We have fared well in bringing children to the school while failing big time at bringing them to colleges for higher education at affordable rates.
“Education, beyond all other devices of human origin, is the great equalizer of the conditions of men, the balance-wheel of the social machinery” – Horace Mann
Education is the most important ladder for the poor of India in fulfilling their aspirations to become wealthy. It brings financial prosperity and success. When it comes to India, only a minority of the people have enough income to provide their children with a good education. India’s performance in educating her children is dismal. The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) took a look at the educational achievements of students from rural districts found that 48 percent of class five students could read a class two text.
One can argue that in India there is little to worry about school education with the enactment of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act in 2009. However, this is not true. The Act “is destroying the school system and hurting aspirational Indians” according to the Centre for Civil Society, a New Delhi based think-tank.
Mere schooling is not enough, one needs to have a higher education to truly become prosperous. According to data from the National Sample Survey in 2014, about 45 million school students aged between 18 and 24 are too poor to pursue higher education.
NOTE: Students are in the age group of 18-24 years
This trend could create long-term and damaging repercussions for our country as it will negatively affect the future productivity and income of our children. It will also impede the growth of scientific research and development in the country, making us all worse off.
One way to tackle this situation is to encourage budget private colleges and universities. People have already started preferring private colleges to government colleges exactly the way it is already happening in school education in India.
Indians prefer private education
2016 All India Survey on Higher Education conducted by the Ministry of Human Resources and Development revealed that as many as 34.2 million students were enrolled in higher education institutions in the academic year 2014-15, Out of those, nearly 22 million students (65 percent) were enrolled in private institutions. The study also revealed that private sector accounts for more than 76 percent of total institutions of higher learning in India.
While government-owned institutions for higher education increased from 11,239 in 2006-07 to 16,768 in 2011-12 (49 percent), private sector institutions recorded a 63 percent growth during the same period, growing from 29,384 to 46,430.
Source: National Sample Survey Report, 2014; figures in percentage
It is quite evident that we have fared well when it comes to bringing children to the school while failing big time at bringing them to colleges for higher studies at affordable rates.
Dhan Vapasi, the return of the public wealth of India to all Indians, will help in resolving the crisis in the Indian education sector. With more money in the hands of the people, they will be able to send their children to pursue a good education. An educated workforce will make India prosperous, not only for a few years but for centuries, through scientific research and innovation.
