Social Diversity-Contemporary India and Education

1. NARARETH COLLEGE OF EDUCATION FOR WOMEN
Course : Contemporary India and
Education
Teacher Educator : Mrs.Devi Bavani
Topic : 1. Social Diversity in india
2. Marginalized groups
(Women , Dalits & Tribes )
Sherin Shiney Jha
Subalakshmi.G
Sujeetha.R
Vinothini.P
B.Ed – I Year
Mathematics Department
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2. SOCIAL DIVERSITY IN INDIA
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3. DEFINITION OF SOCIAL DIVERSITY
Social diversity is a feature of a society
which is determined by caste, class,
religion, occupational pattern in a given
territory. In the social sphere, the general
customs and manners of the people greatly
differ. People of different regions use
different types of dresses, their eating
habits and customs differ. Certain people
are quite civilized while others are very
backward in their customs.
In short, “India is a museum of cults and
customs, creeds and cultures, faiths and
tongues, racial types and social systems”. 3

4. Regional Diversity
ReligiousDiversity
RacialDiversity
Caste Diversity
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5. 1. Early education in India commenced under the
supervision of a guru or prabhu.
2. The Brahmans learned about scriptures and
religion.
3. Kshatriya were educated in the various aspects of
warfare.
4. The Vaishya caste learned commerce and other
specific vocational courses.
Education in Early History
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6. 6. The other casteShudras, were more of working class and they were trained
on skills to carry out these jobs.
7. Students were expected to follow strict monastic guidelines prescribed by
the guru and stay away from cities in ashrams.
8. Among the Heterodox schools of belief were the Jain and Buddhist schools.
9. Heterodox Buddhist education was more inclusive and aside of the monastic
orders the Buddhist education centres were urban institutes of learning such as
Taxila and Nalanda where grammar, medicine, philosophy, logic, metaphysics,
arts and crafts etc.
10. Outside the religious framework, kings and princess were educated in the
arts and sciences related to government: politics (danda-nıti), economics
(vartta), philosophy (anvıksiki), and historical traditions (itihasa).
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7. 11. The Rigveda mentions female poets
called brahmavadinis,
specifically Lopamudra and Ghosha.
12. By 800 BCE women such
as Gargi and Maitreyi were mentioned as scholars in
the religious Upnishads.
13. Maya, mother of the historic Buddha, was an
educated queen while other women in India
contributed to writing of the Pali canon.
14. Out of the composers of the Sangam
literature 154 were women.However, the education
and society of the era continued to be dominated by
educated male population.
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8. Early Common Era—High Middle Ages
1. The Buddhist institutions of learning were slowly giving way to a resurgent
tradition of Brahmanism during that era.
2. Scholars from India also journeyed to China to translate Buddhist texts.During
the 10th century a monk named Dharmadeva from Nalanda journeyed to China
and translated a number of texts.
3. Examples of royal patronage include construction of buildings under
the Rastrakuta dynasty in 945 CE. The institutions arranged for multiple
residences for educators as well as state sponsored education and
arrangements for students and scholars.
4. Similar arrangements were made by the Chola dynasty in 1024 CE, which
provided state support to selected students in educational
establishments.Temple schools from 12–13th centuries included the school at
the Nataraja temple situated at Chidambaram which employed 20 librarians, out
of whom 8 were copiers of manuscripts and 2 were employed for verification of
the copied manuscripts.The remaining staff conducted other duties, including
preservation and maintained of reference material.
5. Also by the 12th century, invasions from India's northern borders disrupted
traditional education systems as foreign armies raided educational institutes,
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9. 6. The education system under the rule
of Akbar adopted an inclusive approach with
the monarch favoring additional courses:
medicine, agriculture, geography, and texts
from other languages and religions, such
as Patanjali's work in Sanskrit.
7. The traditional science in this period was
influenced by the ideas
of Aristotle, Bhāskara II and Charaka.
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10. Late Middle Ages—Early Modern
Era1. Portrait of a young Indian scholar, Mughal miniature by Mir
Sayyid Ali, ca. 1550.
With the advent of Islam in India the traditional methods of
education increasingly came under Islamic influence.
2. Pre-Mughal rulers such as Qutb-ud-din Aybak and other Muslim
rulers initiated institutions which imparted religious knowledge.
3. Scholars such as Nizamuddin Auliya and Moinuddin
Chishti became prominent educators and established Islamic
monasteries.
4.Students from Bukhara and Afghanistan visited India to study
humanities and science.
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11. 5.Islamic institution of education in India included
traditional madrassas and maktabs which taught
grammar, philosophy, mathematics, and law
influenced by the Greektraditions inherited
by Persia and the Middle East before Islam spread
from these regions into India
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12. Traditional Schools
1. Prior to the British era, education in India commenced under the
supervision of a guru in traditional schools called gurukuls.
2. The gurukuls were supported by public donation and were one of the
earliest forms of public school offices. However these Gurukuls catered
only to the Upper castes of the Indian society and the overwhelming
masses were denied any formal education.
3. Before the introduction of British education, indigenous education was
given higher importance from early time to colonial era.
4. In every Indian village which has retained anything of its form.the
rudiments of knowledge are sought to be imparted, there is not a child,
except those of the outcasts (who form no part of the community), who is not
able to read, to write, to cipher; in the last branch of learning, they are
confessedly most proficient.
— Ludlow, British India,1858
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13. According to an 1823-6 survey in the Madras Presidency,
11,758 schools, and 740 centers for higher education were
identified in the Presidency, and with the exception of a few
European missionary schools were funded and managed
at a community level.
Educational Indstitutions-1823
Schools
Higher Education
Centers
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14. The number of students was recorded as 161,667, with 157,644 boys,
and 4,023 girls
0
20,000
40,000
60,000
80,000
100,000
120,000
140,000
160,000
180,000
Boys Girls
Total
Total
1823
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15. England Madras presidency
population 12,000,000 (1816) 12,350,941 (1823)
No of student attening
schools
875,000/1,500,000
(approx)
161,667
Educational comparison of England and Madras presidency of India
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16. Colonial Era-British India
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17. First Five year Plan - 1951-56
UGC - 1956
Second Five year Plan - 1956-61
NCERT - 1-Sep-1961
Third Five year Plan - 1961-66
Kothari Commission - 1968
Adult Education - 1978
National Policy of Education - 1986
SCERT - 1988
Ninth Five Year Plan - 1997-2002
SSA - 2001
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18. Development of Education in India after
Independence
1.Government decided to provide free and
compulsory education to all children up to the age
of 14. But this aim could not be achieved yet.
2. In First Five Year Plan 7.9% of total plan outlay
was allocated for education.
3. In Second and Third Plan, the allocations were
5.8% and 6.9% of the total plan outlay.
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19. 4. In Ninth Plan only 3.5% of the total outlay was
allocated for education.
5. To streamline the education, the Govt.
implemented the recommendations of Kothari
Commission under ‘National Policy on Education’
in 1968. The main recommendations were
universal primary education. Introduction of new
pattern of education, three language formula,
introduction of regional language in higher
education, development of agricultural and
industrial education and adult education.
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20. 6. To combat the changing socio-economic needs of the
country, Govt. of India announced a new National Policy on
Education in 1986. Universalisation of primary education,
vocationalisation of secondary education and specialisation
of higher education were the main features of this policy.
7. National Council of Educational Research and Training
(NCERT) at National level and State Council of Educational
Research and Training (SCERT) at State level were
established to maintain the standard of education. University
Grants Commission (UGC) was instituted to determine the
standard of higher education.
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21. The following points explain the development
of education in India after independence:
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22. 1. Expansion of General Education:
During the period of planning there has been expansion of
general education. In 1951, the percentage of literacy was
19.3. In 2001 the literacy percentage increased to 65.4%.
The enrolment ratio of children in the age group of 6-11
was 43% in 1951 and in it became 100% in 2001.
Primary education – been free and compulsory. Midday
meal has been started in schools since 1995 to check
drop-out rate. The number of primary schools has risen by
three times from 2.10 lakh (1950-51) to 6.40 lakhs (2001-
02). There were only 27 universities in 1950-51 which
increased to 254 in 2000-01.
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23. 2. Development of Technical Education:
Besides general education, technical education plays important role in human
capital formation. The Govt. has established several Industrial Training Institutes,
Polytechnics, Engineering colleges and Medical and Dental colleges, Management
institutes etc.
These are given below:
(a) Indian Institute of Technology-Mumbai, Delhi, Kanpur, Chennai, Khargpur,
Roorkee and Gauhati
(b) National Institute of Technology (NIT)- otherwise known as Regional
College of Engineering (REC). These are 17 in number throughout the country.
(c) Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Kolkata, Lucknow,
Indore and Kozhikode.
(d) Medical education-There were only 28 medical colleges in the country in
1950-51. There were 165 medical and 40 dental colleges in the country in 1998-99.
(e) Agricultural education-agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry and
veterinary sciences
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24. 3. Women education:
In India, literary among women was quite low. It
was 52% according to 2001 census. While the
literacy among men was 75.8%. Women education
was given top priority in National Policy on
Education. Many State Governments have exempted
the tuition fee of girl’s up to university level.
Separate schools and colleges have been established
to raise level of literacy among women.
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25. 4. Vocational education:
National Policy of Education, 1986, aims at
vocationalisation of secondary education. Central
Govt. has been giving grants to State Governments
to implement the programme since 1988.
Agriculture, Pisciculture, diary, poultry, typing,
electronics, mechanical and carpentry etc. had been
included in higher secondary curriculum.
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26. 5. Growth of higher education:
In 1951, there were 27 universities. Their
number increased to 254 in 2001. In Orissa
state, there was only one university in 1951.
Now there are 9 universities.
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27. 6. Non-formal education:
This scheme was launched on an experimental basis from
the Sixth plan and on regular basis from Seventh plan. The
aim was to achieve universal elementary education to all
children in the age group of 6-14 years. The scheme was
meant for those children who cannot attend schools
regularly and for full time due to poverty and pre-
occupation with other works.
The Central Govt. is providing assistance to State Govt. and
voluntary organisation to implement the scheme. Non-
formal education centres have been set up in remote rural
areas, hilly and tribal areas and in slums. These impart
education to children of 6-14 age group.
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28. 7. Encouragement to Indian Language and Culture:
After the adoption of National Policy of Education
1968, regional language became the medium of
instruction in higher education. Syllabus on science
and technology, dictionaries, books, and Question
Papers are translated into regional languages. Indian
history and culture have been included in school and
college curriculum.
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29. 8. Adult education:
Simply speaking adult education refers to the education for the
illiterate people belonging to the age group of 15-35 years. The
National Board of Adult Education was established in the First Five
Year Plan. The village level workers were assigned the job of
providing adult education. The progress remained not too good.
The National Adult Education Programme was started in 1978. The
programme is considered as a part of primary education. National
Literary Mission was also started in 1988 to eradicate adult
illiteracy particularly in rural areas.
The Centre gives assistance to states, voluntary organisations and
some selected universities to implement this programme. There
were 2.7 lakh adult education centres working in the country in
1990-91. This programme helped to raise the literacy rate to
65.38% in 2001.
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30. 9. Improvement of Science education:
Central Govt. started a scheme for the improvement
of science education in schools in 1988. Financial
assistance is given to provide science kits, up
gradation of science laboratories, development of
teaching material, and training of science and
mathematics teachers. A Central Institute of
Educational Technology (CIET) was set up in NCERT
to purchase equipment for State Institutes of
Educational Technology.
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31. 10. Education for all:
According to 93rd Amendment, education for all has been
made compulsory. The elementary education is a
fundamental right of all children in the age group of 6-14
years. It is also free. To fulfill this obligation Sarva
Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) has been launched.
The above discussion makes it clear that a lot of
development in education has been made in India after
Independence. There is wide growth in general education
and higher education. Efforts have been made to spread
education among all sections and all regions of the
country. Still our education system is ridden with
problems.
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32. Reservation in India
1. The system of reservation in India is comprising series
of measures, such as reserving access to seats in the
various legislatures, to government jobs, and to
enrollment in higher educational institutions.
2. The reservation nourishes the historically
disadvantaged castes and tribes, listed as Scheduled
Castes and Scheduled tribes (SCs and STs) by
the Government of India
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33. Historical Background of Reservation in India [ Dalits &
Tribes ]
BEFORE INDEPENDENCE1. Introduced reservation in favour of non-Brahmin and backward
classes, much of which came into force in 1902. He provided
free education to everyone and opened several hostels to
make it easier for them to receive it.
2. 1902 measures created 50 per cent reservation for backward
communities.
3. The British Raj introduced elements of reservation in
the Government of India Act of 1909 and there were many other
measures put in place prior to independence.
4. A significant one emerged from the Round Table Conference
of June 1932, when the Prime Minister of Britain, Ramsay
MacDonald, proposed the Communal Award, according to which
separate representation was to be provided
for Muslims, Sikhs, Indian Christians, Anglo-Indians,
and Europeans.
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34. The depressed classes, roughly corresponding to
the STs and SCs, were assigned a number of
seats to be filled by election from constituencies in
which only they could vote, although they could
also vote in other seats. The proposal was
controversial: Mahatma Gandhi fasted in protest
against it but many among the depressed classes,
including their leader, B. R. Ambedkar, favoured it.
After negotiations, Gandhi reached an agreement
with Ambedkar to have a single Hindu electorate,
with Dalits having seats reserved within it.
Electorates for other religions, such as Islam and
Sikhism, remained separate. This became known
as the Poona Pact. 34

35. After independence
1. After the independence of India in 1947 there were some major initiatives in
favour of the STs, SCs and after 1980s in favor of OBCs.(Other Backward
Castes). The country's affirmative action programme was launched in 1950
and is the oldest such programme in the world.
2. A common form of caste discrimination in India was the practice of
untouchability. SCs were the primary targets of the practice, which was outlawed
by the new Constitution of India.
3. In 1954, the Ministry of Education suggested that 20 per cent of places should
be reserved for the SCs and STs in educational institutions with a provision to
relax minimum qualifying marks for admission by 5 per cent wherever required.
In 1982, it was specified that 15 per cent and 7.5 per cent of vacancies in public
sector and government-aided educational institutes should be reserved for the
SC and ST candidates, respectively.
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36. 4. A significant change began in 1978 when the Mandal Commission was
established to assess the situation of the socially and educationally backward
classes. The commission did not have exact population figures for the OBCs
and so used data from the 1931 census, thus estimating the group's
population at 52 per cent. In 1980 the commission's report recommended that
a reserved quota for OBCs of 27 per cent should apply in respect of services
and public sector bodies operated by the Union Government. It called for a
similar change to admissions to institutes of higher education, except where
states already had more generous requirements. It was not until the 1990s that
the recommendations were implemented in Union Government jobs.
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37. 5. The Constitution of India states in article 15(4): "Nothing in [article 15] or in
clause (2) of article 29 shall prevent the State from making any special provision
for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of
citizens of or for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes." Article 46 of
the Constitution states that "The State shall promote with special care the
educational and economic interests of the weaker sections of the people, and, in
particular, of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, and shall protect
them from social injustice and all forms of exploitation.“
6. The Supreme Court of India ruled in 1992 that reservations could not exceed
50 per cent, anything above which it judged would violate equal access as
guaranteed by the Constitution. It thus put a cap on reservations.However, there
are state laws that exceed this 50 per cent limit and these are under litigation in
the Supreme Court. For example, in the State of Tamil Nadu the caste-based
reservation stands at 69 per cent and applies to about 87 per cent of the
population.
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38. 38