education system in india hindi

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध

By विकास सिंह

विषय-सूचि

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध, essay on indian education system in hindi (200 शब्द)

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली विदेशी राष्ट्रों से काफी अलग है। पश्चिमी देशों में पाठ्यक्रम काफी हल्का और व्यावहारिक ज्ञान पर आधारित माना जाता है, जबकि भारत में फोकस सैद्धांतिक ज्ञान और रट कर प्राप्त अंकों पर है।

छात्रों से अपेक्षा की जाती है कि वे सारे अध्याय रटें और कक्षा में अच्छे ग्रेड लाएँ। भारतीय स्कूलों में अंकन प्रणाली प्राथमिक कक्षाओं से शुरू होती है, जिससे छोटे बच्चों पर बोझ पड़ता है। प्रतियोगिता दिन पर दिन बढ़ रही है। माता-पिता चाहते हैं कि उनके बच्चे अपने साथियों से बेहतर प्रदर्शन करें और शिक्षक चाहते हैं कि उनका वर्ग अन्य कक्षाओं की तुलना में बेहतर करे।

प्रतियोगिता के आगे रहने के आग्रह से वे इतने अंधे हो जाते हैं कि उन्हें एहसास ही नहीं होता कि वे बच्चों को गलत दिशा में धकेल रहे हैं। एक ऐसी उम्र में जब छात्रों को अपनी रुचियों का पता लगाने और अपने रचनात्मक पक्ष को सुधारने का मौका दिया जाना चाहिए, उन्हें एक निर्धारित पाठ्यक्रम का पालन करने के लिए दबाव डाला जाता है और अच्छे अंक प्राप्त करने के लिए दिन-रात एक कर दिया जाता है।

छात्रों को गणित, भौतिकी और अन्य विषयों की विभिन्न अवधारणाओं को समझने के बजाय, अध्याय सीखने पर पूरा ध्यान केन्द्रित करवाया जाता है। इस वजह से वे व्यवहारिक ज्ञान नहीं ले पाते और ज़िन्दगी में आगे अपने लिए फैसले लेने में अक्षम होते हैं और अपनी रूचि के अनुसार पेशा भी नहीं चुन सकते हैं। अतः भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली का आधार बहुत अनुचित है।

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध, essay on indian education system in hindi (300 शब्द)

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली का विकास.

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पुरानी और सांसारिक कही जाती है। ऐसे समय में, जब विश्व रचनात्मक और उत्साही व्यक्तियों की तलाश में हैं, भारतीय स्कूल युवा मन कोकिताबी ज्ञान से प्रशिक्षित कर रहे हैं जोकि उन्हें बीएस किताबी कीड़ा बना रहा है तथा एक रचनात्मक व्यक्ति बन्ने से रोक रहा है।

सुझाव देने या विचारों को साझा करने की कोई स्वतंत्रता नहीं है। भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली में सुधार की गंभीर आवश्यकता है जो बदले में होशियार व्यक्तियों को विकसित करने में मदद कर सकती है।

रचनात्मक सोचने की जरूरत है:

अगर हम नए आविष्कार करना चाहते हैं, तो समाज में सकारात्मक बदलाव लाने और व्यक्तिगत स्तर पर समृद्धि लाने की जरूरत है। हालाँकि, दुर्भाग्य से हमारे स्कूल हमें प्रशिक्षित करते हैं अन्यथा। वे हमें एक निर्धारित अध्ययन कार्यक्रम से जोड़ते हैं और हमें असाइनमेंट पूरा करने और सैद्धांतिक सबक सीखने में इतना व्यस्त रखते हैं कि रचनात्मकता के लिए कोई जगह नहीं बची है।

रचनात्मक सोच के लिए भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली को बदलना होगा। स्कूलों को उन गतिविधियों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करना चाहिए जो छात्र के दिमाग को चुनौती देते हैं, उनके विश्लेषणात्मक कौशल को सुधारते हैं और उनकी रचनात्मक सोच क्षमता को बढ़ाते हैं। इससे उन्हें अलग-अलग क्षेत्रों में बेहतर प्रदर्शन करने में मदद मिलेगी।

सर्वांगीण विकास की आवश्यकता:

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली का प्राथमिक फोकस शिक्षाविदों पर है। यहां भी अवधारणा को समझने और ज्ञान बढ़ाने पर ध्यान केंद्रित नहीं किया गया है, बल्कि केवल अच्छे अंक प्राप्त करने के एकमात्र उद्देश्य के साथ या बिना उन्हें समझने के लिए पाठों को मग करना है। भले ही कुछ स्कूलों में पाठ्येतर गतिविधियां हों, लेकिन इन गतिविधियों के लिए प्रति सप्ताह एक कक्षा शायद ही होती है।

भारतीय विद्यालयों में शिक्षा केवल सैद्धांतिक ज्ञान प्राप्त करने के लिए कम कर दी गई है जो एक बुद्धिमान और जिम्मेदार व्यक्ति को उठाने के लिए पर्याप्त नहीं है। छात्रों के सर्वांगीण विकास को सुनिश्चित करने के लिए प्रणाली को बदला जाना चाहिए।

निष्कर्ष:

सत्ता में बैठे लोगों को समझना चाहिए कि भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली को गंभीर सुधारों की आवश्यकता है। प्रणाली को आध्यात्मिक, नैतिक, शारीरिक और मानसिक रूप से छात्रों को विकसित करने के लिए बदलना चाहिए।

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध, indian education system essay in hindi (400 words)

प्रस्तावना :.

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली ने अपनी स्थापना के बाद से अब तक काफी कुछ बदलाव देखे हैं। बदलते समय के साथ और समाज में बदलाव के साथ इसमें बदलाव आया है। हालांकि, ये बदलाव और विकास अच्छे के लिए हैं या नहीं यह अभी भी एक सवाल है।

गुरुकुल

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली कई सदियों पीछे चली गई। प्राचीन काल से, बच्चों को विभिन्न विषयों पर सबक सीखने और उनके जीवन में मूल्य जोड़ने और उन्हें आत्म निर्भर जीवन जीने के लिए कुशल बनाने के लिए शिक्षकों के पास भेजा जाता था। प्राचीन काल के दौरान, देश के विभिन्न हिस्सों में गुरुकुल स्थापित किए गए थे।

बच्चे शिक्षा लेने के लिए गुरुकुल में जाते थे। वे अपने गुरु (शिक्षक) के साथ उनके आश्रम में रहे जब तक उन्होंने अपनी शिक्षा पूरी नहीं की। छात्रों को विभिन्न कौशल सिखाए गए, विभिन्न विषयों में पाठ दिए गए और उनके सर्वांगीण विकास को सुनिश्चित करने के लिए घर के काम करने में भी शामिल किया गया।

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली में अंग्रेज़ों द्वारा बदलाव :

जैसे ही अंग्रेजों ने भारत का उपनिवेश बनाया, गुरुकुल प्रणाली को मिटाना शुरू कर दिया क्योंकि अंग्रेजों ने एक अलग शिक्षा प्रणाली का पालन करने वाले स्कूलों की स्थापना की। इन स्कूलों में पढ़ाए जाने वाले विषय गुरुकुलों में पढ़ाए जाने वाले विषयों से काफी भिन्न थे और इसी तरह से अध्ययन सत्र आयोजित किए जाते थे।

भारत की पूरी शिक्षा प्रणाली में अचानक बदलाव हुआ। ध्यान छात्रों के सर्वांगीण विकास से हटकर अकादमिक प्रदर्शन पर गया। यह बहुत अच्छा बदलाव नहीं था। हालाँकि, इस दौरान अच्छे के लिए एक चीज बदल गई, वह यह कि लड़कियों ने भी शिक्षा लेनी शुरू की और स्कूलों में दाखिला लिया।

एडुकॉम्प स्मार्ट क्लासेस का परिचय:

अंग्रेजों द्वारा शुरू की गई शिक्षा प्रणाली आज भी भारत में प्रचलित है। हालांकि, प्रौद्योगिकी में प्रगति के साथ कई स्कूलों ने छात्रों को शिक्षा प्रदान करने के लिए नए साधनों को अपनाया है। स्कूलों में एडुकॉम्प स्मार्ट कक्षाएं शुरू की गई हैं।

इन वर्गों ने एक सकारात्मक बदलाव लाया है। पहले के समय के विपरीत जब छात्र केवल किताबों से सीखते थे, अब वे अपने कक्षा के कमरों में स्थापित एक बड़ी चौड़ी स्क्रीन पर अपना पाठ देखने को मिलते हैं। यह सीखने के अनुभव को रोचक बनाता है और छात्रों को बेहतर समझने में मदद करता है।

इसके अतिरिक्त, छात्रों के सर्वांगीण विकास के लिए स्कूलों द्वारा कई पाठ्येतर गतिविधियाँ भी शुरू की जा रही हैं। हालांकि, अंकन प्रणाली अभी भी कठोर है और छात्रों को बड़े पैमाने पर अपने शिक्षाविदों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करना है।

इसलिए, प्राचीन काल से ही भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली में एक बड़ा बदलाव आया है। हालाँकि, हमें छात्रों के समुचित विकास के लिए प्रणाली में और सुधार की आवश्यकता है।

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध, indian education system essay in hindi (500 words)

प्रस्तावना:.

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली को काफी हद तक त्रुटिपूर्ण कहा जाता है। यह युवा दिमाग का फायदे से ज्यादा नुकसान करता है। हालांकि, कुछ लोग यह तर्क दे सकते हैं कि यह छात्रों को एक अच्छा मंच देता है क्योंकि यह उनके दिमाग को चुनौती देता है और उनकी संतुष्टि को बढ़ाने की शक्ति पर ध्यान केंद्रित करता है। भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली अच्छी है या खराब इस पर बहस जारी है।

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली के गुण और दोष:

जबकि सत्ता में बैठे लोग भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली में अच्छे और बुरे पर चर्चा करते हैं और सुधारों को लाने की आवश्यकता है या नहीं, यहाँ उसी के पेशेवरों और विपक्षों पर एक नज़र है।

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली के विपक्ष

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली में कई विपक्ष हैं। यहाँ प्रणाली में मुख्य विपक्ष में से कुछ पर एक नज़र है:

व्यावहारिक ज्ञान का अभाव : भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली का फोकस सैद्धांतिक भाग पर है। शिक्षक कक्षाओं के दौरान पुस्तक से पढ़ते हैं और अवधारणाओं को मौखिक रूप से समझाते हैं। छात्रों को सैद्धांतिक रूप से भी जटिल अवधारणाओं को समझने की उम्मीद है। अत्यधिक आवश्यक होने पर भी व्यावहारिक ज्ञान प्रदान करने की आवश्यकता महसूस नहीं की जाती है।

ग्रेड पर ध्यान : भारतीय स्कूलों का ध्यान अच्छे ग्रेड पाने के लिए अध्यायों को गढ़ने पर है। शिक्षक परेशान नहीं करते हैं यदि छात्रों ने अवधारणा को समझा है या नहीं, वे सभी देखते हैं कि वे कौन से अंक प्राप्त किए हैं।

सर्वांगीण विकास के लिए कोई महत्व नहीं : ध्यान केवल पढ़ाई पर है। छात्र के चरित्र या उसके शारीरिक स्वास्थ्य के निर्माण के लिए कोई प्रयास नहीं किया जाता है। स्कूल अपने छात्रों के सर्वांगीण विकास में योगदान नहीं करते हैं।

ज़्यादा पढ़ाई का बोझ : छात्रों पर पढ़ाई का बोझ है। वे स्कूल में लंबे समय तक अध्ययन करते हैं और उन्हें घर पर काम पूरा करने के लिए घर के काम का ढेर दिया जाता है। इसके अलावा, नियमित कक्षा परीक्षण, प्रथम अवधि की परीक्षा, साप्ताहिक परीक्षा और मध्यावधि परीक्षा युवा दिमाग पर बहुत दबाव डालती है।

भारतीय शिक्षा के सकारात्मक बिंदु :

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली के कुछ नियम इस प्रकार हैं:

विभिन्न विषयों पर ज्ञान प्रदान करता है : भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली में एक विशाल पाठ्यक्रम शामिल है और कुछ नाम रखने के लिए गणित, पर्यावरण विज्ञान, नैतिक विज्ञान, सामाजिक विज्ञान, अंग्रेजी, हिंदी और कंप्यूटर विज्ञान सहित विभिन्न विषयों पर ज्ञान प्रदान करता है। ये सभी विषय प्राथमिक कक्षाओं से ही पाठ्यक्रम का हिस्सा बनते हैं। इसलिए, छात्र कम उम्र से ही विभिन्न विषयों के बारे में ज्ञान प्राप्त कर लेते हैं।

अनुशासन को बढ़ाता है : भारत के स्कूल अपनी टाइमिंग, टाइम टेबल, एथिकल कोड, मार्किंग सिस्टम और स्टडी शेड्यूल के बारे में बहुत खास हैं। छात्रों को स्कूल द्वारा निर्धारित नियमों का पालन करने की आवश्यकता होती है अन्यथा उन्हें दंडित किया जाता है। यह छात्रों में अनुशासन को बढ़ाने का एक अच्छा तरीका है।

समझने की शक्ति बढ़ाता है : भारतीय स्कूलों में अंकन और रैंकिंग प्रणाली के कारण, छात्रों को अपने पाठ को अच्छी तरह से सीखना आवश्यक है। अच्छे अंक लाने और अपने सहपाठियों की तुलना में उच्च रैंक पाने के लिए उन्हें ऐसा करने की आवश्यकता है। वे ध्यान केंद्रित करने और बेहतर समझ के लिए विभिन्न तरीकों की तलाश करते हैं। जो लोग उन उपकरणों की पहचान करते हैं जो उन्हें बेहतर ढंग से समझने में मदद करते हैं वे अपनी लोभी शक्ति को बढ़ाने में सक्षम होते हैं जो उन्हें जीवन भर मदद करता है।

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली की समय-समय पर आलोचना होती रही है। हमारी युवा पीढ़ी के समुचित विकास को सुनिश्चित करने के लिए इस प्रणाली को बदलने की जबरदस्त आवश्यकता है।

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध, essay on indian education system in hindi (600 शब्द)

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली दुनिया भर में सबसे पुरानी शिक्षा प्रणालियों में से एक है। यह दुर्भाग्यपूर्ण है कि बदलते समय और तकनीकी प्रगति के साथ अन्य राष्ट्रों की शिक्षा प्रणालियों में बड़े बदलाव आए हैं, लेकिन हम अभी भी पुरानी और सांसारिक प्रणाली के साथ फंसे हुए हैं। न तो हमारी प्रणाली ने पाठ्यक्रम में कोई बड़ा बदलाव देखा है और न ही शिक्षा प्रदान करने के तरीके में कोई महत्वपूर्ण बदलाव आया है।

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली के दोष:

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली में कई समस्याएं हैं जो किसी व्यक्ति के उचित विकास और विकास में बाधा डालती हैं। भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली के साथ मुख्य समस्याओं में से एक इसकी अंकन प्रणाली है। छात्रों की बुद्धिमत्ता का अंदाजा तीन घंटे के पेपर से लगाया जाता है नाकि उसके व्यवहारिक क्षमताओं से। उसके रटने की क्षमता को सराहा जाता है नाकि व्यावहारिक ज्ञान को।

ऐसे परिदृश्य में, अच्छे अंक प्राप्त करने के लिए पाठ सीखना छात्रों का एकमात्र उद्देश्य बन जाता है। वे इससे परे सोचने में सक्षम नहीं हैं। वे अवधारणाओं को समझने या अपने ज्ञान को बढ़ाने के बारे में नहीं सोचते हैं, वे केवल अच्छे अंक लाने के तरीकों को सीखने की कोशिश करते हैं और इससे आगे उनकी सोच काम नहीं करती।

एक और समस्या यह है कि फोकस केवल सिद्धांत पर है। व्यावहारिक शिक्षा को कोई महत्व नहीं दिया जाता है। हमारी शिक्षा प्रणाली छात्रों को किताबी कीड़ा बनने के लिए प्रोत्साहित करती है और उन्हें जीवन की वास्तविक समस्याओं और चुनौतियों से निपटने के लिए तैयार नहीं करती है।

शिक्षाविदों को इतना महत्व दिया जाता है कि छात्रों को खेल और कला गतिविधियों में शामिल करने की आवश्यकता को नजरअंदाज कर दिया जाता है। पढ़ाई के साथ छात्रों पर भी हावी हो रहे हैं। नियमित परीक्षा आयोजित की जाती है और छात्रों की हर कदम पर जांच की जाती है। इससे छात्रों में तीव्र तनाव पैदा होता है। जब वे उच्च कक्षाओं में जाते हैं, तो छात्रों का तनाव स्तर बढ़ता रहता है।

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली में सुधार के तरीके (changes needed in indian education system)

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली को बेहतर बनाने के लिए कई विचार और सुझाव साझा किए गए हैं। अच्छे के लिए हमारी शिक्षा प्रणाली को बदलने के कुछ तरीकों में शामिल हैं:

कौशल विकास पर ध्यान दें : यह भारतीय स्कूलों और कॉलेजों के लिए समय है कि वे छात्रों के अंकों और रैंक को इतना महत्व देना बंद करें और इसके बजाय कौशल विकास पर ध्यान केंद्रित करें। छात्रों के संज्ञानात्मक, समस्या समाधान, विश्लेषणात्मक और रचनात्मक सोच कौशल को बढ़ाया जाना चाहिए। ऐसा करने के लिए उन्हें विभिन्न शैक्षणिक के साथ-साथ पाठ्येतर गतिविधियों के साथ-साथ सुस्त वर्ग के कमरे के सत्रों में शामिल करने के लिए शामिल होना चाहिए।

समकक्ष व्यावहारिक ज्ञान : किसी भी विषय की गहन समझ विकसित करने के लिए व्यावहारिक ज्ञान बहुत महत्वपूर्ण है। हालाँकि, हमारी भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली मुख्यतः सैद्धांतिक ज्ञान पर केंद्रित है। इसे बदलने की जरूरत है। छात्रों को बेहतर समझ और आवेदन के लिए व्यावहारिक ज्ञान प्रदान किया जाना चाहिए।

पाठ्यक्रम को संशोधित करें : हमारे स्कूलों और कॉलेजों का पाठ्यक्रम दशकों से समान है। यह बदलते समय के अनुसार इसे बदलने का समय है ताकि छात्र अपने समय के लिए अधिक प्रासंगिक चीजों को सीखें। उदाहरण के लिए, कंप्यूटर स्कूलों में मुख्य विषयों में से एक बन जाना चाहिए ताकि छात्र शुरू से ही कुशलता से काम करना सीखें। इसी तरह, अच्छा संचार कौशल विकसित करने के लिए कक्षाएं होनी चाहिए क्योंकि यह समय की आवश्यकता है।

किराया बेहतर शिक्षण स्टाफ : कुछ रुपये बचाने के लिए, हमारे देश में शैक्षणिक संस्थान उन शिक्षकों को नियुक्त करते हैं जो अत्यधिक कुशल और अनुभवी न होने पर भी कम वेतन की मांग करते हैं। इस दृष्टिकोण को बदलना होगा। युवा मन को अच्छी तरह से पोषण देने के लिए अच्छे शिक्षण स्टाफ को काम पर रखा जाना चाहिए।

शिक्षाविदों से परे देखें : हमारे देश की शिक्षा प्रणाली को शिक्षाविदों से परे देखना होगा। छात्रों के सर्वांगीण विकास को सुनिश्चित करने के लिए खेल, कला और अन्य गतिविधियों को भी महत्व दिया जाना चाहिए।

निष्कर्ष :

जबकि भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली को बदलने की आवश्यकता पर कई बार जोर दिया गया है लेकिन इस संबंध में बहुत कुछ नहीं किया गया है। यह समय बच्चों के बेहतर भविष्य के लिए और साथ ही साथ पूरे देश के लिए इस पुरानी प्रणाली को बदलने के महत्व को समझने का समय है।

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इस लेख से सम्बंधित यदि आपका कोई भी सवाल या सुझाव है, तो आप उसे नीचे कमेंट में लिख सकते हैं।

विकास नें वाणिज्य में स्नातक किया है और उन्हें भाषा और खेल-कूद में काफी शौक है. दा इंडियन वायर के लिए विकास हिंदी व्याकरण एवं अन्य भाषाओं के बारे में लिख रहे हैं.

Paper leak: लाचार व्यवस्था, हताश युवा… पर्चा लीक का ‘अमृत काल’, केंद्र ने पीएचडी और पोस्ट-डॉक्टोरल फ़ेलोशिप के लिए वन-स्टॉप पोर्टल किया लॉन्च, एडसिल विद्यांजलि छात्रवृत्ति कार्यक्रम का हुआ शुभारंभ, 70 छात्रों को मिलेगी 5 करोड़ की छात्रवृत्ति, 2 thoughts on “भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध”.

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प्रहलाद जोशी के निमंत्रण पर मल्लिकार्जुन खड़गे शपथ ग्रहण समारोह में शामिल हुए: रिपोर्ट

गर्मी का प्रकोप: सूखता कंठ, छांव की तलाश, मजदूरों की मजबूरी…. भविष्य में इस संकट के और गहराने के आसार, election in india: आचार संहिता (mcc) में ‘m’ से महज “model” नहीं, बल्कि “moral” भी बनाने की जरुरत, chabahar port deal: मध्य एशिया में भारत के नए अवसर का सृजन.

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध Education system in India Hindi

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध Essay on Education System in India (Hindi)

इस लेख में आप भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध (Essay on Indian Education System in Hindi) पढ़ेंगे। जिसमें भारत की वर्तमान शिक्षा प्रणाली के विषय में, भारतीय शिक्षा व्यवस्था का विकास, शिक्षा प्रणाली के गुण और दोष को आसान भाषा में समझाया गया है।

Table of Content

भारत की वर्तमान शिक्षा प्रणाली Current Education System of India in Hindi

किसी भी देश का भविष्य उसकी शिक्षा प्रणाली पर ही निर्भर करता है। जिस देश में साक्षरता दर जितनी अधिक रहेगी वह देश उतना ही विकसित होगा। जीवन में शिक्षा का महत्व उतना ही होता है, जितना जीवित रहने के लिए भोजन का होता है। शिक्षा के विषय में एक प्रसिद्ध कहावत है, कि शिक्षा स्वयं शक्ति होती है।

वर्तमान समय में यदि भारतीय शिक्षा पद्धति की बात करें तो यह पहले जैसे बिल्कुल भी नहीं रही है। वास्तव में हमने वह हीरा गंवा दिया है, जिस पर हमारा एकाधिकार हुआ करता था। वर्तमान शिक्षा प्रणाली में बहुत सारी त्रुटियां उत्पन्न हो गई है, जो भारत के विकास में काफी हद तक बाधा डाल रही हैं।

हिंदुस्तान के हर गली कूचे में श्रेष्ठ विशेषताओं वाले लोग मिल ही जाते हैं, लेकिन तथाकथित शिक्षा का कोई सर्टिफिकेटना ना होने अथवा भारत की खराब शिक्षा प्रणाली के कारण उन्हें देश में कोई नाम नहीं मिल पाता है।

भारतीय शिक्षा व्यवस्था का विकास Development of Indian Education System in Hindi

इस समय भारत में लोगों को शिक्षा के प्रति प्रोत्साहित करने के लिए एक बार फिर से प्रयत्न किए गए थे। सर्वप्रथम कोलकाता मदरसा नामक शिक्षा संस्थान वारेन हेस्टिंग्स द्वारा 1781 में स्थापित किया गया था।

सन 1835 में गवर्नर जनरल लॉर्ड विलियम बेंटिक के समक्ष लॉर्ड मेकाले द्वारा एक परिषद में अंग्रेजी शिक्षा अधिनियम 1835 नामक एक शिक्षण कानून को पारित किया गया था।

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली के गुण Features of Education System in India (Hindi)

हिंदुस्तान के महान गणितज्ञ आर्यभट्ट , नागार्जुन, महर्षि सुश्रुत , महर्षि चरक , पतंजलि ऋषि इत्यादि न जाने कितने महान लोगों ने दुनिया को नए अविष्कार दिए हैं। प्राचीन भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली की ही देन है, जिससे हमारा भारत विश्व गुरु के नाम से जाना जाता था।

वर्तमान समय के भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली का पाठ्यक्रम दूसरे देशों के पाठ्यक्रमों से मिलता जुलता है। समान पाठ्यक्रम होने से विद्यार्थियों को दूसरे देश की संस्कृति और व्यवस्थाओं को समझने में काफी मदद मिलती है।

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली के दोष Defects of Education System in India (Hindi)

आज की शिक्षा पद्धति हमें विकास की तरफ ले जाने के बदले पीछे धकेल रही है, जिसे हम अपना सौभाग्य समझ रहे हैं। अंग्रेजों ने जिस शिक्षा पद्धति को भारत में लागू किया था, उससे काफी नकारात्मक परिणाम सामने आए हैं।

यह आज की विफल शिक्षा पद्धति ही है, जिसके परिणाम स्वरूप विद्यार्थियों को अपने जीवन से ज्यादा महत्वपूर्ण परीक्षा में पास होना लगता है।

निष्कर्ष Conclusion

Education in India – A Detailed Analysis

Last updated on April 21, 2024 by ClearIAS Team

This article is a detailed analysis of the Education System of India.

The post covers various aspects of the problems faced by the Indian Education sector, the Constitutional provisions related to education, and the education policies adopted by modern India.

History of Education in India

India has a rich tradition of imparting knowledge.

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.

Many branches of the knowledge system had their origin in India. Education was considered a higher virtue in ancient India.

However, the renaissance and scientific thinking as happened in Europe didn’t happen in India at that time.

The British who took control of the Indian affairs by that time had different priorities. Education in British India initially lagged a lot.

However, later, the British established the modern education system still followed in India. They replaced age-old systems of education in the country with English ways .

Still, the education system in India needs a lot of reforms.

Current Status of Education in India: Data from Census 2011

Literacy rate in India as per Census 2011: 74%.
Literacy rate: Male: 82.1%; Female: 65.5%
Kerala tops the rankings, followed by Delhi, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu.
Bihar is the lowest among states, followed by Arunachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, etc., however, they are improving their position.
Bihar has a literacy rate of 63.8%, and that of women is 53.3%.
Literacy rates for both adults as well as youths have increased, still, the absolute number of illiterates in India is as much as India’s population was at the time of independence.
The gender gap in terms of literacy began to narrow first in 1991 and the pace has accelerated, however still lags far behind the global female literacy rate of 7% (UNESCO 2015).
There are large state variations in the gender gap.
However, during 2001 – 2011, the male literacy rate increased by 6 percentage points but female literacy increased by nearly 12 percentage points. Achievement in female literacy in Bihar is noteworthy: from 33% in 2001 to 53% in 2011.
Be that as it may, India is still lagging behind the world literacy rate of 86.3%(UNESCO 2015). A major group of states lies in the average rank i.e. just above the national level of 64.8 percent.

Indian Education System: The Present Pyramidal Structure

The Indian education system can broadly be considered as a pyramidal structure:

Pre-primary level: 5-6 years of age.
Primary (elementary) level: 6-14 years of age. Elementary-level education is guaranteed by our constitution under Article 21 A . For this level, the government has introduced Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) under the Right To Education(RTE) Act.
Secondary level: Age group between 14-18. For this level, the government has extended SSA to secondary education in the form of the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan .
Higher education: generally of three levels: UG→ PG→ MPhil/PhD. To cater to the requirements of higher education, the government has introduced Rashtriya Uchhattar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA).

Read: Examination System in India

Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) related to Education

Goal 4 of SDG : Education for all – ensures equitable, inclusive, and quality education along with the promotion of lifelong learning opportunities for all by 2030.

Provisions in the Indian Constitution related to Education

Under Article 45 in DPSP , it was mentioned that the government should provide free and compulsory education for all children up to the age of 14 years within 10 years from the commencement of the Constitution. As this was not achieved, Article 21A was introduced by the 86th Constitutional Amendment Act of 2002 , making elementary education a fundamental right rather than a directive principle. Article 45 was amended to provide for early childhood care and education to children below the age of six years.
To implement Article 21A, the government legislated the RTE Act. Under this act, SSA – Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan – got a further impetus. SSA aims to provide Universalization of Elementary Education (UEE) in a time-bound manner.
SSA has been operational since 2000-2001. Its roots go back to 1993-1994 when the District Primary Education Programme (DPEP) was launched. However, under the RTE Act, it got legal backing.

RTE Act 2009

86th Amendment Act 2002 introduced Article 21-A, which provides for free and compulsory education of all children in the age group of six to fourteen years as a Fundamental Right.
The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act was enacted to implement this fundamental right.

Provisions of the RTE Act

‘Compulsory education’ means an obligation of the government to provide free elementary education and ensure compulsory admission, attendance, and completion of elementary education.
Provision for a non-admitted child to be admitted to an age-appropriate class.
Rational deployment of teachers, ensuring that there is no urban-rural imbalance in their postings.
Prohibition of deployment of teachers for non-educational work, other than services like decennial census, elections, etc.
It prohibits (a) physical punishment and mental harassment (b) screening procedures for admission of children (c) capitation fees (d) private tuition by teachers (e) running of schools without recognition.
Development of curriculum in consonance with the values enshrined in the constitution, ensuring all-around development of the child, building a system of child-friendly and child-centered learning.
To further inclusiveness, 25% reservation is provided for disadvantaged students in private schools.

Criticisms of the RTE Act

Even though the RTE + SSA have increased access to schools, resulting in a high enrollment rate, dropout rates increased in tandem. However, there is inadequate attention given to this scenario.
There is a fear of financial burden on the government for teacher recruitment and training.
The grey area of teacher transfer is also not helping the cause.
Since all state holidays are not relevant for all localities, such a calendar preparation by local authorities can increase attendance and can also encourage local panchayats to take ownership of schools.
RTE students in private schools are paying extra fees as the schools claim that the government fund provided for the same is not adequate.
Most private schools treat RTE as charity and demand that the onus of universalizing education should be on the government’s head rather than putting pressure on them.
70% of students are in government schools. So it must be fixed in priority, by providing infrastructure , teacher quality , and targeted learning for children from disadvantaged groups to provide an equitable education system.
Under the RTE Act, till class 8, students should not be failed in exams. This is called the No detention policy. It had reduced dropout rates.
There is growing criticism of the policy resulting in reducing the quality of elementary education. Hence the RTE Act was amended to scrap the policy.
RTE Act prioritized schooling of children only from the age of 6, thus ignoring pre-school education. Kothari Commission had recommended the establishment of a center for the development of pre-primary education in each district.
District Information System for Education (DISE) report states that 30% of primary and 15% of upper primary schools have higher PTRs.
According to the Economic Survey 2018-19, the PTR at the national level for primary schools is 23 and 27 for secondary schools. Thus PTR appears to be satisfactory, as there are sufficient teachers. However, the main issue is a balanced deployment of teachers based on student strength.
Even though the Student-Classroom ratio (SCR) improved in almost all of the States, there is disparity across the country.

Modern Education in India: The Evolution of the System through various policies

The British government had introduced modern education in India. From Macaulay’s minutes to Wood’s dispatch to several commissions like the Sadler Commission, 1904 Indian education policy, etc. built the foundation of the Indian education system during the colonial period.

Radhakrishnan committee

In 1948-49, the University Education Commission was constituted under Radhakrishnan . It molded the education system based on the needs of an independent India. The pre-Independent Indian education value system was catering to colonial masters. There was a need to replace Macaulayism with the Indian value system. ( Macaulayism is the policy of eliminating indigenous culture through the planned substitution of the alien culture of a colonizing power via the education system). Some of the values mentioned in the commission were:

Wisdom and Knowledge
Aims of the Social Order : the desired social order for which youths are being educated.
Love for higher values in life
Training for Leadership

The Independent Indian education system developed along the lines of this value framework. In the present times, where there are imminent threats of political ideologies hijacking the pedagogy of education and commercialization of education eroding value systems, it is appreciable to dust off the values promulgated by the commission. A recent controversial circular by the Central University of Kerala (CUK), directing that research topics for Ph.D. students must be by ‘national priorities’, and research in ‘irrelevant topics’ and ‘privilege areas’ must be discouraged, is a case in point.

Kothari commission

If the Radhakrishnan committee charted out the value system of the Indian education system, it was the Kothari Commission that provided the basic framework of the same. The commission provided for:

Standardization of educational system on 10+2+3 pattern.
Emphasized the need to make work experience and social/national service an integral part of education.
Linking of colleges to several schools in the neighborhood.
Equalization of opportunities to all and to achieve social and national integration .
Neighborhood school system without social or religious segregation and a s chool complex system integrating primary and secondary levels of education.
Establishment of Indian Education Service.
On-the-job training of the teaching staff and efforts to raise the status of the teachers to attract talents into the profession.
To raise expenditure on education from 2.9% of the GDP to 6% by 1985.

This committee report paved the way for the National Educational Policy 1968 which provided the base and roadmap for further development of the education system in India.

National Educational Policy 1968

The policy provided for “radical restructuring” and equalization of educational opportunities to achieve national integration and greater cultural and economic development.
Increase public expenditure on education to 6% of GDP.
Provide for better training and qualification of teachers.
Three-language formula : state governments should implement the study of a modern Indian language, preferably one of the southern languages, apart from Hindi and English in the Hindi-speaking states, and of Hindi along with the regional language and English in the non-Hindi-speaking states. Hindi was encouraged uniformly to promote a common language for all Indians.

National Educational Policy 1985

The policy aimed at the removal of disparities and to equalize educational opportunities, especially for women, SC and ST.
Launching of “Operation Blackboard” to improve primary schools nationwide.
IGNOU, the Open University, was formed.
Adoption of the “rural university” model , based on the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, to promote economic and social development at the grassroots level in rural India.

T.S.R.Subramanium committee report

ECCE is inconsistent across states. So all government schools should have facilities for pre-primary education, which would facilitate pre-school education by the government instead of the private sector.
The policy of no detention should be upheld only till class five and not till class eight.
There is a steep rise in teacher shortage, absenteeism, and grievances.
Need to constitute an Autonomous Teacher Recruitment Board.
Four years integrated B.Ed. the course should be introduced.
There is an inadequate integration of information technology (IT) and the education sector.
The National Skills Qualification Framework should be scaled up.
The choice of vocational courses should be in line with local opportunities and resources .
Bringing formal certification for vocational education at par with conventional education certificates.
All India Education Service.
Existing separate laws governing individual regulators in higher education should be replaced by the said act.
The role of existing regulatory bodies like UGC and AICTE should be revised.
National Accreditation Board (NAB) subsuming the existing accreditation bodies.

Kasturirangan Report On School Education (Draft National Education Policy)

For restructuring the education system in India, the government is preparing to roll out a New Education Policy that will cater to Indian needs in the 4th Industrial Revolution by making use of its demographic dividend. Committee for Draft National Education Policy (chaired by Dr. K. Kasturirangan) submitted its report on May 31, 2019.

You can read about the National Education Policy 2020 in detail here .

School Education:

Low accessibility.
The curriculum doesn’t meet the developmental needs of children.
Lack of qualified and trained teachers.
Substandard pedagogy.
Currently, most early childhood education is delivered through anganwadis and private preschools. However, there has been less focus on the educational aspects of early childhood.
Guidelines for up to three-year-old children.
Educational framework for three to eight-year-old children.
This would be implemented by improving and expanding the Anganwadi system and co-locating anganwadis with primary schools.
Expanding the ambit of the Act to all children between the ages of three to 18 years, thus including early childhood education and secondary school education.
There should be no detention of children till class eight. Instead, schools must ensure that children are achieving age-appropriate learning levels.
The current structure of school education is to be restructured based on the development needs of students.
10+2+3 structure to be replaced by 5-3-3-4 design comprising: (i) five years of foundational stage (three years of pre-primary school and classes one and two), (ii) three years of preparatory stage (classes three to five), (iii) three years of middle stage (classes six to eight), and (iv) four years of secondary stage (classes nine to 12).
The current education system solely focuses on rote learning. The curriculum load should be reduced to its essential core content.
Force students to concentrate only on a few subjects.
Do not test learning in a formative manner.
Cause stress among students.
To track students’ progress throughout their school experience, State Census Examinations in classes three, five, and eight should be established.
Restructure the board examinations to test only the core concept. These board examinations will be on a range of subjects. The students can choose their subjects and the semester when they want to take these board exams. The in-school final examinations may be replaced by these board examinations.
Although establishing primary schools in every habitation has increased access to education, it has led to the development of very small schools making it operationally complex. Hence the multiple public schools should be brought together to form a school complex .
A complex will consist of one secondary school (classes nine to twelve) and all the public schools in its neighborhood that offer education from pre-primary to class eight.
These will also include anganwadis, vocational education facilities, and an adult education center.
Each school complex will be a semi-autonomous unit providing integrated education across all stages from early childhood to secondary education.
This will ensure that resources such as infrastructure and trained teachers can be efficiently shared across a school complex.
A steep rise in a teacher shortage, lack of professionally qualified teachers, and deployment of teachers for non-educational purposes have plagued the system.
Teachers should be deployed with a particular school complex for at least five to seven years.
They will not be allowed to participate in any non-teaching activities during school hours.
Existing B.Ed. the program will be replaced by a four-year integrated B.Ed. program that combines high-quality content, pedagogy, and practical training. An integrated continuous professional development will also be developed for all subjects.
Separating the regulation of schools from aspects such as policymaking, school operations, and academic development.
Independent State School Regulatory Authority for each state will prescribe basic uniform standards for public and private schools.
The Department of Education of the State will formulate policy and conduct monitoring and supervision.

Higher Education

According to the All India Survey on Higher Education , the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in higher education in India has increased from 20.8% in 2011-12 to 25.8% in 2017-18. Lack of access is a major reason behind the low intake of higher education. The policy aims to increase GER to 50% by 2035.
Multiple regulators with overlapping mandates reduce the autonomy of higher educational institutions and create an environment of dependency and centralized decision-making.
The National Higher Education Regulatory Authority (NHERA) should replace the existing individual regulators in higher education. Thus the role of all professional councils such as AICTE would be limited to setting standards for professional practice. The role of the UGC will be limited to providing grants.
Separate the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) from the UGC into an independent and autonomous body. It will function as the top-level accreditor and will issue licenses to different accreditation institutions. All existing higher education institutions should be accredited by 2030.
Replacing the current system of establishing higher educational institutions by Parliament or state legislatures. Instead, institutions can be set up through a Higher Education Institution Charter from NHERA.
Research universities focus equally on research and teaching.
Universities focus primarily on teaching.
Colleges focus only on teaching at undergraduate levels.
All such institutions will gradually move towards full autonomy.
Total investment in research and innovation in India has declined from 0.84% of GDP in 2008 to 0.69% in 2014. India also lags behind many nations in the number of researchers, patents, and publications.
NRF will act as an autonomous body for funding, mentoring, and building the capacity for quality research.
Undergraduate programs should be made interdisciplinary by redesigning their curriculum to include: a common core curriculum; and one/two area(s) of specialization.
Introduce four-year undergraduate programs in Liberal Arts.
By the next five years, five Indian Institutes of Liberal Arts must be set up as model multidisciplinary liberal arts institutions.
Poor service conditions and heavy teaching loads, augmented by a lack of autonomy and no clear career progression system, have resulted in low faculty motivation.
Introduction of a Continuous Professional Development program and permanent employment track system for faculty in all higher education institutions by 2030.
The student-teacher ratio of not more than 30:1 must be ensured.
All higher education institutions must have complete autonomy on curricular, pedagogical, and resource-related matters.

Read: Institutions of Eminence Scheme

Additional Key Focus Areas:

Additional key focus areas are (1) Technology in Education (2) Vocational Education (3) Adult Education and (4) the Promotion of Indian Languages.

Technology in Education

Improving the classroom process of teaching, learning, and evaluation
Aiding teacher training.
Improving access to education.
Improving the overall planning, administration, and management of the entire education system.
Electrification of all educational institutions paves the way for technology induction.
An autonomous body, the National Education Technology Forum, set up under the Mission, will facilitate decision-making on the use of technology.
Single online digital repository to make available copyright-free educational resources in multiple languages.

Vocational Education

Less than 5% of the workforce in the age group of 19-24 receives vocational education in India, in contrast to 52% in the USA, 75% in Germany and 96% in South Korea.
Vocational courses : All school students must receive vocational education in at least one vocation in grades 9 to 12.
Higher Education Institutions must offer vocational courses that are integrated into undergraduate education programs.
The draft Policy targets to offer vocational education to up to 50% of the total enrolment in higher education institutions by 2025, up from the present level of enrolment of below 10%.
National Committee for the Integration of Vocational Education for charting out plans for the above objectives.

Adult Education

As per Census 2011, India had a total of 26.5 crore adult non-literate (15 years and above).

Establishing an autonomous Central Institute of Adult Education as a constituent unit of NCERT. It will develop a National Curriculum Framework for adult education.
Adult Education Centers will be included within the school complexes.
Relevant courses are made available at the National Institute of Open Schooling.
National Adult Tutors Programme to build a cadre of adult education instructors and managers.

Education and Indian Languages

The medium of instruction must be the mother tongue until grade 5, and preferably until grade 8.
3 language formula be continued and flexibility in the implementation of the formula should be provided. Implementation of the formula needs to be strengthened, particularly in Hindi-speaking states. Schools in Hindi-speaking areas should also teach Indian languages from other parts of India for national integration.
To promote Indian languages, a National Institute for Pali, Persian, and Prakrit will be set up.
The mandate of the Commission for Scientific and Technical Terminology will be expanded to include all fields and disciplines to strengthen vocabulary in Indian languages.

Transforming Education

The policy talked about the synergistic functioning of India’s education system, to deliver equity and excellence at all levels, from vision to implementation, led by a new Rashtriya Shiksha Aayog.

Education Governance

Revitalize education governance by bringing in synergy and coordination among the different ministries, departments, and agencies.

Constitute the National Education Commission or Rashtriya Shiksha Aayog, as an apex body for education headed by the Prime Minister. It would be responsible for developing, implementing, evaluating, and revising the vision of education and overseeing the implementation and functioning of bodies including the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), National Higher Education Regulatory Authority, and National Research Foundation.
The Ministry of Human Resources and Development must be renamed the Ministry of Education to bring the focus back on education.

Financing Education

The Draft Policy reaffirmed the commitment to spending 6% of GDP as a public investment in education.
The draft Policy seeks to double the public investment in education from the current 10% of total public expenditure to 20% in the next 10 years. 5% will be utilized for higher education, 2% in school education, and 1.4% for early childhood care and education.
There should be optimal and timely utilization of funds through the institutional development plans and by plugging loopholes in the disbursement of funds.

Criticism of the New Education Policy of India

The New Education Policy lacks operational details.
It is not clear from where the funding will be sourced.
Enough importance is not given to innovation, startup culture or economic principles to be added to the curriculum.
One-size-fits for all states can’t be a solution as each state in India is diverse in its educational needs. Controversy on NEET has shown this.
With technological advancement and the democratization of knowledge, the policy should have focused more on how to teach rather than what to teach.
Economic Survey 2017-18 mentioned the perils of the distinction between research institutions and universities in higher education. The policy recommendation of three distinct higher education institutions of research universities, teaching universities, and teaching colleges will further augment the gap between research and universities.
The draft policy is silent on the Institutions of Eminence and agencies like the Higher Education Funding Agency.
The role of Rashtriya Shiksha Aayog should be defined clearly. What would be its role vis-a-vis existing regulators? Also, there are criticisms from some quarters that RSA will open the door to the politicization of education.
Earlier the 3-language formula proposed by the draft policy made Hindi compulsory in non-Hindi speaking states. However, after the furor, the proposal was removed.
Even though the policy talks about bringing “unrepresented groups” into school and focusing on educationally lagging “ special education zones” , it doesn’t comprehensively address the inequalities prevalent in the system. It misses methods to bridge the gaps between rich and poor children.
The policy proposes to remove the provision mandating that primary schools be within stipulated distance from students’ homes and common minimum infrastructure and facility standards that should be met by all schools. If a common minimum standard is not specified, it will create an environment where quality in some schools will fall further thus augmenting the inequalities between schools across the country.

India’s education history is rich with ambitious policies failing at the altar of inadequate implementation of the same. In the absence of a handholding mechanism for states to embark on the path-breaking reforms mentioned in the policy and that too in a short time, will be too much to ask.

Funding requirements and governance architecture pose major challenges in the implementation of the policy. Political commitment is required to increase funding. RTE Act expansion to include preschool should keep in mind the present infrastructure inadequacies and teacher vacancies.

Rashtriya Shiksha Aayog may face administrative problems and turf battles. Also, it will raise questions on the role of new bodies like the National Medical Council.

The recent controversy on 3 language formula shows the sensitivity of language education in India and care should be taken to appreciate the emotional overtures while implementing the same.

Politically acceptability, social desirability, technological feasibility, financial viability, administratively doability, and judicially tenability are 6 pillars that will impact the implementation of the policy.

Be that as it may, the new education policy aims to address the challenges of (i) access, (ii) equity, (iii) quality, (iv) affordability, and (v) accountability faced by the current education system. It aims to revitalize and equip the education system to meet the challenges of the 21st century and 4th industrial revolution rather than catering to 19th and 20th century needs of industrialization. Also, India is on the cusp of a demographic dividend, rather than entered into this phase. So the education system catering to these needs is not a luxury that we hope for but rather a dire need at this moment in Indian history.

The Problems associated with the Education System in India

HRD ministry: Over 1.4 million schools and 50,000 higher educational institutions are operating in India. Out of 907 universities, there are 399 state universities, 126 deemed-to-be universities, 48 central and 334 private universities.

Even after more than a hundred years of “ Gokhale’s Bill”1911, where universal primary education was originally mooted, India is yet to achieve this goal.
China had achieved it in the 1970s. As per Census 2011, over 26% of India’s population is still illiterate, compared to 4% in China. About 50% of India’s population has only primary education or less, compared to 38% in China. The 13% of the population with tertiary education at the upper end in India is comparable with China.
Progress has been made in respect of female participation up to secondary level and GER for girls has exceeded that of boys.
But the girl’s enrollment rate is lower than that of boys at the higher education level.
A gap is visible across social categories in terms of enrollment rate at the higher education level.
According to NSSO’s 71st round (2014), drop-out rates are very high for boys at the secondary school level. Reasons for the same are economic activities, lack of interest in education, and financial constraints.
The transition rate from secondary school to senior secondary and further to higher education is very low.

Despite these highly ambitious education policies and elaborate deliberations on the same, the outcomes are rather shaky. Major criticisms and shortcomings of these policies and their implementations are:

Half the population is crowded at the bottom, either illiterate or with only primary education. Meanwhile, a disproportionately large segment is at the upper end with tertiary education.
The 2015 Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) reflects this deteriorating quality. The report opines that deficits in foundational reading and arithmetic skills are cumulative, which leaves students grossly handicapped for further education .
India had fared poorly in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) test in 2008, and 09.
Education policies in India are focused on inputs rather than on learning outcomes.
Teacher shortages.
Local politics.
Corruption in teacher appointment.
Defects in teacher training.
Socio-cultural factors like caste division, and cynical attitude towards the teaching profession.
There is no accountability, as there is a guaranteed lifetime job independent of performance.
From 1952-2012 , education expenditure as a percentage of total government expenditure increased from 7.92 to 11.7, and as a percentage of GDP increased from 0.64 to 3.31. But it has still not reached 6% of GDP, as was recommended by the Kothari Commission way back in 1964.
Expenditure by the government on elementary education is more than tertiary level, but expenditure per student is more in tertiary. So there is a need to increase expenditure in all segments.
All India survey on higher education has shown that in West Bengal Muslim students in universities are very low. Lack of education at the primary and secondary levels is said to be the main reason.
Even though Article 15(4),(5) provides reservations for SC, ST, and OBC in higher education institutions , the Economic Survey 2018-19 points out their inadequate representation in these institutions.
The suicide of Rohit Vemula, a Ph.D. scholar at the University of Hyderabad, in 2016 had brought forward the discrimination still existing in these institutions.
Also, the representation of teachers at these levels is skewed against the backward class in spite of reservations. Article 16(4) provides for reservations of backward class in jobs.
At the school level, poor children are primarily concentrated in government schools. The poor quality of government schools thus disproportionately affects these children and creates a vicious cycle of illiteracy.
At the higher education level, the situation is more critical. One reason for the introduction of the National Medical Commission Bill is to curb the exorbitant fees charged by medical colleges.
Youths coming out of the higher education system in India are not employable, as they lack relevant industry-level skills.
India’s long-standing neglect of primary and secondary education has limited access to quality basic education. No skill development program can succeed without an underlying foundation of basic education.
National Policy on Skill Development and Entrepreneurship 2015 (PMKVY) has shown disappointing results.
Budget 2019-20 stated that the government enables about 10 million youth to take up industry-relevant skill training through the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY). The Budget has also increased focus on ‘new-age skills’ like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, 3D Printing, Virtual Reality, and Robotic.
Currently, B Tech courses in AI are offered mostly in premier institutions only.
The budget 2019-20 proposed the National Sports Education Board for the development of sportspersons under the Khelo India program (2017).

Now we will look at each rung of the education ladder in India.

Early childhood education

Early childhood education (ECE) is needed for cognitive development in the early stage.
Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) has a component for providing ECE through Anganwadis . But lack of effective regulation in this sector is eroding the quality of ECE.
There is a National Early Childhood Care and Education Policy 2013 . However, the policy has not been properly implemented.
There are multiple service providers but there is no clarity in the types of services provided.
The sprawling of an unregulated private channel, both organized and unorganized, which is also spreading to rural areas, has led to inequitable access, uneven quality, and commercialization of ECE.
Both Anganwadis and private schools focus on reading, writing, and arithmetic rather than cognitive and conceptual development.
There is a decline in the quality and training of teachers.
S.R. Subramanian’s committee report has brought focus to the quality deterioration in this sector.

Primary level

There is an increasing trend of parents choosing private schools for the primary level. However, there is variable quality in private schools. Also, fees vary from school to school and are on the higher side.
Eschew rigid curricula and make them more cognitive and flexible. There should be a broader cognitive approach than rote learning.
There is a need for activity-based learning. Teachers should teach at the right level, rather than teaching for the average learner.
The government has launched Padhe Bharat Bade Bharat – targeting early reading and writing. The twin-track approach of comprehension and math is the main focus.
There is a supply-side problem . The government is pumping funds through government schools thus increasing the number of schools and thus enrollment. However, quality and inclusiveness have dropped and dropout rates increased. These lead to poor learning outcomes.

School Complex

RTE and SSA have resulted in over-access but low-quality primary-level education. Now the aim should be to integrate these into school complexes, as mentioned by the Kasturirangan committee report, thus rationalizing the number of schools in an area.
The ‘Adarsh’ integrated school system of Rajasthan is an example of a school complex system . Here one school provides classes from l to XII under one principal. There is one such school in every gram panchayat.
This is an efficient way to solve teacher shortages and also to address the shortages of secondary schools. It can also address the problem of resource scarcity by integrating and rationalizing resources.
Inclusive learning can be furthered through school.
Also, these complexes can act as a pivot around which new reforms in education can be implemented.

Secondary level

ASER Rural 2017: In 2017, ASER changed the age group of the survey from primary level to secondary level. The report mentions the following:

Enrollment is low in this age group. There is a high digital divide at this level. Low quality also persists at this level. There is a high amount of absenteeism as well.
There is a need to expand RTE to cover the 14-18 age groups.
To realize the demographic dividend, skill education for these groups is necessary.

Economic Survey 2018-19 points out that Indian demography is changing and it requires more quality secondary education system rather than merely an increasing number of primary-level schools.

Private fees

The vagueness in the judgment regarding ‘reasonable surplus’ and ‘commercialization’ of education has watered down the outcome of the judgment.
There are state laws for capping fees. However, implementation problems and litigation make them ineffective.
CAG report mentioned misreporting and mismanagement by private schools. So laws should address this problem through stricter inspection, penalties, etc.

Higher education

There is an increasing number of higher education institutions but their quality is questionable, effectively making ‘islands of excellence amidst the sea of mediocrity. Increased accessibility to a low-quality higher education system has made democratization of mediocrity.

Raghuram Rajan, the ex-RBI governor, argued that India needs idea factories and universities by leveraging India’s inherent strengths like tolerance, diversity, etc. He said that there is a need for strong accreditation agencies and continuing education.

Problems of the higher education system in India

There is a dual problem of both quality and quantity. The gross enrollment ratio (GER) in higher education is only 24.5.
Even though education policy had an elitist bias in favor of higher education, the state of the same is much worse than the state of school education. Unlike school education, there is no national survey of the learning levels of college students.
The desired levels of research and internationalization of Indian campuses remain weak points.
Also, there is a low philanthropic investment in this sector. This creates an exclusive dependency on government funding by universities. This, in turn, reduces the autonomy and vision of these universities.
Privatization of higher education has not been led by philanthropy but the commercial interest that does not have a symbiotic relationship with the vision of universities.
These have led to inadequate human capacity, shoddy infrastructure, and weak institutions. Recommendations of the Narayana Murthy committee, on the role of the corporate sector in higher education, have not been implemented and thus channeling of CSR funds to higher education remains inadequate.
Banks and financial institutions are not giving adequate attention to this area. Giving PSL status to these institutions can be considered.
Indian higher education system is of a linear model with very little focus on specialization.
UGC and AICTE act more as controllers of education than facilitators.
Due to the mushrooming of colleges at a higher rate since the 1980s , there is a regulatory sprawl in higher education.
Poor governance , with mindless over-regulation , is widespread in this sector. Educational institutions responded to this with claims of academic and institutional autonomy for themselves, which was mostly a smokescreen for a culture of sloth in these institutions.
There is a concentration of powers, as these regulatory institutions control all aspects like accreditation, curriculum setting, professional standard-setting, funding, etc.
Compartmentalization and fragmentation of the knowledge system.
Disconnect with society.
Overemphasis on entrance tests.
Absence of innovation in learning methods.
Corrosion of autonomy of universities.
For long basic disciplines across the physical and social sciences and humanities were ignored.
However, the Economic Survey 2017-18 mentioned that there is an increase in Ph.D. enrolment in India in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) due to efforts by the government to increase the number and quantum of fellowships. However, there are still fewer researchers in India in comparison to other countries.
Budget 2019-20 proposes ‘Study in India’ with a focus on bringing foreign students to higher educational institutions in India to make India a “hub of higher education.”
Higher education institutions are used as rewards for loyalists and channels of graft by political parties in power.
Indian higher education system is plagued by unregulated and shoddy coaching institutions. The coaching industry makes around Rs. 24000 crores a year in India. Proper regulation of the same is required.

Research and development (R&D)

Economic Survey 2017-18 stated: “To transform from net consumer to net producer of knowledge, India should invest in educating its youth in science and mathematics, reform the way R&D is conducted, engage the private sector and the Indian diaspora, and take a more mission-driven approach in areas such as dark matter, genomics, energy storage, agriculture, and mathematics and cyber-physical systems”.

Although Gross Expenditure on R&D (GERD) is consistently increasing, as a fraction of GDP it has been stagnant between 0.6-0.7 percent of GDP over the past two decades.
The universities play a relatively small role in the research activities in India. There is a disconnection between research institutes and universities. This results in the compartmentalization of research activities and teaching into two separate silos.
The separation of research from teaching leads to a situation where universities have students but need additional faculty support, while research institutes have qualified faculty but are starved of young students.
India was, at one point, spending more on R&D as a percentage of GDP than countries like China – but currently, India under-spends on R&D.
Doubling of R&D spending is necessary and much of the increase should come from the private sector and universities.

The need of the hour

It is imperative to improve math and cognitive skills at the school level to make a difference at a higher level.
There is a need to expand R&D in India and to go beyond paper presentations and patents to a broader contribution of providing value for society.
There is also a need to encourage Investigator-led Research for funding science research. Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) 2008, a statutory body of DST, is a step in the right direction.
50:50 partnerships with SERB for industry-relevant research under the Ucchatar Avishkar Yojana (UAY) is the right way to go forward.
It would strengthen state universities and provide knowledge in areas specific to a state.
National Research Foundation, to fund, coordinate, and promote research at the college level, is proposed by the Kasturirangan report. It is reiterated in Budget 2019-20 : NRF will ensure the overall research ecosystem in the country is strengthened with a focus on areas relevant to national priorities without duplication of effort and expenditure. The funds available with all Ministries will be integrated into NRF.
Link national labs to universities and create new knowledge ecosystems. Together they can link up with the commercial sectors and help develop industrial clusters.
National Mission on Dark Matter
National Mission on Genomics
National Mission on Energy Storage Systems
National Mission on Mathematics
National Mission on Cyber-Physical Systems
National Mission on Agriculture
Ramanujan Fellowship Scheme.
Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research ( INSPIRE ) Faculty Scheme.
Ramalingaswami Re-entry Fellowship.
Visiting Advanced Joint Research Faculty Scheme ( VAJRA ).
Improve the culture of research thus ‘ ease of doing research’. There is a need for less hierarchical governance systems that encourage risk-taking and curiosity in the pursuit of excellence.
Greater public engagement of the science and research establishment is needed. A greater effort at science communication is needed.

Government initiatives on higher education

The government is trying to revitalize the Indian higher education system and for this many initiatives have been launched. Let’s discuss the importance of them.

National Testing Agency (NTA) 2017

NTA was set up for conducting entrance exams in higher educational institutions. It is based on the recommendations of the Ashok Mishra committee on IIT entrance 2015.
It will conduct JEE, NEET, National Eligibility Test (NET), Common Management Admission Test (CMAT), and Graduate Pharmacy Aptitude Test (GPAT).
It will provide diversity and plurality in higher education. It will also ensure independence and transparency in conducting the exams.
However, it should be ensured that the computer-based test should not lead to further exploitation of rural students.
NEET stands for National Eligibility cum Entrance Test . It is for admissions in medical courses by replacing a plethora of medical entrance tests with one national-level test.
Supreme Court had said that NEET should be the sole basis for admission to medical courses.
There is a controversy about whether urban and CBSE students will dominate NEET. The government should pay heed to this criticism.
In Tamil Nadu doctors serving in rural areas get weightage in PG admission. NEET will effectively dislodge this system.
This controversy brought forward the conflict between the fair and transparent system of admission to curb the commercialization of medical education and the socioeconomic goals of the state, which in the case of Tamil Nadu includes ensuring enough doctors for rural areas.
Controversy on NEET has brought the following question to the limelight: should uniformity be thrust upon a country with such vast disparity and diversity? The political leadership should iron out the differences and produce a suitable admission policy. This task should not be left to the judiciary.
Be that as it may, states can’t remain insulated from the need to upgrade their education standard.

RUSA: Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan 2013

About 94 % of students in higher education study in 369 State universities, whereas less than 6% of students study in 150 Centrally-funded institutions.
11th 5-year plan (2007-12) opined that the center’s bias towards premier central institutions had skewed funding for these institutions mainly and thus neglected state-level institutions.
State investment in higher education was declining. UGC’s system of direct release of funds to State institutions bypassing State governments also leads to a sense of alienation for the states.
RUSA tried to correct this bias. The scheme aims at financing state institutions concerning their governance and performance.
RUSA has shown the result in increasing the performance of state institutions and changing the way regulators function for the good. State Higher Education Council(SHEC) made medium-long-term state perspective plans.
Cabinet in 2018 decided to continue the scheme. A renewed focus by the center on RUSA will be a success only if it is impartially administered and states are willing to heed the advice of SHEC.

HECI: Higher Education Commission of India bill

On the recommendation of the Yashpal Committee 2010 for renovation and rejuvenation of higher education, the National Commission on Higher Education and Research bill was introduced but was not passed.
HECI was proposed to act as an overarching regulator of higher education by replacing UGC, which will maintain academic standards, approve new educational institutions, etc. but with no funding powers.
Draft Higher Education Commission of India (Repeal of University Grants Commission Act) Bill, 2018 was introduced in 2018. Budget 2019-20 proposed to bring a bill on HECI this year.
The draft bill had separated funding and placed it under MHRD. This was criticized for the fear of increasing political control and reducing the autonomy of universities.

IoE: Institutions of Eminence 2017

Around 2005, the Times Higher Education World University Rankings and the QS World University Rankings started, and in 2009 the Academic Ranking of World Universities started. From India, only the Indian Institute of Science was included in the top 500 every year. This prompted the government to introduce NIRF and IoE.
Under IoE, UGC was tasked to select 10 government universities and 10 private ones as IoE. These would be given autonomy in operations.
Selected government institutions would be provided with ₹1,000 crore over five years.
The IoE tag is expected to help them achieve the world’s top 500 higher education institutions in a decade and later into the top 100.
Institutes among the top 50 in the National Institute Ranking Framework rankings or in the top 500 in international ratings were eligible.
The model for the sector remains dependent on state patronage.
Entry into the global education race could now become an overriding concern when many systemic issues are plaguing the sector.
Funding only for public institutions is discriminatory.
Humanities institutions were neglected.
Transparency in the selection process, and the public sharing of benchmarks and guidelines. The furor over the selection of Jio Institute, even before it functioned, had attracted many eyeballs and criticisms.
Separate category to include sectoral institutions like IIM.

National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) 2015

NIRF is a methodology adopted by the MHRD to rank higher education institutions in India.

NIRF is common for public and private institutions as well as state and central institutions. Comparison of state-level colleges with central and private colleges may lead to a vicious cycle of low funding, poor performance, and low ranks among state-level institutions because of the resource gap.
So performance index values should be normalized concerning investments and resources that have gone into that institution. Also should consider making another ranking system for state-level institutions.

HEFA: Higher Education Financing Agency 2018

Introduced in Budget 2018-19, HEFA is a joint venture of MHRD and Canara Bank

With an initial capital base of Rs 1,000 crores, it will act as a not-for-profit organization that will leverage funds from the market and supplement them with donations and CSR funds. These funds will be used to finance improvement in infrastructure in top institutions.
It has been tasked with raising ₹1 lakh crore to finance infrastructure improvements in higher education by 2022.

Foreign Education Providers Bill 2013

There is no account of programs delivered by foreign universities in India. Inadequate regulation has led to low-quality courses offered in this sector.
The foreign Institution bill was not been able to pass in Parliament. However,

EQUIP report has mentioned the revival of this bill.

There are many other schemes and initiatives like SWAYAM, which offers open online courses from Class IX to post-graduation free of cost, GIAN and IMPRINT which are primarily focused on elite institutes like IITs and IISc.

APAAR: One Nation One Student ID Card

The Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry (APAAR) is a transformative initiative introduced in alignment with the National Education Policy (NEP) of 2020 and the National Credit and Qualifications Framework (NCrF).

It aims to provide a unified and accessible academic experience for students across India by assigning a unique and permanent 12-digit ID to every student, consolidating their academic achievements in one place.

Other Major Issues connected with the Education sector in India

The Indian education sector is also affected by other issues like the politicization of campuses, gender parity problems, poor-quality standards, etc.

Politicization of campuses

JP movement had provided an impetus to the politicization of students.
In Indian higher education institutions, university politics has become a launchpad for political ambitions.
Though campus politics is vital for democracy, as it makes students better citizens, the negative side of the politicization of campuses has been visible across Indian campuses. Recent incidents at Kerala University are a case in point.
One of the most important problems of student politics in India is that it acts as an appendage to political parties without having an independent identity or autonomy.

Gender Parity

By parents → who send boys to private and girls to government schools. Economic Survey 2018-19: enrollment of girls is higher than that of boys in government schools but the pattern gets reversed in private schools. The gender gap in enrollment in private schools has consistently increased across age groups.
By teachers → who reinforced the belief that boys are quick learners.
Girls are eased out of school to work on home chores or get married.
Economic Survey 2018-19 opines that BBBP has been a success and proposes to extend the cause of Gender equality by coining the slogan of BADLAV (Beti Aapki Dhan Lakshmi Aur Vijay-Lakshmi) to enhance the contribution of women in the workforce and the economy.
For ranking states based on gender disparity, Digital Gender Atlas for Advancing Girl’s Education was launched by MHRD.
In higher education, gender disparities still prevail in enrollment.
Efforts by the Government through programs like Beti Padhao, and Beti Bachao, the GPI has improved substantially at the primary and secondary levels of enrolment.

Quality of education

Learning outcomes are not assessed in India as numerical outcomes. The 12th Five-Year Plan noted the need for measuring and improving learning outcomes.

Children of illiterate parents can’t supplement school studies at home and also can’t afford expensive tuition, leading to a vicious cycle of illiteracy.
From 2014 to 2018, there was a gradual improvement in both basic literacy and numeracy for Class III students but only a quarter of them are at grade level (ability to read and do basic operations like subtraction of Class II level).
The report also shows that 1 out of 4 children leaving Class VIII are without basic reading skills (ability to read at least a Class II level).

Government initiatives

Central Rules under the RTE Act were amended in February 2017 to include the defined class-wise and subject-wise learning outcomes.
Nationwide sub-program of SSA to improve comprehensive early reading, writing, and early mathematics programs for children in Classes I and II.

Teacher Training

Teachers play the most critical role in a student’s achievement.
The need is for better incentives for teachers, investments in teacher capacity through stronger training programs, and addressing the problems in the teaching-learning process.
However, teachers in India, especially in government schools, are considered a cog in the way to efficient governance. There is an inadequate focus on their motivation and skill updation.
NCERT study shows that there is no systematic incorporation of teacher feedback into designing pieces of training. Also, there is no mechanism to check whether this training is translated into classroom performance.
These results in de-professionalizing the teaching profession and curb a teacher’s “internal responsibility” — the sense of duty to the job.
World Development Report on Education (2018) opined that both teaching skills and motivation matter. Individually targeted continued training is important. In line with this, MHRD and the National Council for Teacher Education launched the National Teacher Platform, or Diksha in 2017 . It is a one-stop solution to address teacher competency gaps.
However, the current training through Diksha follows a one-size-fits-all approach. Even though the platform is designed to democratize both access to and creation of content by teachers, its real benefits are in the ability to provide continuous professional development which complements existing physical training.
This technology-enabled platform allows training to become a continuous activity rather than an annual event and also creates a feedback loop ensuring the effectiveness of the material.
Diksha has the potential to re-engineer in-service teacher training in India. It is important to create good content and also to ensure technology consumption by teachers, the role of headmasters in promoting teachers’ professional development, etc.

As India participates in the PISA in 2021, it is to be made sure that we recognize the importance of teachers and their role in education outcomes.

Private Schools vs Public Schools: The Big Debate in Education

At least 30% of students between the 6-14 age groups are in the private sector.

There is an increasing perception that the quality of teaching in private schools is better than that of public schools. Thus there is a clamour for increasing the number of private schools and simultaneously limiting public spending on government schools.
However, the claim on the quality of private schools is debatable as there is a wide disparity of the same among these schools.

Research paper by Geeta Gandhi Kingdon, professor of education and international development at the Institute of Education, London, offers insights into private-public school education in India:

The paper points out that between 2010-11 and 2015-16, the average enrolment in government schools declined from 122 to 108 students per school, while in private schools it rose from 202 to 208.
Nevertheless, according to the District Information System for Education (DISE), 65% of all school-going children, 113 million, get their education from government schools.
The study points out that the migration to private schools is due to the belief among parents that these schools offer better value for money in terms of quality.
IndiaSpend, in 2016, reported that despite the Rs 1.16 lakh crore spent on SSA, the quality of learning declined between 2009 and 2014. It also points out that less than one in five elementary school teachers in India are trained. Also, the contractual teachers, who are high in number in government schools, are likely to be less motivated and accountable.
Preference for private school tutoring is there.
The quality of schools varies between states. In 2016, in Kerala, the proportion of children enrolled in primary government schools increased from 40.6% in 2014 to 49.9% according to ASER 2016.
States with better-functioning government schools have more expensive private schools as there is no market for the ‘low-fee’ budget private schools. Around 80% of private schools in India are ‘low’ fee schools.
ASER 2016 has shown small improvements in learning outcomes in government schools.
Between 2010-11 and 2015-16, the number of private schools grew by 35% – to 0.30 million. On the other hand, the number of government schools grew only by 1%, to 1.04 million. The migration out of government schools has left many of these economically unviable.
Government teachers in India earn four times that of China but don’t perform as well. Up to 80% of India’s public expenditure on education is spent on teachers. There is a need to link teacher salaries to their accountability.
However, the salary of private teachers is very low compared to their government counterparts. This is due to the “bureaucratically-set high ‘minimum wage’, which is being influenced by strong unions of government school teachers.
Another reason for the low salary of private school teachers is that the private education sector offers salaries based on market factors of demand and supply. Since 10.5% of graduates are unemployed in India, there is a high supply of teachers.
Rather than merely increasing the budget outlay for education, the need is to revise the Education policy for better accountability and monitoring mechanisms.
Gandhi argued that a Public-private partnership (PPP) model may be the solution, with public sector funding and private resources for education, since reforming the present system may not be politically feasible.

Rather than debating about private versus public schools, the focus should be to enable the private sector to set up more schools under the scrutiny of regulatory authorities. There is no point in driving off the private initiative in schooling given the limited resources of the states. Private investment should be encouraged but made accountable for quality and conduct.

The above discussion showed the challenges of the Indian education system. A workforce that India wants to create in this digital age requires reforms in education at all levels. UNESCO’s Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report 2016 opined that India is expected to achieve universal primary education in 2050. India is 50 years late in achieving its global education commitments. If the nation wants fundamental changes in the education system, it has to meet the 2030 SDG targets on education. There is an urgent requirement for greater evolution in education in India.

Education Quality Upgradation and Inclusion Programme (EQUIP): How to transform Education in India?

EQUIP is a five-year vision plan on education, released by MHRD, by the Prime Minister’s decision to create a five-year vision plan for each Ministry.

The EQUIP project is crafted by ten expert groups led by experts within and outside the government:

Group 1: Strategies for expanding access
Group 2: Towards global best teaching/learning process
Group 3: Promoting Excellence
Group 4: Governance reforms
Group 5: Assessment, Accreditation, and Ranking Systems
Group 6: Promotion of research and innovation
Group 7: Employability and Entrepreneurship
Group 8: Using Technology for Better Reach
Group 9: Internationalisation
Group 10: Financing Higher Education

The groups have suggested initiatives to transform the education system completely. The goals set by the groups are:

Double GER in higher education and resolve the geographically and socially skewed access to higher education institutions.
Upgrade the quality of education to global standards.
Position at least 50 Indian institutions among the top 1000 global universities.
Introduce governance reforms in higher education for well-administered campuses.
Accreditation of all institutions as an assurance of quality.
Promote Research and Innovation ecosystems for positioning India in the top three countries in the world in matters of knowledge creation.
Double the employability of the students passing out of higher education.
Harness education technology for expanding the reach and improving pedagogy.
Promote India as a global study destination.
Achieve a quantum increase in investment in higher education.

We can see that each of the above goals has been known to us for a long time. The problem is its implementation. The political class and all other stakeholders should come together to achieve these goals. The plethora of government initiatives on higher education is a sure sign of the importance given by the political class in the reform of the education system of India. Let’s hope that a new dawn of Indian education is around the corner which will bring back the glory of ancient times when India was the centre of knowledge production.

As the Economic Survey 2016-17 points out, lack of health, malnourishment, etc. affects the cognitive ability of children. This will, in turn, have a detrimental effect on their future educational prospects. This leads to a vicious cycle of inter-generational illiteracy, poor health, and ultimately poverty. So education and health are complementary to each other and reforms in one sector should invariably be preceded and followed by reforms in other sectors. Human development as a whole can be considered as a wholesome development and we must appreciate the interlinkages of each section of human capital formation, be it health, education, digital literacy, skills, etc.

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Reader Interactions

November 27, 2019 at 10:33 pm

Wow what the largest matter of education is?. Very nice thank u sir

November 28, 2019 at 12:09 pm

Nice article but it is too long we need around 400 words which explains education in india,challenges,way forward only It is very hard to remember and segrate from given imp because all points look like imp please try to make it around 400 words only

November 28, 2019 at 2:00 pm

@MKM – The aim was to cover almost everything about Education in India as a comprehensive post. The post covers: (a) History of Education in India (b) Current Status of Education in India: Data from Census 2011 (c) RTE Act (d) Various Educational Policies in the past (e) The New National Educational Policy (NEP) (f) The Problems associated with the Education System in India (g) Education Quality Upgradation and Inclusion Programme (EQUIP): How to transform Education in India?

Though ClearIAS prefers short and crisp articles, for important areas like Education, we felt a detailed write-up would be useful.

Thank you for your feedback. We will continue to create concise articles as well.

November 28, 2019 at 12:35 pm

Good Source thank you Team.

November 28, 2019 at 1:56 pm

November 28, 2019 at 2:41 pm

November 29, 2019 at 7:45 am

This is a very nice and comprehensive information on education.

November 29, 2019 at 2:21 pm

Such a nice article sir thank you..

December 16, 2019 at 5:31 pm

March 30, 2020 at 12:48 pm

Sir,a small corrrection regarding literacy rate ranking, Kerala (93%)tops its followed by Lakshadweep(92 %), Mizoram (91 %) , Tripura (87.7 %) and Goa (87.4 %) as 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th places repectively according to 2011 census.

June 16, 2020 at 12:20 am

Excellent Work

August 31, 2020 at 1:14 pm

Thank you vry much team.🤗 You provide excellent data ,analysis,facts,etc…evrything at one doc.

November 16, 2020 at 10:47 pm

Absolutely amazing stuff. Can’t believe.. Thanks from the bottom of my heart ❤️❤️

May 27, 2021 at 12:38 pm

Great article about Education very informative thanks for sharing

May 31, 2021 at 11:55 pm

Well and easy to understand…thank u for the team

September 12, 2021 at 10:37 am

Very good and such a broad information thank u 💖.. Lots of love

December 16, 2021 at 11:10 am

Need to update with current data eg how much percentage of school/ children get access of online education in pandemic Era COVID challanges others family support etc thank

January 28, 2022 at 10:32 am

Thank you so much for your birthday support

February 27, 2022 at 5:33 pm

good information

June 10, 2022 at 3:00 pm

Nice article very informative…traditional classroom study should be changed into a smart classroom online

July 14, 2022 at 8:55 pm

December 18, 2022 at 1:05 am

Absolute coverage article, Kindly keep it up for your determined spectators.

May 28, 2023 at 9:10 pm

desserstation on education/slums/miagration par hindi me pdf mil sakta hai

January 23, 2024 at 8:06 pm

The analysis provides a comprehensive overview of India’s education system, highlighting its pyramid structure and alignment with Sustainable Development Goals. Constitutional provisions like Article 21A and the RTE Act aim for universal education. However, the RTE Act faces criticism. To enhance educational outcomes, addressing these concerns and ensuring effective implementation are imperative. Schools in Pataudi Gurgaon focus on quality, inclusivity, and overcoming criticisms can lead Indian education to new heights. Thank You Samriddhi Sharma

February 7, 2024 at 7:44 pm

It’s crucial to delve into the challenges confronting the Indian education sector and understand the constitutional framework and policies guiding it. Exploring these aspects sheds light on the complexities and opportunities within the system. However, it’s equally important to consider how these discussions translate into action at the grassroots level, especially in local communities like Rajajinagar, Bangalore. How are schools in rajajinagar bangaloreaddressing these systemic issues and implementing reforms to ensure quality education for all students? This intersection of policy discourse and on-the-ground realities is where meaningful change happens.

March 8, 2024 at 6:22 am

Is there any data on how many states provide free education to girls till grade X and how many provide it till grade XII?

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Education System in India: Everything You Need To Know

Manali Ganguly ,

Mar 4, 2024

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The education system in India has evolved in the past few years to accommodate a more logical and practical approach towards education. The Indian education system can be roughly divided into the pre-primary, primary, secondary, higher secondary, graduate and the postgraduate levels.

Education System in India: Everything You Need To Know

The education system in India has evolved over the years and plays an important role in shaping not just the careers of the students but their lives as well. The education system in India is divided into several levels. They are the pre-primary level, the primary level, the secondary level, the higher secondary level, the graduate level and the postgraduate level.

In India, the education system can be said to be state-run. There are centralised boards as well as state boards to which the schools are affiliated. After the higher secondary level, education is imparted in colleges and universities, where the courses are bifurcated into academic, professional, and vocational courses.

An in-depth study of the complete system is crucial for a clearer understanding.

Table of Contents

Current Education System in India

Literacy Rate in India

Right to Education Act (RTE)

Stages of education in india, central and state school education boards, education schemes in india, challenges faced by the education system in india.

The education system that is currently existing in India can be said to have come down since the Rig Vedic times. In the early period, Mathematics was the only subject through which education was imparted which implies a logical approach to learning. In the latter period, subjects that were included to be taught were Pali grammar, buddhist literature, social values and logic.

For the Hindu society, education was imparted in pathshalas or gurukuls where the students had to stay and serve the ‘guru’ or the teacher and learn their lessons there. Education was free in those times. In a Muslim society there were Madrasas and Maqtabs. The Madrasas exist till today.

When India became a British colony, initially the East India Company did not think of working on or improving the education system in India. It was later that the missionaries coming from Europe introduced Western education in the country. The Sergeant Commission and the Hunter Commission are the commissions that were set up by the British to improve the quality of education in India.

There was immense improvement in the Indian system of education in the postcolonial period. The modern education system in India can be segmented into four distinctive layers roughly. They are: primary,secondary, higher secondary and higher education.

Modern India made it mandatory to educate children in the age group of 6 years to 14 years. The higher education refers to the education after completing the higher secondary level. The graduate, post graduate, doctoral and postdoctoral levels constitute the higher education in the country.

Also Read: Indian Education System vs Foreign Education System

New Education Policy

The New Education Policy has made several amendments in the education system in India. The moderations made in the system has been mentioned in the section below:

The foundational stage of education runs for 5 years. The age group covered in this segment is 3 years to 8 years.
The preparatory stage runs for 3 years. The age group covered in this stage is 8 years to 11 years, which ideally corresponds to classes 5 to 8.
The middle stage of education is between the age group of 11 years to 14 years. The classes covered are 6 to 8.
The secondary stage is between 14 years and 16 years which includes the classes 9 and 10.
The higher secondary stage is between 16 years and 18 years which corresponds to the higher secondary classes of 11 and 12.

Also Read: What is Quality Education? Meaning and Importance

Literacy Rate in India

The education system in India is controlled and supervised by three central committees - University Grants Commission (UGC). National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), and All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). There exists a Ministry of Education in each state. There are more than 37000 colleges and 700 universities in India.

The literacy rate in India for seven year olds and above is 74.04%. The male literacy rate stands at 82.14% while the female literacy rate in India is 65.46%. The GER or General Enrolment Ratio for higher education in India stands at 26.30%. The GER is a metric that represents the percentage of people in the age group of 18 years to 23 years going for higher education.

Also Read: 10 Ways to Balance Student Life And Academics

The Right to Education Act was enacted on Aug 4, 2009, and came into force in Apr 2010. This is an Act of the Parliament of India to safeguard the rights of children to education free of cost. As per the act, the children are entitled to receive free and compulsory education from 6 years of age to 14 years of age.

The Right to Education Act makes it mandatory for the children to free fundamental education irrespective of caste, creed or gender. The Act lists down the norms that the schools must abide by while imparting elementary education to the children of the specified age group.

Also Read: Best Career Options for Girl in India

The education system in India is divided into the pre primary level, the primary or the elementary level, the secondary level, the higher secondary level, the graduate level, the postgraduate level, and the doctoral and postdoctoral levels. The description for each level can be found below.

Pre-Primary Level: This stage covers the education of children between 3 and 6 years of age. While terminology may differ for different regions and schools, this stage mostly starts from the playgroup and ends with upper kindergarten.

Primary Level: This is a relatively longer stage and covers classes 1 to 8 in school. Classes 1 to 5 constitute the primary level and classes 6 to 8 constitute the upper primary level.

Secondary Level: This stage is constituted by classes 9 and 10 in school.

Higher Secondary Level: This stage includes classes 11 and 12 in school.

Graduate Level: This stage includes 3 years of degree courses which are done in the college.

Postgraduate Level: The postgraduate stage can be done in the colleges or universities.

Doctoral and Postdoctoral Levels: The doctoral and postdoctoral levels require research and are done at the universities.

Also Read: Types of Education: Formal, Informal & Non-Formal

There are a number of education boards in India apart from the state education boards. The central boards are CBSE, CISCE, and NIOS. Each of these boards has a separate set of curriculum for teaching as well as conducting exams.

The centrally operating education boards in India are the following:

Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE)
Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE)
National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS)

The state-run education boards in India can be found below:

Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB)
Punjab School Education Board (PSEB)
Madhya Pradesh Board of Secondary Education (MPBSE)
Jammu and Kashmir State Board of School Education (JKBOSE)
Board of High School and Intermediate Education Uttar Pradesh
Chhattisgarh Board of Secondary Education (CGBSE)
Board of Secondary Education Rajasthan (RBSE)
Haryana Board of School Education (HBSE)
Himachal Pradesh Board of School Education (HPBOSE)
Andhra Pradesh Board of Secondary Education (BSEAP)
Andhra Pradesh Board of Intermediate Education (BIEAP)
West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE)
Maharashtra State Board Of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE)
Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board (GSEB)

Also Read: CBSE vs State Boards: Which is Better?

The education system in India has witnessed the introduction of various kinds of educational schemes aiming at improving the quality of education among the targeted population. All such schemes that have been introduced and implemented to improvement the education system and therefore the literacy rate are mentioned below:

1. Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act (2009) : This act was passed in 2009 to make education compulsory for all children aged between 6 and 14 years.

2. Scheme for Promotion of Academic and Research Collaboration (SPARC): This scheme was introduced to aid in the development and promotion of a conducive ecosystem in the higher educational institutes for conducting research by way of communication and exchange of ideas with the foreign nations.

3. National Educational Alliance for Technology (NEAT): This scheme aimed at improving the quality of education in the higher educational institutes.

4. Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA): This scheme was introduced in 2013 by the-then Ministry of Education. This scheme is sponsored by the Centre to facilitate strategic development in the higher educational institutes of the country.

5. NISHTHA 2.0: This scheme was introduced to train the teachers as per requirement to support logical and critical thinking in students.

6. Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India (PM-SHRI) Yojana: This scheme has been introduced by the Government of India to facilitate better learning in 14,000 schools located country wide. The aim is to improve and uplift the education in these schools to bring them at par with the other centrally controlled and state controlled schools in the country.

7. Mid-Day Meal Scheme: This system was renamed the PM Poshan or Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman in September 2021. This scheme offers lunch to the children from classes 1 to 8 in the government-run schools.

8. PRAGYATA: This scheme issues an advisory in the form of guidelines, created by the NCERT, to the schools for digital education.

9. Samagra Shiksha: This scheme merges together the schemes of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Teacher Education (TE), and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA). This scheme covers the pre primary to the higher secondary level of education in the schools. The scheme fosters equal and all-inclusive education in the schools.

Also Read: Women Education in India: Importance, Welfare Schemes, and Benefits

Despite the all round development of the education system in India, there are a few challenges faced by the system. Corrective measures can help in dealing with the challenges and taking the education system of India to be at par with the top ranking systems in the world.

The challenges faced by the system are:

1. Lack of Infrastructure: The lack of infrastructure in most of the schools in the rural area leads to an insufficient development of the students in terms of learning.

2. Rote Learning Methods: This is one of the major drawbacks of the Indian education system. As compared to the top ranking countries, in terms of education, the education system in India lies behind because of the rote learning techniques. The ways of teaching in most of the schools are rather outdated, despite digital platforms being used in a few. Stressing on rote learning fails to instil interest in the students thereby leading to a half hearted knowledge.

3. Lack of Practical Application: Most of the lessons imparted in the school level lack any demonstration or practical application. This leads to an insufficient knowledge among the students which hinders their educational growth in the long run.

4. Expensive Education: The top private schools rank among the best schools in the country. However, the expenses are sky reaching which makes it not just difficult but impossible for most of the population to afford these schools.

5. Teacher to Student Ratio: This is a factor that is constantly hindering proper learning among the students. The class strengths are quite high which makes it difficult for the teachers to pay attention to individual students and address their needs.

Also Read: 5 Advantages And Disadvantages Of Online Education

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State of the Education Report for India 2023

Launch of UNESCO 2023 State of the Education Report for India: Seeds of Change

The United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) New Delhi Regional Office launched the fifth edition of its annual flagship report, Seeds of Change - UNESCO 2023 State of the Education Report for India on Education to address Climate Change .

This year’s report delves into the role of education in tackling the increasingly complex and intensifying challenges posed by climate change. India, like many parts of the world, continues to bear witness to the dire consequences of climate change through climate disasters and biodiversity losses. Education’s full potential to shape a generation that understands the gravity of this urgent issue and equip them with the tools to combat it must be realized now.

Shri Sanjay Kumar, Secretary, Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education

The National Education Policy 2020 underscores the importance of making environmental education an integral part of school curricula at all stages. In order to address climate change in India, the Ministry of Education strongly believes in the role that education can play in resolving impacts of climate change. This report by UNESCO is very timely as it comes at a time when India is making significant strides in working on the issue of climate change.

Education is a transformational tool in our fight against climate change – when we know better, we can do better. Educational systems must adapt to equip younger generations with the knowledge, skills and competencies to prepare them for the impacts of climate change. This year’s UNESCO State of the Education Report for India is dedicated to the pivotal role of education in addressing climate change. We can see from the research that India has already taken some significant steps in this direction, and in doing so, is helping to promote sustainable and long-term solutions to this global challenge.

Tim Curtis, Director and UNESCO Representative of the UNESCO New Delhi Regional Office

The National Council of Educational Research and Training’s (NCERT) commitment to addressing climate change through school education aligns seamlessly with the vision of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. The NCERT is delighted to know that the UNESCO New Delhi Regional Office has developed this report on the pivotal theme of education to address climate change and I trust this report will be an informative guide for programmes directed towards climate change education.

In 2023, India ranked eighth out of 59 countries and the European Union (collectively accounting for 92% of global greenhouse gas emissions) on climate performance according to the Climate Change Performance Index, rising two spots from the previous year. The country’s new National Curriculum Framework revised in 2023 mentions climate change 52 times. Today, India is a country well-suited for an exploration of climate education innovations, and UNESCO’s report highlights its best practices and future opportunities to do just that.

UNESCO - has long promoted the mobilization of intersectoral partnerships, political commitments, and youth empowerment as key drivers for fully leveraging education in building a greener and more sustainable future. Its global programme, Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), contributes to this end by laying the foundation for global collaboration and policy innovation. Additionally, the Greening Education Partnership (GEP), launched by the United Nations Secretary-General in 2022, provides a practical framework for education stakeholders to take further action and UNESCO serves as the secretariat to the Greening Education Partnership (GEP).

To date, 80 Member States have joined the Partnership, for which UNESCO serves as the secretariat with strong commitment to green education systems, structured around four pillars of transformative education:

Greening schools

Greening curriculum

Greening teacher training and education systems’ capacities

Greening communities

The four pillars of the GEP are used as a guide with which the report analyzes India’s state of education to address climate change. The report is a synergy between UNESCO’s globally informed framework and the local expertise cultivated by the research team from the Centre for Environmental Education, India who authored this report.

The report concludes with ten concrete recommendations for education sector stakeholders, which we hope will facilitate immediate actions to enhance education’s role in addressing climate change. We also hope that the recommendations will inspire stakeholders in the environmental sector to further engage with education in their policy initiatives.

The ten recommendations are:

Emphasize the urgent need for collective action to address climate change through education

Include a climate change education component in all development policies

Integrate climate change education at all stages of education

Support educational institutions to be green and climate-ready

Embed climate change perspectives into green skills and vocational education programmes

Empower teachers with comprehensive climate change education training and resources

Engage with the youth to build a green future

Incorporate local and traditional knowledge that supports low-carbon lifestyles in climate change education

Promote partnerships to foster innovations in climate change education

Strengthen and create education-centred portals to provide reliable information on climate change

The launch event also showcased an engaging exhibition highlighting various initiatives taken to develop education to address climate change in India.

UNESCO New Delhi Regional Office extends its gratitude to UNICEF India, British Council India, and the Mobius Foundation for their support and cooperation.

To illustrate the report in an accessible manner, the following audio-visual package is also available free of copyright on UNESCO New Delhi’s YouTube channel :

Summary video underlining the recommendations of the report

Short capsules highlighting the key recommendations of the report

Seeds of Change - 2023 State of the Education report for India on Education to Address Climate Change

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Education /

Current Education System in India

Updated on
Feb 9, 2023

Rooted in the ancient learnings of Vedas and Puranas, the Indian education system has come a long way from the old-school Gurukuls to the new-age hi-tech academic institutions. Though the constitution of India primarily gave the authority of the educational apparatus of the country to the state, the introduction of a constitutional amendment in 1976 added the role of the national government for suggesting school education policies and programmes with the state still having some freedom over the implementation of programs. The school system of the country has a total of four levels, i.e. lower primary, upper primary, high and higher secondary. Though the educational system can still be improved in a variety of ways, the country has strived to bring significant changes through initiatives such as Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan as well as the Right to Education Act. With this blog, we will take a comprehensive look at some of the prevalent features of the current education system in India and how it can be improved.

This Blog Includes:

Goals for pedagogy, grading system , abridging the gap: secondary & post-secondary education, embracing the role of technology in education, advent of international private schools, availability of a wide range of short-term courses, specialised programs, emphasis on extra-curricular activities, varied scholarship opportunities, issues in the current education system in india.

The main goal behind designing the curriculum for schools is to inculcate a structural approach that aims to inform students about the salient features of our rich cultural heritage, egalitarianism, democracy, and secularism. In the current education system in India, central emphasis is put on the study of the Indian freedom movements, constitutional publications and other essential topics that focus on imparting students with the knowledge of national identity as well as the glorious history of the country. Further, the curriculums also incorporate the study of diverse cultures in India along with a range of basic academic disciplines as well as official and regional languages.

In the current education system in India, the vitality of the grading system is emphasized. The students in schools and colleges are not just tested based on their learning abilities but also on their acquired knowledge and skills as well as their performance in extracurricular activities . This system is implemented in order to emphasize the importance of the overall growth of the child to broaden their horizons.

There is a pivotal need to lessen the gap present between the education that is provided at a school level and the senior secondary level that is provided at the post-secondary level. When it comes to schooling, the current education system in India is finite and limited to the foundational knowledge rudimentary to understand basic academic disciplines such as Mathematics , Science , and Social Science , amongst others. When students complete their senior secondary education, they are generally asked to select from degree and diploma courses which are more specialised and that’s why most of them feel confused about what to study after 12th . Thus, there is an essential need to abridge this gap so that students can sort out their interests during their schooling journey which would further assist them in selecting the right undergraduate course after the 12th.

The academic institutions in India, be it primary, secondary or higher education, are embracing advanced technologies in facilitating learning and bringing a revolutionary change to the same-old classroom teaching. Many schools have brought tablets into their traditional classrooms to make learning an engaging and interesting process by teaching kids through digital applications. From a multitude of distance learning programs to online learning management systems such as the School of Open Learning by Delhi University as well as MOOCs, Indian universities and colleges are also rigorously incorporating digital platforms to help every individual attain higher education regardless of the constraints they are facing.

Must Read: How Is Technology Changing the Face of Education ?

As modernization has found its way into the current education system of India, the introduction of international private schools is a prominent change brought to the sector. These schools aim at preparing students to compete at a global level with the outer world and seek international opportunities. Though the fees and admission criteria are evidently more complex than public schools, international schools have become a top choice for most of the parents of higher strata as well as the middle class striving to provide their kids with global exposure.

In the spirit of innovation, new diplomas and vocational courses , have been introduced to give the students a basic idea of what to expect out of a degree course as well as provide them with the necessary grounding for skill-based education. These courses incorporate uniquely designed curriculums that support vocational training and polishing the skills of students in a particular field. So, if you are someone who is looking for a course that will directly lead to conversion to a well-paying job and gives you instant professional occupancy, you should definitely explore diploma courses after the 12th . Thus, through these short-term courses, the chief goal of the current education system in India is to foster learning-focused pedagogy while promoting skill-based training programs.

The Government of India has launched several specialised courses and training programs for housewives, industrial labourers and workers in order to promote educational opportunities for people of all ages. These programs include livelihood schemes aimed at boosting the presence of skilled manpower as well as aimed at the motto of women empowerment . Further, in the current education system in India, the government is offering plentiful training courses under its varied departments and ministries of Agriculture , the Food Processing Industry, Health and Family Welfare, Human Resource Development, Information Technology, and Rural Development, amongst others.

Know All About Rural Development Courses !

Whether at the school or college level, essential importance is being given to extra-curricular activities to ensure the wholesome development of every student. In the current education system of India, schools and universities rapidly encourage students to take part in co-curricular activities such as sports , cultural and varied other endeavours which are frequently added to their study curriculum. Their participation in extra-curricular activities helps them furnish their future prospects. Further, degree programs are also formulated while ensuring that students are given the requisite practical exposure to the field of study they want to explore!

Check Out: Types of Co-curricular Activities

Special attention is also being paid towards providing enough opportunities to help deserving students with scholarships and education loans that can provide them with suitable financial assistance for their academic journey. Schemes such as Aga Khan Scholarship , Pratibha Scholarship , LIC Scholarship , and Dhirubhai Ambani Scholarship , amongst others, offer much-needed financial to meritorious students wanting to pursue secondary and higher education in the country as well as abroad.

The following are the current concerns with the Indian educational system:

Education spending: More money needs to be set aside for the expansion of India’s educational system. Numerous positive steps have been made in this direction over the past few years, and if they are kept up, India may soon be able to overcome its current difficulties.
India needs to adopt the UN’s gross enrolment pattern as well.
Utilizing students’ capacities to the full is important because the world now needs creative thinkers , and the government should encourage educators to do just that.
Infrastructure facilities should be improved, particularly in government schools. Government must take action to provide all necessary facilities in government schools and rural areas since they are currently focusing on digital education.
Model PPP – PPPs that are well-designed can produce innovative school systems in India. Consequently, the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model needs to be considered.
The ratio of students to teachers : In comparison to the number of teachers and faculty members available, there are significantly more students seeking a proper education. As a result, trained educators must be hired to educate the nation’s future.
Standards for quality in branding and accreditation
Students studying abroad: Due to these problems with the Indian educational system, many students opt to study abroad . The relevant authorities must address them, and students must decide to remain in India to continue their education and strengthen the nation through their knowledge.

India has the third-largest education and development sector in the world, behind China and the United States . It is abundantly clear from the discussion above that the current educational system in India is more theory-focused than career-focused. It emphasises theory and exams more. The Indian educational system, however, has undergone a significant change as a result of the new education policy, in 2020. The division of stages has been changed as a result of the new National Education Policy (NEP) so that it now reflects the typical stages of mental development that children go through. It has grown lively and skill-focused. India has a 69.3 per cent adult literacy rate. More than 20 universities from India’s higher education system are anticipated to rank among the top 200 worldwide by the year 2030.

In India, where there are 500 million people, 18% of them are between the ages of 15 and 24 and are enrolled in secondary and higher education. In India, the adult literacy rate (15+ years) is 69.3%, with adult males having a literacy rate of 78.8% and adult females having a literacy rate of 59.3%.

India’s 21st-century modern-age education system is made up of a new method of learning that includes online education, skill-development programmes, digital learning platforms, a grading system, the use of educational technology in the classrooms, and a recently introduced New Education Policy!

Here are the top 5 issues that the Indian Education system is facing: Lack of a budget. Too much pressure on Grades. Too much competition. Not Focusing on Overall Growth. Lack of Training.

Thus, the current education system in India is still immensely far behind those of top countries such as the USA and the UK and there is still a lot of scope for improvement. If you are planning to continue your academic journey abroad, you can always get in touch with our Leverage Edu experts and we’ll provide you with suitable guidance in choosing an ideal course and university as well as throughout the whole application process thus assisting you in getting successfully shortlisted into the institution of your choice.

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The article is well structured and describes the ongoing stage of the education system. It gives a brief understanding which is well written and well pointed in each and every point.Thank you such an insightful article.

Hi, We are glad that you liked our blog on Current Education System in India.

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Essay on Indian Education System for Students and Children

500+ words essay on indian education system for students and children.

The Indian education system is quite an old education system that still exists. It has produced so many genius minds that are making India proud all over the world. However, while it is one of the oldest systems, it is still not that developed when compared to others, which are in fact newer. This is so as the other countries have gone through growth and advancement, but the Indian education system is still stuck in old age. It faces a lot of problems that need to be sorted to let it reach its full potential.

Problems with Indian Education System

Our Indian education system faces a lot of problems that do not let it prosper and help other children succeed in life . The biggest problem which it has to face is the poor grading system. It judges the intelligence of a student on the basis of academics which is in the form of exam papers. That is very unfair to students who are good in their overall performance but not that good at specific subjects.

Moreover, they only strive to get good marks not paying attention to understanding what is taught. In other words, this encourages getting good marks through mugging up and not actually grasping the concept efficiently.

Furthermore, we see how the Indian education system focuses on theory more. Only a little percentage is given for practical. This makes them run after the bookish knowledge and not actually applying it to the real world. This practice makes them perplexed when they go out in the real world due to lack of practical knowledge.

Most importantly, the Indian education system does not emphasize enough on the importance of sports and arts. Students are always asked to study all the time where they get no time for other activities like sports and arts.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

How Can We Improve Indian Education System?

As the Indian Education System is facing so many problems, we need to come up with effective solutions so it improves and creates a brighter future for students . We can start by focusing on the skill development of the students. The schools and colleges must not only focus on the ranks and grades but on the analytical and creative skills of children.

In addition, subjects must not be merely taught theoretically but with practical. This will help in a better understanding of the subject without them having to mug up the whole thing due to lack of practical knowledge. Also, the syllabus must be updated with the changing times and not follow the old age pattern.

Other than that, the government and private colleges must now increase the payroll of teachers. As they clearly deserve more than what they offer. To save money, the schools hire teachers who are not qualified enough. This creates a very bad classroom environment and learning. They must be hired if they are fit for the job and not because they are working at a lesser salary.

In conclusion, the Indian education system must change for the better. It must give the students equal opportunities to shine better in the future. We need to let go of the old and traditional ways and enhance the teaching standards so our youth can get create a better world.

FAQs on Indian Education System

Q.1 What problems does the Indian Education System face?

A.1 Indian education is very old and outdated. It judges students on the basis of marks and grades ignoring the overall performance of the student. It focuses on academics side-lining arts and sports.

Q.2 How can we improve the Indian education system?

A.2 The colleges and schools must hire well and qualified teachers. They must help students to understand the concept instead of merely mugging up the whole subject.

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Indian Education System Issues And Challenges

Major Issues in the Indian Education System

The Indian Education System has its share of issues and challenges which need to be resolved to provide better and improved education to children, who are the future of the country. Over the years, a lot has changed in the Indian education system but still, there are many loopholes and problems which need to be resolved.

In this article, we shall discuss in detail the issues and challenges with the Indian Education System and a few counter solutions to overcome these challenges. Also discussed are a few schemes which have been initiated by the Government for the improved education of students across the country.

Aspirants preparing for the upcoming IAS Exam must carefully go through this article.

Education System in India – Issues Download PDF Here

Start your UPSC Exam Preparation now and ace the upcoming examination with the help of links given below:

About the Indian Education System

A major shift in the education system can be observed from the pre and post-British rule till today in India. Initially, children were educated in Gurukuls which was later modified and the modern education system was introduced.

After India became independent, the constitution committed six fundamental rights, of which one was the Right to Education. It allowed free education for every child up between the ages of 6 and 14 years.

The education system is mainly divided into pre-primary, primary, elementary and secondary education, which is followed by higher studies.

However, there are many drawbacks and loopholes in this system which if curbed can work for the overall development of the country.

To know in detail about the Right to Education Act (RTE) , aspirants can visit the linked article.

Current Issues in Education in India

Discussed below are the current issues with the Education system in India:

Expenditure on education – More funds should be allotted for the development of the education system in India. In the past few years, many beneficial steps have been taken in this direction and if the same is continued India may soon overcome the current challenges.
Gross enrolment pattern – As followed by the UN must also be adopted by India.
Capacity utilisation – The world now needs creative minds and the Government must encourage schools to boost the students and utilise their capacities to the max and not let their ideas go unheard.
Infrastructure facilities – Better infrastructure must be provided especially in Government schools. Since the Government is now focussing on digital education, they must undertake steps to provide all necessary facilities in the Government schools and rural areas as well.
PPP model – Well-designed PPPs can create models of innovation for the school system in India. Thus the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model must be taken into consideration.
Student-teacher ratio – The number of students in search of proper education is way more in comparison to the teachers and faculty available. Thus, qualified teachers must be appointed to impart knowledge to the future of the country.
Accreditation and branding – quality standards.
Students studying abroad – Many students choose to study abroad because of these issues in the Indian education system. The concerned authorities must work on them and students must also choose to stay, learn in India and empower the country through their knowledge.

UPSC and other Government exam aspirants can also refer to the links given below for exam preparation:

Indian Education System Problems and Solutions

There are a few simple solutions which can help in overcoming the problems with the India Education System:

Innovations required – India is moving towards digital education. This will help in budding the innovative minds of students and the youth of the country. This will bring a transformation in the Indian education system and the authorities and Government must encourage and boost the young minds to focus on overall development rather than just the book-learning.
Quality of education – There is a major difference in the quality of education being provided in the rural and urban areas of the country. Steps must be taken to standardize the quality of education across India so that everyone can get equal and unbiased knowledge and opportunities to grow.
Making education affordable – There are Government schools and educational Institutions which are affordable but lack in terms of infrastructure and quality. On the other hand, there are various private education institutions which demand high fees and have better infrastructure and equipment to study. This disparity must be worked upon and the Government must make education affordable and accessible for all.

Schemes & Campaigns to Boost Education System in India

Given below is a list of Government schemes introduced to enhance the education system in India:

Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan – Launched in 2001 to promote ‘Education for All’, strengthening the existing infrastructure of schools and construction of new schools. To know in details about the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) , visit the linked article.
National Programme for Education of Girls at Elementary Level – It is a focused intervention of the Government of India, to reach the “Hardest to Reach” girls, especially those not in school. Read more at Elementary Education: Moving Towards RTE And Quality Improvement.
Mid-Day Meal Scheme – It is one meal that is provided to all children enrolled in government schools, government-aided schools, local body schools, special training centres (STC), madrasas and maktabs supported under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA). Visit the Mid Day Meal Scheme page to learn more.
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Scheme for Infrastructure Development in Minority Institutes – The scheme would facilitate the education of minorities by augmenting and strengthening school infrastructure in Minority Institutions to expand facilities for formal education to children of minority communities.
Beti Bachao Beti Padhao – The scheme to promote girl child education in India. Visit the Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana page to learn more about the BBBP campaign.

Aspirants can get the detailed UPSC Syllabus for the prelims and mains examination at the linked article and start their exam preparation accordingly.

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India’s education system can benefit from proper data collection and analysis: Report

The current data collection model is labour-intensive and fraught with challenges.

Published - June 10, 2024 08:00 am IST

India’s education system can benefit from proper data collection and analysis: Report | Photo Credit: G_Krishnaswamy

India’s expanding education system can benefit greatly from data collection and analysis but also faces related challenges and risks like poor data privacy, outdated technology, and data fragmentation, found new research conducted by Aapti Institute and Mozilla and funded by USAID.

According to the report, data collection efforts are fragmented, with multiple bodies and authorities reaching out to schools at different times for data.

Schools often struggle with the practical application of data. The digital divide poses a significant barrier, especially in rural and underprivileged regions, leading to data gaps which result in skewed policy decisions.

The current data collection model is labour-intensive and fraught with challenges, from manual data entry to the logistical nightmare of paper-based records management.

The involvement of multiple stakeholders, each with different levels of data access and handling capabilities, creates serious data privacy and security risks.

The report recommend the formation of a central agency responsible for the annual collection of educational data through a standardised and rigorous process, coupled with the promotion of open data principles.

Teachers undertaking data entry tasks should receive financial incentives for the additional workload.

It also recommends having data specialists in each administrative block and reallocating budgets more effectively towards annual training of IT staff and teachers. It advises establishing a bottom- up feedback loop.

Mozilla and Aapti recommend developing a standardised scoring system for benchmarking schools. This would allow schools to recognise their effectiveness in utilising the collected data.

“Globally, we’ve seen a rapid increase in the use of digital tools to drive development, but not as much emphasis on the reliability of the data underpinning such tools. Ensuring access to clean, participatory data is an essential component of our work to foster open, inclusive, secure and rights-respecting digital ecosystems that enable people to thrive,” said Chris Burns, Chief Digital Development Officer at USAID.

“India has one of the largest education systems in the world, and data plays an increasingly pivotal role in shaping its policies and interventions. When handled responsibly, this data can transform educational outcomes for the better. But there are also significant risks, from mismanagement to misuse. Our investigation explores how to unlock positive transformation while mitigating harms,” said Mehan Jayasuriya, Senior Program Officer at Mozilla.

The research, titled “Strengthening Data Ecosystems in Indian Schools,” was carried out over the course of nine months across 10 states. The Indian school education system includes over 1.49 million institutions, from grade schools to universities, and serves more than 265 million students.

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Markup of H.R. 618, Improving Access to Workers’ Compensation for Injured Federal Workers Act; H.R. 8606, Never Again Education Reauthorization and Study Act of 2024; H.R. 8648, Civil Rights Protection Act of 2024; H.J. Res. 165, Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Department of Education relating to “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance”; H.R. 6816, Promoting Responsible Oversight to Eliminate Communist Teachings for Our Kids Act; H.R. 5567, Combating the Lies of Authoritarians in School Systems Act; H.R. 8649, Transparency in Reporting of Adversarial Contributions to Education Act; H.R. 7227, Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act of 2024; H.R. 8534, Protecting Student Athletes’ Economic Freedom Act Committee on Education and the Workforce

Thursday, June 13, 2024 (10:45 AM)

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H.R. 618, Improving Access to Workers’ Compensation for Injured Federal Workers Act [ PDF ] Added 06/11/2024 at 10:46 AM
H.R. 8606, Never Again Education Reauthorization and Study Act of 2024 [ PDF ] Added 06/11/2024 at 10:46 AM
H.R. 8648, Civil Rights Protection Act of 2024 [ PDF ] Added 06/11/2024 at 10:46 AM
H.J. Res. 165, Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Department of Education relating to “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance” [ PDF ] Added 06/11/2024 at 10:46 AM
H.R. 6816, Promoting Responsible Oversight to Eliminate Communist Teachings for Our Kids Act [ PDF ] Added 06/11/2024 at 10:46 AM
H.R. 5567, Combating the Lies of Authoritarians in School Systems Act [ PDF ] Added 06/11/2024 at 10:46 AM
H.R. 8649, Transparency in Reporting of Adversarial Contributions to Education Act [ PDF ] Added 06/11/2024 at 10:46 AM
H.R. 7227, Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act of 2024 [ PDF ] Added 06/11/2024 at 10:46 AM
H.R. 8534, Protecting Student Athletes’ Economic Freedom Act [ PDF ] Added 06/11/2024 at 10:46 AM
Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to H.R. 618 | Offered by Mr. Walberg of Michigan | HR618_ANS [ PDF ] Added 06/12/2024 at 11:07 AM
Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to H.R. 8606 | Offered by Mr. Wilson of South Carolina | H8606_ANS [ PDF ] Added 06/12/2024 at 11:07 AM
Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to H.R. 8648 | Offered by Mrs. Chavez DeRemer | HR8648_ANS [ PDF ] Added 06/12/2024 at 11:07 AM
Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to H.R. 6816 | Offered by Mr. Moran of Texas | H6816_ANS [ PDF ] Added 06/12/2024 at 11:07 AM
Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to H.R. 5567 | Offered by Mr. Williams of New York | H5567_ANS [ PDF ] Added 06/12/2024 at 11:07 AM
Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to H.R. 8649 | Offered by Mr. Bean of Florida | H8649_ANS [ PDF ] Added 06/12/2024 at 11:07 AM
Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to H.R. 7227 | Offered by Mr. Kiley of California | HR7227ANS_01 [ PDF ] Added 06/12/2024 at 11:07 AM
Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to H.R. 8534 | Offered by Mr. Good of Virginia | HR8534_ANS [ PDF ] Added 06/12/2024 at 11:07 AM

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First Published: June 11, 2024 at 10:40 AM Last Updated: June 12, 2024 at 11:15 AM

The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news.

Racial Disparities in Maternal and Infant Health: Current Status and Efforts to Address Them

Latoya Hill , Samantha Artiga , and Usha Ranji Published: Nov 01, 2022

Stark racial disparities in maternal and infant health in the U.S. have persisted for decades despite continued advancements in medical care. The disparate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic for people of color has brought a new focus to health disparities, including the longstanding inequities in maternal and infant health. Additionally, with Roe v. Wade now overturned, increased barriers to abortion for people of color may widen the already existing large disparities in maternal and infant health. Recently, there has been increased attention and focus on improving maternal and infant health and reducing disparities in these areas, including a range of efforts at the federal level. This brief provides an overview of racial disparities for selected measures of maternal and infant health, discusses the factors that drive these disparities, and provides an overview of recent efforts to address them. 1 It finds:

Black and American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) women have higher rates of pregnancy-related death compared to White women. Pregnancy-related mortality rates among Black and AIAN women are over three and two times higher, respectively, compared to the rate for White women (41.4 and 26.2 vs. 13.7 per 100,000). Black, AIAN, and Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander (NHOPI) women also have higher shares of preterm births, low birthweight births, or births for which they received late or no prenatal care compared to White women. Infants born to Black, AIAN, and NHOPI people have markedly higher mortality rates than those born to White women. Maternal death rates increased during the COVID-19 pandemic and racial disparities widened for Black women.

Maternal and infant health disparities are symptoms of broader underlying social and economic inequities that are rooted in racism and discrimination. Differences in health insurance coverage and access to care play a role in driving worse maternal and infant health outcomes for people of color. However, inequities in broader social and economic factors and structural and systemic racism and discrimination are primary drivers for maternal and infant health. Notably, disparities in maternal and infant health persist even when controlling for certain underlying social and economic factors, such as education and income, pointing to the roles racism and discrimination play in driving disparities.

The increased awareness and attention to maternal and infant health have contributed to a rise in efforts and resources focused on improving health outcomes in these areas and reducing disparities. These include efforts to expand access to coverage and care, increase access to a broader array of services and providers that support maternal and infant health, diversity the health care workforce, and enhance data collection and reporting. However, addressing social and economic factors that contribute to poorer health outcomes and disparities will also be important. Moreover, the persistence of disparities in maternal health across income and education levels, points to the importance of addressing the roles of racism and discrimination within the health care system as part of efforts to improve health and advance equity.

Introduction

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated longstanding disparities in health and health care for people of color, including stark disparities in maternal and infant health. Despite continued advancements in medical care, rates of maternal mortality and morbidity and pre-term birth have been rising in the U.S. Maternal and infant mortality rates in the U.S. are far higher than those in similarly large and wealthy countries, and people of color are at increased risk for poor maternal and infant health outcomes compared to their White peers. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, maternal deaths have continued to rise and racial disparities have further widened. Moreover, with the overturning of Roe v. Wade , increased barriers to abortion for people of color may widen the already existing large disparities in maternal and infant health. Together these factors have contributed to growing attention and efforts to improve overall maternal and infant health and reduce disparities in these areas.

This issue brief provides analysis of racial and ethnic disparities across selected measures of maternal and infant health, discusses the factors that drive these disparities, and provides an overview of recent efforts to address them. It is based on KFF analysis of publicly available data from CDC WONDER online database, the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) National Vital Statistics Reports, CDC Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System, and a report from the US Government Accountability Office (GAO). While this brief focuses on racial/ethnic disparities in maternal and infant health, wide disparities also exist across other dimensions; for example, there is significant variation in some of these measures across states and disparities within rural communities.

Status of Racial Disparities in Maternal and Infant Health

Pregnancy-related mortality rates.

Approximately 700 women die in the U.S. each year as a result of pregnancy or its complications. Pregnancy-related deaths are deaths that occur within one year of pregnancy. Approximately one third (31%) occur during pregnancy, another third (36%) occur during labor or within the first week postpartum, and the remaining third (33%) occur one week to one year postpartum, underscoring the importance of access to health care beyond the period of pregnancy. Recent data has found that more than eight out of ten (84%) pregnancy-related deaths are preventable. Although leading causes of pregnancy-related death vary by race and ethnicity, cardiovascular conditions are the leading cause of pregnancy-related death among women overall, highlighting the importance of care for chronic conditions on pregnancy-related outcomes. More recent data from detailed maternal mortality reviews in 36 states found mental health conditions to be the overall leading cause of pregnancy related deaths.

Black and AIAN women have pregnancy-related mortality rates that are about three and two times higher, respectively, compared to the rate for White women (41.4 and 26.5 vs. 13.7 per 100,000 live births) (Figure 1). These disparities increase by maternal age. For example, the pregnancy-related mortality rate for Black women between ages 30 to 34 widens to over four times higher than the rate for White women (48.6 vs. 11.3 per 100,000), while the rate for AIAN women in the same age group is nearly four times as high as the rate for White women (41.2 per 100,000). Moreover, they persist across education levels. Notably, the pregnancy-related mortality rate for Black women who completed college education or higher is 5.2 times higher than the rate for White women with the same educational attainment and 1.6 times higher than the rate for White women with less than a high school diploma . There are small differences in the rate pregnancy-related death between Asian and Pacific Islander and White women (14.1 vs. 13.7 per 100,000), and the rate for Hispanic women is lower compared to that of White women (11.2 vs. 13.7 per 100,000). These findings may mask underlying differences in subgroups of these populations. Other research also shows that Black women are at significantly higher risk for severe maternal morbidity , such as preeclampsia , which is significantly more common than maternal death. Further, Black women have higher rates of admission to the intensive care unit during delivery compared to White women, which is considered a marker for severe maternal morbidity.

Maternal death rates increased during the COVID-19 pandemic and racial disparities widened for Black women . According to recent GAO analysis that examined maternal deaths during pregnancy or within 42 days of pregnancy, Black women had the highest maternal mortality rates across racial and ethnic groups during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021 and also experienced the largest increase when compared to the year before the pandemic in 2019 (Figure 2). The maternal mortality rate for Hispanic women was less than the rate for White women prior to the pandemic but increased significantly and was similar to the rate for White women in 2020 and 2021. Data show that most of the increase in maternal deaths in 2020 and all of the increase in 2021 can be attributed to COVID-19 related deaths, which were higher among Black and Hispanic women (13.2 and 8.9 per 100,000, respectively) compared to White women (4.5 per 100,000).

Birth Risks and Outcomes

Black, AIAN, and NHOPI women are more likely than White women to have certain birth risk factors that contribute to infant mortality and can have long-term consequences for the physical and cognitive health of children. Preterm birth (birth before 37 weeks gestation) and low birthweight (defined as a baby born less than 5.5 pounds) are some of the leading causes for infant mortality. Receiving pregnancy-related care late in a pregnancy (defined as starting in the third trimester) or not receiving any pregnancy-related care at all can also increase risk of pregnancy complications. Black, AIAN, and NHOPI women have higher shares of preterm births, low birthweight births, or births for which they received late or no prenatal care compared to White women (Figure 3). Notably, NHOPI women are four times more likely than White women to begin receiving prenatal care in the third trimester or to receive no prenatal care at all (19% vs. 5%). Black women also are nearly twice as likely compared to White women to have a birth with late or no prenatal care compared to White women (9% vs. 5%).

While teen birth rates overall have declined over time, they are higher among Black, Hispanic, AIAN, and NHOPI teens compared to their White counterparts (Figure 4). In contrast, the birth rate among Asian teens is lower than the rate for White teens. Many teen pregnancies are unplanned, and pregnant teens may be less likely to receive early and regular prenatal care. Teen pregnancy also is associated with increased risk of complications during pregnancy and delivery, including preterm birth. Teen pregnancy and childbirth can also have social and economic impacts on teen parents and their children, including disrupting educational completion for the parents and lower school achievement for the children. The drivers of teen pregnancy are multi-faceted and include poverty, history of adverse childhood events, and access to comprehensive education and health care services. Research studies have found that increased use of contraception as well as support for comprehensive sex education have helped lower the rate of teen births nationally.

Reflecting these increased risk factors, infants born to women of color are at higher risk for mortality compared to those born to White women. Infant mortality is defined as the death of an infant within the first year of life, but most cases occur within the first month after birth. The primary causes of infant mortality are birth defects, preterm birth and low birthweight, maternal pregnancy complications, sudden infant death syndrome, and injuries. Infants born to Black women are over twice as likely to die relative to those born to White women (10.4 vs. 4.4 per 1,000), and the mortality rate for infants born to AIAN and NHOPI women (7.7 and 7.2 per 1,000) is nearly twice as high (Figure 5). The mortality rate for infants born to Hispanic mothers is similar to the rate for those born to White women (4.7 vs. 4.4 per 1,000), while infants born to Asian women have a lower mortality rate (3.1 per 1,000). Data also show that fetal death or stillbirths —that is, pregnancy loss after 20-week gestation—are more common among Black women compared to White and Hispanic women. Moreover, causes of stillbirth vary by race and ethnicity, with higher rates of stillbirth attributed to diabetes and maternal complications among Black women compared to White women.

Factors Driving Disparities in Maternal and Infant Health

The factors driving disparities in maternal and infant health are complex and multifactorial. They include differences in health insurance coverage and access to care. However, broader social and economic factors and structural and systemic racism and discrimination, also play a major role (Figure 6). In maternal and infant health specifically, the intersection of race, gender, poverty, and other social factors shapes individuals’ experiences and outcomes. Recently there has been broader recognition of the principles of reproductive justice , which emphasize the role that the social determinants of health and other factors play in reproductive health for communities of color. Notably, Hispanic women and infants fare similarly to their White counterparts on many measures of maternal and infant health despite experiencing increased access barriers and social and economic challenges typically associated with poorer health outcomes. Research suggests that this finding, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic or Latino health paradox , in part, stems from variation in outcomes among subgroups of Hispanic people by origin, nativity, and race, with better outcomes for some groups, particularly recent immigrants to the U.S. However, the findings still are not fully understood.

Figure 6: Health disparities are driven by social and economic inequities that are rooted in historic and ongoing racism and discrimination

Disparities in maternal and infant health, in part, reflect increased barriers to care for people of color. Research shows that coverage before, during, and after pregnancy facilitates access to care that supports healthy pregnancies, as well as positive maternal and infant outcomes after childbirth. Overall, people of color are more likely to be uninsured and face other barriers to care . Medicaid helps to fill these coverage gaps during pregnancy and for children. However, women of color are at increased risk of being uninsured prior to their pregnancy and, historically, many have lost coverage at the end of the 60-day Medicaid postpartum coverage period due to lower eligibility levels for parents compared to pregnant women, particularly in states that have not implemented the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Medicaid expansion. Beyond health coverage, people of color face other increased barriers to care , including limited access to providers and hospitals and lack of access to culturally and linguistically appropriate care. These challenges may be particularly pronounced in rural and medically underserved areas. For example, research suggests that a rise in closures of hospitals and obstetric units in rural areas has a disproportionate impact in communities with larger shares of Black patients.

Research also highlights the role of racism and discrimination plays in driving racial disparities in maternal and infant health . Research has documented that social and economic factors, racism , and chronic stress contribute to poor maternal and infant health outcomes, including higher rates of perinatal depression and preterm birth among African American women and higher rates of mortality among Black infants. In recent years, research and news reports have raised attention to the effects of provider discrimination during pregnancy and delivery. News reporting and maternal mortality case reviews have called attention to a number of maternal deaths and near misses among women of color where providers did not or were slow to listen to patients. In one study , Indigenous, Hispanic, and Black women reported significantly higher rates of mistreatment (such as shouting and scolding, ignoring or refusing requests for help) during the course of their pregnancy. Even controlling for insurance status, income, age, and severity of conditions, people of color are less likely to receive routine medical procedures and experience a lower quality of care . One recent study of hospital births in Florida found that there were significant improvements in mortality for Black newborns who were cared for by Black physicians, pointing to the importance of culturally concordant or competent care. A KFF/The Undefeated survey found that most Black adults believe the health care system treats people unfairly based on their race, and one in five Black and Hispanic adults report they were personally treated unfairly because of their race or ethnicity while getting health care in the past year, with a higher share of Black mothers reporting unfair treatment. Black adults also were more likely than White adults to report feeling a provider didn’t believe they were telling the truth and being refused a test, treatment, or pain medication they thought they needed.

Current Efforts to Address Maternal and Infant Health Disparities

Increased awareness and attention to maternal and infant health have contributed to a rise in efforts and resources focused on improving maternal health and infant health outcomes and reducing disparities. These include efforts to expand access to coverage and care, increase access to a broader array of services and providers that support maternal and infant health, diversity the health care workforce, and enhance data collection and reporting.

In June 2022, the Biden Administration released the Blueprint for Addressing the Maternal Health Crisis . The Blueprint outlines priorities and actions across federal agencies to improve access to coverage and care, expand and enhance data collection and research, grow, and diversify the perinatal workforce, strengthen social and economic support, and increase trainings and incentives to support women being active participants in their care before, during and after pregnancy. Several of these proposals are included in the MOMNIBUS, a federal legislative package sponsored by the Congressional Black Maternal Health Caucus. Federal agencies also have announced plans and actions to support the Blueprint, including the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), which released a maternity care action plan in July 2022; the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), which has committed $350 million to states to strengthen maternal and child health, and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH), which invested $8.5 million in initiatives designed to reduce pregnancy-related deaths and complications that disproportionately impact people of color and those living in rural areas.

Recent federal legislation has expanded access to and helped stabilize Medicaid coverage during the postpartum period. Medicaid covers almost half of births nationally. However, historically, many pregnant women lost coverage at the end of a 60-day postpartum coverage period because eligibility levels are lower for parents than pregnant women in many states, particularly those that have not implemented the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Medicaid expansion. The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021 provided states a new option for five years, beginning April 1, 2022, to extend postpartum coverage to a full year. As of October 27, 2022, 27 states, including DC, had implemented a 12-month postpartum coverage extension , and an additional seven states were planning to implement the extension. KFF analysis suggests that the coverage extension could prevent hundreds of thousands of enrollees from losing coverage in the months after delivery. In addition, at the start of the pandemic, Congress enacted the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), which included a requirement that Medicaid programs keep people continuously enrolled through the end of the month in which the COVID-19 PHE ends in exchange for enhanced federal funding. This provision has prevented coverage gaps or losses that otherwise might have occurred during the postpartum period due to changes in eligibility and/or administrative challenges associated with maintaining coverage. However, coverage losses may occur after states resume redeterminations of eligibility when the PHE ends. Additional actions may also help to reduce disparities , including adoption of the ACA Medicaid expansion in the 12 remaining states that have not yet expanded, as nearly six in ten adults in the coverage gap in these states are adults of color. Further, Medicaid expansion promotes continuity of coverage in the prenatal and postpartum periods. The Biden Administration Blueprint encourages states to take-up the ARPA postpartum coverage option and urges Congress to close the Medicaid coverage gap and require all states to provide 12 months postpartum Medicaid and CHIP coverage.

Implementation of evidence-based best practices may help to improve maternal and infant health outcomes. As part of its maternity care action plan, CMS has outlined a proposal for a “Birthing-Friendly” hospital designation that would provide public information on hospitals that have implemented best practices in areas of health care quality, safety, and equity for pregnant and postpartum patients. Moreover, in 2022, CMS has launched a new effort within its maternal and infant health initiative to reduce low-risk Cesarean births to improve infant and maternal health. This program is centered around a learning collaborative that outlines approaches Medicaid and CHIP agencies can put in place to reduce low-risk cesarean deliveries and works directly with states to implement evidence-based best practices in their state.

Recent actions have enhanced access to data on maternal and infant health outcomes and disparities. For example, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conducts national pregnancy-related mortality surveillance and regularly releases findings as a source of information around the risk factors and causes of pregnancy-related deaths. The CDC also developed Levels of Care Assessment Tool (LOCATe) to assist states by standardizing their assessments of levels of maternal and neonatal care and promotes the Hear Her campaign to raise awareness of urgent maternal warning signs during and after pregnancy. In addition, the CDC supports state efforts to prevent maternal deaths through several efforts including the Enhancing Reviews and Surveillance to Eliminate Maternal Mortality (ERASE MM) program and perinatal quality collaboratives (PQCs), which aide in increasing understanding of the drivers of pregnancy related mortality and identify health care processes that contribute to improved outcomes for mothers and infants to reduce racial disparities and geographic disparities. Maternal mortality review committees in several states are comprised of clinicians, community members, researchers, and other experts to review all deaths within one year of pregnancy, and identify causes, drivers, and opportunities for quality improvement. Data collection by these committees has been particularly important in understanding that a large share of deaths are preventable as well as identifying the significant portion of deaths that occur after delivery and encouraging efforts to strengthen care in the postpartum period. Moreover, there are several research and data collection initiatives directed by CDC to monitor sudden unexpected infant deaths, reduce infant mortality and build epidemiological support at the state and local level to improve maternal and child health programs.

A variety of efforts are underway to increase workforce diversity and expand access to doula and other services to improve maternal and infant health outcomes and reduce disparities. Studies have shown that a more diverse healthcare workforce and the use of doulas may improve birth outcomes. The percent of maternal health physicians and registered nurses that are Hispanic or Black is lower than their share of the female population of childbearing age. The Biden Administration’s Blueprint includes efforts by HRSA to develop a maternal care pipeline to provide scholarships to students from underrepresented communities in health professions and nursing schools to grow and diversify the maternal care workforce. The use of doula services is another approach to increase diversity and expand the maternal health workforce. Doulas are trained non-clinicians who assist a pregnant person before, during and/or after childbirth by providing physical assistance, labor coaching, emotional support, and postpartum care. Pregnant women who receive doula support have been found to have shorter labors and lower C-sections rates, fewer birth complications, are more likely to initiate breastfeeding, and their infants are less likely to have low birth weights. The Biden Administration’s Blueprint includes a FY2023 budget request for $20 million to grow and diversify the doula workforce. Additionally, in recent years there has been growing interest in expanding coverage of doula services through Medicaid . Federal legislation has been introduced to expand coverage of doula services through Medicaid, and some states are taking steps to include coverage through their state programs. State efforts to date have had mixed success, in part because of challenges with certification requirements and low reimbursement levels. In 2022, there were at least 17 states considering, planning, or implementing coverage of doula services through Medicaid reimbursements. Some states are also implementing or expanding coverage for other services focused on improving maternal and infant health including home visiting programs to teach positive parenting and other skills; postpartum services provided by lactation counselor and consultants, public health nurses, and medical caseworkers; as well as targeted case management and other programs to meet needs of pregnant and postpartum individuals with substance use disorders.

States, providers and health systems, foundations, and communities also are engaged in a broad range of efforts to advance maternal and child health and reduce disparities. Several states have developed plans and initiatives to address disparities in maternal and infant outcomes. For example, New Jersey launched the Nurture NJ Strategic Plan to outline challenges, action areas, and recommendation to achieve equity for all women with a focus on dismantling structural racism and addressing social determinants of health. In addition, many state Medicaid programs have implemented policies, programs, and initiatives to improve maternity care and outcomes and , including expanding eligibility for people during and after pregnancy, conducting outreach and education to enrollees and providers, expanding coverage for benefits such as doula care, home visits, and substance use disorder and mental health treatment, and using new payment, delivery, and performance measurement approaches. Also, five states reported including Performance Improvement Projects (PIPS) for their Medicaid services that focused specifically on reducing disparities related to maternal and child health in Fiscal Year 2022, including Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, and Texas. California is in the process of implementing provisions from legislation passed in recent years requiring implicit bias training for all perinatal health workers, as well as elements of the California MOMNIBUS , which directs the state to invest in improved data analysis, streamlining administrative procedures within the welfare program for pregnant people, and broadening the midwifery workforce. Northwell Health , the largest healthcare provider in New York, recently launched a Center for Maternal Health to address pregnancy related health risks facing Black women by seeking to address issues within healthcare and in the community that arise before, during, and after pregnancy. The Changing Woman Initiative is a Native American midwifery organization in New Mexico providing culturally centered care to address maternal health disparities, high rates of gestational diabetes, and low birth weight deliveries among Indigenous women.

A range of organizations are advocating for more interventions and supports to address maternal mental health and substance use issues, major causes of pregnancy-related mortality and morbidity. The field of maternal mental health and substance use encompasses a large range of conditions that affect the health of parents and their infants. Some studies have found higher rates of postpartum depression among some pregnant and postpartum women of color, but many mental health conditions are undiagnosed and untreated due to stigma and poor access to treatment. These issues also limit access to services for pregnant and postpartum people suffering from substance use disorders. Community-based and provider organizations are calling for a number of policy and structural changes to address these large challenges, including broader insurance coverage for behavioral health care, higher reimbursement for existing treatment services, greater education and awareness about screening for mental health and substance use conditions among health care providers and childbearing people. Federal initiatives in this area include CMS’ Maternal Opioid Misuse (MOM) Model , a grant program for states to better integrate care for mothers and infants exposed to opioids, and state-level learning communities on mental health, supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) .

At the same time many efforts are focused on improving maternal and infant health and reducing disparities, the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade may contribute to widening disparitie s in maternal and infant health , People of color are likely to be disproportionately affected by state actions to fully prohibit or implement extensive restrictions on abortions as they are more likely to seek abortions and more likely to face structural barriers that will make it more difficult to travel out of state for an abortion, including more limited access to health care and fewer financial and transportation resources. Increased barriers to abortion for people of color may widen the already existing large disparities in maternal and infant health, have negative economic consequences for families, and increase risk of criminalization for pregnant people of color.

Looking Ahead

Overall, these data show that racial disparities in maternal and infant health persist. Improving maternal and infant health is key for preventing unnecessary illness and death and advancing overall population health. Healthy People 2030 , which provides 10-year national health objectives, identifies the prevention of pregnancy complications and maternal deaths and improvement of women’s health before, during, and after pregnancy as a public health goal. The COVID-19 pandemic further highlights the urgency and importance of addressing disparities in health more broadly and increased attention to disparities in maternal and infant health specifically. Moreover, the overturning of Roe v. Wade may contribute to worsening disparities in maternal and infant health, further amplifying the importance of attention to these areas.

The increased awareness and attention to maternal and infant health have contributed to a rise in efforts and resources focused on improving health outcomes in these areas and reducing disparities. These include efforts to expand access to coverage and care, increase access to a broader array of services and providers that support maternal and infant health, diversity the health care workforce, and enhance data collection and reporting. However, addressing social and economic factors that contribute to poorer health outcomes and disparities will also be important. Moreover, the persistence of disparities in maternal health across income and education levels, points to the importance of addressing the roles of racism and discrimination within and beyond the health care system as part of efforts to improve health and advance equity.

Data and research often assume cisgender identities and may not systematically account for people who are transgender and non-binary. The language used in this brief attempts to be as inclusive as possible while acknowledging that the data we are citing uses gender labels that we cannot change without misrepresenting the data.

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Racial Equity and Health Policy
Women's Health Policy
Race/Ethnicity
Maternal and Child Health

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Updated Brief on Racial Disparities in Maternal and Infant Health

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भारत की शिक्षा प्रणाली
India Education Data; Education in India, webdossier by Education Worldwide, a portal of the German Education Server; 18वीं सदी में दुनिया में सबसे ज्यादा शिक्षा संस्थाएँ भारत में थीं; Education in India has become commercial commodity ...
भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध, विकास, गुण और दोष, इतिहास: essay on
भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध, विकास, गुण और दोष, इतिहास: essay on indian education system in hindi, changes needed - 100 words, 200 words
भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध Education system in India Hindi
भारतीय शिक्षा व्यवस्था का विकास Development of Indian Education System in Hindi. भारतीय शिक्षा का वास्तविक स्त्रोत वैदिक काल से ही मिलता है। यह वह काल था, जहां ...
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भारत में शिक्षा प्रणाली की चुनौतियां - Education system in India in Hindi, नये भारत के लिए शिक्षा एजेंडा, आधुनिक शिक्षा प्रणाली, उपायों के बारे में जानें!
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India has exam system, not education system : CN Rao; Government official education website. India Education; Free guidebook offering a wide overview over education and studying in India; E-Learning Division of the Department of IT, Ministry of Communications & IT, Govt. of India; India International Education Fair Website.
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Evolution of educational thought in India (लेखक - भँवर लाल द्विवेदी) Education in Karnataka through the ages by Jyotsna Kamat; भारतीय शिक्षा का इतिहास और विकास (अच्युत कुमार)
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भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली में कौन कौन सी समस्याएँ हैं? Problems in the Indian education system? Hindi me, चुनौतियाँ, विभिन्न शिक्षा नीतियों के बारे में पढ़ें!
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भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध

By विकास सिंह

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध, essay on indian education system in hindi (200 शब्द)

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध, essay on indian education system in hindi (300 शब्द)

रचनात्मक सोचने की जरूरत है:

सर्वांगीण विकास की आवश्यकता:

निष्कर्ष:

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध, indian education system essay in hindi (400 words)

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध, indian education system essay in hindi (500 words)

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली के गुण और दोष:

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध, essay on indian education system in hindi (600 शब्द)

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली के दोष:

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली में सुधार के तरीके (changes needed in indian education system)

निष्कर्ष :

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भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली पर निबंध Essay on Education System in India (Hindi)

भारत की वर्तमान शिक्षा प्रणाली Current Education System of India in Hindi

भारतीय शिक्षा व्यवस्था का विकास Development of Indian Education System in Hindi

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली के गुण Features of Education System in India (Hindi)

भारतीय शिक्षा प्रणाली के दोष Defects of Education System in India (Hindi)

निष्कर्ष Conclusion

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