Learning reforms

Given the snail’s pace of change in India’s education policy firmament — as many as a dozen Bills relating to higher education are languishing in Parliament alone, some since 2009, while some others have lapsed — the fact that it took the Centre only four years to allow students to transfer credits from one institution or course to another, is welcome. Although it has packaged this as a pro-labour move — allowing those forced to drop out because of a need to work to resume studies — the decision will create healthy competition among institutes for talent, and, at the school level, allow students greater flexibility to switch courses, and free parents from the tyranny of the dreaded ‘transfer certificate’. Credit transfer will also allow students to do a wider range of courses, leading to more rounded and multi-faceted skill development. This is a positive development and one hopes that the Centre will not flag in pushing through other reforms in the education sector, which has been the victim of policy neglect for years.

In theory, India enjoys a substantial demographic dividend — over half the population is under 25 years old and, by the end of this decade, the country will surpass China in tertiary education-age population. In reality, we are currently simply not in any position to cash in on this demographic dividend. Although there will be young and willing workers joining the workforce, most will lack the education or skills to play any meaningful role in the economy. India’s gross enrolment ratio in higher education is under 13 per cent, and only 6 per cent in rural areas. By 2020, the Government wants 30 per cent gross enrolment, which will mean providing 400 lakh university seats, or an additional 140 lakh in the next five years, according to an EY study. Quality is also woeful, with no Indian university figuring in the world’s top 100 rankings in 2014, despite having 659 universities, over 33,000 colleges and nearly 13,000 diploma-awarding institutions. A review by the HRD ministry found 88 of 133 deemed universities sub-par, and recently, the Supreme Court stepped in to strike down a Chhattisgarh law allowing the State government to create universities through a simple notification. We generate 4,500 engineering and sciences PhDs a year, compared to China’s 30,000.

This is a dire scenario and calls for transformative change, of the kind Prime Minister Narendra Modi has promised for the economy. We need to radically reform the education sector, allow the entry of fresh investments, technology and skills regardless of origin, and discard the outmoded shibboleths which have reduced India’s ancient legacy of education excellence to a parody. This will not happen by merely passing new laws alone. Issues of corruption, politicisation of education, an inefficient education bureaucracy and above all, the abysmal lack of funding, all need to be addressed on a war footing. The sector also urgently needs an able and independent regulator. Without this, the dreams of millions of young Indians will remain just that — dreams.

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