Education as an investment with a
potential for creating huge benefits to the
individual, family, community and the nation
has been accepted in national as well as
international thinking on development
Strategy. It has now become a part of the
received wisdom being propagated by the
World Bank, UNDP and other development
organizations. Accumulated, inconvertible
evidence emphasizes that Basic Education is
an investment in productivity and economic
growth. Indian policy-makers while
considering financial allocations to quality
basic education need to be fully conscious of
its productivity growth benefits.
The book provides a telescopic view of
Our successes and failures in educating
children of the Republic of India. Based on
Indian idealist tradition and constitutional
guarantees, it suggests the essential
directional change needed to meet the
challenge for a economically and morally
strong India. The book is addressed to the
policy-makers, community leaders and
educationists of India.
He has been writing on various subjects
after his retirement. His published works
include a book 'Towards Total Planning’, and a
novel 'Shikar aur Shikari’. Besides, his articles
are published in various magazines and
He is also associated with many
organizations working in the field of
education and administration and is the
Chairman of its Madhya Pradesh and
Chhattisgarh Regional Branch of Indian
Institute of Public Administration.
The pace of change mandates that we produce a faster, smarter,
better grade of human being. The evolution of education can be
divided into three phases, each having its own merits and challenges.
In the first phase, man sought to pass on his experiences and
knowledge to the next generation. This process started with oral
tradition, but writing systems had to be evolved as the volume of
information grew. Still this was limited to a few. With the advent of
the printing press, knowledge and information became available to
the masses. Simultaneously, the oral tradition gave way to established
institutions. Continous expansion of knowledge stressed the need
for specialized agencies. The basic knowledge, which had to be shared
by every one, needed one type of institutional arrangement, the
advanced knowledge a different one. The approach, the methodolgy,
the nature of material differed.
Every nation has followed this process but the results have been
uneven. Some of the nations benefited from rapid expansion of
educational system while others were thwarted, sometimes deliberately
and sometimes by accident. With nations becoming masters of their
own destinies, the pace has picked up. Where does India stand in the
community of nations ? To say the least, the present situation leaves
much to desire. We have the largest technical force and are able to
compete with the best but we also have many who are unable or
unwilling to benefit fom the educational facilities. We have missed
some wonderful opportunities but we are standing at the threshold
of a new one. This book attempts to analyze what has been the
shortcomings and pitfalls which we could not avoid. It endeavours
to look at various aspects of educational needs of the people.
In looking at the needs of the nation, we have to take cognizance
of the fact that India has produced brilliant exponents of knowledge
in every field. But even so, the end product does not give us that
kind of aura which the country deserves. Why is it so ? We felt that
our weakness is neglect of the foundations. To have a grand building,
one has to ensure that it stands on solid ground. In the educational
system, the elementary education is the bedrock on which the
superstructure ‘s built. We have, therefore, chosen this as the field of
Naturally, we have to build upon the structure we have and follow
the ideals which we and our ‘ntellectual leaders have laid down for
ourselves. Hence, the book starts with that aspect. We take a brief
look at the progress of education and the path which our leaders
showed us. The international scene has also been taken up for
discussion. We have also discussed in brief the steps taken which
have culminated in the adoption of the Right to Eduacation Act.
It has been repeatedly pleaded that poverty is the biggest stumbling
block in formulating policies and programmes for mass education
and total literacy. Our second chapter deals with this aspect in some
detail. [he another hurdle is described as the demographic pressure,
the ever increasing number of children who have to be catered to by
the school system. This is also dealt with in this chapter.
We follow this up by looking at the various sections of the society
which have problems of their own in keeping up with the mainstream.
These are : the female sex, the rural population, and the child labour
which are dealt with, in that order, in the next three chapters.
We note that the student enrolment is picking up but the dropouts are
still around in alarming numbers. We take a look at the out of school
children in this context in chapter six. The law promises to address
the problems of children from the weaker sections and seeks the
cooperation of the elite schools in this endeavour. Whether this is
feasible is the subject matter of the next chapter.
Education should not be and cannot be a matter of enrolment
and those who complete the course of studies. In other words, it is
not merely the quantity that we seek but the quality. The quality of
education, naturally, demands our attention and we devote
considerable attention to it in exploring the present status and the
procedures by which we can improve upon it.
Our country is a vast territory and we have a federal structure.
Each region and each state has its own peculiar situation, culture,
administrative structure and traditions. We cannot expect a uniform
standard all over and so we take a look at what various states have
achieved or are in the process of achieving. States' contrasts serve a
purpose of learning from each other and we endeavour to do just
that in the next chapter.
As we have said above, education is not an end in itself. It must
lead to prosperity through better productivity and opportunities. It
is the stepping stone to higher things in life. Real education should
prepare us for the struggles which the life continuously presents.
Ability to manage one’s future is a necessary ingredient of educational
system. We examine whether our system does take care of it or, if it is
lacking in this aspect, how to overcome the adverse situation.
And finally, we try to sneak a look into future to see what is in:
store for us and what measures we should take to ensure that we are
not in for surprises. How we can compete with the best and achieve
the goals which our leading philosophers considered us fit for.
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