Evolution of the education policy
Poor
quality of education, not gross enrolment, is currently the key issue with the
Indian education system
A
new education policy is in the process of being finalized by the ministry of
human resource development (MHRD). The new policy is aimed at making education
both emancipator and enabler while encouraging innovation over rote learning.
District- and block-level consultation and public suggestions are also sought
to make the new education policy more effective and relevant. The MHRD’s
inclusive and participatory approach in formulating this policy is worth
appreciating. Hopefully, it will lead to positive outcomes, important for every
citizen of this knowledge economy.
Gross
enrolment was the focus area in earlier schemes, i.e. Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan,
Right to Education, National Literacy Mission and so on. However, poor quality
of education is a burning issue at present—as reflected in several
national-level surveys, third-party assessments, and at the employment stage.
To address this challenge, we need to study various aspects of the Indian
education system at the grass-roots level, i.e. quality of trainers, curricula
upgradation, use of e-learning, assessment pedagogies, institutional
accreditation, focus on extracurricular activities, common syllabi, foreign
universities Bill, not-for profit model and so on.
Here are four important facets of our education system
which should be incorporated in the new education policy to enhance overall
credibility of the system.
Regulatory:
In February, the Telangana government announced its education policy and
brought most of the educational institutions under a single department of
education rather than different regulatory divisions. Such reforms are
essential at the central level where the list of regulatory bodies is even
longer—the University Grants Commission, All India Council for Technical
Education, National Council of Educational Research and Training and various
course-specific councils and boards. The introduction of a single industry
regulator along the lines of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India and the
Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority would be helpful in improving
the overall productivity of the institutions. This would allow educational
institutions to focus more on education delivery to students rather than
spending more time in the paperwork of different regulatory bodies. In fact,
too much control enables rent-seeking and corruption. Let market forces decide
which player is better, as happens in other sectors.
Accountability:
We often hear criticism of parallel education or the emergence of coaching
institutions in the Indian education system. But the existence of this parallel
education system is due to the failure of our main education system comprising
schools, colleges and universities. Why can’t we have accountability for the
desired output from our core education system? In the US’ new Every Student
Succeeds Act, passed in December 2015, the federal role in establishing
educational standards has been reduced while schools have been made more
accountable and performance-oriented. Similarly in India, schools or colleges
should not be allowed to consider themselves merely custodians of licences to
grant degrees or certificates. They ought to be responsible for the final
learning outcome. In this process, teachers should also be accountable. The
government needs to address this issue, from reviewing the eligibility criteria
for teachers to assessing their motivation.
Reservation:
The idea of social equilibrium is excellent. Reservation is one of the
efficient ways to achieve this. However, it need not necessarily be just
caste-based reservation. When the practice was started just after gaining
independence, caste was perhaps the only practical way to differentiate the
privileged and underprivileged. But now we have huge databases and multiple
ways to separate both categories. The social benefits of reservation for a poor
family or deprived student from the general category (as defined currently) is
far greater than reservation for an affluent reserved category individual
(based on the current caste system). We know that no government would dare to
change the reservation system to solve this issue. Therefore, we are unlikely
to see any update on this in the new education policy. However, if education is
listed among the “9 pillars” to transform India, then eventually, the issue
will have to be addressed in order to foster excellence in education
governance.
Financing:
The Central government spends less than 4% of the gross domestic product (GDP)
on education. The allotment in the last budget, with just 4.9% year-on-year
increase, is actually lower as a percentage of GDP if inflation is factored in.
If the government says that education is a national agenda, then it should get
its proportionate allocation. In this context, I would even oppose the hefty
fees at our premier institutions (Indian Institutes of Technology and Indian
Institutes of Management). The fee may not look expensive in light of the
salary packages of their graduates, but it should also not deter anyone from
being an entrepreneur due to the burden of educational loans for studies at
these institutions. It is our responsibility to provide the best education to
deserving candidates. Even if education is made free at these powerhouse
institutions, there would be an additional expense of only about Rs1,400 crore.
It is less than 0.1% of our yearly budget or just 0.01% of national GDP, but
could potentially have a multiplier effect on the development of an economy
which has 54% of its total population below 25 years of age.
Source | Mint – The wall Street Journal
| 10 October 2016
Regards
Pralhad Jadhav
Senior Manager @ Library
Khaitan & Co
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