OPEN EDUCATION CHANNEL : STRATEGIC DIMENSIONS
Thrust Areas of the 8th 4.01 The document on objectives, thrusts and macro-
Plan dimensions of the 8th Plan approved by the NDC in its meeting
dated 23 - 24 December, 1991, has identified the following
human resource development factors among its priority objec-
tives :
1) Generation of adequate employment opportunities to
achieve full-employment level by the turn of the century.
2) Universalisation of elementary education and complete
eradication of illiteracy in the age group 15 to 35.
4.02 In quantitative terms, this requires (a) coverage of
6.5 crores of children in the age group 6 - 14 in the threefold
dimension of enrolment, retention and achievement, with spe-
cial emphasis on girls and the weaker sections, and (b) cover-
age of 10.3 crore adults in the age group 15 - 35. Literacy,
functionality and awareness which are essential for acquisition
of life- skills and cultivation of the skills and habits of self-
learning are the major components of adult education. These
cover elementary education as well, from the standpoint of the
age-group concerned.
4.03 The 8th Plan sets the target of progressive opportu-
nities for employment for all, in a ten-year time span. Genera-
tion of additional ten million employment opportunities per year
on an average, essentially related to productivity, has been
visualized, with emphasis on the rural sector. Agriculture with
regionwise and cropwise diversification, wasteland develop-
ment, forestry, livestock development, rural non-farm occupa-
tions, utilization of non-conventional energy resources, rural
infrastructure such as roads and other means of communication,
housing, health, education, and other services, urban informal
sector, small scale manufacturing and so on have been identi-
fied as the sectors and areas constituting the basic elements of
an employment-oriented growth strategy. In addition, it is pro-
posed to raise the productivity and income levels of those who
are at present under-employed or employed at very low levels
of skills and income. This would entail the upgradation of
skills for self-employment as also for wage-employment and
improved access to credit and markets. All this effort requires
the foundation of purposeful and flexible education, training
and retraining. The employment generation target spells out the
job that the education. sector would have to undertake. The
challenge is unprecedented. The education system must inno-
vate in the direction of human development in all its manifesta-
tions, from the level of performance in a locally essential job to
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that called for in the interest of the highest contribution to
universal knowledge.
4.04 Placing the country's economy on an even keel is
undoubtedly the topmost priority at present. Controlling popu-
lation growth is an extremely important aspect of this priority.
As research has shown, it is the twin instruments of education
and employment, operating together, that have helped popula-
tion control. Especially, it is literacy and further education of
rural women along with income generation opportunities
through acquisition of skills for using new technologies, that
have had a natural impact on family size, keeping it small and
healthy. As Dr. Nafis Sadik of the UN Fund for Population
Activities has pointed out, "Women's education in itself has a
strong contraceptive effect. Population programmes are part of
the whole development package. It is not an either/ or situ-
ation - social programmes or development." (News Week, Feb.
17, 1992).
At the grassroots level the orientation of development
personnel would be essential for participation in these efforts
for educating and empowering rural women. It is through the
Open System that this retraining of development functionaries
would have to be undertaken. It would have to change their
values, attitudes and help them absorb the correct concept of
development as also the `skills essential for inducing and manag-
ing change based' on people's initiatives and participation.
Therefore', acquisition of skills and knowledge for generating
development would have to be the responsibility of various
groups as an interactive process and this would be a major area
for providing Open Education.
International Commis- 4.05 The 8th Plan approach is convergent with and sub-
sion on Peace and Food stantiated by the strategic statement issued by the International
Commission on Peace and Food in November, 1991, on "Po-
tentials for increasing agricultural productivity in India." The
strategy is based on India's competitive advantages to achieve
poverty eradication goals by 2000 A.D. through intensive agri-
culture, agro-industries, and exports. The programmes would
comprise utilisation of proven technologies, creation of a large
number of new jobs for unskilled and skilled workers, tapping
of the huge market potential, both domestic and foreign, and
generation of value-added materials. Profits and savings for
capital formation would bolster the economy rapidly. It is clear
that for such a strategy to succeed, an appropriately educated
and trained work-force is indispensable.
Role of Education 4.06 The role of the education system in the above con-
System text would be to
a) provide education and training as well as orientation of
various segments of the population so as to achieve wage-
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employment / self-employment managerial skills / entre-
preneurship.
b) build up the capabilities of educational functionaries for
achieving universalisation of elementary education and adult
literacy, in terms of access, retention and educational
achievement;
c) make provision for the substantial demand for secondary
education and, beyond, resulting from UEE;
d) provide diversified academic and vocational education of
good quality at the secondary level and beyond so as to
meet the emerging needs for personal, social, and eco-
nomic growth; and
e) gear various levels and types of educational opportunities
for enhancing the overall quality of life in the national
contexts.
Some Issues in Educa- 4.07 According to the Fifth All-India Education survey,
tion : Participation, Eq- 2.72 crore children were enrolled in classes VI - VIII in 1986,
uity & Quality of which only 48.64 % belonged to the concerned age group.
It also meant that 2.88 crore children were out of school. The
gross number of pupils enrolled in classes IX - X was 1.5
crore. At this stage, more than 2.30 crore children were out of
school. While the gross enrolment has gone up, the enrolment
percentage has gone down from 51.97% in 1981 to 48.5 in
1986. Following this trend, it is anticipated that current enrol-
ment in classes VI - VIII would be 3.25 crore, leaving about
3.98 crore children out of school. The gross number of out of
school children in classes IX - X would be 3.07 crore. Thus,
more than 7.05 crore Indian children of the age-group relevant
to classes VI - X would not be entering school. In addition, the
adult population would contain dropouts from classes IV on-
wards and may profit by further learning opportunities although
they may not wish to or be able to attend any institutional
learning programme.
Equity 4.08 There are four major factors which obstruct equality
of opportunity in the field of education, gender, caste, rural-ur-
ban or regional disparities, and economic deprivation. In 1986,
the enrollment of girls in classes VI - VIII was 38.67 %, and
that of the scheduled castes and tribes was 14.69% and 4.9%,
respectively. The corresponding figure of enrolment of girls,
SCs and STs in classes IX - X are 11.14 % and 3.9%. The
rural-urban disaggregated data reveal that 48.69 % rural chil-
dren are in school as against 66.98% urban children. Enroll-
ment of rural girls is only 32.05%.
Quality Context and 4.09 Education provided at the school stage has remained
Achievement academic and too general to be of use in the varied socio-eco-
nomic situations to which the pupils belong. Linkages with life
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skills and vocational oportunities are not to be found in the
curriculum. Lack of relevance leads to lack of interest in stud-
ies. This is a major reason why of 100 children enrolled in
class I only about 30 go upto class VIII. Of those who reach
class X, only 60- 70% are permitted to appear in the Board
Examinations and,. of these, only about 35% pass, with the
majority in III Division. As matters stand, only 5 or 6 out of
every 100 pupils enrolled in class I ultimately complete school-
education and even of these, 3 - 4 Just scrape through. This
inefficient and unproductive school-system has become well-en-
trenched over 150 years. It has not been subjected to any
public accounting: or social audit and the questions raised
about its relevance, equity and efficiency since Gandhiji's times
to now, have been ignored or not understood, despite the radi-
cal changes effected in the school-systems of many an ad-
vanced and developing country in the past 35 years. As a
consequence, not only have millions of prospective pupils
rejected this system altogether but, what is evident now, there
has been considerable damage done to the country's productive
capacity by wholesale adherance to this system.
4. 10 In this connection, the findings of Pravin Visaria and
others (Pravin Visaria 1991) based on an analysis of 1980-81
and 1987-88 rounds of NSS, are highly instructive, In relation
to age-group 10 to 14, it was seen that almost 50% boys and
girls in rural Gujarat who had never been enrolled in school,
were reportedly "not interested in education". The correspond-
ing percentages for urban boys and girls in Gujarat were close
to 40. In rural and urban Maharashtra, although lack of inter-
est in education was not a frequently reported reason for non-
enrolment, the percentages of out-of-school children giving this
specific reason were close to 40 to 25 respectively. "Lack of
interest in education" amounts to the prospective leaners' ad-
verse judgement upon the current education system. While pov-
erty is known to be a major cause of drop-out, the unsuitability
of the kind of schooling available has now emerged as an
important factor. If this happens in educationally and economi-
cally advanced States like Gujarat and Maharashtra, the situ-
ation in educationally backward States can well be imagined.
From the standpoint of the context of education and the style of
its organisation, particularly at the school-stage, the situation
calls for a critical assessment and corrective measures.
4.11 The social, economic and, in general, the develop-
mental scenario in the macro situation in the country is charac-
terized by disparities. The limited contribution that education
has made to individual and social benefit during all-these years,
should be a matter of deep concern to all since the continuation
of the system in the conventional, and outdated style may
worsen the situation. The present-day institution-bound educa-
tion is marked by linearity, heavy expenditure which does not
give corresponding returns in terms of value-added manpower,
and rejection by prospective learners. Obviously, it was to be
made people-oriented and supportive to development, both in
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context, process and organization. The stage for such action
seems to have arrived.
The Push Factor 4.12 In order to meet the demands of equity and due to
the `push' factor of increasing number of students moving up
from the primary to the middle and from middle to the secon-
dary stages, the facilities for post primary and secondary educa-
tion must be increased. But simply to add to the current
number of about 90,000 secondary schools may not be the
answer to the situation. Apart from financial considerations,
the questions of equity, efficiency and productivity of education
gain paramount importance at the present juncture.
4.13 In the 7th Plan, for less than 45% gross enrollment
in classes VI - X, the total Plan-outlay for secondary education
was Rs. 1830 crores and that for elementary education was
Rs.2828 crores. The micro- level cost assessment for govern-
ment-aided rural schools showed annual expenditure of Rs.700
per child. When supervisory and capaital costs are added, the
actual per student cost to the State would be about Rs. 1000 or
more. The cost per child in the Kendriya Vidyalayas is much
higher. Considering the rate of dropouts and failures, the unit
cost, per pupil succeeding in completing school education, rises
higher still. It is to be admitted that this schooling helps neither
the equity concern nor productivity. Also as it does not meet
the legitimate expectations of those who manage to enter it and
complete it, social discontent and disorganization arise with
great detriment to individual and national life.
Non-Formal Education 4.14 NPE (1986) advocated Non-Formal Education as the
(NFE) second channel of education for those whose conditions do not
permit them to attend full-time formal schooling or those who
reject the conventional school because they have something
more worthwhile to do. Flexibility of timings, curricula
adapted to community-needs and to learner-preferences, par-
ticipatory teaching-learning, are some of the hall-marks of
NFE. However, NFE is at an experimental stage and not yet
released from some of the constraints derived from the full-time
formal system. While this is not the place to examine the
strengths and weaknesses of NFE, primary education through
NFE seems to be accepted by those who are not inclined to
attend or are unable to attend full-time school. The continuation
of NFE is thus essential till it makes a dent on the full-time
formal system in order to give it the necessary flexibility and
relevance. The possibilities of following up NFE in further
academic or semi-vocational courses need to be opened up
urgently so as to set a new trend of `learner-demanded' educa-
tion. Open Education could offer these possibilities.
Open Education as the 4.15 Acquisition of life-skills., vocational skills directly
Third Channel : Some contributing to productivity, and inculcation of habits of self-
basic features and pos- learning, could be the major thrusts of Open Education. An
sibilities education system that is easy of access and responsive to the
needs and conditions of the learners in different localities and
areas, could gradually emerge in a systematic form if Open