India
Education For All
Overview of Progress and Challenges
E-9 Ministerial Meeting
8-10, November 2012
New Delhi, India
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Overview
• Diverse
contexts
and
conditions – consists of 35
States and Union Territories
• About 1.3 million schools of
which 87% are in rural areas
• Involves around 190 million
children and 6 million
teachers at the elementary
stage of education
• Demographic changes –
increasing youth population
– shrinking cohort of
children entering primary
schools
Overview of Progress
Universal Primary Education and
Literacy
• Access – Universal access to all within the
neihbourhood
• Primary Enrolment Ratios – Near Universal
at 97%
• Primary Completion rate – around 70% cause for concern
• Literacy – 81% - on track for achieving 2015
goal
Overview of Progress
Towards Gender Equality
• Significant reduction in gender disparity but
needs improvement
• Ratio of boys to girls in education – near parity
in primary level - but still at around 0.87 overall
and Gender parity index in literacy is around
0.84 – youth literacy is near parity
• One of the major focus areas being pursued –
special programmatic thrusts
Overview of Progress
Major Programmatic Initiatives
• Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan – Programme for
Universalisation of Elementary Education
• Universal provision of Mid-Day Meals in schools
• Integrated Child Development Programme covering
all children of 0-6 years
• Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan – Programme
for Universalisation of Secondary Education
• Sakshar Bharat – National Literacy Programme with
special focus on Youth and women
Right to Education
Education as a Fundamental Right
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Landmark event
Amendment to Constitution in 2002
Right To Education Act notified in April 2010
Making Free and Compulsory Education a
basic Right - Looking to ensure that all
children not only have access to education
but access to education of good quality
Right to Education Act
Some Key Provisions
• Rights and Entitlements of children
• Ensuring Participation of Children in Schools –
Responsibility of the State
• Specifies Teacher qualifications, Pupil Teacher Ratio
• Benchmark for Schools - Specification of infrastructure
and academic provisions
• Nature of Curriculum – Teaching Learning Process – Child
Centred – National Values
• Independent Bodies at Central and State levels for
Monitoring the Protection of Child Rights – National
Commission for Protection of Child Rights
Right to Education Act
Some Key Provisions
Focus on Equity and Social Justice
• Special Provisions made for marginalised groups Scheduled Caste children, tribal groups, children with
special needs
• New Framework for Participation of Private providers 25% reservation for children from disadvantaged groups
Child friendly classrooms
• Ban on corporal punishment and classroom free of fear
and anxiety
• Calls for education through mother tongue (Without
making it compulsory)
Continuing Challenges
 Retaining children in Schools to complete
elementary with particular focus on girls and
the disadvantaged – Around 40% children
aged 6-14 years drop out without completing
8 years of schooling
 Strategy – (a) Special Training to mainstream
out of school children and drop outs – age
appropriate classes ; (b) Programmes for girls
including residential schools; (c) Mid-day
Meals for all; (d) Draw support from NGOs
Continuing Challenges
 Problem of Qualified Teachers - Around one
million additional teachers to be recruited
and trained to meet RTE norms.
 Strategy – (a) Teacher Eligibility Tests to
improve quality; (b) Additional Teacher
Training Institutions in Educationally
Backward Blocks; (c) Use of Modern
Technology and open learning systems for
professional development of Practicing
Teachers
Continuing Challenges
 Enhancing Learning Outcomes – Independent
assessments as well as Surveys by NCERT show that
majority of children completing 5 yrs of schooling
lack basic competencies
 Strategy - Special programme of Quality
Enhancement – (a) Curriculum and Textbooks
Reform (National Curriculum Framework); (b)
Reforming classroom teaching – Ability Based
Learning; (c) Revamping Learner Evaluation –
Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation
Continuing Challenges
 Out-of-school Adolescents and Young Adults – Large
number still fail to complete schooling and enter the
world of work
 Strategy – (a) Special Programmes of life skills for
Adolescents and Youth – through National Literacy
Mission; (b) Expansion of open schooling network to
reach the unreached; (c) Assessing and certifying
skills acquired through non-formal education under
the National Vocational Education Qualification
Framework (NVEQF)
Towards A brighter future for
India’s children
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