Education for all: towards a self-sufficient India

Education is one of the most important drivers of socio-economic prosperity and the stability of a self-sufficient India.

For Amitabh Kant and Rajeshwari Sahay

Every morning from 8 to 9:30 a.m. M. And every afternoon from 5 to 6:30 p.m. M., Villagers in the Bastar district of Chhattisgarh are audiences for a special program on the Amcho Bastar radio channel. This community radio channel was launched in June 2020 under the broader initiative of Padhai Tuhar Dwar of the Chhattisgarh state government. One of the main objectives of the Amcho Bastar community radio is to teach school learning modules to young students from villages who have not been able to attend school due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Bastar is an aspirational district in the red corridor that faces multiple geographic and socioeconomic constraints. However, thanks to the strong determination of the district administration, the radio program that initially reached three panchayats has now been extended to more than 100 panchayats, ensuring access to learning material for hundreds of students.

Schools are not just learning centers for young children, they are also vital to their social growth and cognitive development. The Covid-19 pandemic caused a serious disruption to the education system, especially in rural India. While schools and teachers in urban areas began a staggered transition to an online classroom mode, this was not easy to achieve in many of India’s remote aspiring districts. Despite limited Internet facilities and digital tools, schools, teachers and parents with the help of district administrations showed great resilience, adopting unique innovations to ensure continuity of classes for students.

In another successful effort by the Padhai Tuhar Dwar initiative, the aspirational Rajnandgaon district of Chhattisgarh organized mohalla classes for students living in remote areas with little internet connectivity. Observing a complete security protocol, mohalla classes are held in villages near the homes of the young students. With the combined efforts of teachers and district administration, the mohalla class concept ensures that those students who do not have access to online classes can continue to attend lessons.

Hundreds of miles from Rajnandgaon, on the banks of the Jhelum River, a similar initiative was spearheaded by the aspirational Baramulla district of Jammu and Kashmir. Community outdoor classes led by volunteers, in accordance with social distancing rules, were held in the villages in several shifts to cover as many students as possible. The initiative reached more than 30,000 students in the district with the support of Panchayati Raj Institutions, as well as several teachers who volunteered to teach classes. This strengthened the administration’s efforts to provide ongoing lessons.

The state of Jharkhand, which is home to 16 aspirational districts and a rural tribal population that constitutes nearly 26% of its total population, witnessed commendable efforts by several districts to ensure continuity of classes for school students. In the Gumla district, the district administration has facilitated home delivery of school books and other study materials.

A wonderful and inspiring example of turning adversity into opportunity emerged from the aspirational Dumka district. In Dumarthar village, school teachers have helped paint blackboards on the exterior walls of the students’ houses. Each morning, the local school principal conducts lessons over a handheld speaker, while students take notes on their personal whiteboards.

Despite facing obstacles in development, especially related to digital connectivity, the districts of Jharkhand have been making concerted efforts to overcome these limitations. The District Education Department of the aspirational Ramgarh District introduced the Lockdown E-Pathshala. In addition to familiarizing teachers with digital education tools in the new normal, the platform disseminates study material to students through its YouTube channel. The Lockdown E-Pathshala initiative is also being broadcast on local television channels to reach a greater number of students. The two-pronged approach aims to build capacity for existing teachers and educators, as well as to ensure consistency of classes at the primary level. The Ramgarh district administration is also in the process of establishing a low-cost studio infrastructure to record digital content noiselessly for students.

A home is a child’s first school and parents are essential to a child’s educational journey. With this principle in mind, the administration of the aspirational Goalpara district in Assam initiated the Smart Papa program, Smarter Mamas. Goalpara parents are encouraged to take charge of their children’s education by participating in the campaign. The students’ mothers are actively participating with the teachers to follow the educational progress of their children. The campaign has helped to significantly control dropout rates.

Meanwhile, the central government together with the Ministry of Education are working tirelessly to close the digital divide. The PM eVIDYA initiative is a notable example of an overarching project to push digital / online / on-air education and enable multi-mode access to education. DIKSHA, the knowledge sharing platform jointly developed by NCERT and the Ministry of Education, is also a crucial tool that students and teachers take advantage of in the states and territories of the Union. SWAYAM is another example of the persistent efforts of the Government of India to enable equitable access to quality teaching and learning resources for the most disadvantaged sections of society. In an innovative step, Prasar Bharati in a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has made 51 educational television channels with content from Swayam Prabha, e-Vidya and DigiShala available to households across India. .

These channels, which will be available as free DD co-branded channels, mark a significant effort by the Union government to include students from remote areas in the general education arena. The recently announced National Education Policy also identifies equitable use of and access to technology for digital education as a key focus area. Several pilot studies are underway to assess the benefits of online education, as well as to draw up a roadmap to narrow the digital divide. The government remains firmly committed to its goal of education for all, and these are some of the many firm steps aimed at achieving this goal.

There is also immense scope for developing alternative models of education in India, which can be well used to complement the formal education system. The 2020 Covid-19 crisis has highlighted the need to break existing rules and innovate. In remote and rural areas, the concept of open schooling with more flexible academic rules can go a long way in addressing concerns of high dropout rates, low attendance, and limited infrastructure. These alternative education models will also support vocational training and skills development in aspirational districts of India.

Education is one of the most important drivers of socio-economic prosperity and the stability of a self-sufficient India. The 112 districts they aspire to face serious development challenges for equitable education, which have only been intensified by the pandemic. However, the cumulative efforts of district administrations, schools, teachers, parents, and students in aspirational districts to respond effectively to the Covid-19 crisis are truly commendable. By placing the continuity of school education at the center of their rebuilding efforts, aspirational districts have successfully leveraged technology, as well as community engagement and partnerships to ensure that no student is deprived of the joy of learning.

Kant is CEO and Sahay is Young Professional, NITI Aayog. Views are personal

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