CONCLUSION TOWARDS FULFILLING A COMMITMENT
India has scaled a good part of the peak of primary education. Yet, the remaining climb is the most difficult and arduous. Though primary enrolment rates have steadily increased over the past 5 decades, there is also a big backlog of out-of-school children in the age group of 6-14.
Admittedly, if India is to reach the critical threshold of education where high economic growth rates and social development are to be sustained, efforts to ensure EFA have to be continued on a war footing.
Efforts so far have fallen short of the targets of EFA. However, given the thrust to increase enrolment and retention of children in schools through measures such as school mapping, microplanning, community mobilisation and programmes such as school meal programme, DPEP and a host of others, it is expected that shortfalls will decline and targets will be achieved at a faster rate.
Measures to improve learning achievement of all children at the primary level would need to be pursued with renewed vigour through teacher training and motivation.
Special concerns in the achievement of UEE include girls, children belonging to SCs and STs, working children, disabled children, children belonging to religious and linguistic minorities, urban poor and above all educationally backward areas. These concerns would need focused attention, well thought out strategies and renewed commitment for their redressal.
India's goal of UEE revolves around three main challenges: expanding access, raising learning achievement and reducing disparities in education outcomes across states and among groups.
The Indian government is geared to meet these challenges through multi-pronged strategies which include:
* making elementary education a fundamental tight
* consolidating the quantitative expansion achieved
* provision of adequate finances for promotion of basic education
* promoting alternative modes of delivery within an integrated perspective
* improved infrastructure for primary schools
* improving the content and process of primary schooling
* quality improvement in primary education
* sharpening the focus on the girl child
* priority attention to SCs and STs
* promotion of education for working children
* extension of efficient delivery of incentives
* meeting nutritional and health needs of children
* social mobilisation and decentralised management for elementary education
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* improving monitoring/evaluation system
* exploiting the potential among NGOs
* partnership of public and private sector.
India faces these challenges with many assets. It has an expanded primary education system that has put the school within reach of most children. Its educational system is endowed with a strong policy framework with significant political commitment from the central and state governments. Its educational programmes are innovative, fairly well financed with a strong focus on quality with equity. Above all, it has an educational and development community increasingly contributing to the solution of problems of primary education. These assets should take India to its destination.
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