India ranks 112th out of 153 countries on the Global Gender Gap Index 2020, and this gender gap can be easily observed in India’s kakshas (classrooms). With millions of girls out of schools for reasons ranging from financial constraints, engagement in domestic work—to early marriage, girls in the country are yet to experience the freedom that their male counterparts have when it comes to accessing their fundamental right to education.
From the Mid-day Meal Scheme to Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, various government policies have been drafted to increase the participation of girls in the education system. Now, with the introduction of the New National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, the Indian education system is set to undergo a significant transformation.
Some of the suggested changes to the existing system of learning include moving away from the traditional concept of rote learning, focusing more on holistic development, integration of vocational training in the curriculum from an earlier stage, and using digital education to build future-ready children.
The NEP sure has some bold ideas. But in a country where only 1 in 100 girls complete her secondary education, does the NEP truly account for the myriad of challenges faced by children, especially girls, across the nation? The glaring digital gender divide that came to the surface amid this pandemic only exacerbates the existing situation.
This Independence Day, Youth Ki Awaaz joined hands with the Malala Fund to discuss the NEP—where it succeeds, and where it falls short in addressing India’s #KakshaCrisis: the gender barrier to quality education.
We spoke with four experts working in the field of education to discuss this burning question: can the NEP 2020 solve India’s Kaksha Crisis?
The panel was hosted by Youth Ki Awaaz’s Prashant Jha and included: Dr Jyotsna Jha, Director, Centre for Budget and Policy Studies (CBPS), Shradha Chettri, Principal Correspondent, Times of India, Kayhan Sanyal, Chief Learning Officer, The PEPNETWORK, and Neha Parti, Associate Director, Secondary Schools, Quest Alliance.
1. Dr Jyotsna Jha Highlights The Inconsistencies And Lack Of Detailing Across The Policy
I think in the New Education Policy, the biggest problem I see is that of inconsistency and detailing. Because of this inconsistency, it is very difficult to understand what this Policy is really aiming at. I’ll give an example of financing. There is only one reference to this, i.e., that 6% of our GDP will go towards education, which our policies have been stating for many years. But the NEP 2020 fails to mention where these funds are going to come from. There is no evidence of the central and state governments working together towards achieving this level of funding.
If you look at the expenditure on education in the past 5–6 years, it has increased nominally, but when you account for inflation, it has actually decreased. When you talk about a Federal system and collaboration, then 75-80% of the expenditure on education is borne by the states. So when they speak of increasing the budget, have the states been consulted? No, this Policy has not been presented in the Parliament. There has been no representation of the state government in the process of drafting this Policy. So the promises made by NEP seem very hollow when it comes to financing.
Now, if we talk about gender, there is a Gender Inclusion Fund, but to me, it seems very superficial. One can get a sense of this by looking at the wording: ‘States can access this Fund for the priorities determined by the Centre’. But gender issues vary across states. If you look at the Policy from 1992, there is an entire chapter on Women’s Equality, which goes deep into the issues of patriarchy and divides, but references to these issues are missing from the New Education Policy.
If the Right to Education Act had been included, there would be no need for the NEP to mention issues related to toilets and other infrastructure—as they are already covered under the RTE. So, I am not very hopeful of the Policy.
2. Shradha Chettri Raises Some Important Concerns Regarding The Policy’s Attention Towards Government Schools
If you look at the CBSE Class 10 board exams in Delhi, around 1,64,000 boys appear for the exams in comparison to 1,44,000 girls. So we can clearly see a gap here, which you can also see in the number of boys and girls appearing for Class 12 board exams. Now when we move to higher education, this gets worse.
So when the NEP does not talk about government schools, there is a lack of equity and a lack of opportunities for girl students. And when you see the enrolment number for girls in private schools and government schools, you can clearly see that more girls are enrolled in government schools. If you don’t talk about improving government schools, where is the equality? Where is the equity? Where are the equal opportunities?
3. Kayhan Sanyal Highlights How The NEP Misses The Opportunity To Leverage Technology To Create Meaningful Interventions And Close Data Gaps
The NEP has set an ambitious target of increasing the GER (Gross Enrolment Ratio) from 26% to 50%. Where the NEP misses the mark is defining what ‘suitable enrolment’ means. Does enrolment mean students will be given devices, or does it mean a holistic transformation of how learning and teaching, in general, are engaged in schools and government schools especially? The only place where the NEP mentions something alluding towards some degree of accountability is that foundational literacy and numeracy is going to be achieved by class 3.
In my experience, many technology and innovation projects around the world help us measure at-risk students. Models are being implemented that look at student data on online platforms, on activities, alongside attendance data, and other factors to identify at-risk students. Being able to leverage technology, to enable teachers and school leadership, to know who are these people at risk, would be a way I think technology and innovation can improve access.
Another critical approach would be the identification of students who have special needs very early on. The MHRD does have a census of sorts for schools, but there is no information on which districts need more special educators. If this information is not available, we are unable to make interventions. So technology innovation as long as it is leveraged towards closing the gaps that we have in areas in which we have no data right now, that would be the first step.
4. Neha Parti On Vocational Education And Its Impact On Girls’ Aspirations
The intention of introducing vocational education in the early days to break the perceptions around knowledge-based subjects and vocational subjects is great. But historically, there is a reason why vocational training has been getting introduced in the 11th-12th standard. Because when you look at the purpose of education, the objective is not just to prepare students for employment and equipping them with skills. There are larger aims of education, especially the holistic development of a child.
The NEP places a lot of importance on democratic values, inclusion, and 21st Century skills. But when you bring vocational training into the early days, it becomes extremely critical to balance all the aims. So while the NEP speaks of this holistic development, somewhere, it has focused too much on bringing skill development at an early stage.
The concept of bag-less days is very urban. If we look at rural, and government schools, children are already experiencing multiple bag-less days—as many don’t have the required books, or the teachers are absent. And while the concept is very urban, the provisions under this concept are very rural like introducing children to skills of an artisan. But given the diversity in the type of schools across the country, there is a need to ensure quality and consistency of this provision. Occupations in a rural setting are very caste-based and male-dominated, so when we look at this from a gendered lens, we need to question the kind of exposure and aspirations that they are trying to build among students.
So, Can The NEP 2020 Solve India’s Kaksha Crisis?
Without proper consideration of the various factors that impede a girls’ access to education, and without a robust implementation plan, this might be difficult. But with this LIVE, Youth Ki Awaaz along with the Malala Fund, launched #KakshaCrisis, a campaign to demand greater dialogue around the provisions of the NEP 2020. The campaign also aims to demand accountability from the Centre and state governments and ensure access to quality and equitable education for all girls.
You can add your voice to the campaign here.
You can watch the full video here:
