities.
§
To
eradicate communal and social disharmony
§
To
develop problem solving abilities and positive approaches to life
§
To
utilize limited resource effectively for better achievements.
·
Education
should train the student to recognize moral values.
·
Teachers,
leaders and the society should bet samples before students and should join
their hands in creating suitable atmosphere for practicing moral qualities.
·
Teacher
should protect the students from the evil influence of the society.
·
Evaluation
of the value attainment is a more complex phenomenon than it appears.
·
Education
for human values should be considered as a central core in the entire life of
the school and outside school also.
·
All
teachers are teachers of human values at all times of school like, practicing
what they teach or preach.
·
Guidelines
for proper value orientation
§
Perceive
student’s role as an agent of change in the community.
§
Perceive
student’s role not only as a leader of children but also that of a guide to the
community.
§
Make
students act as a link between the school and the community.
§
Possess
warm and positive attitude towards growing children and their academic,
social-emotional and personal problems.
§
The
preservation of environmental resources and preservation of historical
monuments and other cultural heritage.
§
Develop
understanding of the objective school education in the Indian context and
awareness of the role of school in achieving the goals of building up a
democratic secular and socialist society.
§
Develop
understanding interests, attitudes and skills that would enable him to foster
all round growth and development of the children under his care.
§
Develop
competence to teach on the basis of the accepted principles of teaching and
learning.
§
The
teacher should be a mediator in the encounter between the individual and the
mass of information.
Life Skill Education
·
Skills
are abilities. Hence it should be possible to practise life skills as
abilities.
·
Self-esteem,
sociability and tolerance are not taught as abilities: rather, learning such
qualities is facilitated by learning and practising life skills, such as
self-awareness, problem-solving, critical thinking, and interpersonal skills.
·
Life
skills education is designed to facilitate the practice and reinforcement of
psychosocial skills in a culturally and developmentally appropriate way.
·
Life
skills education contributes to the promotion of personal and social
development, the prevention of health and social problems, and the protection
of human rights.
·
Following
the study of many different life skills programmes, the WHO Department of
Mental Health identified five basic areas of life skills that are relevant
across cultures:
§ Decision-making and problem-solving.
§ Creative thinking and critical
thinking.
§ Communication and interpersonal
skills.
§ Self-awareness and empathy.
§ Coping with emotions and coping with
stress.
·
Life
skills education contributes to:
§
Basic
education.
§
Gender
equality.
§ Democracy.
§ Good citizenship.
§ Child care and protection.
§ Quality and efficiency of the
education system.
§ The promotion of lifelong learning.
§ Quality of life.
§ The promotion of peace.
·
Many
countries are now considering the development of life skills education in
response to the need to reform traditional education systems, which appear to
be out of step with the realities of modern social and economic life.
·
The
successful implementation of a life skills programme depends on:
§ The development of training materials
for teacher trainers.
§ A teaching manual, to provide lesson
plans and a framework for a sequential, developmentally appropriate programme.
§ Teacher training and continuing
support in the use of the programme materials.
·
In
addition to its wide-ranging applications in primary prevention and the
advantages that it can bring for education systems, life skills education lays
the foundation for learning skills that are in great demand in today’s job
markets.
Inclusive Education
·
Inclusive
education happens when children with and without disabilities participate and
learn together in the same classes. Research shows that things definitely change
when a child with disabilities attends classes alongside peers who do not have
disabilities.
·
For
a long time, children with disabilities were educated in separate classes or in
separate schools. People got used to the idea that special education meant
separate education.
·
When
children are educated together, positive academic and social outcomes occur for
all the children involved.
·
Placing
children with and without disabilities together does not produce positive
outcomes. Inclusive education occurs when there is ongoing advocacy, planning,
support and commitment.
·
These
are the principles that guide quality inclusive education:
§
All
children belong.
§
All
children learn in different ways.
§ It is every child’s right to be
included.
·
Inclusive
education is based on the simple idea that every child and family is valued
equally and deserves the same opportunities and experiences.
·
Inclusive
education is about children with disabilities – whether the disability is mild
or severe, hidden or obvious – participating in everyday activities, just like
they would if their disability were not present.
·
Inclusion
is about providing the help children need to learn and participate in
meaningful ways.
·
Sometimes,
help from friends or teachers works best. Other times, specially designed
materials or technology can help. The key is to give only as much help as
needed.
·
Inclusive
education is a child’s right, not a privilege. The Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act clearly states that all children with disabilities
should be educated with non-disabled children their own age and have access to
the general education curriculum.
·
The
benefits of inclusive education are :
§
Develop
individual strengths and gifts, with high and appropriate expectations for each
child.
§
Work
on individual goals while participating in the life of the classroom with other
students their own age.
§
Involve
their parents in their education and in the activities of their local schools.
§
Foster
a school culture of respect and belonging. Inclusive education provides
opportunities to learn about and accept individual differences, lessening the
impact of harassment and bullying.
§
Develop
friendships with a wide variety of other children, each with their own
individual needs and abilities.
§
Positively
affect both their school and community to appreciate diversity and inclusion on
a broader level.
Joyful Learning
·
Joyful
learning is a kind of experience in which students find pleasure in the
learning process.
·
A
suitable learning environment with proper learning sequence is essential for
learning, especially for children who are still in the early development
period.
·
Teachers
use strategies to reduce stress and build a positive emotional environment,
which help students to gain emotional resilience and learn more efficiently.
·
Psychologists
emphasize that teaching should take place at a level that is neither too
difficult and stressful nor too easy and boring for the age of the child.
·
Teachers
primarily make the journey of sharing and construction of knowledge joyful.
·
When
students are engaged and motivated and feel minimal stress, information flows
freely and they achieve higher levels of cognition and make connections.
·
The
joy of learning does not come from quiet classrooms and directed lectures, but
from classrooms with an atmosphere of exuberant discovery.
·
Classrooms
can be the safe refuge where academic practices and classroom strategies
provide students with emotional comfort and pleasure as well as knowledge.
·
When
teachers use strategies to reduce stress and build a positive emotional
environment, students gain emotional resilience and learn more efficiently.
·
The
classroom environment, lessons, materials should be developed and teaching
strategies and techniques should be used accordingly to respond to learner's characteristics.
·
It
is the responsibility of the teacher to make the journey of sharing and
construction of knowledge joyful by creating appropriate environment.
Issues related with Professional
Updation
·
Professional
Updation is the payment of fees paid by a student or a business executive to
professional bodies like Institution of Engineers or Chartered Accountants etc.
·
Professional
Updation can also be the fees paid by a student or a business executive to
study educational courses like Business Management, Information Technology,
etc. in an institution or university.
·
A company pays professional update allowance for
scientists and/or engineers in the grade of SO/C and above every year from the
year 1998-1999 as per the DAE order dated 3rd February, 1999 to enable them to
keep themselves up-dated in the field of Nuclear Science and Technology and
related fields and widen their horizon.
·
This was further extended with effect from
2002-2003 to the other categories of personnel in the department who
render support functions, for carrying out their role in an effective manner
and thereby supporting the sustained excellence of DAE in its science and
technological activities.
·
Some professionsare dynamic and ever changing
and need continuous changes in tax laws, commercial laws, accounting practices,
new concepts in management and other disciplines which a new age professional
shall keep himself updated to be in tune with times.
·
In the wake of the changing times and countering
the obsolescence of the professional, continuous professional updationprogrammesare
undertaken by educational institutions and companies.
·
A suggested professional updationprogramme may
be conducted on the lines given below:
§ Professional updationshould be conducted at specially
identified nodal-chapters.
§ Professional updationshould be conducted for weekends of
every month all around the year so that members in the nodal-chapter geographic
area will attend and then get themselves updated on the developments.
§ Every member shall attend such professional updation at least
once in a year.
§ A detailed timetable for the registration should be updated
by the educational institute.
§ A member training committee should be formed.
§ Only members who have attended training will be eligible to
membership and cost of training shall be borne by the member - alternatively
sponsored by the employer - but it shall be nominal.
§
After the end of the
training of 2 days i.e. Saturday and Sunday - on the second day evening, the
event can be signed off with a questionnaire on the training.
·
Such initiatives make the life of the
professional and the educational institutes fighting fit and will inculcate the
sense of participation amongst members and heighten the level of seriousness
amongst them.
Infrastructural Deficiency
·
Although
schools in India are required to maintain a good infrastructure of facilities,
many of the school lack the infrastructure.
·
Some
of the basic infrastructure that a school must possess are :
§ The schools need to have concrete
buildings with proper ventilation.
§ Drinking water facility is absolutely
necessary in all schools.
§ Proper facilities for toilet and
sanitation are a must.
§ A very positive atmosphere conducive
for learning.
·
The
main hindrance to proper school infrastructure is shortage of educational
funds.
·
The
issue of financing is of utmost importance to the growth and development of
education in India.
·
The
relative share of the government has shown remarkable increase since the time
of independence to the recent years.
·
India has witnessed a massive expansion of its educational
infrastructure and today it has one of the largest education networks, and
third largest reservoir of science and technology manpower in the world.
·
To
accommodate the large school going population, the educational system of Indian
requires a strong educational infrastructure in order to keep pace with the
developing economy and provide it with quality manpower.
·
Education
can accelerate economic growth and investment is a key indicator to expand and
improve quality of education.
·
Thus
Indian education requires more investment, which can lead to good quality
education.
·
While
the expenditure on higher education has gone up over the years, the major
expenditure has mostly been on the non-plan side covering the wage bill of the
teaching and non-teaching staff.
·
The
improvement of infrastructure etc. remains largely deficient.
·
The
capital or development expenditure
has not been found to be commensurate with the non-plan expenditure.
·
Considering the inadequacy of financing of higher education and the
rising demands, the role of private resources in higher education has often
been discussed and recommended.
·
It
is clear that the government has to play an important role in the Indian
education system in general and in higher education system in particular :
§
In
view of India’s growing need for skilled manpower which can be met only by
strengthening the higher education system.
§
To
have an edge in knowledge generation in a global economy.
§
To
achieve a developed socio-economic structure / for societal transformation.
§
To
ensure access, equity and excellence.
·
The
government, as well as non-governmental and other social wings of the society,
has to strengthen the extant resources and also explore the feasibility of
alternate sources of financing education, including higher education.
·
To
accommodate the increasing number of students at all levels it is indispensable
to have more educational institutes.
·
Both
public and private agencies manage educational institutes. However, the
government agencies manage more institution than private agencies.
·
There
has been a structural change in the education sector after allowing private
partnership, at higher levels in particular.
·
This
has led to private investment not only in school education but also in tertiary
education.
·
Consequently
several private universities and colleges are opening in general education,
engineering and medical education.
·
A
lot of improvement with regards to the infrastructure in Indian schools is very
much necessary.
Dropout
·
The
dropout problem is pervasive in the Indian education system. Many children, who
enter school, are unable to complete secondary education and multiple factors
are responsible for children dropping out of school.
·
Risk
factors begin to add up even before students enroll in school that includes:
§ Poverty.
§ Low educational level of parents.
§ The weak family structure.
§ Pattern of schooling of sibling.
§ Lack of pre-school experiences.
·
Family
background and domestic problems create an environment which negatively affects
the value of education.
·
Students
could drop out as a result of a multitude of school factors such as uncongenial
atmosphere, poor comprehension, absenteeism, attitude and behaviour of the
teachers, and failure or repetition in the same grade, etc.
·
When
students experience school failure, they become frustrated with lack of
achievement and end up alienated and experience exclusion leading to eventual
dropout.
·
It
is important to carefully design preventive measures and intervention
strategies that could be adopted in order to help all adolescent dropouts.
·
Child
related factors such as disinterest in studies and poor comprehension are one
of the significant causes for dropping out which is very closely related to
school quality measured in terms of infrastructural facilities, teacher
preparedness and curriculum relevance.
·
The
consequences for youngsters who drop-out before finishing secondary education
is dramatic, in terms of high unemployment and low lifelong earnings.
·
Completing
secondary education does not guarantee access to high paying job; it represents
a promise of greater access to further opportunities and is fast becoming a
prerequisite to remain employable and re-trainable, the highly valued qualities
in today’s labour market.
Stagnation
·
The
students at every stage of education are expected to pass the examination after
finishing the whole course.
·
It
has been found that in general practice many students are not able to pass the
examinations in one class or in more than one class within the prescribed
period. Thus, they fail and remain in the same class.
·
The
failed students repeat the same class and course whereas their other colleagues
pass that class and study in the next upper class. This process has been called
the process of stagnation.
·
Stagnation
in education means the detention of a student in a class for more than one year
on account of his unsatisfactory progress.
·
Probably,
the problems of dropout and stagnation exist in a greater degree at the
university stage of education.
·
It
has been regretted that there is some indifference towards the serious loss of
public money.
·
No
less indifference is shown for the wastage of time, money and energy of the
students, their parents or guardians and their ambitions and aspirations in
life.
·
The
causes of stagnation are of three categories namely economic, educational and
social.
·
Economic
Causes:
§
A
child is probably sent to school because he is a nuisance at home rather than a
help.
§
At
the age of nine or ten, the child becomes an economic asset, because he can
work at home or earn something outside. This is especially true of girls who
have to assist the over-worked mother at home.
§
The
child is withdrawn from the school and thus he becomes a dropout case.
§
Parents
mostly involve their children in domestic work and this leaves no time to child
for study.
§
Financial
handicap is responsible for dropout and stagnation. Out of poverty some parents
utilize the service of their children to supplement earning.
·
Social Causes:
§
Class
and caste distinctions prevail in India, the former in urban areas and the
latter in rural areas.
§
Especially
in the case of girls custom of early marriages or betrothals stands a bar.
There is an opposition to send grown-up girls to schools especially to the
mixed schools without women teachers.
§
Coeducation
of boys and girls in some places is looked with suspicion. And as there is no
separate provision of education for girls, deprivation of girls from schools
leads to much dropout.
·
Educational Causes:
§
Many
educational institutions are ill-equipped, poorly housed and with dull and
depressing environment.
§
Uncontrolled
fresh admissions without consideration of age or time i.e. under-aged and
over-aged children.
§
Admissions
are done throughout the year resulting in more dropout and stagnation, because
under-aged children lose interest in classes, whereas over-aged children remain
away from school out of shame.
§
Lack
of adequate accommodation, over-crowding of schools with a high pupil-teacher
ratio becomes the main causes of dropout and stagnation.
§
Increased
number of single-teacher schools, inefficient teaching, lack of teacher-pupil
contact, frequent transfer of teachers and plural class-teaching disturbs the
quality of instruction which ultimately cause much dropout and stagnation.
·
In
short, dull and unattractive schools, incomplete schools, inefficient and poor
quality of teachers, defective examinations, uninteresting curricula, lack of
proper parental attitude, absence of school health services and school mid-day
meals are responsible for much of dropout and stagnation in schools.
·
Dropout and stagnation can be reduced by
concentrating on quantitative improvement by (a) Universal provisional and (b)
Universal retention. Attempts should be made for qualitative improvement of
pupils.
·
Qualified
teachers should be appointed to create better quality in the instructional
programme to attract children.
·
Fresh
admissions should be made at the beginning of the school session within two
months from the date of commencement of school year. And it should not be done
throughout the year.
·
As
far as possible provision should be made for starting of Pre-Primary Schools to
admit children below six years of age as it will avoid the enrolment of
under-aged and over-aged children.
·
The
curriculum may be made modest, simple and interesting so that it can be
implemented most efficiently.
·
Improvement
of the professional competence of teachers may be made by providing training
facilities, both pre-service and in-service.
·
Necessary
guide books for teachers and work books for students and other literature
should also be provided.
·
Adequate
and attractive school buildings should be provided. Necessary equipment and
teaching aids should be supplied for making education more interesting and
effective.
·
Teacher-pupil
ratio may be maintained at such a level as to ensure adequate individual
attention to be paid to each individual in every class.
·
Provision
of part-time schooling may be made for the benefit of children who cannot
attend the school during regular hours on account of domestic and economic
disabilities.
·
Effective
supervision and inspection may be provided in schools.
·
Best
possible use may be made of the existing resources, both human and material.
The schools may be graded according to efficiency and standards.
·
The
grading of the schools will provide ground for qualitative improvement of
schools, which ultimately will go to reduce dropout and stagnation.
·
Special
provision should be made for educating the mentally retarded children by
opening special institutions in each State or district level.
·
To
reduce dropout and stagnation in a bigger way, pupils may be given nutritious
diet by introduction of mid-day meals under the School Health Service
Programme.
·
Existing
mid-day meals system should be carefully regulated.
Teacher Absenteeism
·
Inadequacy
of teachers coupled with high rate of teacher absenteeism renders the learning
conditions in schools from bad to worse.
·
Teachers
remain absent/are not able to attend school for a number of reasons.
·
Teachers
are deployed for certain non-professional duties such as :
§ Participation in elections to local
bodies.
§ State Legislatures and Parliament,
decennial population Census.
§ Disaster relief duties.
§ Polio drop campaigns.
§ Preparing voters’ list.
§ Animal and bird surveys.
§ Below poverty line survey.
§ Ration card verification.
§ Generating awareness among people
about leprosy.
§ Preparing project activities to be
conducted by different panchayats.
§ Literacy campaigns, etc.
·
Further
teachers have to go to their Education Department for getting their leave
sanctioned, GPF Advance, seeking release of their dues, annual increment,
transfer, to participate in meetings and departmental functions, etc.
·
The
situation in the education department is generally so bad that teachers feel
that unless they go personally, their case would not move.
·
Teachers
are also required to undergo mandatory 20 days in-service education and
training every year.
·
It
has been observed that teachers and students are also required to receive high
officials and VIPs.
·
Teachers
are also required to participate in various awareness programmes.
·
All
of the above-mentioned reasons coupled with teachers’ illness, and to discharge
their family responsibilities and social obligations, etc. increase teacher
absence rate.
·
Further
absence rates are higher during rainy season, extreme weather conditions,
festivals, towards the end of the calendar year, harvesting period, festivals,
etc.
Teacher Shortage
·
With
a rapidly increasing youth population and swift increases in the proportion of
children attending school, many developing countries are facing serious
difficulties in recruiting and financing qualified teachers.
·
Teacher
shortage is a market determined quantity, reflecting the mismatch between the
supply and demand for faculty resources in the academic market.
·
Since
teacher resource is a key input in the production of higher education services,
the demand for teacher resource is derived from the underlying demand for
higher education services from students.
·
Hence
the economic response to market conditions of academic institutions providing
higher education is a crucial determinant of both teacher shortage and quality
of education.
·
Several
factors like government policies, regulatory norms and requirements, the
revenue generation possibilities, other non-revenue sources of funds,
institutional capacity and reputations define the operating environment of
education institutions.
·
Decisions
concerning recruitment, deployment and nurturing of teacher resources are all
made by academic institutions. Hence, the effective impact of any policy
depends on how this affects the decisions of academic institutions.
·
Teacher
shortage represents a mismatch between the demand and supply of teacher
resources. Teacher resources are required only as one of several inputs in the
production of higher education services.
·
Monetary
incentives are not the only, nor perhaps the most significant influence on the
decision to take up an academic career of a teacher.
·
Apart
from salaries, other important structural determinants of the supply of teacher
resources include:
§ Service conditions like teaching work
load, opportunities for research, administrative facilitation, etc.
§ Salaries obtainable in other
professions and employment with comparable qualifications
§ Career advancement prospects like
promotion, skill upgradationprogrammes, possibilities for external recognition
of research, etc.
§ Institutional reputation i.e. faculty resources
would tend to shift to an institution with a better reputation, and there would
be less attrition
§ Better post-retirement benefits
§ Providing prestigious fellowships for
inducting talented scholars towards PhD work and academic careers.
·
The
above key steps would improve the attractiveness of academic careers and
enhance the long run supply of teacher resources.
·
In
addition, the supply of teacher resources may be enhanced in the short to
medium term by certain other measures. Several of them would have a one-time
impact of the supply of faculty resources. These include:
§ Increasing the opportunities for
participation in academic work by other potential teachers and researchers.
§ Relaxation of the age of retirement of
faculty.
§ Creation of posts such as emeritus
professor/fellow.
§ Creating policies that attract NRIs
and other international academic personnel.
·
The
problem of teacher shortage is generally recognized as a key problem
confronting the education sector.
·
It
is necessary for policy makers and regulators to keep in view the close
connection of teacher shortage with other problems and features of education.
Student–Teacher Ratio
·
Teaching
staff constitutes a vital aspect of education. Student-teacher ratio is one of
the critical indicators of education as it provides insight to measure the
quality of education.
·
Sufficient
number of teachers is required at all levels to impart good quality education.
·
The
student-teacher ratio in India is quite low and needs improvement. Thus it is
imperative to improve the student-teacher ratio to enhance the quality of
education and to make human resource globally competitive.
·
Shortage
of faculty is felt in institutions for higher education as well as many
positions are lying vacant.
·
Faculty
crunch is felt even at the prestigious institutes of learning with their
elaborate funding and infrastructure.
·
A
report by All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) also confirms the
shortage of the teaching staff.
·
Professors
and readers constitute more than the teaching strength. Hence, more lecturers
are needed to infuse fresh blood in the educational system.
Uneconomic Schools
·
Schools
with insufficient strength of pupils are termed as uneconomic schools, as the
strength of students in a school is the criterion for determining continuance
of the schools.
·
Many
government and aided schools have been found uneconomic as per a survey.
·
The
increase in number of uneconomic schools has serious repercussions for the
public education system at large and the number of teaching posts, which have
been affected by a steady decline in student strength in government schools
over the years.
·
Unprotected
teachers of aided schools stand to lose their jobs because of the drop in the
student strength and division fall.
·
Teachers
of aided schools may lose their jobs if they do not fall in the protected
teachers' category.
·
It
becomes the responsibility of the local bodies, the local community and also
people working in the education sphere at large to bring uneconomic schools
back on track.
·
Uneconomic
schools can come up with better governmental and administrative intervention.
Quality Deterioration
·
Education
determines the role and approach for the modernisation of society and the
nation at large.
·
The
quality of education is of paramount importance along with
access and equity to tap rich dividends from the demographic capital.
·
The
contents of the educational system, the quality of curriculum transaction,
research and development need to be revamped to enhance the quality of
education through an effective quality management system.
·
It
is commonly observed that on an average, Indian colleges and universities do
not perform a commendable job and are definitely not world class.
·
An
analysis of institutions reveals that only a fraction of them are accredited
during a span of 20 years. There is no program accreditation except for the
technical institutions.
·
The
mind set of most of the higher education institutions is to adopt an approach
without any aspiration or motivation to assume additional responsibilities for
quality improvement.
·
There
are many quality gaps with respect to curriculum design and development,
teaching, learning and evaluation, research consultancy and extension,
infrastructure and learning resources, student support and progression,
governance, management and leadership.
·
Research
and Development is the weakest link in the higher education system.
·
In
spite of the large number of higher education institutions in the country, India
does not figure in the first 200 world class institutions by the expert ranking
agencies.
·
The
Indian higher education system needs reforms in many aspects:
§
The
enrollment rates have to be significantly improved to reach the status of a
developed nation (30-50%).
§
Financial
resources have to be enhanced for the large number of state establishments.
§
Teacher
quality needs to be enhanced through multiple training options.
§
Appropriate
vocational education programs relevant to the needs of the society have to be
identified and implemented to enhance employability of graduates.
§
Optimal
utilisation of resources for academic growth and excellence.
§
Fortification
of existing institutions to make them more productive enterprises with
reference to a student’s academic growth and career advancement.
§
Designing
of a suitable curriculum to meet the global challenges through the competencies
and skills developed among the students.
·
The
higher education system needs to increasingly focus on the importance of
quality assessment, assurance and enhancement.
·
The
changes in higher education should be much more accountable to all their
stakeholders, not least to the students.
·
Higher
education institutions should have an effective management information system
to enable them to make quick and relevant decisions.
·
Students
must be encouraged to be active participants in the learning process and there
should be more student focus in the curriculum, curriculum transaction and
other management aspects.
·
Students
need to develop critical reflective thinking skills, the ability to make one’s
own informed judgments where multiple educational outcomes like complex cognitive
skills, ability to apply acquired knowledge of complex life problems,
appreciation of human differences, practical competence skills, a coherent
integrated sense of identity, etc. exists.
·
Promoting
employability of graduates is very important as work experience can be very
valuable in helping students to obtain the right orientation and would enhance
the marketability of the educational programmes.
·
Prospective
students differ in terms of their financial capabilities. Therefore
differential fee structure and availability of assistantship/scholarship/loan
etc. should be very useful.
·
The
adoption of information technology both in academics and administration is a
must.
·
Information
and communication technologies through the internet and satellite transmission
have opened up avenues of development in educational delivery modes which
should be engaged by all institutions.
·
The
role of the teacher will change to a facilitator asonly a facilitator would be
able to improve a student’s receptivity to knowledge, by influencing their
perception of nature, limits, certainty and utility of knowledge.
·
The
universities have to become manageable in size and the span of control has to
be reduced with more and more decentralisation.
·
With
decentralisation, autonomy of the colleges, and even departments of
universities, will have to be promoted while ensuring accountability, thereby
paving the way for an effective system in all respects.
·
New
patterns of governance and leadership capable of responding to the changing
scenario and emerging challenges have to be evolved.
·
The
academic programmesneed to be oriented to help students develop necessary
skills and expertise to function effectively in a technologically enabled work
place.
Massification of Higher Education
·
Higher
education institutions experience a rapid increase in student enrolment, being
regarded as ‘institutional’ massification.
·
Massification
has a direct impact on the physical infrastructure, the quality of teaching and
learning, research, quality of life of the students, etc.
·
While
the use of national enrolment ratios or participation rates may be appropriate
to define massification of higher education in industrialised countries, this
may not necessarily be the case for developing countries.
·
In
order to accommodate the large numbers of students wishing to access higher
education in a country, the higher education institutions in that country also
experience huge increases in student enrolment.
·
Institutional
massification is often without adequate planning and with no proportionate,
accompanying increase in resources - human, financial, physical - to cope with
the situation.
·
A
number of strategies have been adopted to cope with massification at national
level, which include diversification of higher education institutions, setting
up of private institutions, use of distance education and virtual learning,
introduction of cost-sharing and student loan scheme in public universities,
etc.
·
At
institutional level, the strategies include setting up of institutional quality
assurance system, training of staff to deal with large cohorts of students,
greater use of ICT in management and teaching, innovative approaches to
generate more funds and improving the quality of life of the students.
Quality Concerns
·
Quality
of education plays pivotal role in the process of development of nations.
·
Quality
concerns in education are national priorities for all nations.
·
Quality
is of multiple perspectives and is not a unitary concept.
·
The
dimensions of quality in education include achieving pre-determined targets and
objectives.
·
Concerns
for ensuring quality level has arisen out of factors such as:
§ Decline in percentage of grants from
the government sources due to sharp rise in number of institutions, students
and teachers.
§ Dilution in quality of post graduate
courses that produce higher education teachers.
§ Dilution in intake standards in post
graduate courses, as talented ones join professional courses.
§ Low standard of members of teaching
profession as non-teaching jobs fetch more income.
·
Quality
criteria must reflect the overall objectives of higher education, notably the
aim of cultivating in students critical and independent thought and the
capacity of learning throughout life.
·
Quality
of an institution or a programme is generally considered on the basis of
placement of its products and is ascertained from quality of material and human
resources.
·
Factors
that affect quality of higher education are: finance, sincerity of faculty and
students and management, skills of management, skills of teaching of faculty
members, and quality of brain of students.
·
Finance
is a serious concern asrapid growth rate of higher education has created
problems in acquiring appropriate infrastructure.
·
Although
national governments fail to provide adequate amount of funds, private
initiatives have made education a huge industry.
·
Profit
from educational institutions in certain cases is much higher than one can
expect from a small scale industry.
·
Concern
for making quality education available to their children has made parents go
for private and high fee charging institutions, expected to be of high quality.
·
The
students go to next level institutions on the basis of their capacity to pay.
Some of them also go abroad.
·
Search
for quality in higher education has caused the rising of the concept of world
class universities.
·
Quality
assurance is a vital function in contemporary higher education and must involve
all stakeholders.
·
Quality
requires both establishing quality assurance systems and patterns of evaluation
as well as promoting a quality culture within institutions.
·
Regulatory
and quality assurance mechanisms that promote access and create conditions for
the completion of studies should be put in place for the entire higher
education sector.
·
Efforts
to improve quality have resulted in establishment of agencies at national,
regional and global level for assuring quality.
·
Concern
for high quality in higher education programmes has given rise to new bodies.
·
In
India, the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (1994) of the
University Grants Commission accredits institutions in general higher
education.
·
National
Board of Accreditation (1994) of the AICTE accredits programmes related to
Applied Arts & Crafts, Architecture, Hotel Management & Catering
Technology (HMCT), Engineering & Technology, Master in Business
Administration (MBA), Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM), Pharmacy,
Master in Computer Application (MCA).
·
There
are a number of Government controlled / created organisations for taking care
of quality in education.
·
National
level organisations are:
§ Indian Council for Agricultural
Research (1929),
§ Medical Council of India (1933),
§ All India Council of Technical
Education (1945),
§ Dental Council of India (1948),
§ Pharmacy Council of India (1948),
§ Institute of Chartered Accountants of
India (1949),
§ University Grants Commission (1956),
§ Institute of Costs and Works
Accountants of India (1959),
§ Bar Council of India (1961),
§ Central Council of Indian Medicine
(1970),
§ Council of Architecture (1972),
§ Central Council of Homoeopathy (1973),
§ Institute of Company Secretaries of
India (1981),
§ Veterinary Council of India (1984),
§ Distance Education Council (1992),
§ Rehabilitation Council of India
(1992), and
§ National Council for Teacher Education
(1995).
·
Government
departments also control quality in education.
·
At
the State level, there are State Government Departments which take care of
quality.
·
State
Councils of Higher Education cover higher education and State Councils for
Educational Research and Training cover education of school teachers.
·
SarvaShikshaAviyan
scheme takes care of quality of school education.
·
In
order to accelerate qualitative improvement in higher education, National
Knowledge Commission recommended establishment of 30 new Central universities,
16 in States where they do not exist and 14 as World class universities (all
India admissions, course credits, regular syllabi revision, incentives for
faculty, strong linkage with industry and research institutions, no affiliated
colleges, outsource nonteaching functions.
·
The
Central Government has started the process of establishment of central
Universities.
·
NKC
also recommended increase in number of high quality institutions.
Political Interference in
Education
·
The
interdependence of educational institutions and their academic freedom are
essential to the quality and integrity of all education.
·
Teaching
and learning require free and full exposure to information and ideas, the right
to question or dissent, and opportunities to study, research, and debate, free
of political pressure.
·
The
academy requires that inquiry and analysis must be guided by evidence and
ethics, unconstrained by political intervention.
·
A
college or university must be sensitive to the conditions of the society in
which it exists, but it must also be free to determine how to be most
responsive and responsible.
·
Political
interference in the affairs of an educational institution presents a threat to
its freedom and effectiveness.
·
Direct
intervention by elected or appointed officials, political parties, or pressure
groups in the selection of faculty, the determination of curricula, textbooks,
course content, or in admissions or retention policies, injects factors which
are often inimical to the fulfillment of an institution’s mission.
·
In
the matter of appointments, for example, political control at any level results
in divided loyalty and weakened authority.
·
To
impose political considerations upon faculty selection and retention harms an
institution intellectually and educationally, not only by reducing its options
in the recruitment of talent, but also by creating pressures against dissent on
important policy issues.
·
When
political considerations irrelevant to the functions of the office determine
the selection of trustees or similar officers, they impose restrictions on
choice.
·
Moreover,
appointments based on political grounds entail external liaisons which may contravene
the educational purposes of the institution.
·
If
the tenure of an educational administrator is subject to political
partisanship, or if appointments to the board of trustees or the faculty are
made only with regard to their political implications, the institution may be
weakened and its prospects for excellence seriously diminished.
Child Labour
·
Child
labour refers to the employment
of children in any work that deprives children of their childhood, interferes
with their ability to attend regular school, and that is mentally, physically,
socially or morally dangerous and harmful.
·
Childhood
is an important and impressionable stage of human development as it holds the
potential to the future development of any society.
·
Children
who are brought up in an environment, which is conducive to their intellectual,
physical and social health, grow up to be responsible and productive members of
society.
·
By
performing work when they are too young for the task, children unduly reduce
their present welfare or their future income earning capabilities, either by
shrinking their future external choice sets or by reducing their own future
individual productive capabilities.
·
Under
extreme economic distress, children are forced to forego educational
opportunities and take up jobs which are mostly exploitative as they are
usually underpaid and engaged in hazardous conditions.
·
Parents
decide to send their child for engaging in a job as a desperate measure due to
poor economic conditions.
·
One
of the disconcerting aspects of child labour is that children are sent to work
at the expense of education.
·
There
is a strong effect of child labour on school attendance rates and the length of
a child’s work day is negatively associated with his or her capacity to attend
school.
·
Child
labour restricts the right of children to access and benefit from education and
denies the fundamental opportunity to attend school.
·
Child
labour prejudices children’s education and adversely affects their health and safety.
·
Government
has accordingly been taking proactive steps to tackle the problem of child
labour through strict enforcement of legislative provisions along with
simultaneous rehabilitative measures.
·
State
Governments, which are the appropriate implementing authorities, have been
conducting regular inspections and raids to detect cases of violations.
·
Since
poverty is the root cause of this problem, and enforcement alone cannot help
solve it, Government has been laying a lot of emphasis on the rehabilitation of
children and on improving the economic conditions of their families.
Corporal Punishment
·
Corporal
punishment can be defined as any punishment in which physical force is used and
intended to cause some degree of pain or discomfort and all other acts leading
to insult, humiliation, physical and mental injury, and in rare cases, even
death.
·
Corporal
punishment involves hitting children, with the hand or with an implement and is
invariably degrading.
·
In
addition, there are other non-physical forms of punishment that are also cruel
and degrading and include punishment which belittles, humiliates, denigrates,
scapegoats, threatens, scares or ridicules the child.
·
Every
two out of three school going children in India are physically abused as per
the national report on child abuse by the Ministry of Women and Child
Development in 2007.
·
Corporal
punishment is rampant in every single district of the country.
·
Corporal
punishment in both government as well as private schools is deeply ingrained as
a tool to discipline children and as a normal action.
·
Most
children do not report or confide about the matter to anyone and suffer
silently.
·
Children
due to fear are often silent and submit to violence without questioning. They
sometimes show signs of deep hurt in their behaviour but this often goes
unnoticed, perpetuating further violence on them.
·
More
often than not, when a teacher uses violence on children it is an outburst of
his/her personal frustration.
·
Corporal
punishment not only affects the emotional behaviour and academic performance of
a child, but also leads to reduction in self-esteem and dignity of child.
·
Corporal
Punishment in schools is prohibited in nearly half of the world’s countries.
·
Many
countries have enacted laws prohibiting corporal punishment in all settings,
namely in the home, in schools, alternative care and in the judicial system.
·
Legal
protections against corporal punishment are important to safeguard the rights
of a child. However, in practice, legal options are usually resorted to only in
case of extreme corporal punishment. They are nevertheless important measures
of deterrence.
·
It
is very important that teachers should know that by assaulting children they
risk not only dismissal but also prosecution by criminal law.
·
Simultaneously,
public education is crucial to accompany law reform. The process of law reform
and enactment of the Right to Education Bill with provisions on corporal
punishment itself has the potential to be educational if properly disseminated.
·
Teacher
training and sensitisation, public interest programmes, community mobilization,
educating children on their rights etc. can additionally play an important role
to change attitudes.
·
The
work conditions of school teachers in most government schools are undoubtedly
adverse.
·
There
are over-crowded classes, not enough text books, first-generation learners etc.
·
This
is not to say that there is no violence or corporal punishment on children in
well-to do schools.
School Violence
·
School
violence is widely held to have
become a serious problem in recent decades in many countries, especially where
weapons such as guns or knives are involved.
·
School
violence includes violence between school students as well as physical attacks
by students on school staff.
·
Schools
are in a unique position to identify violent behaviour among students early and
to implement prevention strategies that affect the entire community.
·
Creating
safe supportive schools is essential to ensuring students’ academic and social
success.
·
There
are multiple elements to establishing environments in which youth feel safe,
connected, valued, and responsible for their behaviour and learning.
·
A
very important measure to be taken by schools is to prevent violence in all
forms whether bullying, aggressive classroom behavior, gun use, or organized
gang activity.
·
In
recent years, school administrators have worked hard to ensure safety at school
and it is encouraging to know that their efforts are making a big difference.
·
The
basic principles that underlie effective strategies to reduce violent behavior
are the same as those that underlie strategies that promote healthy development
and learning for all students.
·
Effective
approaches balance security measures and discipline with positive supports,
skill building, parent and community involvement, and improved school climate.
·
Successfully
incorporating these principles as foundations of school policy and procedure
will not only reduce violence but also improve academic and social outcomes for
all students.
·
Foundation
Safe schools are built by developing through purposeful planning and
organization and the process begins with the formation of a safety team whose
role is to develop a comprehensive violence prevention plan.
·
The
safety team leads efforts to identify needs, choose options, garner support
from school and community stakeholders, and coordinate various services.
·
The
school safety team should include a broad range of stakeholders, including
administrators, faculty and staff members, parents, students, and community
members who:
§
Implement
systematic and recurrent assessment of the school’s needs through regular data
collection.
§
Create
a comprehensive plan based on a multilevel strategy that seeks to build and
maintain a peaceful school campus by implementing prevention activities.
·
The
school safety plan should include strategies at the building, classroom, and
individual student levels.
Child Abuse
·
Child
abuse is the mistreatment by an adult of a child or young person that harms or
endangers that child or young person's physical or emotional health,
development or wellbeing.
·
Child
abuse is when a parent or
caregiver, whether through action or failing to act, causes injury, death,
emotional harm or risk of serious harm to a child.
·
There
are many forms of child
maltreatment, including neglect, physical abuse,
sexual abuse, exploitation, and
emotional abuse.
·
Child
abuse can be a single incident, or can be a number of different incidents that
take place over time.
·
Under
the Child
Protection Act 1999, it does not matter how much a child is
harmed, but whether a child:
§
has
suffered harm, is suffering harm, or is at risk of suffering harm.
§
does
not have a parent able and willing to protect them from harm.
·
Harm
is defined as any detrimental effect of a significant nature on the child's
physical, psychological or emotional well-being.
·
For
harm to be significant, the detrimental effect on a child's well-being must be
substantial or serious, more than transitory and must be demonstrable in the
child's presentation, functioning or behaviour.
·
Physical
abuse occurs when a child has suffered, or is at risk of suffering,
non-accidental physical trauma or injury. Physical abuse can include hitting, shaking,
throwing, burning, biting, poisoning, etc.
·
Physical
abuse does not always leave visible marks or injuries. It is not how bad the
mark or injury is, but rather the act itself that causes injury or trauma to
the child.
·
Sexual
abuse occurs when an adult, stronger child or adolescent uses their power or
authority to involve a child in sexual activity.
·
Sexual
abuse can be physical, verbal or emotional and can include:
§
Kissing
or holding a child in a sexual manner.
§
Exposing
a sexual body part to a child.
§
Having
sexual relations with a child under 16 years of age.
§
Talking
in a sexually explicit way that is not age or developmentally appropriate.
§
Making
obscene phone calls or remarks to a child.
§
Sending
obscene mobile text messages or emails to a child.
§
Fondling
a child in a sexual manner.
§
Persistently
intruding on a child's privacy.
§
Penetrating
the child's vagina or anus by penis, finger or any other object.
§
Oral
sex.
§
Rape.
§
Incest.
§
Showing
pornographic films, magazines or photographs to a child.
§
Having
a child pose or perform in a sexual manner.
§
Forcing
a child to watch a sexual act.
§
Child
prostitution.
·
Emotional
abuse occurs when a child's social, emotional, cognitive or intellectual
development is impaired or threatened.
·
Emotional
abuse can include emotional deprivation due to persistent rejection, hostility,
teasing/bullying, yelling, criticism and exposure of a child to domestic and
family violence.
·
Neglect
occurs when a child's basic necessities of life are not met, and their health
and development are affected. Basic needs include food, housing, health care, adequate
clothing, personal hygiene, hygienic living conditions, timely provision of
medical treatment, adequate supervision, etc.
Use of Drugs and Intoxicants
Among Students
·
Drug
and alcohol use and abuse among school and college students is a major concern.
·
Misuse
of alcohol and other drugs by youth is considered a major societal problem.
·
Research
has demonstrated that campus-wide prevention campaigns focusing on information
or awareness tend to have minimal effect on actual alcohol or drug use behaviors.
·
Several
studies have even demonstrated an increase in maladaptive drug-related
attitudes and/or drug use with non- classroom prevention programming.
·
While
it is hoped that academic health courses increase knowledge, awareness, and
interest in these topics among undergraduates, little research has been
conducted to examine the effects of academic substance use courses on college
student attitudes and actual health behaviours.
·
Adolescent
use of alcohol and other drugs has presented researchers and professionals with
major conceptual and definitional problems.
·
Construction
of instruments in the field of adolescent alcohol assessment has traditionally
relied on two fundamental assumptions: that adult models are applicable to the
adolescent, and that psychological, sociological and alcoholism theories could
describe and explain the behaviour.
·
Studies
that have attempted to understand the nature and extent of adolescent drinking
and drug use patterns raise questions, both methodologically and conceptually.
·
Several
national and regional studies have attempted to identify frequency, quantity,
and type of drug use.
·
It
has been difficult for individual campuses to assess their own usage patterns
and to compare patterns with those of other institutions of higher education.
·
The
drug and alcohol use patterns of today must he identified so that the related
problems for our youth, their families, their community, and society may be
addressed in an informed and systematic manner.
Stress and Examination Anxiety
·
Under
the stress of study and examinations, students often neglect their health.
·
It
is a common belief that in order to cope with the workload and pack in as much
information as possible, it is necessary to make temporary changes to, and
sacrifices in, students’ lifestyle.
·
Students
do not make time to prepare and eat proper meals, do not stick to their usual
exercise routines and leisure activities and alter sleeping patterns.
·
Many
students find that they become drained, run-down, or ill, right in the middle
of the exam period, precisely when they need to be at their best.
·
It
is not events themselves that create anxiety or stress, but it is the reaction
of students to the events.
·
Most
students experience some degree of stress and anxiety when they enter an
examination room.
·
In
most cases this is quite positive as too little anxiety prevents students from
performing at their best. Too much anxiety, however can interfere with
performance.
·
Thoughts
or perceptions about a situation and students’ ability to handle it trigger
responses in their body, responses which lead students to feel anxious and
stressed.
·
Students
can reduce their stress and anxiety either by addressing the situation or event
that the stress is a response to, or by dealing with the symptoms of stress
directly.
Strategies for Coping
·
Coping
strategies refer to the specific efforts, both behavioral and psychological,
that people employ to master, tolerate, reduce, or minimize stressful events.
·
Two
general coping strategies have been distinguished:
§
Problem-solving
strategies are efforts to do something active to alleviate stressful
circumstances.
§
Emotion-focused
coping strategies involve efforts to regulate the emotional consequences of
stressful or potentially stressful events.
·
Some
people cope more actively than others and also by the type of stressful event.
·
People
typically employ problem-focused coping to deal with potential controllable
problems such as work-related problems and family-related problems
·
Stressors
perceived as less controllable, such as certain kinds of physical health
problems, prompt more emotion-focused coping.
·
Active
coping strategies are either behavioral or psychological responses designed to
change the nature of the stressor itself or how one thinks about it
·
Avoidant
coping strategies lead people into activities, such as alcohol use,or mental
states, such as withdrawal, that keep them from directly addressing stressful
events.
·
Generally
speaking, active coping strategies, whether behavioral or emotional, are
thought to be better ways to deal with stressful events, and avoidant coping
strategies appear to be a psychological risk factor or marker for adverse
responses to stressful life events.
·
Broad
distinctions, such as problem-solving versus emotion-focused, or active versus
avoidant, have only limited utility for understanding coping.
·
Eight
distinct coping strategies have emerged: Confrontative Coping, Seeking Social
Support, Planful Problem-Solving, Self-Control, Distancing, Positive Appraisal,
Accepting Responsibility, and Escape/Avoidance.
Effective Parenting
·
Raising
children is one of the toughest and most fulfilling jobs in the world and the
one for which many people are not prepared.
·
Children
start developing their sense of self as babies when they see themselves through
their parents’ eyes.
·
The
tone of voice, body language, and every expression of parents is absorbed by the
child.
·
Words
and actions of parents affect the child’s developing self-image more than
anything else in his world.
·
Consequently,
praising the child for his/her accomplishment, however small, will make him/her
feel proud; letting him/her to do things for himself/herself will make him/her
feel capable and independent.
·
By
contrast, belittling thechild or comparing him unfavorably to another will make
him feel worthless.
·
Parents
need to choose their words carefully, as their comments may bruise the inner
feelings of a child.
·
Parents
should be compassionate and let their child know that they love him/her,
irrespective of the perception of others.
·
Parents
should not react negatively to a child’s behaviour.
·
Parents
should more be complimenting rather than criticising.
·
The
more effective approach is to catch the child doing something right, and praise
him/her.
·
Encouraging
statements from parents will do more to encourage children’s good behaviour
over the long run than repeated scolding.
·
Parents
need to praise children and be generous with rewards like love, hugs and
compliments, etc.
·
Such
parental attitudes can work wonders for both the parents and the children.
·
Discipline
is necessary in every household and the goal of discipline is to help children
choose acceptable behaviors.
·
Parents
should also devote their time to spend with their children, like sitting down
for a family meal, going for a walk, etc.
·
Children
who are not getting the attention they want from their parents often act out or
misbehave because they are assured of being noticed.
·
Many
parents find it mutually rewarding to have prescheduled time with their child
on a regular basis.
·
Adolescents
seem to need the undivided attention of their parents less than younger
children.
·
Since
there are fewer windows of opportunity for parents and teen to get together,
parents should do their best to be available when their teen does express a
desire to talk or participate in family activities.
·
Parents
should be a good role model as young children learn a great deal by observing
the actions of their parents.
·
Parents
should communicate in a proper manner and make their expectations very clearly.
·
Parents
should describe problems to the child, express their feelings about it and
invite their child to work on a solution.
·
Parents
should make suggestions and offer choice.
·
Parents
should be open to their child’s suggestions as well.
·
Mutual
discussions and participations help children to be motivated to carry the
decisions out.
·
Parenting
style should be flexible.
·
Parents
should correct and guide their children and also make sure that the children
are picking up on their advices.
Equity, access and quality
·
Equity
refers to the equal oppourtunity for all sections of society to participate in
higher education.
·
Access
refers to the availability of suitable number of educational institutions
across a region to fulfill the demand.
·
Quality
refers to the provision of suitable infrastructure, trained faculty and
effective pedagogy in higher education institutions aimed at delivering
expected outcomes.
·
The
Indian government has made ambitious plans to place an effective monitoring
system to ensure foolproof results in its endeavour to make quality higher
education within the reach of all and more so to the under-represented
communities.
·
While
urban infrastructure has definitely seen progress, the rural sector still lies
in dismal neglect over a larger proportion.
·
The
government must ensure proper physical access to these communities and
emphasize on construction of higher education institutions in closer proximity
to villages.
·
Further
ample focus must be given to development of technology to enable education
through Information Technology.
·
Provision
of adequately trained and qualified faculty.
·
Student-teacher
ratio must be brought up to an ideal level and all faculties must possess
adequate qualifications and training before taking up education.
·
Periodical
refresher training is an indubitable necessity to ensure adherence to
performance standards.
·
While
updating curricula the faculty must be acquainted with the newer studies and
technologies to keep them abreast and conduct proper delivery.
·
Ethnic
inequalities need to be eliminated and caste must be removed from focus and
only economic backwardness must be made criteria for extending government
support to all communities.
·
Several
individuals from the traditionally downtrodden groups, even after having richly
benefitted from government support continue to exploit the opportunities
provided, preventing the real oppressed groups from any significant benefits.
·
Adequate
emphasis must be placed on improvement of internet and communication technology
as it enables easier access to information and educational content and
facilitates better education than traditional methods.
·
Government
must provide sufficient autonomy and funding for all institutions with an
effective monitoring mechanism to ensure appropriate infrastructure, facilities
and aids to impart quality education.
·
Traditionally
backward sections have shirked away from higher education owing to their
inability to bear the costs of higher education. But with genuine and easily
available government financial aid, education becomes much more accessible
across communities.
·
Though
there is ample funding on the government agenda, the complexities involved in
obtaining finances makes them inaccessible to most lower groups.
·
Regulatory
bodies function across parameters often overlapping authority, affecting the
delivery of quality education.
·
Since
education is a subject of both the central and the state governments, there are
frequent conflicts in several areas of education.
·
The
government must resolve such complexities and ensure proper delegation of
authority for smoother functioning.
·
The
higher education system must provide for updating of curriculum over regular
frequencies to help learning match industry requirement.
·
This
way employability skill would be better and so do the prospects.
·
In
addition to these, governments must encourage Public Private Partnerships in
higher education and also involve the industry actively through comprehensive
CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) activities.
·
The
role of civil society in widening access to higher education may also be an
area of thrust.
·
A
comprehensive study on access to under-represented communities may be conducted
every alternate year and progress recorded for comparative references.
·
Exhaustive
studies also are required on higher education programmes of developed countries
and their systems replicated to the Indian context.
Women Education
·
Women and girls in the developing world are often denied
opportunities for education.
·
Lack of education limits prospects, decreases family income,
reduces health, puts women and girls at risk of trafficking and exploitation,
and limits the economic advancement of entire countries.
·
Education for girls and women is the single most
effective way to improve the lives of individual families as well as to bring
economic development to poor communities worldwide.
·
Getting
education is the fundamental human right of every individual irrespective of
gender.
·
Educating
a woman means educating the family and the nation.
·
Education
for all is one of the major tasks being carried out by the Indian government
but still we have the lowest female literacy rate in Asia.
·
Sex
based discrimination is prevalent in India. This is one problem where parents
do not send their daughters to school.
·
It
is also common to see that parents especially in urban areas often send their
male child to better schools.
·
Even
if girls are enrolled, their dropout rate is very high.
·
When
a woman is not educated then it not only affects her but the entire family as
well as the nation.
·
In
many studies it has been found out that illiterate women have high fertility as
well as mortality rate.
·
It
has been seen that infant mortality rate reduces to half in case women have
received primary education as compared to illiterate female.
·
Apart
from this, children of illiterate woman are malnourished. Illiteracy also
reduces the overall earning potential of the family.
·
Women
must be educated for a healthy and a happy life.
·
An
educated woman can be a better human being, successful mother and a responsible
citizen.
·
Educating
women will definitely increase the living standard both at and outside home.
·
An
educated woman will force her kids to study further and wish them to live a
better life than hers.
·
Educating
women results in promoting self-respect and also helps in raising the status of
women.
·
An
educated woman will be aware of her rights. She can fight against social evils
such as domestic violence, dowry demand, low wages etc.
·
Programmes need to be developed to enable girls enroll and
stay in school and help women gain access to or create new educational,
financial, and social resources in their communities.
·
Such programmes should also help girls and women improve
their own lives, the lives of their families and the conditions in their
communities.
·
For parents—and especially mothers—this means creating
conditions that ensure their daughters have equal access to basic education,
are able to make informed decisions about their futures, and are able to
protect themselves.
·
By improving educational opportunities for girls and women, educational
institutions must help women develop skills that allow them to make decisions
and influence community change.
Women Empowerment
·
The
subject of empowerment of women has becoming a major issue all over the world
including India since last few decades.
·
Many
agencies of United Nations in their reports have emphasized that gender issue
is to be given utmost priority. It is held that women now cannot be asked to
wait for any more for equality.
·
Women
want to have for themselves the same strategies of change which menfolk have
had over the centuries such as equal pay for equal work.
·
Women’s
quest for equality has given birth to the formation of many women’s
associations and launching of movements.
·
The
position and status of women all over the world has risen incredibly.
·
For
a long time women in India remained within the four walls of their household
andthey totally depended on their menfolk.
·
A
long struggle going back over a century has brought women the property rights,
voting rights, an equality in civil rights before the law in matters of
marriage and employment.
·
In
addition to the above rights, in India, the customs of veil system, female
infanticide, child marriage, self-immolation by the women with their dead husbands,
dowry system and the state of permanent widowhood were either totally removed
or checked to an appreciable extent after independence through legislative
measures.
·
Two
Acts have also been enacted to emancipate women in India.These are:
§
Protection
of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 and
§
Compulsory
Registration of Marriage Act, 2006.
·
Anything
that makes a woman feel inferior and takes away her self-respect is abuse.
·
Compulsory
Registration of Marriage Act can be beneficial in preventing the abuse of institution
of marriage and hindering social justice especially in relation to women.
·
It
would help the innumerable women in the country who get abandoned by their
husbands and have no means of proving their marital status.
·
It
would also help check child marriages, bigamy and polygamy, enable women to
seek maintenance and custody of their children and widows can claim inheritance
rights.
·
The
Act is applicable on all women irrespective of caste, creed or religion. It
would truly empower Indian women to exercise their rights.
·
There
was a time when women’s education was not a priority even among the elite.
·
More
women are getting degrees than men, and are filling most new jobs in every
field.
·
A
growing number of women have been entering into the economic field, seeking
paid work, remunerative jobs, outside the family.
·
Women
are playing bigger and bigger role in economic field: as workers, consumers,
entrepreneurs, managers and investors.
·
More
women are employedalmost everywhere, including India, though their share is
still very low.
·
Women
can be seen in almost every field: architecture, lawyers, financial services,
engineering, medical and IT jobs.
·
Women
have also entered service occupations such as a nurse, a beautician, a sales
worker, a waitress, etc.
·
Women
are increasingly and gradually seen marching into domains which were previously
reserved for males (e.g. police, driver’s army, pilots, chartered accountants,
commandos).
·
In
spite of their increasing number in every field, women still remain perhaps the
world’s most underutilised resources. Many are still excluded from paid work
and many do not make best use of their skills.
Education for Socially,
Economically and Culturally Deprived
·
Education
is universally recognized as a central component of human capital.
·
The
role of education as a contributor to economic growth and its impact on
population control, life expectancy, infant mortality, improving nutritional
status and strengthening civil institutions is well recognized.
·
Moreover,
the social rates of return on investments in all levels of education much
exceed the long-term opportunity cost of capital.
·
In
normal course educated parents would send their children to schools. But where
parents are not educated they may send their children to schools if there are
enough incentives to attract and retain the children in schools.
·
However
it has been seen that as the child grows, the opportunity cost of sending the
child to schools increases and incentives become less important.
·
It
has also been observed that socio-economic factors often come in the way of
educating children beyond a certain class.
·
The
reasons observed forsocially,
economically and culturally deprivedchildren not being in school extend from non-availability of schools,
poor quality of education, including irregular opening of schools, poor
learning environment etc.
·
The
relationship between deprivation and education is crucial for understanding the
significant impact deprivation has on later outcomes in adulthood.
·
Deprivation
of education has a negative impact on educational attainment, leaving young
people with fewer qualifications and skills, affecting future employment.
·
Poor
educational attainment has short‐term as well as longer‐term consequences.
·
There
are direct effects on health and indirect effects, for example, lower skilled
people are more likely to find employment in hazardous occupations where they
are at greater risk of accidents.
·
Indeed,
education has an impact on life expectancy.
·
There
is evidence that lower levels of educational achievement can have a negative
impact on an individual’s engagement with society, for example, in the
increased likelihood that an individual will engage in criminal activity.
·
Education,
thus for the weaker sections of the society needs to become the panacea and an
inclusive growth strategy for their economic and social up-liftment.
·
Education
has special significance for the socially, economically and culturally
deprived, who are facing a new situation in the development process to admit
themselves properly in the changing circumstances.
·
Education
not only helps children from weaker sections of society to promote their
economic development but also helps to build their self-confidence and inner
strength to face new challenges.
·
The
socially, economically and culturally deprived children have been the targets
of economic exploitation, harassment, atrocities, injustice, etc. due to their
illiteracy linked to their poverty.