Transforming Indian Education: Towards Long-Term Vision

This editorial is based on “A broken education system: Apps and coaching classes are the wrong
solution” which was published in Indian Express on 21/12/2023. The article discusses the education
sector being in a state of crisis partly due to reckless commercialisation and politicisation which must be
rebuilt with a step-by-step strategy and a national consensus that commits to insulate it from narrow
political considerations.

For Prelims: Unified District Information System For Education (UDISE), National Education Policy 2020,
National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning, PRAGYATA, PM SHRI Schools, National Family
Health Survey-5, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), Artificial Intelligence.

For Mains: Features of National Education Policy 2020, Major Issues Related to the Education Sector
in India, Government Initiatives Related to Educational Reforms.

By 2030, India will have the largest number of young population in the globe, a population size that will be
a boon only if these young people are skilled enough to join the workforce. Quality education will play a
major role in it. But the current state of Education faces major challenges like lack of adequate
infrastructure, low government expenditure on education (less than 3.5% of the GDP) and as per
the Unified District Information System For Education (UDISE) the pupil-to-teacher ratio at the
national level for elementary schools is 24:1. So it's high time to tune the Indian Education System with
global standards and adopt modern learning approaches that are responsive and relevant. Also,
vitalise National Education Policy 2020 to see the light of day.

What is the Status of Education System in India?

History:
The ‘Gurukul’ was a type of education system in ancient India with shishya (students)
living with the guru in the same house. Nalanda has the oldest university system of
education in the world. Students from across the world were attracted to Indian
knowledge systems.
British Government brought various reforms in the education system through Macaulay
Committee recommendations, Woods’ Despatch, Hunter Commission Report,
University Education Act, 2004 which had profound impact on society.
Current Status of Education in India:
The gender gap in literacy in India began narrowing in 1991, with an accelerated pace of
improvement. However, the current female literacy rate in India still significantly lags
behind the global average of 87%, as reported by UNESCO in 2015.
Furthermore, India's overall literacy rate of 74.04% is below the world average of
86.3%. A significant number of states in India fall within the average range, just slightly
above the national literacy level.
//

Different Legal and Constitutional Provisions:

Legal Provisions:
The government has implemented the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) as part of
the Right to Education (RTE) Act for primary level (6-14 years).
Moving to the secondary level (age group 14-18), the government has extended
the SSA to secondary education through the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha
Abhiyan.
Higher education, encompassing undergraduate (UG), postgraduate (PG), and
MPhil/PhD levels, is addressed by the government through the Rashtriya
Uchhattar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) to meet the requirements of higher
education.
All these schemes have been subsumed under the umbrella scheme of
Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan.
Constitutional Provisions:
Article 45 of the Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP) initially stipulated
that the government should ensure free and compulsory education for all children
up to the age of 14 within 10 years of the Constitution's commencement.
Additionally, Article 45 was amended to extend its scope to encompass
early childhood care and education for children below six years of
age.
Since this objective wasn't realized, the 86th Constitutional Amendment Act of
2002 introduced Article 21A, transforming elementary education into a
fundamental right instead of a directive principle.

What are the Issues in the School Education System in India?

Election-Driven Focus of the Government:

During elections, the poor gain bargaining power, leading to a focus on immediate needs
like freebies and guarantees. While people aspire for income security and better basic
entitlements, they are sceptical about the government's commitment, be it
education, health, living conditions etc.
Education Sector Crisis:
The education sector is in crisis due to reckless commercialization and politicisation.
It lacks a step-by-step strategy and a national consensus and focuses on easy solutions like
technology as a substitute for solid investments in quality education.
Limits of Edutech:
The book "The Learning Trap" highlights the limitations of technology in fixing the
broken education system. Edutech start-ups, such as Byju’s, failed to deliver on promises,
emphasising the need for good teachers over technological solutions.
 Impact of Tuition Industry:
The tuition industry, valued at over Rs 58 billion, is rapidly expanding. Government
policies devaluing high school examinations and the focus on national exams as
gateways to professional careers contribute to the growth of this parallel education
system.
Preference for Tuition Centers:
Parents increasingly prefer tuition centres to regular schools, leading to stress-
induced suicides and mental health problems among students. The divide between well-
educated and less-educated students is widening.
Quality Variance in Schools:
India's public and private schools vary in quality, with poorly trained and paid
teachers contributing to the rise of tuition centers. The government's focus on running its
own schools neglects monitoring and quality improvement.
Widening Educational Divide:
The educational divide between the rich and poor is widening, with the second
category of students struggling within a failed system. The government's approach to
teaching materials lacks innovation and fails to address the growing challenges.
Lack of Societal Involvement:
Education should become a societal concern rather than solely a government
responsibility, which is missing in Indian context.
Solutions involve widening social participation, engaging civil society, and
encouraging volunteerism, while also making teachers accountable for results.
Insufficient Education Spending:
India's education spending is insufficient, stagnating at 2.61% of GDP, far below
the recommended 6% by the Education 2030 Framework for Action. Adequate
attention and increased budget allocation are missing for real growth and development.
Political Leadership and Fiscal Imagination:
Real growth and development hinge on political leadership commitment and fiscal
imagination. With India's spending on education remaining low, a fundamental shift is
lacking that can meet the challenges and achieve global leadership in education.
Inadequate Infrastructure in Schools:
According to the UDISE for 2019-20, only 12% of schools have internet facilities and
30% have computers.
About 42% of these schools lacked furniture, 23% lacked electricity, 22% lacked
ramps for the physically disabled, and 15% lacked WASH facilities (which
include drinking water, toilets, and hand wash basins).
High Dropout Rate:
The dropout rate is very high in primary and secondary levels. Most of the students in the
6-14 age groups leave the school before completing their education. It leads to a waste of
financial and human resources.
According to the National Family Health Survey-5, not being interested in
studies was the reason given by 21.4% of girls and 35.7% of boys aged
between 6 to 17 years for dropping out of school before the 2019-20
school year.

What are the Long-Term Solutions to the Education System in India?

Towards Experiential Learning Approach:

There is a need for inclusion of problem-solving and decision-making related
subjects in the school curriculum to offer hands-on learning experience to students and
prepare them to face the outside world when they enter into the workforce.
Experiential Learning can reap maximum benefit from its ability to extract
active participation from every student, which in turn triggers their emotional
intelligence and sets them on a path to self-learning.
Linking Artificial Intelligence with the Educational Sector will also facilitate
experiential learning.
Implementation of National Education Policy:
The implementation of the NEP can help shake the education system from its slumber.
Moving away from the current 10+2 system to a 5+3+3+4 system will bring the pre-
 school age group formally into the education set-up, which is not being implemented
uniformly across all the states.
Education-Employment Corridor:
India's educational setup needs to be enhanced by integrating vocational learning
with mainstream education and providing right mentorship at school (especially in
government schools) to ensure that students are guided in the right direction from
the start and are aware of career opportunities.
Students in rural regions have great potential and are motivated to study but lack the right
mentoring. This is required not just for the children but also for their parents that
will in a way also reduce the gender gap in education.
Reducing the Language Barrier:
While keeping English as a means of education for international understanding (EIU),
it is important to give other Indian languages equal importance.
Special publication agencies can be established to translate resources into a variety
of languages so that all Indian students have the same opportunity regardless of their
linguistic background.
Taking a Note From Past to Future:
It is important to look to the future while keeping our long-established roots in mind.
There is much to learn from the 'Gurukul' system of ancient India, which focussed on
holistic development beyond academics, centuries before the topic became a buzzword in
modern education.
Ethics and value education remained at the core of learning in the ancient Indian
education system. Values such as self-reliance, empathy, creativity, and integrity
remain a major area in ancient India that have relevance even today.
The ancient evaluation of education was not restricted to grading thematic knowledge.
Students were assessed on the skills they learned and how well they can apply
practical knowledge to real-life situations.
The modern education system can also devise similar systems of assessment.

What are the Government Initiatives Related to Educational Reforms?

National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning

Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan
PRAGYATA
Mid Day Meal Scheme
Beti Bachao Beti Padhao
PM SHRI Schools

Drishti Mains Question:

What are the issues with the school education system in India? How can the current system in India
address these challenges and ensure inclusive quality education?

UPSC Civil Services Examination, Previous Year Question (PYQ)

Prelims

Q. Which of the following provisions of the Constitution does India have a bearing on
Education? (2012)

1. Directive Principles of State Policy

2. Rural and Urban Local Bodies
3. Fifth Schedule
4. Sixth Schedule
5. Seventh Schedule

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

 (a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 3, 4 and 5 only
(c) 1, 2 and 5 only
(d) 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5

Ans- (d)

Mains

Q1. How have digital initiatives in India contributed to the functioning of the education system in the
country? Elaborate on your answer. (2020)

Q2. Discuss the main objectives of Population Education and point out the measures to achieve them in
India in detail. (2021)

PDF Refernece URL: https://www.drishtiias.com/current-affairs-news-analysis-editorials/news-

editorials/2023-12-22/print

Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)