Q.  What we have discussed so far is the situation where a section of students drops out of school or do not learn due to challenging socioeconomic conditions. However, these may change as part of the spread of awareness among parents, and also the decline in poverty. All parents may want to send their children to school. What would happen then? Will there be other challenges to school education? 

A:  Yes. In such a condition, the role of parents may decline in certain (not all) respects. In general, it is observed that individual features of the students may become prominent in determining learning achievements in higher grades. This may not be a hypothetical situation. There are states, like Kerala or Mizoram, where almost all children complete primary and a certain level of secondary school education. One can see certain tendencies of this kind in these states. For example, Kerala faces the second-generation issues with respect to ​‘schooling for all’. This includes issues of (lower) quality of education and (poorer) learning achievements of sections of students. There is a growing demand for private schools even in those localities where government schools are functioning. This leads to a wastage of public resources which are invested in education and creates other problems, such as the disparity in the quality of schooling received by children from affluent households and those from poorer families.

In one study we conducted in Kerala, we identified two sets of students — those who are performing well and those who are doing poorly from each section in a set of government schools. Our interviews with their parents note that there was not much difference between the socio-economic circumstances of these two groups of students. If most of the weak students came from the so-called backward communities and scheduled castes, the same was true for the better-performing students. Most of the houses of both groups had concrete roofs, cement-block structures, electricity connection, LPG for cooking and some had cable TV. There was also a perception among teachers that poverty and lower incomes of the households that were significant barriers in the past are not relevant these days.

This is not surprising since there could be a general improvement in the economic conditions for the majority of the population in Kerala due to the higher wage rates for unskilled and semi-skilled workers, and the government-supported social security schemes, which keep the levels of poverty low. Moreover, when students from all sections of the society continue to be in school for ten years, a section from the vulnerable socio-economic background too may develop an interest in learning, which may be another reason for the little difference in the socio-economic conditions between the weak and the proficient students. 

Q: Who may not learn well when almost all children attend schools?

A: One key finding is that poor learning outcomes are higher among boys. In the study that I mentioned here, the majority of weak students identified by class teachers were boys. On the other hand, the majority among the proficient students were girls. This could be part of a general and global trend. In societies where gender differences in attending school education is insignificant, girls may participate and perform better in schools and colleges. It would seem that the apparent weakness in learning in higher grades is more prevalent among boys than girls. This could be due to a number of reasons. 

There could be a disinterest in studies among a set of students (mostly boys), or they may be interested in other things. In that study, we could identify a few students who are recognised as weak in studies, but they are busy with and proficient in other activities. This may be partly due to the compelling circumstances they come from. One such student earns money by using his percussion skills; by participating in local festivals where he holds idols while sitting on the top of elephants; and by working as an assistant to a temple priest. There are students who are adept in the use of advanced mobile phones and apps and spend time online on social media sites. There are others who may work part-time while studying in school. Teachers also note the versatility of these ​‘not-learning-well’ students. They also note that ​‘external distractors’ play a role in the case of certain weak students, though they had not analysed whether these were due to family issues or a genuine interest in skills/​proficiencies which are not taught in school.

Though not many students drop out of school in Kerala, some of them participate in work and earn an income, probably to support their family or to meet their own expenses. This trend could be more common among boys. This may be partly connected to the absence of a father or his inability to monitor the studies of his children. Though single parenthood (or the absence of fathers) is recognised to affect the schooling of girls in the developed world, probably the issue is not yet very prevalent in India due to the restrictive social norms imposed over girls regarding their movement, freedom of having friendships/​relationships with students of the opposite gender, or in deciding the contours of their adult life. They are relatively under greater control of the parent or not allowed by society to divert their attention to other aspects. So even if the father is absent, the gender norms imposed by society work in the same way. This may encourage girls to continue to focus on studies. Hence, the fact that girls perform relatively better than boys in terms of learning outcomes could be partly due to their higher interest in studies (when they get an opportunity), but partly due to the restrictive gender norms which prevail in the country, which do not allow them to pursue interests and friendships outside the school.

Q: Personal interest matters in learning achievements when almost all students are in school. Doesn’t their capacity to study also matter? 

A: Yes, as is the case with children with learning disabilities. Teachers and parents in our study have noted that some students have learning disabilities, and these could be a reason for their poor performance in school. In a situation where all children go to school, the concern about the learning disability of some children may become conspicuous. On the other hand, these students may not attend in contexts where retention is low. 

There could be multiple dimensions to learning disabilities. It could be a socially constructed view, wherein difficulty in learning specific subjects may be attributed (without any attempt to improve the teaching of those subjects) to a learning disability. Although it is not unusual for a set of children to face such type of disability in any context, the share of children facing learning difficulties could be higher in sections of the population that have encountered challenges in terms of nutrition and healthcare during the mother’s pregnancy and the child’s infancy. The issue, which is identified as a learning disability, could also be partly due to a rigid and inappropriate structure of schooling wherein facilities for improving proficiency on certain dimensions are missing. For example, students who have (apparent) learning disabilities may do well in other spheres, like painting, music or sports, which may not be considered or assessed as learning proficiencies.

When teachers identify students as weak in studies, there has to be expert assessments of their learning abilities. Many people may have wrong ideas about learning disabilities, and they may even confuse them with one or another physical disability. Hence, an assessment by an expert (people with an understanding of the cognitive process of children) is needed. Many school systems in India are not aware of the challenges in this regard and may not have access to such experts. That could be a major challenge. There is also a need for adequate orientation for school teachers. There should also be an understanding that students with learning disabilities may have other kinds of abilities. Hence, the school system should have avenues to channelise their learning or education towards those proficiencies. 

State governments are adopting different strategies to ensure that students with different kinds of disabilities also achieve a certain standard in general education. There is a mechanism whereby these students can pass the standard X examination. Certain schools have also set up an IED (integrated education for the disabled) room, with appropriate resources and have an additional part-time teacher to support such students. There are also non-governmental initiatives for the education of children who face different kinds of learning disability. However, the adequacy of these initiatives needs to be evaluated, and there is a need to scale up the facilities so that these become accessible and acceptable to all such children. In summary, addressing learning disabilities could be a second-generation problem of education, especially in localities where most children are in school.

Q: Do these discussions indicate that the socioeconomic factors do not matter in educational achievements when almost all students are in school?

A:  Not exactly. Certain behavioural patterns of students matter in learning achievements, but these patterns may depend on socioeconomic conditions. We have seen a few cases of this kind in both Kerala and Mizoram. There is a small set of students (mainly boys) who get into habits like the consumption of narcotic drugs in Mizoram. This was mentioned by teachers in both government and private schools while we were doing a study of the dropping out of children in higher grades. Drug consumption among school-going children is also an emerging challenge in Kerala. To some extent, this issue of substance abuse affecting school education is also similar to the situation in the developed world. There may be a need for adequate psychological counselling of students. There has to be a coordinated action by parents, schools and police in this regard. Punitive actions (punishing students after they are found consuming drugs), per se, may not be enough and useful. 

The societal acceptance of courtship leading to marriage, because of which relationships between boys and girls, especially in the age group of 15 – 18 years, are not discouraged in Mizoram. This can work against the completion of schooling in certain cases. This again warrants sensible actions on the part of schools and parents. Preventing interactions between boys and girls (say, through gender-segregated schools and divisions) may not be a desirable strategy. It is important to allow healthy interactions, and there could be physical attractions. Boys and girls have to acquire the capability to deal with these relationships maturely. Though parents are expected to play an important role in building these capabilities, schools also need to have a higher preparedness in this regard. 

Most teachers also cite ​‘broken marriages’ (parents decide to divorce and children stay with one of the parents or with both at different points of time and/​or with grandparents) as one of the reasons for the lack of adequate attention by children in studies. As a consequence of the break-up of marriages, there seems to be a decline in the ability of parents to monitor the schooling of their children. There are indications that the divorce rates are higher in the North-Eastern states in comparison with other parts of India. The institutional or normative compulsion to be in a marriage despite violence and harassment that we see in other parts of India does not seem to exist here. The picture of Mizoram in this regard is closer to the situation in the developed countries, like the US and the UK, where single parenthood or breaking up of relationships in certain sections of the society affect the education of their children whereas the financially better off single mothers or grandparents or those with higher self-esteem and social capital are able to encourage and support their children to continue schooling even after marital dissolution. Single parenthood or the inability of the father to monitor the education of children seems to affect the schooling of a small section of children in Kerala, too. Though schools may not be able to compensate for the lack of attention on the part of both parents, there can be counselling and other support, especially for children who come from poorer backgrounds.

Q: What if students have less interest in what is taught in schools but have an interest in acquiring other proficiencies? 

A: Yes, there can be a diversity of interests, and hence, persuading all students to focus on a narrow set of proficiencies in school education may not be desirable. How to encourage them to acquire minimal learning in general subjects (say, language and mathematics or numeracy) without limiting their interest or acquisition of skills which are of interest to them is a matter that needs careful consideration. This may require an adequate focus on arts, sports and vocations in school education. There can be limitations in terms of resources available with governments, and that may work against the provision for education in all these subjects as part of school education. However, a major challenge when almost all students get enrolled in school education is to have a wider set of learning opportunities not only in academic subjects but also in sports, arts and other vocations. 

The school arts festival that happens in Kerala each year at the block, district and state levels is an interesting example where students from all schools get an opportunity to demonstrate their proficiencies in this regard. Students and their parents value these opportunities, and some of the former get opportunities to be professional artists over time. There should be similar opportunities to participate in sports in all schools. Though there are provisions in this regard, the facilities and opportunities need to be enhanced all over India. There is nothing wrong when a set of students focus on arts and sports as part of their school education (by ensuring that they acquire basic proficiencies in other subjects) since the country’s sizeable economy may provide many income-earning opportunities for them in these domains. Vocational education can also be used as a way to connect teaching in school with the diverse interests of children. We can discuss issues related to vocational education in another Q&A note.

Q: How can school systems enhance their preparedness to address the second-generation challenges of education, after ensuring that almost all children are enrolled and retained in school for about 10 or 12 years? 

A: When almost all students are in schools, the quality of education becomes the key concern. (It does not mean that it is not a concern when a section does not attend. When school attracts only a section of students, they may come from families which are interested in education, and hence, their parents may take additional measures to enhance the learning achievements of their children. However, when all children are in school, there will be a set of children whose parents may not do so, and this can have a bearing on aggregate educational achievements. What is provided in school or regular class hours may not be enough to ensure that all children acquire the expected proficiencies. Hence, there have to be additional measures on the part of school teachers. 

There is also a need to attract almost all students to government schools. If the (poorer) quality of education in these schools encourages parents to take their children to private schools, it can lead to a set of social problems, including the wastage of public resources that are used for government schools (which cannot be closed for other reasons). One can see a higher demand for Kendriya Vidyalayas and Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas, which are run by the Government of India, which indicates that even middle-class parents are willing to send their children to government schools if facilities are good and the teachers are qualified. Hence, the major constraint in other schools is the lack of adequate facilities. One can see state governments making efforts to convert a set of (if not all) government schools into ​‘model’ or ​‘high-tech’ ones. Improving the facilities and making government schools attractive to middle-class parents is another step needed to address the second-generation challenges in school education. 

There is a need to enhance the scope of school education by including, as noted earlier, a variety of domains — arts, sports, and vocations. This may require hiring teachers or instructors in these domains and the creation of additional facilities for this purpose. There has to be a higher level of preparedness to accommodate children with one or another kind of disability. Though physical disabilities are tangible, different kinds of learning disabilities are intangible. It could be a lot more challenging to enhance the preparedness to tackle the latter. There is also a need for psychological counselling and other such support in schools to enhance the ability of children to deal with their emotional issues. 

In states where all children attend schools, it is common for education to be part of social and political debates and activism. On the one hand, the improvement in school education can be an outcome of such social/​political activism, but on the other, narrow political or trade union interests of teachers or political parties can have negative impacts on the functioning of schools. Useful reforms in school education may be delayed due to the resistance of political groups, including school teachers. Hence, another major challenge is how to control these not-so-desirable aspects of the politicisation of education without destroying its desirable elements. It may be noted that this is a challenge in developed countries, like the USA, too. Addressing these challenges may take time and/​or conscious actions on the part of all stakeholders. Education is a social process; hence, the improvements in education are connected to overall social change.

Santhakumar V is a former Professor, Azim Premji University, Bengaluru

Featured Image: Purusottam Singh Thakur, Azim Premji Foundation