2. South Asia (SA)has one fifths of the world population
Has the largest number of people living below poverty line
Economic and social development cannot be achieved without
optimizing human resources for which education is the critical
factor.
Illiteracy is one of the major causes impeding the development
of the vast human resources of SA and the major factor for the
region’s economic backwardness and social imbalance.
Twin problems : lack of access and excellence in education.
Enrolment of children of primary school age far below universal
level, with high levels of dropout. Situation at the secondary
and tertiary level even worse.
SAARC emphasized the importance of promotion of education
Some facts….
2
3. • Quantity- access
• Quality- excellence
• Disparities- equity & inclusion
• Costs- public, private, PPP , student financing
• Employability and Entrepreneurship
• Collaborations, Research and innovations
• Cross border higher education
• Technology in and for education
Areas of concern…..
3
4. School Education
4
Universal access and good quality, free and compulsory education to all
children in the age group of 6-14 years. GER for Elementary (I-VIII): 95.0
•Retention: Reduce drop-out rates at elementary level and percentage of out
of school children.
•Increase GER at secondary level and senior secondary level
GER for Secondary (IX-X): 73.6
GER For Senior Secondary (IX-XIII): 49.1
•Reduce drop-out rate .
•Raise over-all literacy and the reduce the gender gap in literacy
• Strong focus on learning outcomes
• Addressing residual, access and equity gaps
• Greater focus on Children With Special Needs (CSWN)
• Focus on Teacher Education
• Linkages with other sectors and programmes
•Partnership with community based organisations.
5. 5
• Children to master basic reading and numeracy skills by class-II and skills
of critical thinking, expression and problem solving by class-V.
• Ensure quality secondary education with relevant skills including basic
competency in Mathematics, Science, in Languages and Communication.
• Implement common curricula and syllabi of nationally accepted standard
for Science, Maths and English in all schools in the country.
• Develop life skills including skills of critical and constructive thinking, use of
ICT, organisation & leadership and community services.
School Education- Cont’d
6. Rising demand for higher education not being met.
Need to ensure equity in access.
Involvement of private sector- robust regulation required.
Universities rank poorly on international rankings-need to raise
standards and create quality assurance mechanisms
Poor employability of graduates- Disconnect between the market
needs and higher education institutions has resulted in high levels of
graduate unemployment and underemployment.
Weak governance and low salaries are issues in retaining and
attracting the sector’s top talent.
Female representation in leadership is low
New generation of Diaspora and indigenous talent.
Is there a potential for foreign providers to play a role?
Some facts…. Higher Education
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7. Despite the diversity in the region, HE systems face similar problems
and challenges.
All countries confronted with similar domestic challenges.
Many of the systems are undergoing restructuring in areas - funding,
resources, governance , curriculum development & student financing
One of the key developments is the increasing growth of trans-
national education and cross-border exchange.
Education is just one area of priority in South Asian economies,
competing with several other policy agenda issues.
Education is a “public good”, hence difficult to liberalise the sector
HigherEducation in the region
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8. 8
665 Universities, 35829 Colleges and 11,443 Other
Institutions (Diploma Level)
Presence of a large private sector; (57 % enrolment in
private aided & unaided institutions)
Total students enrolment- 29.6 Million
GER : 21.1 % presently; Target 30% by 2020
Public Expenditure on Education as percentage of GDP –
3.80 %
Public Expenditure on Higher Education as percentage of
GDP – 1.22%
The State share of expenditure on education as percentage
of GDP is declining and there is a need to step up their
investment in education
Overview of Higher Education in India
9. Strengths and Challenges
Demographic dividend in an
ageing world Challenges of Expansion,
Equity and Excellence
12% of population in the year
2011 in 18-24 age group
12.8 million young persons are
joining the working class every
year
Labour force in India to increase
by 32 per cent over the next 20
years, while it will decline by 4.0
per cent in industrialized
countries and by nearly 5.0 per
cent in China.
Large productive population –
75% by 2025
Need to increase access
Reducing regional,
social, gender
imbalances
Faculty shortages
Less number of
accredited institutions
Low emphasis on
research and poor
research output
Low employability skills9
10. UNESCO reports that in South Asia there are just 74
females enrolled in tertiary education for every 100
males.
As a whole, the region has made promising progress in
improving women’s access to higher education.
There has been a considerable narrowing of the gap
between male and female enrolment at all levels.
Female participation
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11. • Quality of education a major concern in both the private and public
sectors.
• Need for specific policy and a transparent, comprehensible set of
rules and regulations for private education .
• Dearth of effective accreditation and quality assurance mechanisms-
Finding viable solutions for credible, independent accreditation
bodies is a high priority across the region.
• Standards in higher education are variable across the region, but SA
as a whole remains well below the average in international rankings.
• Retaining talent is an issue in knowledge sectors, and the problem is
more acute in higher education in SA- low salary levels
• Issues of weak governance.
• Transitory nature of leadership—high turnover amongst senior
leadership makes it difficult for universities to implement long-term
strategies for higher education.
Quality of Education
11
12. • An unfortunate by-product of the low quality of higher education—
both for the economies and the students themselves—is the low
employability of graduates who emerge from the universities.
• Though there are exceptions, as a general rule, employers in South
Asia are more inclined towards graduates from the large public
universities.
• In particular, there has been criticism of the teaching methodology
and students (even at tertiary levels) are not necessarily taught how
to conduct independent research
Employability
12
13. Policy-makers widely recognise the contribution that foreign
providers can offer both to increase capacity and improve
quality,
However, each country in the region has a different view
regarding the participation of foreign players.
There is a smattering of international universities across South
Asia,
the involvement of universities is predominantly in the form of
collaborations with existing institutions, though not always with
the established public universities.
Such arrangements currently exist in all countries in the region.
Foreign participation
13
14. Shared core objectives :
o Strengthen and upgrade the quality of higher education on offer
o Expand capacity – including through private or non-state higher
education provision, and better regulation of the sector
o Expand accessibility
o Improve and build the independence of accreditation and quality
assurance systems
o Develop research, especially in science and technology
o Improve standards of governance and enhance institutional
autonomy
o Leverage information and communications technology to expand
accessibility to institutions and resources -mobile penetration,
MOOCs
o Ensure the marketplace relevance of degrees and improve
employability levels for graduates
Common goals and strategies
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15. • Massification of Higher Education
• Diversification of Higher Education
• Internationalization of Higher Education
• Marketization of Higher Education
• Institutional Restructuring
• Trading Autonomy for Accountability
• Academic Restructuring and Strengthening Research
Capacities
• Changing Academic Profession
Global Trends of HigherEducation
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16. Changing landscapes in education-I
16
Free and compulsory elementary education -Rights based approach and student
entitlements;
Shift from literacy and basic education to secondary, higher, technical and
professional education;
Emphasis on quality at all levels;
Importance of skills /vocational education and equivalence with formal
education qualifications;
Charter a path for socially and regionally equitable education ;
Need for innovative ways of student financing;
Empowering teachers, address teacher shortages at all levels;
21st
Century challenges – globalization and liberalization ;
Education in human values , fostering social responsibility , engaging with
community;
17. Changing landscapes in education- II
17
Evolve relevant curriculum with changes in learning theories and
pedagogic practices;
Importance of use of technology in education ;
Lifelong education through distance and open education;
Multi-disciplinary and inter-disciplinary nature of learning and
knowledge;
Focus on research & innovation;
Participation of local bodies and civil society;
Autonomy & Accountability;
Efficient use of public resources and ways of enhancing private
investment and funding.
