Education in Post Independence Period in India B.Ed Notes
Back to: Contemporary India and Education – Unit 3
Following the arrival of the British many things changed in the education scenario of India such as the Wood’s Despatch, Lord Stanley Despatch, The Indian Education Commission, and more which in one way or the other have contributed to the educational progress of the nation.
Charles Wood, the President of the Board of Control of English East India Company who was also the Secretary of the state of India once, has had a great impact on the widespread of education in India. He sent a Despatch in 1854 to Lord Dalhousie who was the then Governor-General of India. Wood’s Despatch recommended primary schools adopt vernacular languages and also made various other recommendations.
The Hunter Education Commission was established in 1882. The Commission was charged with the establishment of a uniform state system of game protection. In 1909, the legislation established the State Conservation Commission and offered the provision of a State Game Department for the administration of the federal Weeks-McLean Act. It resulted in the creation of the Indian Education Commission in 1882.
The British took many initiatives to spread education in India one of which was the Sargent report in Education 1944. John Sargent was given the responsibility to create a comprehensive scheme for Indian education in 1944. A committee of 22 members was set up. They submitted their report in 1944 to the Central Advisory Board of Education who accepted the report and agreed to its implementation. This report was the first attempt towards the development of the Indian national education system.
Post-Independence Education In India
The Kothari Commission (1964)
The Kothari Commission was an ad hoc commission formed by the Government of India under the Chairmanship of Daulat Singh Kothari on 14 July 1964 and dissolved on 29 June 1966. He was the chairman of the University Grants Commissions (UGC) when the Kothari Commission was formed. The Commission consisted of twenty members who were experts in the education domain and based out of the UK, USA, Japan, Sweden, and France. The Kothari Commission (1964-66) believed that the Indian education system did not prepare learners to take a career path. According to the Commission, learners must be educated in manual work so that they can express their creativity. They focused on developing learners into self-sufficient individuals. Through its recommendations, the National Education Policy (1968) was formulated.
National Policy of Education (1986)
The main goal of NPE was to universalize elementary education through facilities such as quality education, trained teachers, adequate teaching and learning materials. It also took steps to remove inequality and discrimination based on social criteria.
Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan
Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan is a flagship program started by the government of India in 2001. It was developed to achieve the Universalisation of Elementary Education (UEE). The provision of legal backing for SSA occurred when the Indian Constitution under Article 21 A, made free and compulsory education for the children in the age group of 6-14 a fundamental right in. In a time-bound manner, SSA aims to fulfill the objectives of this fundamental right. It is anchored by The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India (GoI) and has been operational since 2000-2001.
Right to Education Act (RTE), 2009
The Right to Education Act (RTE) is enacted to make the right to education a fundamental right in the country. It marks a watershed in the Indian education system and that is why it is essential legislation. In August 2009, Parliament passed the act and came into force in 2010. Following this, India became one among the 135 countries that have made education a fundamental right of every child. Under Article 21 A of the 86th Constitutional Amendment (2002) in the Indian Constitution,
“The State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of 6 to 14 years in such manner as the State may by law determine.”
In recent years, the responsibilities and obligations of the central government in the field of education have increased.
