Role of Education and Vocational Training in the Rehabilitation of Child Labour

Posted on September 23, 2011 by Admin

Problem of Child-Labour is not new to anybody. ILO under convention 138 makes a distinction between child labour and child work. ‘Child work’ is that participation of children in the economy which does not affect their physical and mental development adversely. This kind of work under ILO guidelines is permitted after reaching 12 years of age.

However ‘Child labour’ is that situation where children work in contravention to above standards. All children below 12 years working in any economic activity are child labourers, those between 12 years to 14 years and are working in hazardous industries are child labourers and all children who work in worst forms of child labour. Worst forms here means enslanement, forcible recruitment, prostitution, trafficking of children, exposure to hazardous work and illegal activities like drug pedding.

There are about 246 million child labourers in the world. Nearly three fourth of these children (171 million) indulge in hazardous works like mines, chemical and pesticides or dangerous machinery.

Though 70% of child workers are employed in agriculture, yet a substantial number of children are employed in illegal and unethical activities. Statistics available at UNICEF website says :

1.2 million children are trafficked.

5.7 million children work as bonded labourers.

1.8 million children are forced into prostitution and pornography

0.3 million in armed conflict

0.6 million in other illicit activities

Asia and pacific region has highest number of child labourers in 5-14 age group. 127.3 million child-workers in all. Sub-Saharan Africa has 48 million child workers where 1 in 3 children below 15 years works.

India has nearly 400 million children in 0-18 age group. The official figure of child labourers in India is 13 million. But a 1996 report (quoting ILO and UNICEF as sources puts the number of child labourers in India anywhere between 14-100 million child labourers.

How can education improve the lot of exploited child – labourers? The answer is in more than one way. Our earlier national and social leaders were very well aware of the reformative, empowering and redistributive effects of Education. Gopal Krishna Gokhale, was a strong advocate for the promotion of basic education and as soon as the Indian Council Act of 1909 made it possible to propose legislative reforms he formulated a Pioneering Elementary Education Bill (later rejected by British Administration) which would have enabled local authorities to introduce compulsory education.

Education as a paramount concerns to Raja Ram Mohan Roy, R.N. Tagore, Mahatma Gandhi, and Jai Prakash Narain. Dr. Ambedkar used education as a key element in his strategy to liberate opperessed castes.

No wonder that education can be used to liberate and rehabilitate child workers too.

However modern social and political leaders have given only a lip-service to education. State has often used the myth that Indian parents have little interest in education as a convenient excuse to hid its failures in primary education. While in reality, there have been little efforts towards facilitating parents and children’s involvement in schooling system whereever these efforts have been like in Madhya Pradesh’s “education guarantee scheme” they have  met with overwhelming response. A PROBE TEAM survey found that in India’s most educationally backward areas, the proportion of parents who consider it important for a child to be educated was high as 98% for boys and 89% for girls. This is all in consisting with the constitutional goal of universal elementary education.

However, this does not adsolves parents of their lack of motivation even irresponsibility in some cases, even the parents who say that education is important may ot always translate that interst into practical efforts for sending their children to school on a regular basis. Parental comittment to education is coloured by many prejudices and taboos and social cultural norms as well as the employment opportunities that they perceive to exists for their ward after education, urban parents belonging to non-poor groups are enthusiastic about their children’s education because they see a direct link between their education and employability.

If rural poor parents can be convinced of the increased employability of their children after education they would definitely try sending their children to school. For this vocational education should be included in basic education.

Now we come to the question are child-labour and school exclusion mutually congruent?

Well, it seems to be so, at least in the official version of things. They say that because poor families are economically dependent on child labour that is why there are so many children not going to school but joining labour force.

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However some vacant studies of time utilisation of Indian children reveal that a large majority of out of school children especially in 5-10 age group do very little work. D.P. Chaudhary has coined the term ‘nowhere-children’ to describe the condition of these children i.e. the children who are neither going to school nor doing enough work to be counted as members of labour-force.

While officials say that children do not go to school and take up work, some studies have suggested a different reality. Child-labour is often the result and not the cause of non-attendance in school. Many children say that they work as they have nothing else to do and the schools are not attractive enough while teachers are unsympathetic and absence.

Why children and parents do not find education attractive enough is explained by ‘discouragement effect’. Schools often lack even in basic amenities. Most primary government schools are overcrowded, have a crumbling infrastructure absence of teaching aids, dull teaching methods. There is no special arrangement for slow learners and first generation learners. Basic facilities like drinking water, play ground are missing. To top it all there is abysmally low level of pupil achievement. Survey shows that many students of these schools are not able to read and write even after several years of schooling. These stifling conditions at schools gradually alienate children and their parents from schools and when not in school they are simply available to most pernicious forms of child-labour.

Then there is financial discouragement, sending a child to school demands a lot of effort. School is expensive even if no fee is charged. Costs of text books, uniforms, states, pencils and other items are far from negligible. Many people find them unaffordable and gradually withdraw their children from schooling system.

There are specific problems faced by first generation learners, their parents are incapable of motivating them for studies or assisting them in their homework hence they tend to drop out of studies.

Then there is social discouragement, or the effect of caste and gender prejudices on education. Children of socially backward castes are discouraged from education because they are expected to take up manual jobs. Girls are often discriminated against because they are expected to do household work.

The cumulative effects of different types of social disadvantages are very disturbing for example; a poor girl belonging to a scheduled caste family residing in a backward area has only one chance in five of ever entering the school and no chance of attaining grade 5.

Having discussed external discouragement effect now we will discuss how educational policy in India always set unrealistic goals and why it could never achieve those goals.

Article 45 of Constitution urges the state to provide free and compulsory education up to the age of 14 years by 1960, yet in those days greater emphasis was given to higher education at the cost of primary education.

In 1986 National Policy on Education again declared that by 1995 all children will be provided free and compulsory education up to 14 years of age without giving any details of what practical steps would be taken to make this resolve a reality.

National policy on Education 1992 repeated the old credo albeit with a new time frame “before we enter 21st century”.

Through all this period though physical accessibility of primary schools get reduced (Sixth all India Educational Survey indicates that in 1993 about 947 of the rural population lived within one kilometer of primary schools) yet basic infrastructure facilities are far from being adequate. According to 1999-2000 data from District Information System of Education initiated under District Primary Education Programme (DPEP) :

1)             58% of India’s Primary Schools have at most two teachers.

2)             26% have a pupil teacher ratio of above 60.

3)             61% have no female teacher

4)             35% have a pupil classroom ratio of above 60%.

Hence the quality of education imparted in these schools can be easily imagined.

Apart from quality lack of equity is also a serious problem. Back in 1960′s Kothari Commission set the goal of ‘Same school for all’, but we are as far from that goal to day as we were them. There is a  huge gap between quality and kind of education being imparted at private schools and that ofgovt. schools. This divide persists even within the frame work of government schools. Furthermore, children of different social and religions back ground have different opportunities of education. Often children belonging to disadvantaged sections get disillusioned and leave education and sooner or later join labour force.

To prevent them from joining labour force, we

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Educate the Masses, Lessons from Islamic History

Posted on September 21, 2011 by Admin

A deeper study of the history of the nations reveals that the most effective factor in the rise of a nation is education. The capability to acquire knowledge elevates status of human beings above all other creatures. The creator of the universe taught Adam (AA-Aali Assalaman: Peace Be Upon Him) the knowledge about his creation and advised the angles to prostrate him as token of their submission. This is the secret of superiority of human race. Every human being should realize that he is capable to harness universal powers and conquer the forces of nature if he educates himself.

The source of unlimited knowledge is Allah. There are channels of knowledge from Him. Direct knowledge through his messages which is termed as knowledge of the Book (Kitab). And the wisdom (Hikmah) which shows us how to gain knowledge from the universe.

The knowledge of the book is categorized as religious science while the knowledge gained through wisdom and research is the natural science. The religious science gives answers to the fundamental questions such as purpose of life,the beginning and the end of the universe and teaches us the best morals. Through the natural sciences we learn how the systems of the universe are working and how can we facilitate our life on earth.

The very first educators of human being were the prophets who taught the skills for a successful eternal life. The last of them, Prophet Muhammad (SA-Sallaho Alaihe Wassalam: Peace and Blessing of Allah Be Upon Him) started teaching the verses of Quran as were being revealed to him. The first school of Islam was established in the house of one of his companion, Arkam (RA- Radi Alah Ho Anho: May Allah be pleased with him) on the hill of Safa in Makkah at the early stages of the relevations.

The process of education continued till Muslim migrated to Madina and the first Islamic state was established there. Here the first residential school was established on a platform (Sufa) inside the Masjid-e-Nabvi.

The very first scholars of Islam were educated here. They were the pioneers in spreading of Islam. Once the Holy Prophet (SA) enters the Masjid and observes two groups. One is busy in praying and supplications while the other is engaged in scholarly discussions. He (SA) joins the second group. It is a clear and practical proof that Islam encourages seeking knowledge through discussions and arguments. The Holy Prophet (SA) deputed the non- Muslim prisoners of the battle of Badr to teach reading and writing skills to the Muslims. A prisoner was released when he successfully taught ten persons. Since the mission of the Prophet (SA) was to propagate the word of Allah, he used all available means to accomplish this mission. The skills of reading and writing is necessary to record, preserve and spread knowledge. He (SA) encouraged his companion to gain knowledge even if they have to travel to the place as far as China. These instructions encouraged Muslims to gather knowledge of natural sciences along with the religious science.

In another saying Holy Prophet (SA) declared that acquiring knowledge is obligatory on every Muslim man and woman. This commandment broke down the barriers which allowed access of knowledge to some privileged groups and denied access to less fortunate ones including woman. Because of such emphasis on seeking knowledge, the early Muslims did acquire all kind of knowledge religiously. It was a common faith and a common language which helped spread Islam to almost half of know world during the caliphate of Omar (RA). Under his instructions, a Maktib was established in the Masjid. Here reading and writing was taught along with the Islamic education. Maktab is an Arabic word used for the place of writing. It is also used for modern day office. Word Like (Kitab) Book and Maktaba (Library) have the same root.Sooner these institutions were established throughout Islamic world and brought an educational revolution. During the period of Khalifa Omar (RA), memorization of Sura Al-Baqra, Nisa, Al-Maid and Al-Hajj were encouraged and recited in prayers. In these chapters of Quran, the basis of Islamic laws are explained. The long recitations in the morning and evening prayers in a Masjid is nothing less than the heavenly lectures  of All- Knower delivered through Imam (Leader) and listened by the students with full attention. The Masjid and Maktab system is financed by the government a well as by the individuals. Every well to do Muslim tries to gain perpetual reward by building Masjid and Maktab. It was because of these institutions that the literacy rate in Muslim areas like Spain raised to hundred percent in short period of time at the time when the remaining Europe was in dark ages.

In accordance with Quranic principle,Muslims are allowed to eat whatsoever they like, do what they want to do and gain knowledge of every kind until and unless the limits set in Quran are not crossed. This concept opened their minds to accept knowledge about all creations of the Creator. This freedom inspired Muslims to travel to far off places and collected knowledge beneficial to humanity. This knowledge was inslamized and was taught in the Maktab schools inside Masjid. At initial stage there was no discrimination in religious sciences and natural sciences.Both were taught inside Masjid. Arithmetic was must for calculations of the zakat, inheritance and to conduct business. The knowledge of geography was required for determination of the direction of Makkah.

Children from both genders were admitted at an early age. Education was free for all. Various subjects were taught in the study circles called Halqas. The central Masjid of Cairo had one hundred study circles. The teacher used to sit on chair from where the term “Chairman” was developed which is being used till today. Research “Chair” in modern day universities has the same Muslim root.

The teachers were appointed either by the Caliph (Khalifa) or by a committee of Scholars. A student who had learned reading and writing skills could specialize in the subject of his interest. He could learn the science of Tafseer (Explanation of Quran), Science of Hadith (Sayings of Prophet (SA)), Islamic Law, Fiqah, Language, Astronomy, Mathematics or etc.

The successful students from the Maktab schools entered the Madrassa which was normally attached to the Masjid. Word Madrassa is derived from the Arabic word “Dars” meaning lecture. Hence lectures on specialized subjects were delivered by the renowned professors in the madrassas. These madrassas are equivalent to the collages of modern age. As these are attached to the Masjid, these are supported by the same system of Islamic Trust (Waqf). The Arabic language played a vital role in transferring knowledge to the artisans. Muslims classified knowledge and defined pure and applied sciences. As the knowledge of engineering is based on mathematical science, it is called “Hindsa”. The medical knowledge is more associated with wisdom and hence is called “Hikma”. The basic technical knowledge and skills were taught by the professionals of the relevant fields. The degree was awarded by the professors.

In 1066 AD, Nizam-ul-Mulk, a minister of the caliphate founded Nizamia system of educational institutions which soon became popular throughout the Muslim world and survived for a millennium. Great imam Ghazzali was a professor at one of those institutions.

In 1231 AD, the first medical college was established in Damascus.In 15th century AD, huge complexes consisting of a Masjid with Maktab, a Madrassa, a hospital, a public kitchen and a dining hall became a common sight in the Muslim world. Such a complex was called Kulliya (College). These institutions revolutionized the higher education. As recorded by the great Muslim traveller, Ibn Batuta, not only education was free but food and medical facilities were also provided by the institutions. The talented youth from all walks of life had equal chance of education. The Fatieh college of Istanbul is an example of such an institution. It had 16 schools for teaching science and technology.

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Along with traditional institutions, Muslims pioneered innovative concept of learning. The Bait-ul-Hikma (House of Wisdom) was one of these concepts. Caliph Haroon Rasheed invited renowned scholars from the Muslim world and facilitated them to perform their research work in an intellectual environment. The Muslim scholars translated contemporary knowledge from Greece, China, Persia, India and Egypt into Arabic. Al Kindi, Yuana Ibn Al Batrique Al Tarjaman and Hunain Ibn Ishaq were among the great translators at that time. In fact they Islamized the knowledge into Arabic which started the new era of scientific discoveries in the Muslim world. Bait Al Hikma was the greatest scientific institution of that time. A huge library was established there. Caliph Al Mansoor asked Cesar of Rome for the scientific works of the Greek scientists which were stored in the Roman Empire as these were banned in the Christian world.

Khalifa Haroon Al Rasheed wrote a letter to the King of Sicily demanding all available books in his kingdom. The king honoured the Khalifa with copies of books. Khalifa Al Mansoor brought 100 camels loaded with books from Iran. The Muslim scholars and translators even went to the Emperor of the Byzantine Empire to translate rare books under his custody. Beside Bait Al Hikma, Khalifa Mansoor constructed a great observatory. This was the most modern scientific research centre of that age. Of course, during the golden age of Islam, Muslims were a thousand years ahead of time compared to the rest of the world. Khalifa Al Mamun established 332 institutes of scientific studies in the Khilafa. These institutes produced the greatest

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Online Education Background Checks: Employers and Student’s First Choice to Legitimacy!

Posted on September 19, 2011 by Admin

As higher education becomes more of a determining factor in one’s eligibility for all sorts of jobs and the employers are keeping their consent over quality employment, many job applicants are looking for shortcuts to remain competitive in the marketplace. And since the economic halt had started and finding a job become a harsh business, people are trying to get their way out by forging their educational documents or even buying education to fake “diploma mills”. They don’t even know that this could not only humiliate them in front of their prospective employer but also end their career in a gutter. A total loss of time, money and mental peace.

Every single employer is now looking for the best employee and they are judging their prospective candidate on the basis of education and the legitimacy of their credentials earned during their study. Employers are keeping a close eye on every single incumbent by running comprehensive education background checks as they knows the fact that educational success reveals a great deal about an applicant’s credentials and motivations; and through education background checks, an employer can get an accurate depiction of their qualifications as well their intentions of playing a role in development of the company.

In 2004, the revealed that nearly 200,000 federal employees had at the very least exaggerated education credentials on their resume.
: More than 53% of job applicants falsify information on their resumes; one in four candidates misrepresents his educational attainment.
: 49% of employment, education and or credential reference checks reveal discrepancies in the applicant’s information.
: 41% of applicants lie about their education.

The above inclination of facts about the defined scenario indicates an increase in the likelihood that employer’s who don’t verify education will hire unqualified personnel. Hiring unqualified personnel, in turn, leads to higher employee turnover, forcing the organization to incur expensive recruiting and replacement costs.

The second biggest and most souring, surging problem for employers are fake diploma mills which are playing a role in instigating fraud among the innocent people. These online cheap diploma/degree making factories are looting people for fast track degrees.

Diploma mills and degree mills as well as various websites, advertise very realistic, physical diplomas and transcripts, which have been found to deceive many employers. Therefore, with the striking statistics of resume fraud, employers should think twice about using physical diplomas as proper evidence of a degree. Because the requirement for education qualification has become so demanding, education fraud is becoming more prevalent, as are the establishments of diploma mills.

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Consequently, in order to combat education fraud, laws have recently been passed in which companies who manufacture fake degrees and diplomas are considered to have committed a Misdemeanor.

Many employers view particular educational qualifications as a key factor in seeking new employees. Moreover, education is a prerequisite for many positions because it ensures applicable knowledge of a subject matter, or more importantly, a required license for the position.

Educational history may be the most commonly falsified information on an application or resume. Some estimates place the incidence of resumes containing erroneous education information as high as 30 percent. Clearly, employers should be extremely cautious. And they are not accepting copies of a degree from candidates as proof of their graduation given that it can simply be a clever forgery paid for by the applicant.

Education background checks or education verification is the only way to prevention not only for the employers but also for the people who are looking for education but a legitimate one.

At present, human resource departments in companies directly contact the concerned educational institution and undertake verification. This is no longer a viable solution, considering the increase in the number of recruitments, and the time taken for verification. This is also not a fool proof method.
A second method, often adopted by many of the larger corporations, is to outsource their employment verifications to background screening companies, who maintain large personnel databases.

Online education background checks is the system of online degree, diploma and education verification. The system consists of a database of fake colleges and universities and as well as the misdemeanors who faked their documents in past. It is now the best free online resource for the employers as well as for the students, who can check their institutions as well. It’s a killer product for the keen employers as well as for the legitimate education seeking students.

Employers can be able to save themselves from a negligent hiring lawsuit.
Employers can be able to hire the best qualified employee for their respective positions.
Online education background checks are fast then conventional education verification process, enabling an employer to make quick hiring decision.
Online education background checks can save money and good amount of time.

Assurance that the institution is meeting certain educational quality standards.
Reasonable grounds for believing that the institute will continue to meet them.
Assurance that their Degrees will be widely accepted by the employers, professional associations, other colleges and universities.
Belief that their Degree will reap the benefits associated with sound and high-quality educational standards.

Falsified education credentials have become a serious issue in the workforce; it breaches the faith on employees who are involved, especially when it can directly affect other employees and the company as a whole. It is also a serious blunder on the part of the employer who should have done proper education background checks; a mistake that could essentially hinder their current position.

Education background checks for employment; verify the certification, training, or educational claims of a job applicant. The universities, colleges, vocational schools, etc. are checked to verify dates of attendance and graduation, degrees or certifications obtained, majors studied, GPA, and honors received by a potential job candidate. The verification of education process is an important part of a quality pre-employment background check.

Although a federal law has been implemented to target diploma mills that give out phony diplomas, the problem still exists and is far from being corrected. In the meantime, employers and students must remain steadfast about conducting education background checks that include verifying academic credentials and institutions for their legitimacy.

The online qualification verification and diploma/degree mill checking system is significant source of help to the employers and students looking for easy and free of cost education background checks.

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Effective Educational Management: An Implementation of ICT in Administration of Higher Education Institutions

Posted on September 17, 2011 by Admin

This is the age of knowledge explosion, globalization and technology. Today’s students are smarter than the students ten year earlier. In the institutions teachers are selected to do teaching-learning job only, but institution’s office staff and teachers as institutional managers, are spending much of their time on clerical activities, like  ‘updating the records’, ‘information recovery and document production’, and ‘communicating’ to the higher authorities and parents. Teachers get very little time to provide quality services to the students. Their energy is wasted in doing subsidiary work. And the same case also applies to the Principals of the colleges also. He/she is not been able to provide constructive feedback to the students and teachers, and experimenting the functioning of the educational institution for betterment. Due to the rapid change in the society, it will put various demands on educational management. Now the thrust of the country with regard to education has been changed from quantity to quality and educational management can play a vital role in this regard by managing the education in the institution effectively and efficiently. Educational management has to spend more time on other work rather than only collecting and maintaining the data by involving teaching and non-teaching staff members in the institutions whether it is college or university.

            To overcome these shortcomings and providing more time to the institutional personnel for doing constructive work, Information Communication Technology can be used in the form of ‘’. Computer assisted institution information systems has been growing in many corners of the world since the mid- 1980s. It has the enormous potential for enhancing the effectiveness of college staff and improving institutional performance.

Being the largest producer of technical and professional manpower, India is an active participant in the development and use of information technologies. Information technology may be considered as a synonym for the modernization of all organizations including educational institutions, as they provide for advance and updated technological tools and applications. This adoption of ICT reinforces the teaching process, but also facilitates administrative transactions. Despite this, the education sector is deprived of the benefits of ICTs. The analysis shows that the ICTs offer vast potential for their use in educational management. The Government of India should promote the effective and efficient use of information communication technology for the management of educational institutions in all respects.

            The role of the education sector is to use these technologies for improving its managerial efficiency and effectiveness. The education sector, perhaps the most mismanaged social sector, is characterized by managerial inefficiencies of high order.

There is still a class of educational administrators practically at all levels of educational hierarchy, who have not adapted themselves to gain from the new technological revolution. They feel that their existing approach is better and more reliable than the use of modern technologies in administration.

Historically, the system of governance is based on sound record keeping so that irrespective of the executive head, the records forms the basis for governance, control and decision making.  Billion of pages of information are being generated each year by various departments i.e. central education department and state governments’ education departments in India. Some of this is in duplicate and triplicate form. Even then the relevant information is difficult to locate from the existing records and sharing of information between departments is not-existent. Although many secondary schools introduced computers in great numbers starting early 1990′s, there is limited data on their use to facilitate college/university administration.

For educational planning central, state, university and college have to play a vital role if the country really wants to come out with the age old system made by the Britisher’s for producing clerks. Central Government has to work for the effective policy directives, evaluations, collect the data for educational statistics and accordingly make support schemes. State government should execute the policy, college supervision, resource management, examinations, teachers’ recruitment, supplies and equipments, training; syllabus etc. college/university  administration has to see teaching learning in the college/university, college/university management, supplies and equipment at school level and school finances etc. Therefore these Institutional Management Systems (IMS) should be electronically connected to the state level and country level networking. All the state governments should give connectivity and create their own network like State Wide Area Network.

ICT in Educational Management is needed to create efficiency and effectiveness in the following aspects of administration:

: If we see the current scenario it is very difficult to the track the teachers as well as students movement and progress at college/university, state and central level. It very difficult to track the assets and ultimately this is causing the impact on financial planning and budgeting and efficient tracking of available resources and its utilization.
The information present in the educational institutions is in fragmented and fuzzy form. And it is generally compiled in non-standard formats. Manual handling of huge data is very difficult and causes delayed information collection and compilation. This will effect in decision making process for quality education.
: Because of lack of timely, structured and efficient information sharing, there is a chance of duplication of data collection and compilation. This leads to lack of coordination between departments and directorates.
: The institution must hold summary of the information regarding performance of each subsystem. It needs to be made available regularly to the principal so that he/she can analyze the effectiveness of existing programme. The principal should have the complete and accurate information to consider the likely impact of change if necessary.
: The institution must maintain data on students so that it can be easily accessible to the parents, Government, students and the institution itself.
The institution must hold the information on students’ achievement so that the government or the management can monitor the performance of the institutions and intervene where progress is weak. It can also help of sharing of good practices where progress is good.
The institution needs to hold sufficient details on students to enable it to identify those students potentially at risk. The institution must be able to follow their progress through education and provide them special educational provisions.
The institution must use the information to ensure children and young people of the country have best start in life with high quality education. The Indian government is emphasizing on the universalization of education which put excessive demand for secondary education. The education department has to focus on the retention of the students and providing them quality learning by ensuring optimum utilization of resources.
  Manual working leads to huge workload. Information communication technology can ensure technology enabled planning and institutional administration.

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: ICT can be used to maintain the personal record information of the students. ICT can also be useful in maintaining the record of enrolment and attendance/leave information. Fees management and examination performance and analysis can be done efficiently through ICT.
ICT can be used to maintain the personal record information of the staff. Attendance, leave, transfer and training information can be updated efficiently with the help of ICT. It can also be used in managing the salary and analyzing the staff performance. 
Institutions can use ICT to maintain the accurate details of building, facilities available, and hardware and software facilities.
ICT can be used to monitor the fund and grants. It can also be helpful in the management of inventory and procurement.

To manage the above mentioned areas of the institutions effectively and efficiently and for providing the fast and accurate access of the information to the parents, teachers, students, management, community and government, the institution must use (Institution Administration Software) which provides a single secure database structure that organizes stores and retrieves real time information.

is the total managements system, windows-based Educational Management package with the power to revolutionize the way that university/colleges are run. is not just a technology solution but it is an educational system in itself that will improve the way institution is managed. This connects all the stakeholders of education.

Following are the main components in IMS Software:

it makes communication easy with all the stakeholders involved in the educational process: Administrator, Teachers, Students and parents and Government. Teachers can easily access significant student information, generate reports, collaborate with other educators or develop lesson plans from virtually anywhere. Parents can view or be alerted to absences, grades assignments and institutional events. Students on grades and receive assistance outside of classroom. Government can assess the information for various requirements. provides a single secure database structure that organizes stores and retrieves information. It uses industry-standard Microsoft Windows® interface, that doesn’t require a heavy amount

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Health Education Scope, Importance and Responsibilities of a Trained Health Educator

Posted on September 15, 2011 by Admin

Health education is a social science that draws from the biological, environmental,  psychological, physical and medical sciences to promote health and prevent disease, disability and premature death through education-driven voluntary behavior change activities. Health education is the development of individual, group, institutional, community and systemic strategies to improve health knowledge, attitudes, skills and behavior. The purpose of health education is to positively influence the health behavior of individuals and communities as well as the living and working conditions that influence their health.

Health education is not only concerned with the communication of information, but also with fostering the motivation, skills and confidence (self-efficacy) necessary to take action to improve health

Health education is an essential tool of community health. Every branch of community health has a health educational aspect and every community health worker is a health educator. But health education has been defined as a process which effects changes in the health practices of people and in the knowledge and attitudes related to suet changes.

But the concept of health and practice of health-education is almost as old as the human race. Health education has been defined as “the sum of all experiences in school and elsewhere that favor ably influence habits, attitudes and knowledge, related to individual, community and racial health.”

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Health education is the very foundation of every successful public health programme so one of the main functions educations should be to help every child deve­lop a healthy body, an alert mind and sound emotional attitudes. Health education aims at bridging the gulf between the health knowledge and health practices of the children.

Some people specialize in health education (trained and/or certified health education specialists).  Others perform selected health education functions as part of what they consider their primary responsibility (medical treatment, nursing, social work, physical therapy, oral hygiene, etc.).  Lay workers learn on the job to do specific, limited educational tasks to encourage healthy behavior. Para-professionals and health professionals from other disciplines are not familiar with the specialized body of health education knowledge, skills, theories, and research, nor is it their primary interest or professional development focus.  . 

: Health education improves the health status of individuals, families, communities, states, and the nation. At present in our country much attention is being paid to the education for total health. Good health is a pre condition for good education. There is a saying that sound mind lives in a sound body. So, education cannot be acquired without the proper frame of the mind and proper frame of mind cannot be possible without proper health and hygiene. Realizing the importance of health education Secondary Education Commission, 1952-53 stated: “Unless! Physical education is accepted as an integral part of education and the educational authorities recognize it, need in schools the youth of the country, which form its ‘most variable asset, will never be able to pull their full weigh to national welfare. Health education encompasses not only the information on what behaviors are healthy, but also how to achieve those behaviors with skills development and can sometimes include motivation to change.

 Health education enhances the quality of life for all people.
 Health education reduces premature deaths.
 By focusing on prevention, health education reduces the costs (both financial and human)
 that individuals, employers, families, insurance companies, medical facilities, communities,
  the state and the nation would spend on medical treatment.

 The emphasis so far has been more on the academic type of education without proper consideration being given to physical welfare and the main­tenance ‘ proper standards of health of the people”.

 The group that provides health education is health educators. These professionals differ from health teachers in that they focus on behavior change and do not work in a school class format. Health educators may work with individuals or groups.

Develop health education programs    
Coordinate health education programs
Implement health education programs
Build coalitions
Identify resources
Make referrals
Develop audio, visual, print and electronic materials
Conduct research
Write scholarly articles
Write grants
Develop social marketing and mass media campaigns
Organize/ mobilize communities for action
Handle controversial health issues/content
Assess individual and community needs
Plan health education programs
Manage health education programs & personnel
Evaluate health education programs
Advocate for health related issues
Encourage healthy behavior
 Use a variety of education/training methods

 

 

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Free essay on the importance of education

Posted on September 13, 2011 by Admin

FREE ESSAY ON THE IMPORTANCE OF EDUCATION

Today, education is viewed as a vital key to success in life, and knowledge has become every individual’s aim or concern. Each one of us is born in a different medium and of different social and cultural norms; however, most of us approve of education’s positive effects on society. Therefore, ‘Why do we need education?’ and ‘why do we think education is important?’ is the issue to tackle. To get a better grip of this complex theme we have to distinguish three different types of education, there is the formal education, like school, the lifetime education, learning through difficult situations and the education by our parents. To lead a successful country we have to keep it on a standard level of education to be able to impart the cultural heritage to the younger generations. There is again a division to be made between the inherited education or knowledge, and the education taught at school.   Education develops a meaningful outlook on life.

Education serves as the means to bring about the desired change in society, to develop a generation of virtuous individuals and thus contribute to the development of good human beings. The fundamental purpose of education is to gain knowledge, inculcate the forms of proper conduct and acquire technical competency. Education serves as the means to develop oneself physically, mentally and socially.

Education remains a vital part of life in all the times but it has become very essential in the modern age. Every body has to run with this modern life and without education it seems difficult. It has a great influence on the social, economic and moral activities of the people. It plays a stunning role in human thinking and to take a correct decision. It has been said that man is a social animal but education make him rational. If a parson could not read or write it means many windows of information and knowledge are closed to him.

 As humans, our number one priority should be to try all the best that we can to live successfully on planet earth. We are expected to pursue that ability which is to survive more than mere animals.as intelligent creatures with copious amount of curiosity, our quest should be to conquer every part of our universe and explore its grandness so that we can experience nature in full and life in general. Instead of sticking to status quo and thereby living a life of routine just like most of our parents did, our bearing should be to visit those places our parent dreamt of, becoming those persons they wished to become and do those things they only hoped for. When you take a visual trip beyond the shores of your native land, perhaps through the help of the media, you will notice and discover that more work still has to be done.

 The first thing that is striking about education is knowledge gain. Education gives us the knowledge of the world around us. It develops in us a perspective of looking at life. It helps us build opinions and have points of view on everything in life. People debate over the subject of whether education is the only thing that gives knowledge. Some say, education is the process of gaining information about the surrounding world while knowledge is something very different.

Knowing about something is education and to have knowledge about the things around is really very important. A society can not grow without education. It is an important part of our life. Education always gives us awareness about what is going on around us. It mostly enhances the sprit of getting knowledge and to enlighten ourselves. Education provides us countless opportunities to improve our academic aspects. Right education always gives us important lessons of life.

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Education is important for the youths, as youth is their growing stage. It is the time to develop the principles of life, make career decisions and begin the pursuit of one’s goals.  Education to the youths should consist of the training that is an extension to their fields of interest. The education should help the youths define their career objectives, decide what they want from life and enable them to achieve success in their fields of interest. Education to youths must aim at helping an individual form a skill set and work upon it to develop expertise in the areas of his/her interest. The education for youths should consist of courses that can help the youths with their careers and aims of life.

With a good education of the younger generation, the government takes care of the progress in the development of the country. But a good education is not just useful for the progress of the country; the aspiration for advancement lies in the nature of every human creature. People wake up every morning with the goal to make new experiences, which enriches their standard of life. Another factor in today’s democratic society is the people’s striving for the latest information. People in our days do actually have the will to know what is going on in the world around them, they want to know what the government needs all the tax money for, they want to understand what a new law is supposed to mean and all this would be impossible without a good formal education.

More precisely, the perceived goal of education to make the individual and the society ‘better’ in some qualitative sense seems to missing in its current form. In our rush to get everybody educated, we do not consider it important to ask ourselves why we need education. An idealist notion about the necessity of education has been taken for granted. If fact this notion has been so strongly developed that we are taught to overlook the shortcomings in the implementation of this activity. Both independent groups, who have chosen to work in the field of education, and expert committees have only suggested ways of improving the effectiveness of present education system without addressing themselves to the more basic issues of the purpose of the entire activity. Such people often choose to ignore the disturbing trends, mentioned above, and associated with the education system.

Most of the people will refuse to link the malaise in the system to the basic nature of the system itself, considering it to be a disorder which could be taken care of by implementing proper machinery. Such assumptions need to be questioned. Some experts tend to analyze the present education system, which will raise questions at such basic levels. When so much resources and the prime time of our children and youth are being given over to the education system, we as a society need to find out the achievement of this system in real terms. However, in this evaluation one must be prepared to dispense with the assumption that the modern education system, or some close variant of it, is absolutely indispensable, for on close examination this kind of education system itself appears to be at fault.

The development of a nation can be judged easily by its literacy rate. Economic development of a country depends upon its skillful and educated population. The developed countries of the world have highly educated human resource and they are playing important roll to sustain the economic growth of their country. These countries have many education and training programs for their people to meet the new demands of the modern era. Their professionals have to follow many mandatory courses in order to know about the new developments in their respective fields. In this way, they are able to update themselves.

Due to the importance of education, many countries are planning to promote quality education for the student’s excellence. They are raising more and more funds for the education. They are making polices to provide financial aid to a great number of students. They have made strict policies for the distribution and monitoring of these funds.

High education is also very necessary to have a wonderful career. So, there is a need to get a right and required education for a person because it will help you to get the right job. You can have higher pay if you are an educated professional. Many career advisors have been appointed in the colleges and universities to guide the students for this purpose.

It is a great fact that the importance of education can not be denied. We all know that places where the importance of education has been neglected due to any reason are facing social, moral and economic problems. They are not able to provide basic facilities to their people.

It is very easy to explain importance of education. No human beings are able to survive properly without education. By the means of education only one’s potential can be used to maximum extent. Education tells men how to think, how to work properly, how to make decision. Through education only one can make separate identity. It is most important in life like our basic need foods, clothe and shelter. With the beginning we learnt how to interact with others, how to make friends because of education only. As I remember when my parents had enrolled my name in school not only I learnt the alphabets and numbers but also I made friends, interacted with them with teachers.

With further development you were faced with the sense of competition and desire and other such emotions and feelings, you also learnt to control these emotions and feelings. And also teaches how to act in different situations. Education is not just restricted to teaching a person the basic academics, say computers, mathematics, geography or history education is a much larger term.

To conclude, we can say that Education is a fundamental human right and essential for the exercise of all other human rights. It promotes individual freedom and empowerment and yields important development

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History of Education, Teacher Training, Teaching, Teachers

Posted on September 11, 2011 by Admin

Western history of teacher training, education history, teaching theories, education of teachers, modern history od education, began in early 18th century Germany: teaching seminaries educating teachers were the first formal teacher training in Western history of education and teaching.

(History of education had 2nd century-BC Greek Spartan free public education, Athenian Academy until age 18 and higher Academy and Lyceum; Roman private formal schooling in tiers; China’s 1st century-BC administrator examinations; 1st century Jewish informal Cul’ Tura general education; Islam’s 9th century universities [madrasahs]; 16th century Aztec mandatory teen education; 18th century Russian nation-wide education, Poland’s Education Ministry, Chez ‘teacher of nations’ Comenius’s ‘Didactica Magna’ on universal education [compulsory, certified teachers, tests]; leading later Western history of education –17th century Scotland’s free education, 18th’s Norway’s mandatory literacy and  New Zealand’s standard education, 21st’s Europe’s Bologna process equalising educational qualifications.)

Teacher education and training, first teacher training college in French  history of education and history of teaching, Jean Babtiste de la Salle’s 18th century Brothers of the Christian schools, had non-clerical male teachers teaching poor and middle class children. Based on Greek philosophers’ philosophy of education and teaching, re-introduced by Islam, spirituality was not its only reason, basis of education. Teacher education and training had been clerical –this was Western history of education’s first secular teacher training college.

This philosophy of education changed educational history’s attitude to education. It reformed education, educational theory, learning, enabled further education reforms and educational theories of teaching in history of education. With education reforms in education history, educational theory of teacher education required of teachers an understanding of the human mind and the theory of education, knowledge of sciences and arts, principles and educational methods of teaching. This need in educational history for a teaching method, method of education, necessitated theories of education -in Western history of education educational theories on teacher education interested educators.

These educational philosophies and theories of education on teacher education became the norm in Western history of education, teacher training establishments first Normal Schools in the history of education and training of teachers.

Teacher education progressed educational history: in history of education and history of teaching the system of education required and enabled knowledge, in-service experience, certification for teachers, continuing professional development for teachers in teaching. This non-uniform system of teacher education and training enabled teachers, while teaching, at teacher seminars to refresh and increase their knowledge of theory of education and method of teaching -exchanging ideas among teachers.

Napoleon, in history of education and teacher training,  uniformed professional teaching. Adopting Germany’s teacher seminars, in French history of education and in Western history of education and training of teachers, established the first uniform teacher education system.

Neither the USA’s educational history nor British history of education did in educational philosophies, systems of education, include formal teacher education and training, although Elizabeth-I had introduced teachers’ moral teaching fitness certification in teacher education .

In England’s history of education and teaching, in early 19th century Joseph Lancaster and Andrew Bell founded the Lancastarian teaching method of teacher training: in a monitorial system of teacher education and training senior students (‘monitors’) receiving teaching from tutors were teaching junior students, acting as teachers.

In Scotland’s history of education and teaching, 17th century free education compulsory in late 19th, Germany’s teacher education and training influenced David Stowe’s founding the Glasgow Normal Seminary for teachers.

Progress in teaching and teacher training began with Horace Mann’s Massachusetts Normal Schools in the USA’s educational history, and in Britain’s history of education by the churches’ and voluntary organisations’ teacher training colleges and teaching the colonials.

In philosophies of education arguments followed on teacher education in educational history: should persons of lower English social class attend teacher training colleges and give teaching to children of higher social class!? Might teachers’ teaching not influence young French minds with liberal ideas?!

(Japan’s educational philosophy [perhaps influencing the USA's educational philosophy, history of education and teaching] emphasised patriotic teacher education and teaching.)

In Europe’s history of teacher education and training, Rosencrantz’s 19th century ‘Philosophy of Education’ emphasised ‘philosophical and psychological data’; this, resembling Islam’s university faculties, developed into separate teaching disciplines.

In Sweden’s history of education and teaching, Pestalozzi furthered the progress of systems of education, advocating formal teacher training colleges.

(Pestalozzi, except theologically, was self-educated, did not leave a written account of teaching and of teacher training colleges; his place in the history of education and teaching is deducible in outline from his various writings, loving sincere deeds, the example he set.)

Germany’s Froebel, and Alexander Bain’s ‘Education as a Science’, favoured education of teachers through teacher training colleges; teacher education adopted what philosophies of education in Western educational history and teaching had lacked -Herbart’s pedagogical emphasis in teaching on five formal steps: preparation, presentation, comparison, generalisation, application.

Germany’s teacher education and training became the basis of developments in the history of education and teacher training; Derwent Coleridge and James Kay Shuttleworth in Britain, Mann in the USA broadly agreed: teacher education and training should emphasise techniques of teaching -”not only the subjects of instructions, but also the method of teaching”.

Jules Ferry laws’ compulsory education established teacher education and training in late 19th century French history of education: teacher education and training, by law, should be through formal teacher training colleges.

English speaking countries’ history of education and teaching, formal teacher education and training, began with the University of Edinburgh’s creating a chair in education, with St. Andrews; in the USA’s history of education, e.g., Henry Bernard, Nicholas Murray Butler, followed.

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In Western history of education, England’s progress involved pedagogy and Herbart Sepencer’s teaching techniques in teacher education and training, the USA’s e.g., Francis W. Parker’s, studying Germany’s pedagogical teacher education developments.

In the USA’s history of education and teaching the Darwinian hypothesis (as before later scientific evaluation) influenced John Dewey at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools; taking into account from other disciplines what were considered relevant in teaching to child development, the religiously affiliated Brown University founded an education department.

(The La Salle College in Philadelphia, had been teaching education.)

New York’s Teachers College, founded 1888, was incorporated into the Columbia University, 1893, establishing its teacher training college, announcing: “The purpose of the Teacher Training College is to afford opportunity, both theoretical and practical, for the training of teachers, of both sexes, for kindergartens and elementary schools and secondary schools, of principals, supervisors, and superintendents of schools, and of specialists in various branches of school work, involving normal schools and colleges” -it became the basis, in Western history of education and teaching, of teacher education and training and Teacher Colleges.

(The USA’s educational history experts’ versions vary on it history of education.) 

In most of British Commonwealth’s history of education and system of teacher training, entry into teacher training came to require senior secondary education at High School level or British Grammar School education with national Matriculation or Ordinary and Advanced General Certificate of Education (GCE) examinations –or equivalent.

In Europe’s history of education and teacher training, education with similar Gymnasium(/Abitur)  or General Lycè e Diploma, or equivalent education, became professional teacher education and training entry qualification.

(In British history of education, until early 20th century, holders of those qualifications, by selection examination, could become temporary teachers. Oxbridge graduates could register ‘master’ and be syndicated teachers. Other universities’ graduates, to become teachers, attended teacher training colleges [if Bachelor of Education, second year teacher training of a teacher training college].)

In British Commonwealth’s history of education greater importance was attached to professionalism in teacher education and training: academic qualifications did not suffice for teaching; teacher examinations required specific periods of specifically professional study in teaching. Professional teaching involved two years’ professional study in teaching and additional in-house teacher training before professional teacher status. Professional

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Education for All: Trend and Out Reach at Tamilnadu in India

Posted on September 9, 2011 by Admin

Education for All: Trend and out reach at Tamilnadu in India

The world convention on to Meet fundamental Learning requirements was adopted by the World Conference on Education for All at Jomtien, Thailand, in March 1990. The meeting design comprehensive review of policies concerning basic education. The Education for All (EFA) 2000 appraisal is a major global attempt that aims to enable the participating countries to

(i) Construct a comprehensive picture of their progress towards their own Education for All goals since the 1990 Jomtien Conference,

(ii) Identify priorities and promising strategies for overcoming obstacles and accelerating progress, and

(iii) Revise national plans of action accordingly.

EFA indicators which are grouped according to the following six ‘Intention Magnitude’:-

1. Expansion of early childhood care and development;

2. Universal access to and completion of primary education;

3. Improvement in learning achievement;

4. Reduction of adult illiteracy rate;

5. Expansion of provision of basic education and training in essential skills required by

Youth and adults; and

6. Increased acquisition by individuals and families of the knowledge, skills and values

organized for better living.

For this purpose a National Assessment Group was constituted in the Department of Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development consisting of senior officials of the Department concerned with EFA and representatives of specialized national institutions, like NCERT, NIEPA and NCTE. During its deliberations, the Group felt that the Indian exercise should be carried out in a larger perspective which takes into account the following important developments:

? The wide range of programmes initiated for achieving Universalisation of Elementary Education after formulation of National Policy of Education, 1986;

? The massive effort made in the form of literacy campaigns to reach education to the masses; and

? Enormous amount of activities in the field of primary education witnessed in the country on an unprecedented scale in the 1990s through projects and programmes specifically focused on EFA.

The EFA 2000 exercise is, therefore, seen not merely as a stock taking exercise but also as an effort to review and fine-tune strategies and programmes of basic education.

It is with this dual perspective in view that it has been planned

(1) to make the exercise quite comprehensive covering every dimension of basic education;

(2) to get the various component areas reviewed by independent experts from across the country; and

(3) to evolve a plan of action for the next phase, probably the final phase, of the national effort to reach the goal of EFA.

India’s EFA Assessment 2000 Country Report draws upon the following three documents:

i. Report of progress made with respect to the 18 EFA Indicators as identified in the General and Technical Guidelines given by the EFA Forum Secretariat;

ii. The State of the Art Review (Synthesis) on Learning Achievements; and

iii. The State of the Art Review on Learning Conditions.

The Department of Education in the Ministry of Human Resource Development has taken the initiative to commission twenty-four sub-sectoral studies on various aspects of EFA in India which seek to capture the varied experiences that have emerged from the projects, programmes and schemes undertaken during the last decade. The findings of these studies are proposed to be disseminated widely in India and abroad with a view to enrich the EFA 2000 Assessment exercise and provide useful inputs for policy makers, planners and administrators who are working towards achieving the goals of EFA.

Education for All – frame work

The goal of EFA in India are to be viewed in relation to the stage of education development that obtained on 1990 ¾ the year of world declaration on EFA. By then, fairly large expansion of in all parts of the country. Other sectors of education like adult education Non – formal education had also developed fairly well. Therefore, the main challenges in education in 1990s related to EFA have been the following: Access to basic education for the unreached segments and uncovered habitations

Qualitative improvement in content and processes of education; to make them more responsive to learning needs of individuals-children, youth and adults, families, community and development in different sectors of social and economic life. Consolidation and newer orientation wherever required in different areas of education through innovative programmes and changed role of educational personnel. Community participation in education; making education a people’s movement. Evolving effective and efficient management structures in education.

All goals and targets of EFA to be fulfilled in 1990’s have to be assessed in terms of the nature of the programmes, the degree to which they have led to achievement of the goals of EFA, and the promise they hold for making the processes and supportive structure sustainable. Thus, when EFA programmes were implemented in 1990’s,a new framework for development of basic education in the country was emerging which had the following broad features.

Holistic Approach

The holistic approach adopted for planning and implementation of EFA programmes is characterized by:

- A holistic view of basic education with grater linkages and integration between pre – school, primary education, non – formal education and adult education;

- Relating programmes of education with national concerns such as nutrition and health care, environment, small family norm and life skills education.

- Collaboration of different departments and sectors of development with primary education.

Education Grantee Scheme

The EGS centers in Tamil Nadu deserves special mention as an important new initiative in the 1990s.the remarkable success of EGS drawn the attention of planners and policy maker. The EGS centers covered 6-11 age groups who did not battened school. The key factors on which EGS hinges are community demand and government guarantee. By projecting community demand as a start-up point, EGS addresses the issue of enrollment and retention. The EGS is seen as successful mode of reaching the unreached or ‘Hard to reach’.

Education Grantee Scheme in Tamil Nadu (2004-2005)

ACTIVITIES

Administration arrangement: The coordinator have appointed.

Capacity building All the staff/ teachers have completed the strategy planning work shop.

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Equivalence strategy The special effort is being taken to enroll the school drop out children.

Duration The short duration of the programme is 60-75 days.

School hours Two to three hours

Number of children per class 25 – 40 is high and low is 10-20

Teacher qualifications, Training and honorarium As per the government norm

Academic support and supervision The separate supervisors for every eight to ten schools

Teaching – Learning Materials The material prepared separately

Collaboration with NGOs Many EGS centers running by NGOs

A PROGRAMME FOR UNIVERSAL ELEMENTARY EDUCATION IN INDIA

In accordance with the constitutional commitment to ensure free and compulsory education for all children up to the age of 14 years, provision of universal elementary education has been a salient feature of national policy since independence. This resolve has been spelt out emphatically in the National Policy since independence (NPE), 1986 and the Programme of Action (POA) 1992. A number of schemes and programmes were launched in pursuance of the emphasis embodied in the NPE and the POA. These included the scheme of Operation Blackboard (OB); Non Formal Education (NFE); Teacher Education (TE); Mahila Samakhya (MS); State specific Basic Education Projects like the Andhra Pradesh Primary Education Project (APPEP); Bihar Education Project (BEP), Lok Jumbish (LJP) in Rajasthan; National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education (MDM); District Primary Education Programme (DPEP).

Why Elementary Education

Social justice and equity are by themselves a strong argument for providing basic education for all. It is an established fact that basic education improves the level of human well – being especially with regard to life expectancy, infant mortality, nutritional status of children, etc. Studies have shown that universal basic education significantly contributes to economic growth.

Constitutional, Legal and National Statements for UEE

The Constitutional, legal, and national policies and statements have time and again upheld the cause of universal elementary education.

Constitutional mandate 1950 – “The state shall Endeavour to provide, within a period of ten years from the commencement of this Constitution, for free and compulsory education to all children until they complete the age of 14 years.”

National Policy of Education 1986 – “It shall be ensured that free and compulsory education of satisfactory quality is provided to all children up to 14 years of age before we enter the twenty first century.”

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Curricular Changes in Teacher Education

Posted on September 7, 2011 by Admin

 

 

 

India is a developing country. We have thousand years of Tradition and Culture. Different types of people are living in India. In olden days the educational institutions were called as ‘Ashramam’ and teacher was called as ‘Guru’. Guru is a respectable person in the society after mother and father. According to our Vedas Guru is a third God. In olden days they were given importance for shravana, Dhyana and Asana. All types of information are there in Vedas. Yoga is a greatest gift of India to the world. Yoga has its origin in the Vedas, texts that were heard by ancient sages in their state of meditation, and hence are known as srutis. The great sage Vyasa organized the Vedas in a systematic manner. Hence he is known as Veda Vyasa.

Now we are living in the technological world. Vast changes are occurring in day to day life of human being. The effect of Television, Telephone, Radio, Computer, Internet and Mobile is very much in our daily life. Even today also teacher is a role model for the students in the society. Teaching profession is a respectable job in the society. But there are enormous changes were occurred in the system of education.

Western culture is increased. Because of globalization we see everything in the form of commercial. But it is not good. Teacher is a nation builder. The development of any country depends upon its educational system. Any type of development is possible through education.

The concept of curriculum can be perceived as a connective link between teacher and student, organized in such a way to achieve goals previously set by the teacher, the learning organization or by the curriculum specialists.

            Curriculum is a means to the education. While education is learning, curriculum signifies situations for learning. While education deals with ‘how’ and ‘when’, Curriculum deals with ‘what’ education is a product, curriculum is the plan.

Teacher education is an integral component of the educational system. It is intimately connected with society and is conditioned by the ethos, culture and character of a nation. The constitutional goals, the directive principles of the state policy, the socio-economic problems and the growth of knowledge, the emerging expectations and the changes operating in education, etc. call for an appropriate response from a futuristic education system and provide the perspective within which teacher education programmes need to be viewed.

When India attained freedom, the then existing educational system was accepted as such because it was thought that an abrupt departure from the same would be disturbing and destabilizing. Thus a predisposition to retain the system acquired preponderance and all that was envisaged by way of changes was its rearrangement. Consequently, education including teacher education largely remained isolated from the needs and aspirations of the people. During the last five decades certain efforts have been made to indigenize the system. The gaps, however, are still wide and visible. The imperatives for building the bridges may be as follows:

- To build a national system of teacher education based on India’s cultural ethos, its unity and diversity synchronizing with change and continuity.

- To facilitate the realization of the constitutional goals and emergence of the new social order.

- To prepare professionally competent teachers to perform their roles effectively as per needs of the society.

- To upgrade the standard of teacher education, enhance the professional and social status of teachers and develop amongst them a sense of commitment.

The need for improved levels of educational participation for overall progress is well recognised. The key role of educational institutions in realising it is reflected in a variety of initiatives taken to transform the nature and function of education — both formal as well as non-formal. Universal accessibility to quality education is considered essential for development. This has necessitated improvement in the system of teacher education so as to prepare quality teachers.

Various Commissions and Committees, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan Commission (1948), Secondary Education Commission (1953), Kothari Commission (1964-66) etc., are appointed by the Central and the State Governments in recent decades have invariably emphasised the need for quality teacher education suited to the needs of the educational system. The Secondary Education Commission (1953) observed that a major factor responsible for the educational reconstruction at the secondary stage is teachers’ professional training. The Education Commission (1964-66) stressed that ‘in a world based on science and technology it is education that determines the level of prosperity, welfare and security of the people’ and that ‘a sound programme of professional education of teachers is essential for the qualitative improvement of education.’

India has a large system of education. There are nearly 5.98 lakh Primary Schools, 1.76 lakh Elementary Schools and 98 thousand High / Higher Secondary Schools in the country, about 1300 teacher education institutions for elementary teachers and nearly 700 colleges of education / university departments preparing teachers for secondary and higher secondary schools. Out of about 4.52 million teachers in the country nearly 3 million are teaching at the primary/ elementary level. A sizeable number of them are untrained or under-trained. In certain regions, like the North-East, there are even under- qualified teachers. As far as in-service education is concerned the situation is not very encouraging. It is estimated that on an average 40% of the teachers are provided in-service teacher education once over a period of five years. Regarding non-formal education, though a number of models are in vogue in various states in the country, much more needs to be done to prepare teachers and other functionaries for the system.

The National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) as a non-statutory body (1973-1993) took several steps as regards quality improvement in teacher education. Its major contribution was to prepare Teacher Education Curriculum Framework in 1978. Consequently, teacher education curricula witnessed changes in teacher preparation programmes in various universities and boards in the country. A similar effort was made in 1988.

During the last decade, new thrusts have been posed due to rapid changes in the educational, political, social and economic contexts at the national and international levels. Curriculum reconstruction has also become imperative in the light of some perceptible gaps in teacher education. Teacher education by and large, is conventional in its nature and purpose. The integration of theory and practice and consequent curricular response to the requirements of the school system still remains inadequate. Teachers are prepared in competencies and skills which do not necessarily equip them for becoming professionally effective. Their familiarity with latest educational developments remains insufficient. Organised and stipulatory learning experiences whenever available, rarely contribute to enhancing teachers’ capacities for self-directed life long learning. The system still prepares teachers who do not necessarily become professionally competent and committed at the completion of initial teacher preparation programmes. A large number of teacher training institutions do not practice what they preach. Several of the skills acquired and methodologies learnt are seldom.

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Curriculum is:

      That which is taught in schools

      A set of subjects.

      Content

      A program of studies.

      A set of materials

      A sequence of courses.

      A set of performance objectives

      A course of study

      Is everything that goes on within the school, including extra-class activities, guidance, and interpersonal relationships.

      Everything that is planned by school personnel.

      A series of experiences undergone by learners in a school.

      That which an individual learner experiences as a result of schooling.

In India there are large number of communities living in the hilly area, the plateau area, the dessert area, plain area and costal area all having their own peculiar individuality, environment customs and needs. There fore, the same curriculum can’t be forced upon all, irrespective of their needs and environment. It must differ from locality to locality and from society to society.

            “The destiny of India now being shaped in her class rooms”. In the world based on science and technology it is education that determines the level of prosperity, security and welfare of the people (Education Commission 1964-66).

There are eleven types of curricula

1.      Overt, explicit, or written curriculum

2.      Societal curriculum

3.      The hidden or covert curriculum

4.      The null curriculum

5.      Phantom curriculum

6.      Concomitant curriculum

7.      Rhetorical curriculum

8.      Curriculum-in-use

9.      Received curriculum

10.  The internal curriculum

11. 

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Should We And Can We Develop An African Philosophy Of Education?: Pedagogy Of Sagacity

Posted on September 5, 2011 by Admin

 

In 1986, Njoroge and Bennaars, published Philosophy and education in Africa; an introductory text for students of education. Since the publication of this textbook there has been an intellectual aridity in this area of educational philosophizing in Kenya. This is in spite of the said textbook being merely introductory or prolegomenon. More importantly is the model proposed and formulated in this textbook intended as a conceptual framework for developing an African philosophy of education (1986; 92). This model has remained un-attempted. 

My paper will argue in the affirmative while distinguishing should as a non-moral normative imperative and can as a question of ability. While indeed we should develop African philosophy of education this imperative remains unachievable until we have experts with requisite scholarly abilities.

 

Experts in philosophy of education are called educational philosophers. They should be trained in technical philosophy and educational sciences. The two disciplines must meet in one. To ‘meet in one,’ means that an educational philosopher should integrate both technical philosophy and educational sciences as an integral area of academic specialization. Educational philosopher is the middle term between technical philosophy and educational sciences. In other words one should have academic qualification as a technical philosopher and as a trained professional teacher.

 

Lack of this ‘meeting in one’ of the two areas is to blame for lack of resources in this area. It means persons who are lesser than the ideal are teaching this discipline. There are two types of categories of teachers of philosophy of education in Africa who are lesser than the ideal.

The generalists and the specialists, the former are professional educators without philosophical footing. The latter are academic philosophers without educational training. Both as Plato would say must be debarred and be made to give way for educational philosopher.

 

Generalists make philosophy of education be about general principles, aims and goals of education. The technical philosopher makes philosophy of education too abstract and unrelated to everyday concerns of professional teacher in schooling. The latter stand accused of arm chair speculation, the latter stands accused of generality.

Pedagogy of Sagacity stands on two feet – one foot is planted in Sage philosophy and the other in Pedagogy of Oppressed – both feet are rooted in the conceptual model for developing African philosophy of education as articulated by Njoroge and Bennaars (1986, 88-89).

Pedagogy of Sagacity or Sagacious Pedagogy is developed as an attempt to transcend the original impetus of the project of Sage philosophy of Nairobi School. As Gail Presbey states,

 

I suggest that the original impetus for starting the sage philosophy project – the defense against Euro-American skeptics who thought Africans incapable of philosophizing – has been outgrown. The present need for studies of African sages is to benefit from their wisdom, both in Africa and around the world. I also suggest that the title ‘sage’ has to be problematized. While there were good reasons to focus earlier on rural elders as overlooked wise philosophers, the emphasis now should be on admiring philosophical thought wherever it may be found-in women, youth, and urban Africans as well. In such a way, philosophy will be further relevant to people’s lives, and further light will be shed and shared regarding the lived experience in Africa.

Gail concludes by pointing out that

Whether, and in what way, sage philosophy continues and grows will be determined in part by the ideas of those who have the will to continue it; their works will help define the terms “sage” and “sage philosophy” in the future.

Pedagogy of Sagacity is contemplated here as a possible contribution to the development of Sage philosophy in terms of African philosophy of education. Njoroge and Bennaars (1986, 98) have formulated

 

…a basic framework within which philosophical thinking about African education must be located. Within this model we identified four distinct areas of concern each reflecting a specific function of Technical Philosophy, a specific approach in educational Philosophy and a specific trend in African Philosophy. These areas of concern are: the Ethnophilosophy of Education, the Phenomenology of African Education, the Critique of African Education and the Philosophical analysis of African Education.

 

The authors (1986, 88) intend this to be a normative ‘framework within which to locate educational philosophy in Africa.’ Thus they state that (1986, 89),

 

…we can now establish what ought to be the major features or concerns of an African Philosophy of Education; thus we may arrive at a MODEL that brings out the specific features of a truly African Philosophy of Education.

 

For this model to be realized two criteria or conditions must be fulfilled, namely technical and African. As regards the former criterion ‘an African Philosophy of Education, to be recognized as truly technical, (it) must display similar functions and approaches as the Technical Philosophy of Education’ (1986, 89). There are four functions of technical philosophy namely, critical, rational, phenomenological and speculative (1986, 23-24). Corresponding to these four functions respectively are four approaches to philosophy of education namely, implicational, existential, critical and analytical approaches (1986, 89).

 

With regard to the second criterion or condition African philosophy must be African that is ‘it must reflect the trends characteristic of philosophical thinking in Africa’ (1986, 89). Njoroge and Bennaars (1986, 83-89) have delineated four trends in African philosophy namely, ethno-philosophy, cultural philosophy, political philosophy and formal philosophy. Each of these trends is paired with a corresponding function from the four technical functions of philosophy. The resulting combinations are four distinct approaches to African philosophy of education these are; ethno-philosophy paired with speculative function results in implications approach in African philosophy of education; cultural philosophy paired with phenomenological function results in existential approach; political philosophy paired with critical function results in critical approach; and lastly formal philosophy paired with analytical function results in analytical approach (1986, 89).

We can therefore identify ‘four major areas of concern, which may be called the basis … of a truly African Philosophy of Education.’ These are ethno-philosophy of education; phenomenology of African education; critique of African education; and philosophical analysis of African education.[1] In Aristotelian causality technical functions of philosophy are the formal causes while trends in African philosophy are the material causes. Formal and material causes are co-constitutive principles of substantial being, the substance of African philosophy of education is possible within the framework of Njoroge and Bennaars. As Wittgenstein states (1981;2.14) ‘what constitutes a picture is that its elements are related to one another in a determinate way,’ this is ‘the pictorial form’ of reality (2.15). In a pictorial form of reality ‘a picture … attached … to reality … reaches right out to it’ so that the picture is the measure of what reality should be. (2.1521). The framework of Njoroge and Bennars is the measure of what is to be regarded as African philosophy of education.

 

The model proposed by Njoroge and Bennaars has not yet been worked out in practice. This could be due to lack of experts who are ‘extremely rare’ (1986;78) with the right combinations namely, training in technical philosophy and training as professional educators (B.Ed). Further still development of African educational philosophy requires experts with knowledge and skill in African philosophy. The requirement that African philosophers of educators be doubled edged experts in technical philosophy and professional educators (1986; 77-80) is akin to Plato’s (Republic Book, V. 473d) observation that

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Cities will have no respite from evil … unless philosophers rule as kings in the cities, or those whom we now call kings and rulers genuinely and adequately study philosophy, until, that is, political power and philosophy coalesce, and the various natures of those who now pursue the one to the exclusion of the other are forcibly debarred from doing so. Otherwise the city we have been describing will never grow into a possibility or see the light of day.

To paraphrase Plato in the framework of Njoroge – Bennaars we can state that: Kenya will have no African philosophy of education unless philosophers teach and research in educational foundations, or those who teach philosophy of education genuinely and adequately study philosophy; until, that is, technical philosophy and educational sciences coalesce in African educational philosophers and the various scholars who now pursue one to the exclusion of the other are forcibly debarred from meddling in this area. Otherwise the proposed model of African philosophy of education will never develop into a possibility or see the light of day. Plato in the cited place provides a middle term which logically links technical philosophy and educational sciences in philosophy of education in Africa. The middle term is a technical African philosopher who is also a professional philosopher i.e. a scholar who integrates both technical philosophy and educational

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