Education System in India:
Education System in India today had gone through a lot of changes before it emerged in its present form. Present education system in India is also guided by different objectives and goals as compared to earlier time. Present system of education in India, however is based around the policies of yesteryears. After independence, it was on 29th August 1947, that a Department of Education under the Ministry of Human Resource Development was set up. At that time the mission was the quantitative spread of education facilities. After, 1960the efforts were more focussed to provide qualitative education facilities. The National Policy on Education was formulated in 1968. It was formulated to promote education amongst India’s people. During 1987-88, it was Operation Blackboard which aimed to improve primary education by providing at least 2 rooms, 2 teachers and essential teaching aids like blackboard, chalk, duster etc. In 1994, District Primary Education Program (DPEP) was launched. It focussed on universalization of primary education which made primary education accessible to each and every child of school going age; once a child was enrolled in school he/ she was to be retained there. In 2001, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) was launched. It is a Government of India flagship programme for achieving Universalization of Elementary Education (UEE) in a time bound manner. It also lays emphasis on girl education and education of Schedule Caste (SC) and Schedule Tribe (ST) children and children with special needs. The Constitution (Eighty- sixth Amendment) Act, 2002 inserted Article 21-A in the Constitution of India to provide free and compulsory education of all children in the age group of 6 to 14 years as a Fundamental Right in such a manner as the State may, by law, determine. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, which represents the consequential legislation envisaged under Article 21-A, means that every child has a right to full time elementary education of satisfactory and equitable quality in a formal school which satisfies certain essential norms and standard
The Indian education system has made significant progress in recent years to ensure that educational opportunities are available to all segments of society. According to the 2009 Right to Education Act, schooling is free and compulsory for all children from the ages of 6 to 14.There is a strong focus on examinations from an early age. This makes the atmosphere at Indian schools competitive. Many expats prefer to send their children to international schools. Others choose a more progressive Indian school that is less traditional in its teaching style.
The Education System:
The Indian education system is structured as follows:
Pre-school: Education at this level is not compulsory. The Montessori system is especially popular at the pre-school level
Private Playschools: Catering for children between the ages of 18 months and three
Kindergarten: This is divided into lower kindergarten (for three- to four-year-olds) and upper kindergarten (for four- to five-year-olds)
Primary school: First to fifth standard/class/grade (for six- to ten-year-olds)
Middle school: Fifth to eighth standard/class/grade (for 11- to 14-year-olds)
Secondary school: Ninth and tenth standard/class/grade (for 14- to 16-year-olds)
Higher secondary or pre-university: 11th and 12th standard/class/grade (for 16- to 17-year-olds). This is when students choose an academic area on which to focus
Undergraduate: A BA is a three-year degree. Specialised courses such as medicine and engineering can be longer
Postgraduate: A one-year course
Types of Schools:
Public/government schools: Most schools in India are funded and run by the government. However, the public education system faces serious challenges including a lack of adequate infrastructure, insufficient funding, a shortage of staff and scarce facilities
Private schools: Since many government schools do not provide adequate education, Indian parents aspire to send their children to a private school. Some expats choose to send their children to private Indian schools
International schools: There are international schools in all major cities. They are attended by expat and Indian children
National open schools: Provide education up to the higher secondary level for children whose schooling have been interrupted and have been unable to complete formal education
Special-needs schools: Provide non-formal education and vocational training to children with disabilities