Education System in India

History of Education in Indian Subcontinent

The "history of education in the Indian subcontinent began with teaching of

traditional elements such as

 Indian religions,
 Indian mathematics,
 Indian logic
at early Hindu and Buddhist centres of learning such as

 Taxila (in modern-day Pakistan) and

 Nalanda (in India) before the common era.

 Islamic education became ingrained with the establishment of the Islamic

empires in the Indian subcontinent in the Middle Ages while the coming of

the Europeans later bought western education to colonial India.

 Early History

Early education in Indian commenced under the supervision

of a guru. Initially, education was open to all and seen as

one of the methods to achieve Moksha, or enlightenment.

As time progressed, due to superiority complexes, the educ

ation was imparted on the basis of caste and the related

duties that one had to perform as a member of a specific

caste.
 Early History

The Brahmans learned about scriptures and religion while

the Kshatriya were educated in the various aspects of

warfare. The Vaishya caste learned commerce and other

specific vocational courses while education was largely

denied to the Shudras, the lowest caste. The earliest venues

of education in India were often secluded from the main

population
 Early History

Students were expected to follow strict monastic guidelines

prescribed by the guru and stay away from cities in ashrams.

However, as population increased under the Gupta empire

centres of urban learning became increasingly common and

Cities such as Varanasi and the Buddhist centre at Nalanda

became increasingly visible.

 Early History

Education in India in its traditional form was closely related

to religion. Among the Heterodox schools of belief were the

Jain and Buddhist schools. Heterodox Buddhist education

was more inclusive and aside of the monastic orders the Bu

ddhist education centres were urban institutes of learning su

ch as Taxila and Nalanda where grammar, medicine, philoso

phy, logic, metaphysics, arts and crafts etc. were also taught.
 Early History

Early secular Buddhist institutions of higher learning like

Taxila and Nalanda continued to function well into the

common era and were attended by students from China

and Central Asia.

 Late Middle Ages—Early Modern Era

With the advent of Islam in India the traditional methods of

education increasingly came under Islamic influence.

Pre-Mughal rulers such as Qutb-ud-din Aybak and other

Muslim rulers initiated institutions which imparted religious

knowledge.
 Late Middle Ages—Early Modern Era

Scholars such as Nizamuddin Auliya and Moinuddin Chishti

became prominent educators and established Islamic mona

steries. Students from Bukhara and Afghanistan visited India

to study humanities and science.

 Late Middle Ages—Early Modern Era

Islamic institution of education in India included traditional

madrassas and maktabs which taught grammar, philosophy,

mathematics, and law influenced by the Greek traditions inh

erited by Persia and the Middle East before Islam spread fro

m these regions into India. A feature of this traditional Isla

mic education was its emphasis on the connection between

science and humanities.

 Colonial Era

Thomas Babington Macaulay introduced English education

in India, especially through his famous minute of February

1835. He called an educational system that would create a

class of anglicised Indians who would serve as cultural

intermediaries between the British and the Indians.

 Colonial Era
Macaulay succeeded in implementing ideas previously put f

orward by Lord William Bentinck, the governor general sinc

e 1829. Bentinck favored the replacement of Persian by Engl

ish as the official language, the use of English as the mediu

m of instruction, and the training of English-speaking Indian

s as teachers.
 Colonial Era
He was inspired by utilitarian ideas and called for "useful lea

rning." However, Bentinck's ideas were rejected by the Court

of Directors of the East India Company and he retired as go

vernor general.
 Colonial Era
With the arrival of the British Raj in India the modern European edu

cation came to India. British Raj was reluctant to introduce mass educ

ation system as it was not their interest. The colonial educational poli

cy was deliberately one of reducing indigenous culture and religion, a

n approach which became known as Macaulayism. With this the whol

e educational as well as government system went through changes. E

ducated people failed to get a job because the language in which th

ey got their education had become redundant.

 Colonial Era
Adapted from a speech given to the Vivekananda Study Circle, IIT-Madras,

January 1998. The system soon became solidified in India as a number of

primary, secondary, and tertiary centers for education cropped up during

the colonial era.Between 1867 and 1941 the British increased the percent

age of the population in Primary and Secondary Education from around

0.6% of the population in 1867 to over 3.5% of the population in 1941. H

owever this was much lower than the equivalent figures for Europe wher

e in 1911 between 8 and 18% of the population were in Primary and Sec

ondary education.
 Colonial Era

British education became solidified into India as missionary

schools were established during the 1820s.New policies in

1835 gave rise to the use of English as the language of

instruction for advanced topics.

 Colonial Era
India established a dense educational network (very largely for males) wit

h a Western curriculum based on instruction in English. To further advanc

e their careers many ambitious upper class men with money, including G

andhi, Nehru and Muhammad Ali Jinnah went to England, especially to o

btain a legal education at the Inns of Court. By 1890 some 60,000 Indian

s had matriculated, chiefly in the liberal arts or law. About a third entered

public administration, and another third became lawyers. The result was

a very well educated professional state bureaucracy

 Colonial Era

. By 1887 of 21,000 mid-level civil service appointments, 45%

were held by Hindus, 7% by Muslims, 19% by Eurasians (Eur

opean father and Indian mother), and 29% by Europeans.

Of the 1000 top -level positions, almost all were held by

Britons, typically with an Oxbridge degree.

 Present education system

The Indian constitution provides that both the Central and the State Gov

ernments can bring laws and frame policies on education or in simpler w

ords the subject education is the responsibly of both the respective State

Governments as well as Government of India. Therefore whereas almost e

very State has its own Secondary Education Board and is responsible for

establishing State Universities and maintaining them the Central Govern

ment acts as a co-coordinator and helps in determining a uniform standa

rd of education in the country.

. The government is committed to providing
education through mainstream schools for ch
ildren with disabilities.
The need for inclusive education arises precis
ely because it is now well understood that m
ost children with disabilities can, with moti
vation and effort on the part of teaching ins
titutions, become an integral part of those in
stitutions
There is a common educational
structure(10+2+3) followed all
over the country.
 School education
10+2
Pre primary (FOR 1 YEAR)
Primary (GRADE 1-5)
Middle (GRADE 6-8)
Secondary (GRADE 9-10)
Senior Secondary (GRADE11-12)
Significant feature of India's secondary s
chool system is the emphasis on inclusion
of the disadvantaged sections of the socie
ty.
Another feature of India's secondary sch
ool system is its emphasis on profession ba
sed vocational training to help students a
ttain skills for finding a vocation of his/h
er choosing.
 The Secondary education is supported by the follo
wing organisations under the administrative contr
ol of the Union Department of Education:
Some of the institutes are:-

•National Council of Educational

Research and Training (NCERT)
•Central Board of Secondary
Education (CBSE)
•National Institute of Open
Schooling (NIOS)
The National Policy on Education (NPE), 1986, has pro
vided for environment awareness, science and technology
education, and introduction of traditional elements such
as yoga into the Indian secondary school system
The CBSE was set up by a special resolution of
the Government of India in 1929 at Ajmer wit
h a view to play a useful role in the field of Sec
ondary Education and to raise its standard.
. The Main functions of the board are: to c
onduct Class X and XII examinations and
grant certificates, to prescribe courses of
instructions, prescribe conditions for exa
minations, and to affiliate institutions for
the purpose of examinations. The CBSE al
so conducts all India entrance examinatio
ns at the under graduate level for pre-me
dical/pre-dental, engineering and architec
ture courses.
The CBSE has constantly been enga
ged in process of curriculum design,
in-service teacher empowerment pro
grammes and development of textua
l material.
CBSE has introduced
CONTINUOUS AND COMPREHENSIVE
EVALUATION (CCE) at the secondary level.
The scheme of CCE discourages mechanical testing. It
envisages employment of variety of tools and techniq
ues for assessment in informal and formal settings whi
ch are more interesting, relevant and meaningful and i
nvolve learners for greater participation and learning.
 It is a system of school based assessment that
covers all aspects of student’s development. It e
mphasizes two fold objectives. Continuity in ev
aluation and assessment of broad based learnin
g. CCE will cover the scholastic and co scholasti
c areas of school education.
NCERT is an autonomous body fully funded
by the Ministry of Human Resource and De
velopment (MHRD)
The NCERT was established in 1961. It function
s as a resource centre in the field of school ed
ucation and teacher education. Publication of s
chool textbooks and other educational materia
l like teachers’ guides/manuals etc. are its maj
or functions.
It aims at making environmental education an int
egral part of curriculum in school education.
 Present education system

Basic info :
Primary languages of Education: Hindi, E
nglish, or State language.

 System type: Federal [State and Private]

 Established Compulsory Education: April

1, 2010
 Literacy (2011)

Total - 74%

Male - 82%

Female - 65%

The National Education Budget 2011-101 (

US$ 10.39 billion)
 Present education system

Participation in education.

According to the available data until 201

2, as mentioned in UNESCO statistical Re
port. Let’s have a look of Pre- Primary, Pr
imary, and Tertiary Enrolment.
55% of children are enrolled in pre-primary school
Primary Enrolment
18% of the population of tertiary age are in
tertiary education
Progression and completion in education
Resources for education
Literacy rates
Source: equity.blogspot.com
IITs in India
 Islamic Education in India

India also has a system of Islamic education. Several

different sects have their own schools where they teach

Islamic subjects and Arabic to mainly (but not only) Muslim

children. A Madarsa Modernization Programme was

introduced in the National Policy on Education of 1986 and

in the updated plan of 1992.

 Islamic Education in India

Some Indian states have established government Madrasas

Education Boards with which madrasas can be affiliated.
Selected madrasas receive government support to teach
secular “modern” subjects such as science, mathematics,
English and social sciences. A number of Indian universities
recognize credentials from certain madrasas thus enabling
their graduates to continue to higher education. Students
typically go on to study Arabic, Urdu, Persian and Islamic
subjects but also other subjects.
Creating a country imbued
with a scientific culture w
as Jawaharlal Nehru's ai
m. One such initiative wa
s the All-India Institute o
f Medical Sciences as an i
nstitution of national imp
ortance by an Act of Parli
ament and has set the pac
e for medical education an
d research in Southeast As
ia .
Some institutions of India, such as the
Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), h
ave been globally acclaimed for their s
tandard of education. The IITs enroll a
bout 8000 students annually and the al
umni have contributed to both the gro
wth of the private sector and the publi
c sectors of India.
Higher education in India has evolved in dive
rgent streams with each stream monitored b
y an apex body(UNIVERSITY GRANTS COMMI
SION- organisation set up by Union government in 1956, for
the coordination, determination and maintenance of standards
of university education )indirectly controlled by the
Ministry of Human Resource Development. M
ost universities are administered by the Stat
es, but there are 18 important universities c
alled Central Universities, which are maintai
ned by the Union Government.
The National Law School of India University is hi
ghly regarded, with its students being awarded
Rhodes Scholarships to Oxford University, and t
he All India Institute of Medical Sciences is con
sistently rated the top medical school in the cou
ntry . Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) are
the top management institutes in India .
• Vocational education
is imparted through I
ndustrial Training Ins
titutes (ITIs) and poly
technics.
•India which has always be
en a centre for the textile a
nd garment trade. Now the
fashion industry has becom
e so specialized that it enco
mpasses a vast field of stud
ies in design, concept mana
gement, design production
management, quality contr
ol, planning, fabric design,
printing, fashion accessory
design, fashion merchandis
ing, textile science, colour
mixing, marketing and so o
n.
 The Right to Free Education Act
The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE)
Act (2009), which came into effect on 1 April 2010, enshrines in
law for the first time the rights of all Indian children aged
between six and 14 years to free and compulsory elementary
education. Under the Act the state is liable for all direct and
indirect costs of education, including tuition and the provision of
uniforms and textbooks, as well as ensuring access to a place at a
neighbourhood school, or alternatively free transport to the
nearest school. The government is also responsible for students’
ongoing attendance and completion of their studies.
 The Right to Free Education Act
Enforcement of the Act is to be monitored by central and state

government child protection commissions. However, to encourage

parent and broader community participation in school monitoring

and decision-making, schools are required to form a School

Management Committee (SMC) with at least three quarters

parents and at least half women. SMC’s are empowered to

monitor the performance of schools and the use of government

grants, to prepare school development plans and to fulfil other

functions prescribed by state governments.

 The Right to Free Education Act
To increase choice and to promote an inclusive education system and

classroom diversity, the Act requires all private schools to allocate at

least 25% of places in first grade to government-funded students

from officially-defined minority groups and economically

disadvantaged backgrounds. Schools will be required to ensure that

education is provided freely to those pupils until the completion of

grade eight and will be reimbursed directly according to whichever is

lower of the cost borne by the private school or the equivalent cost

in a public school.
 Challenges
India’s education system turns out millions of graduates
each year, many skilled in IT and engineering. This
manpower advantage underpins India’s recent economic
advances, but masks deep seated problems within India’s
education system. While India’s demographics are generally
perceived to give it an edge over other countries’
economies (India will have a youthful population when
other countries have ageing populations), if this advantage
is restricted to a small, highly educated elite, the domestic
political ramifications could be severe.
 Challenges
With 35 per cent of the population under the age of 15, India’s
education system faces numerous challenges. Successive
governments have pledged to increase spending on
education to 6 per cent of GDP, but actual spending has
hovered around 4 per cent for the last few years. While, at the
top end, India’s business schools, Indian Institutes of
Technology (IITs), Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) and
universities produce globally competitive graduates, primary
and secondary schools, particularly in rural areas, struggle to
find staff.
 Improving access and quality
The education sector in India is experiencing rapid
expansion and change. Governments have implemented
new initiatives and increased spending to encourage
greater enrolment and attendance at the school level. In
higher education they are seeking to implement wide-
ranging changes to the regulatory framework. At the same
time the rising affluence and aspirations of households is
spurring strong demand for education at all levels and the
traditional dominance of the public sector as a provider of
education is receding.
 Improving access and quality

The dual challenge now is to build on the considerable

progress made in lifting participation and, equally

importantly, improve the quality of education outcomes. To

meet these objectives reform momentum needs to be

maintained and broadened. This is especially so given the

pace of development in the Indian economy, the changing

needs of households and businesses, and the considerable

lags between changes in education policies and outcomes.