Muddle in the middle

Posted by Ninad on October 12, 2009 under All Posts | Be the First to Comment

The government is laying a lot of emphasis on primary education. Sarva Shiksha Abihyan (SSA) is one of the largest programs of its kind in the world. It aims to enroll all 6-14 year old children in school by 2010 and have them complete eight years of schooling. India has more than 194 children in 1.1 million habitations spread across the country.

This program has made some impact on primary education. Net Enrolment Rate (GER) at primary level has risen from 68% in 1993 to 85% in 2005-06. The gender gap has reduced and there are now 92 girls for every 100 boys in primary school.

This program is complimented by the mid-may meal scheme, where hot cooked food is made available to children who attend school, to incentivize them to attend school. Mid-meal scheme of India is the largest of its kind in the world.

Expenditure on primary education is 53.5 % of the total Education Budget in India (2006-07). Higher education gets 18% and secondary education gets 30 %.

There is a lot of focus on higher education with a large number of institutes and colleges mushrooming across the country.

Caught between primary and higher education, secondary education is suffering. Sam Carlson of the World Bank calls it the “forgotten middle” and has pointed out in a recent report that investment in secondary education has declined.