Theme : Social empowerment, development and management of social sectors/services related to Education etc.
Paper:GS-1 and GS-2
TABLE OF CONTENT
- Context
- Various views on Qualifications
- What drives for more degrees?
- Constitutional Provisions related to Education
- Road Ahead
Context : The Diploma Disease by British economist Ronald Dore offers a structural explanation for a widely prevalent phenomenon, namely the urge to gather more and more degrees.
Various views on Qualifications :
Devaluation of qualifications(By Dore):
- He selected Sri Lanka, South Korea and Japan.
- The desire to accumulate more and more degrees and diplomas was gaining rapid popularity in many countries.
- India: Certificates, diplomas and degrees are in great demand in what is literally an educational bazaar.
The Great Indian School Bazaar (By Dev Lahiri):
- The title is relevant to higher education
- The greater the variety of qualifications on offer, the faster grows the demand for them.
- Permission for dual degree admission has further boosted the urge.
What drives for more degrees?
Internally:
- Specialization: The system encourages students to gather additional qualifications by defining course content and its aims narrowly.This phenomenon is a response to the mystification of skills as distinct from knowledge.
- Job ready: It captures the attraction of silver thin courses that cut the scope of learning.One certificate can only lead the student to search for the next.
Externally(economy):
- Economic growth has not resulted in expansion of satisfying employment in many countries.
- In India: scarcity of worthwhile jobs is quite severe in many regions, even in cities.
- The fear of joblessness fuels the urge to gain new eligibility.
- Candidates for jobs often select the relevant domain of their multiple certifications in order to represent themselves as being suitable for a job.
- The volatility of the job market also implies that no job can last for long
Constitutional Provisions related to Education :
- The 42nd Amendment to the Constitution in 1976 moved education from the State to the Concurrent List.
- Article 21A: It provides free and compulsory education of all children in the age group of six to fourteen years as a fundamental Right.
- Article 39(f): It provides that children are given opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity
- Article 45: The State shall endeavor to provide, within a period of ten years from the commencement of this Constitution, for free and compulsory education for all children until they complete the age of fourteen years.
- ARTICLE 46: The State shall promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections of the people.
Road Ahead :
- Increased focus on vocational and profession led education: Include vocational subjects in mainstream universities to allow for greater acceptance and utility for vocational learning.
- Craig Jeffrey, on the basis of his studies in India: Competitive exams now attract countless youth to indulge in “politics of waiting”.
- Digital technology has made its own contribution to the noticeable changes in student behavior.
- A university has to emphasize the value of reading is a sufficient indicator of the silent crisis that has engulfed the system of education.
- There is a considerable gap between the discourse of reform and the reality of our higher education system.Unwillingness to acknowledge the persistence of older problems has become a source of further systemic enervation.
FAQs :
-
What is Diploma Disease?
ANS.
- The Diploma Disease by British economist Ronald Dore.
- It offers a structural explanation for a widely prevalent phenomenon, namely the urge to gather more and more degrees.
-
What is Article-46 ?
ANS. The State shall promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections of the people.