INTRODUCTION:

The importance of education in the goal of national development can be summarized in no better way than done by the Kothari Commission Report when it goes on to say “ in a world based on science and technology, it is education that determines the level of prosperity, welfare and security of the people”¹. After the Kothari Commission of 1966 and The National Education Policy of 1986 a new education policy for India was long overdue. The National Education Policy 1986 came at a time that preceded globalisation and massive digital and communication revolution that occurred during the late 1990s and the early part of the 21^st century.

The Govt. of India hence constituted a committee under the chairmanship of Dr. K Kasturi Rangan and asked it to submit its report by December 2018. While we talk about growth and prosperity in the country, it is equally important that we talk about a growth story that takes everybody along. In other words, we must carve out a path for the process of national growth and prosperity that charts a trajectory of equitable and inclusive development in all fields that entails basic rights of the people.

The Draft National Education Policy, 2019 and the Questions of Equity and Inclusion: The Draft National Education Policy (NEP), 2019 devotes a complete chapter (namely, the 6^th Chapter) to address the issue of equitable and inclusive education. It aims to achieve an inclusive and equitable education system wherein all have the equal degree of opportunity to learn and grow so as to attain the ultimate goal of equalising participation and learning outcomes among different social categories and genders. The documents aspires that the nation should be able to achieve this objective by the year 2030².

The document notes that education is the single greatest tool for achieving social justice and equality. This is one point on which one of the radical social reformer of 19^th century Maharashtra. Jyotiba Phule would agree. For Phule, education was the most effective way of fighting social exclusion. It was not for nothing that he devoted most part of his life with endeavours to spread education among the so called lower caste people and women³, the so called fairer sex (and yet most neglected that time). The Draft National Education Policy 2019 points out the hindrances of different disadvantaged groups such as gender biases and prejudices, socio-economic status and special needs. It acknowledges that underrepresented groups come mostly from among women, transgender, SC, ST, OBC, Muslims, Migrant communities, trans-genders, those with disabilities and those who are socio-economically deprived. It is worthwhile to mention here that the draft policy prefers to call the groups SC, ST, OBC, Muslims, Migrant communities as those based on Social-cultural identities. Another noteworthy point that needs mention is that among the minority communities, the Muslims have got a special mention⁴.

Differential Enrolment in Schools and the Factors: This is important since the draft policy seeks to ensure compulsory quality education to all children in the age group of 3 to 18 years by 2030. The documents used the U–DISE data 2016-17 to see the enrolment pattern and suggests that the downfall in enrolment rate of these groups is more visible in higher classes. The document takes the help of the U-DISE 2016-17 data to make this statement⁵. For instance, at the primary level students from SC category accounted for 19.6% of the total enrolment whereas the enrolment was 17.3% for the higher secondary level.

The ST students’ enrolment accounts for 10.6% of the total enrolment at the primary level whereas it accounts for only 6.8% of the total enrolment at the secondary level. The corresponding figures for the Muslim students and the specially-abled learners are 15% and 1.1% at the primary level and 7.9% and 0.25% at the secondary level respectively. The policy document has taken all India figures to show under-representation of these disadvantaged groups. However, it would have been better had it taken into account the regional variations in these enrolment patterns. It would have served mainly two purposes. Firstly, it would have given the planners an idea regarding variation at state level / regional level. secondly, it would have further helped in formulation of state specific/ region- specific strategies for ameliorating the situation.

A look as the U- DISE figures of 2016-17 at the primary level indicates that students from SC category account for 36.94% of the enrolment at primary level in the Punjab, 27.10% in Uttar Pradesh, 26.02% in West Bengal, 23.06% in Uttarakhand , 23.38% in Haryana. On the other hand we have states like Assam (7.84%), Mizoram (0.18%), Manipur (4.57%), Meghalaya (1.04%), Nagaland (2.11%), Sikkim (7.67%) and other north eastern state where per centre of learners from among the SC categories as primary level is very less. In the Union Territories of AandN Islands and Lakshadweep the corresponding figures are 0.01% and 0.07% respectively⁶. However, one cannot also be oblivious to the fact that in these states SCs do not accounts for a very high level of population. For instance in Mizoram only 0.1% of the Population is SC whereas in Meghalaya only 0.6% of the population is SC⁷.

The draft New Education Policy 2019 also enumerates the reasons behind exclusion of under-represented groups. First of them is lack of access to schools, especially quality schools.

Another factor that plays a role in exclusion and discrimination of under-represented groups, the document says, is poverty. It impedes the sending of children to school even when people have access. Lack of quality infrastructure at schools such as portable drinking water, toilets which are both secure and in working conditions, are also cited to be some reasons. On the other hand, absence of good libraries, laboratories and learning books also add to their exclusion. A factor that is said to obstruct especially the girl child’s entry into the school is the prejudices imposed through social mores and biases. Another factor that is ferreted out as playing a role in the exclusion of under-represented groups is the exclusionary nature of school curriculum and text books. In order to give strength to its reasoning, the documents informs us that the bread earner in the family is almost always depicted as a male, that the stories told by our text books do not carry the names of children from all communities. What is however more important is that there is almost no reference to differently able people in the textbooks⁸.

While the draft National policy on Education has offered us a number of causalities and processes that are responsible for the under-participation of deprived people or what it prefers to call under-represented groups, there are still certain untold processes which are very important from the view point of educational inclusion of disadvantaged people.

It is a common knowledge now that the members of the middle class, and even the lower middle class, has stopped sending their children to the government schools if private schools are nearby. Even the lower middle class does not want to send its children to government schools. It reminds us of an Allahabad High Court verdict which ordered the wards of government officials to be sent to government schools for their schooling⁹. However, the basic question that needs to be raised is why is it that people treat it as a punishment to send their children to government schools. Obviously, quality of education imparted is a strong reason towards this. And at the top of it, the most poor and marginalized groups have seldom have the wherewithal to send their wards to private schools. They have no financial ability to pay the high fees of the private schools. Many, even though have marginally ability to pay, cannot do so become of their location in remote areas where good private schools are yet to come up. The document should also have focused on these aspects while diagnosing the causalities of deprivation. Diagnosis, any way, is the gateway to the remedy of an ailment.

Another point not mentioned by the draft document is the engagement of the teachers in non-teaching govt. activities. A study conducted by Vineeta Sorohi and Manju Narula of NUEPA suggested that mere 19.1% of the teacher’s working hours spent in teaching activities. Rest of the time is spent (wasted!) in election duty, carrying out surveys/census work, pulse polio campaigns, maintaining mid-day-meal registers etc. Every year there are elections in one state or the other. The immediate casualty of the election process is teaching of children¹⁰.

Census duty also hampers the teaching learning process. The NUEPA report also suggests that primary school teachers spend higher proportion of working hours in non-teaching activities vis-a-vis their upper primary school counterparts. Needless to mention, primary education is the edifice on which the entire educational growth of the child is established. If the learning outcomes at the primary level are weak, it will have a negative impact on his/her future educational growth and retention¹¹. A review by National Commission for Protection of Child Rights also say that involvement of teachers in non-teaching activities leads to non-fulfillment of minimum of 220 academic days as mandated under Right to Education Act, 2009¹².

The Remedial Measures Suggested: The draft policy suggests both general measures and group-specific measures for bringing equity and inclusion in the educational system. They include provision for Special Education Zones, focus on female learners within the under-represented groups(URGs), change in school culture, changes in School curriculum etc.. As regards the change in school culture the document emphasizes on inclusion and equity as key aspects of teacher education. It also desires these two to be key ingredients in the training of administrative and leadership positions in the schools. Besides, school curriculum are mandated to include lessons on human values like tolerance, empathy toward all.

Establishment of Special Education Zones – It informs that the states will be encouraged to declare certain areas of the state as Special Education Zones which is home. This has to be made in accordance with clearly defined socio-economic indicators and social development indicators. The document proposes that the make additional expenditure for these zones. The document also proposes initiatives pertaining to specific underrepresented groups.

Recruitment of Teachers from among Under- represented Groups: This is an action plan mooted for many URGs. The document proposes the recruitment of teachers from among the under- represented groups followed by their training¹³. This is as against the traditional model of recruiting the trained persons. However, one apprehension regarding the proposed scheme is that it should not end up with exclusivist education - that only teachers of a particular social group can only teach students from that particular social group. If it takes such a direction than the new scheme will generate and boost the ideology of exclusion instead of becoming a toll of battling exclusion.

One good proposal emanating from the document is that the pupil-teacher ratio in the schools with large concentration of learners from the under-represented groups should not be more than 25:1. However, this should be the ratio in all schools irrespective of the fact whether the majority of the learners are from among the disadvantaged groups or not. In fact, school education should totally be the domain of the state and private sector need not be provided a role in it. This is to ensure the quality education for students and a unified and dignified pay structure and work environment for the teachers. Without financial empowerment and dignified working environment for the teacher, aspiring for quality education in the school will remain a pipe dream.

Creation of a National Students’ Database: One important measure suggested by the document is regarding creation of database and tracking of students of educationally under-represented groups. The National Repository of Educational Data (NRED) will maintain the data base. This is a very noble idea but an ambitious scheme, which if implemented with complete honesty and sincerity will be a big step forward in the empowerment of disadvantaged groups. A special National fund is also proposed in the draft policy for providing scholarships, development of resources and facilities for learners from the disadvantaged groups¹⁴.

Gender-Inclusion Fund: What is praiseworthy regarding the document is that it is conscious regarding the double exclusion suffered by women within their own groups- be it SCs/STs and OBCs or minority groups. It hence gives special focus on women across the socio-economic spectrum. A milestone in this regard will be the “Gender Inclusion Fund”. It is proposed to “ build the nation’s capacity to provide Quality and equitable education for all focusing on five pillars”(Ibid : 145). It would seek to ensure 100% participation of the girl child and high participation rate in higher education. However, the document seems to have accepted that there will be drop out in between school education and higher education. It is worthwhile to mention here that the document aspires for absolute (100%) enrolment at school level whereas no such wish is made for the higher education level. The word “100%” is substituted with the word “high”. Be that as it may, the document also aspires for closing the gender gaps in educational attainment at different levels of education.

Specific Strategies also for Different Under-represented Groups: The draft education policy also discusses specific strategies for each disadvantaged group. It clubs the Scheduled Cates and the Other Backward Classes in the same group. However, it would have been appropriate if they were discussed under different categories since historically their socio-economic deprivation and educational backwardness are on different pedestals. The document goes on to say that the home languages of Sc and OBC students are different from the official language which is the mode of instruction at the school. Hence it has proposed for translation of early grade school material in the language spoken by these students¹⁵.

However, more than the SC and OBC group learners it is the tribal learners in general who face much more difficulty vis-a-vis the mainstream language/official language. The policy rightly suggest for providing books written in local tribal languages¹⁶ . However, it has not elaborated or devised any master plan as to how the books could be written in different tribal languages which vary widely. On the top of that, many of these languages do not have their own scripts. Thus, more needs to be done for implementation of the agenda of schooling in the tribal languages. Otherwise it will remain a mere wishful thinking.

The policy document also speaks regarding deployment of coordinators at State and district level for monitoring education programmes, top support the activities of the Ministry of tribal Affairs and other ministries and to see that ST children benefit from the schemes meant for them¹⁷. The document, while announcing that they would e chooses from among the tribal communities, does not elaborate further on their exact role, responsibility and pay structure, if any. In a welcome step it speaks regarding contextualising curriculum and incorporating tribal knowledge traditions into the textbooks. However, the real test of this policy will be in its implementation.

Another under represented group the draft policy deal with are the people from the minority communities. It speaks of establishing excellent schools in areas with high Muslim concentration. It also talks regarding strengthening of Madrasas, maktabs and other traditional or religious schools and modernising their curriculum¹⁸. The emphasis is on the modernisation of the curriculum. However, this is a sensitive issue and needs to be handled very cautiously while implementing the scheme.

While addressing its concern regarding the urban poor the policy also emphasize the need for a part of the curriculum to be redesigned for students from among the urban poor. While talking about the children with special needs, the policy emphasizes the inclusion of children with special needs in regular schools. It also proposes for financial support to schools and school complexes for integration of children with special needs. However, there is also a need to devise both incentives and dis-incentives for the private schools for supporting the concept of inclusive schooling. While financial support may be given to private schools for facilitating the children with special needs, it should be made mandatory that disciplinary action would be taken against the school if it violated (or allowed to violate) rights of persons with special needs to have an inclusive-education environment.

The policy, nevertheless talks of school complexes with facilities therapists and special educators for the benefit of the children with special needs. It also proposes to increase the participation of differently-abled learners at school education level and for offering them scholarships at the secondary level. However, here also says “ scholarships for talented and meritorious students will offered on a more liberal scale, especially at the secondary stage of education, to facilitate their entry into higher education”¹⁹. It is really unfortunate that the policy document has failed to appreciate that the attempt by the specially-abled learners to enroll in the school despite all odds of fighting humility in pubic place because of one’s disability is bigger than any kind of merit and talent one can find/boast of. In fact, anybody who is facing a challenge of disability and yet got enrolled and has been attending a school is a person of high talent and high courage. The government and the society need to recognize that. Hence all children facing challenges of disability and yet are attending schools, ought to be recognised as meritorious and it is the duty of the state/society to incentivise and encourage them for fighting their way to the school.

The policy makers need to be congratulated for giving space to the transgender and recognising them as an under-represented social group in the education system. This is certainly a welcome step especially because it is coming from the side of the state.

CONCLUDING REMARKS:

Equity and inclusive growth are the cornerstones of a nation state whose edifice rests on democratic ethos. India being the largest democracy in the world, having the tag of one of the fastest growing economies and having one of the biggest base of consumers, has a responsibility towards its citizens to ensure equitable growth among different groups. The focus of development should be such that the signs of development must be concretely visible among those who are placed at the lowest rung of the society. This will be possible when the state implements policy decisions without any deviations and pretexts. As regards education, the momentum of equality in access and sustenance in a quality-education delivery system will be feasible when all the stake holders- administrators of educational systems, teachers, parents and students- are involved in it with full vigour. The larger society also needs to be involved in the process actively for proper implementation of the strategies suggested the policy document.

REFERENCES:

1. Govt. of India. Report of the Education Commission(1964-66), Education and National Development. New Delhi. Ministry of Human Resource and Development. 1966. p.1

2. Govt. of India. Draft National Education Policy 2019. Ministry of Human Resource Development, Govt. of India, 2019. p. 137

3. Omvedt, G. Cultural Revolution in a Colonial Society: The Non-Brahmin Movement in Western India (1873-1930). Bombay. Scientific Socialist Education Trust. 1976

4. Govt. of India. op.cit. pp. 137-156

5. Ibid. p.138

6. NIEPA. Elementary Eduaction in India: Analytical Tables 2016-17. New Delhi . p.76

7. PCA Release 2011 . Census of India. 2011.

8. Govt. of India. op. cit. pp. 138-139

9. Pandey Prashant. Govt servants must send kids to govt. schools: Allahabad HC. Indian Express. August 20, 2015 Web link: indianexpress.com/article/cities/lucknow/govt-servants-must-send-kids-to-govt-schools-allahabad-hc/ . Last visited on March 21, 2019.

10. Quoted in Mitul M and Agha E. Teacher Spend only 19% of Their Time in Educating Students, Poll Duty and Surveys Take up Rest. News18. Sept. 21, 2018. Weblink: https://www.news18.com/news/india/teachers-spend-only-19-of their-time-in-educating-students-poll-duty-and-surveys-take-up-rest-1884135.html Last visited on March. 20, 2019

11. Ibid

12. ibid

13. Ibid p. 141

14. Ibid. p. 143

15. Ibid. pp. 148-149

16. Ibid. p. 150

17. Ibid. p. 151

18. Ibid

19. ibid. p. 156

Received on 18.07.2019 Modified on 29.07.2019

Int. J. Rev. and Res. Social Sci. 2019; 7(3):613-617.

DOI: 10.5958/2454-2687.2019.00037.6