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• GS 2 || Governance & Social Justice || Human Development || Education

Why in the news?

Maharashtra Minister of State for Education Bacchu Kadu directed the state education department to create a “plan” to take action against private schools allegedly charging excessive fees and repeatedly violating state regulations on school education.

Privatization of Education in India:

• Privatization of education is the transfer of activities, assets, and responsibilities in the area of education from Government and Public Institutions to private individual and agencies.
• As Nelson Mandela once said, “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”.
• It is an important source of employment, income, and standard of living. That is why, today, it is essential to have an adequate higher education.
• Higher education has witnessed higher degree privatization in subjects like engineering, pharmacy, education, medicine, law, business management, allied science, biotechnology, biochemistry, and information technology.
• A majority of the institutions have been established by the private sector to meet the demands of the young generation with adequate scope for employment opportunities.
• Government-aided institutions are yet to strive toward the new challenges thrown up by the private sector.

Positive impact of Privatization of school:

• Reduce distance of school: Privatization of school increases the number of in rural and urban areas. So, the distance is decreased between educational institutions and residential places of students.
• Relief of financial burden: Privatization of school decreases the financial burden of the state and the central governments
• To provide of quality education: Better quality education can also be provided by private sector. As we know, government is facing acute shortage of funds and grants given by government for education has been cut on a drastic scale and on the other side demand of education is increasing, then only feasible way is privatization of education. So this is the major factor responsible for it
• Shaping the curriculum in accordance to global, national and local needs: Privatization of school will definitely expose the students and teachers to international education standards thereby throwing better opportunities for employment on a global basis as well as national and local basis
• Free from political intervention: Private schools are almost independent of political interventions.
• Competition: Privatization of education brings about radical structural changes providing momentum in the competitive sectors.

Negative impact of Privatization of school:

• High Cost of Education: Privatization always increases the cost of education. The authority collects different fees to increase its income. This situation is beyond the fixed capacity of poor and middle class income groups
• Poor Faculty: The main object behind privatization of education is said to be quality improvement, this object is not fulfilled. In the majority of educational institutions quality compromise is observed.
• Violation of right to education: Privatization of schools has resulted in violation of right to education. It has created a big problem in our country
• Focus on quantity: Private schools have their focus on quantity and not on quality. This is the reason that quality of school education is degrading

Recommendations:

• Change the business mind: It must be kept in our mind that to provide education is not a business, but it is a noble service, and so private schools should also take affirmative action’s to help weaker sections to get better quality education. State can make it compulsory by suitable legislations
• Monitoring by state: Privatization of schools cannot be opposed totally. State may allow Private institutions to provide education but such institutions should be subject to control of state
• Transparency: Transparency of all receipts and accountability of all expenditures should be ensured in all private schooling.
• Renovation to innovation: must focus more on making the govt. school is more functional and brings more advanced technologies in school, proper infrastructure, sanitation to proper environment for learning will attract students to school for better learning and schools in rural areas will be as like in cities same like private school. Example of such change is Delhi education model

Delhi model of education: Quality education is a necessity, not a luxury:

• The Delhi model of education has gotten a lot of publicity in the last five years, both in Delhi and elsewhere. It developed a model that consists of five main components and is backed by approximately a quarter of the state budget.
• This model’s validation now clears the way for the next set of reforms. For far too long, the nation has had two distinct educational models: one for the upper classes and another for the lower classes. The Delhi government attempted to close the distance. Its philosophy is based on the idea that good education is a requirement, not a privilege.

Key components of the model recent Delhi model of education:

The first component of the education model is the Transformation of school infrastructure:

• Dilapidated school buildings that lack basic amenities not only reflect the government’s indifference, but also dramatically reduce teacher engagement and student enthusiasm.
• The government attempted to change this by constructing modern, attractively built classrooms with furniture, smart boards, staff rooms, auditoriums, labs, libraries, and sports facilities, among other things.

Government scheme for better education systems:

• Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan
• Padhe Bharat Badhe Bharat
• The Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA)
• Atal Tinkering Laboratories
• Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (Rusa)
• Ucchatar Avishkar Yojana
• Unnat Bharat Abhiyaan
• Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN)
• Vishwajeet Scheme
• UDAAN (Giving Wings to Girl Students)
• SWAYAM: Study Webs of Active-Learning for Young Aspiring Minds
• Swayam Prabha
• The National Digital library of India (NDLI)
• National Academic Depository
• Saakshar Bharat Programme goes beyond ‘3’ R’s (i.e. Reading, Writing & Arithmetic); for it also seeks to create awareness of social disparities and a person’s deprivation on the means for its amelioration and general wellbeing.

Education in India-Constitutional Provisions:

• Part IV of Indian Constitution, Article 45 and Article 39 (f) of Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP), has a provision for state-funded as well as equitable and accessible education.
• The 42nd Amendment to the Constitution in 1976 moved education from the State to the Concurrent List.
  • The education policies by the Central government provides a broad direction and state governments are expected to follow it. But it is not mandatory, for instance Tamil Nadu does not follow the three-language formula prescribed by the first education policy in 1968.
  • The 86th Amendment in 2002 made education an enforceable right under Article 21-A.
• Related Laws:
  • Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009 aims to provide primary education to all children aged 6 to 14 years and enforces education as a Fundamental Right.
  • It also mandates 25% reservation for disadvantaged sections of the society where disadvantaged groups

Conclusion:

Though privatization has made considerable contributions and alternatives in education sector but it does uplift the burden of public schools and also do not comply with Human rights regulations. It is observed that it has intensified the sector by introducing complex infrastructure and modern techniques of teaching. It has raised a need to monitor the schools on the basis of equality, monetary demands and to maintain the human rights regime.

Mains oriented question:

Privatization of education is need of an hour but with privatization brings lot of confusion, corruption and mistrust with itself. Explain the statement in detail. (200 words)