Tell about Indian Education System

While these issues are valid, all of them taken together do not fully explain the learning crisis apparent in our classrooms.

Let’s start with infrastructure. In the wake of the Right to Education Act 2010, school infrastructure has improved tremendously.

While usability is still being addressed, much progress has been made in terms of school access, and availability of drinking water and toilets.

Most children are enrolled in some school and 70 percent attend school regularly.

Yes, teacher absenteeism continues to plague the system, but it is precisely that—a systemic issue instead of something specific to government school teachers as a people.

A recent six-state study by Azim Premji Foundation reported that, while 20 percent of teachers were not found in school on average, most teachers were not ‘absent’; they were away on training or official work, sitting in the state headquarters or on casual leave.

A recent six-state study by Azim Premji Foundation reported that, while 20 percent of teachers were not found in school on average, most teachers were not ‘absent’; they were away on training or official work, sitting in the state headquarters or on casual leave.

Actual truancy rates were 2.5 percent, which is close to absenteeism rates at any large organisation.

Even this small amount of absenteeism needs correction, but clearly absenteeism is not the obstacle to student growth.

So, if broadly teachers are showing up, and students are turning up, and classrooms and textbooks are available

what is preventing lakhs of children from acquiring basic literacy and numeracy?

Current policy discourse suggests that one of the issues is a lack of student and curriculum assessment.

Current policy discourse suggests that one of the issues is a lack of student and curriculum assessment.

Half the country does not even have access to proper education, and only a small fraction can go to university.
- Lack of quality primary education for the poor
- Limited seats in Universities

The Ministry for Human Resource and Development (MHRD) is pushing for greater student assessment and states have been conducting ‘State Learning Achievement Surveys’ (SLAS).

Everything is about rote memorization, leading to behaviour which encourages cramming and forgetting rather than life long learning.

One must ask, therefore, what are the chances of this ‘solution’ working?

Standardized testing determines everything, and aptitude of students is not recognized outside this format

Standardised assessments are a lot of work and will require a good amount of resources.

standardised tests were institutionalised in almost all domains, especially in fields related to education and employment. A standardised test is an assessment that is rigid, has a pre-determined marking scheme and is administered to a large base of students.

Such tests emerged in the post-industrial era when factories and large business units required many labourers but few thinkers.

Lack of diversity in the subjects you can take in college (e.g. can't double major in Math and German like you can in the USA)

As a result, a test that told you a little about everyone was preferred to an alternative that told you a lot about one person.

Lack of diversity in the subjects you can take in college (e.g. can't double major in Math and German like you can in the USA)

Additional extreme pressure due to limited seats resulting in very intense competition between students.