Women and Education

• In recent years, India has reportedly shown an improvement at each level of education for boys as well as for girls.
• 2011 census showed the male literacy rate to be 82.14% while for females it lags behind at 65.46%.
• Estimates show that for every 100 girls in rural India only a single one reaches class 12 and almost 40% of girls leave school even before reaching the fifth standard.
• Literacy rate in India has reported the maximum hike for rural women at 26% in the last decade.
• Gross enrolment ratio at the elementary level is 94.32% as against 89.28% for boys, at the secondary level is 81.32% as compared to 78% and at the higher secondary level girls have achieved a level of 59.7% compared to only 57.54 %.
• Due to the Swachh Bharat Mission, about 14 lakh schools now have a functioning girl’s toilet, an increase of 4.17 % points in comparison to 2013-14. The impact of the mission has resulted in an increase in enrolment of girls by 25% points in 2018-19 from 2013-14.
• The number of girls in NITs has grown from 14.11 % in 2017-18 to 17.53 % in 2019-20 and in IITs from 8 % of the total student body in 2016 to 18 % in 2019-20 for B.Tech programmes.
• According to the ‘World Employment and Social Outlook Trends for Women’ 2018 report, more women than ever before are both educated and participating in the labour market today.

• Gap in upper primary and secondary schooling:While female enrolment has increased rapidly since the 1990s, there is still a substantial gap in upper primary and secondary schooling.
• High drop-out rates:Increased female enrolment is, compromised by persistently high rates of drop-out and poor attendance of girls relative to boys. Girls also constitute a large proportion of out-of-school children.
• Inter-state variations:There are also considerable inter-state variations in gender parity. While the greatest surges in female enrolment have been achieved in the most educationally disadvantaged states such as Bihar and Rajasthan, these states still have a long way to go to catch up with the better performing states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh.
• Quality of education and infrastructure: Within government schools- overcrowded classrooms, absent teacher, unsanitary conditions, absence of girl’s toilet are common complaints and can cause parents to decide that it is not worth their girl child going to school.
• Social factors: Early marriages as per their social custom, girl children are not allowed to go outside the house and village because it is a social taboo, parents go to their workplaces and household activities are undertaken by the young female children, caring of younger ones at home, gender disparity at home, in society and earlier marriages in this region.
• Health factors: frequent ill-health of the student especially female due to lack of nutritious food and unhygienic conditions in living areas.
• Economic factors: Due to difficult financial conditions and social conditioning, families usually neglect girl education because which they are not employment ready.
• Patriarchy and social Perceptions: Position of women in the social, political and economic system, is very low. They are noticeably absent from the discussions of development theory too. This leads to absence of a dominant voice for assertion of their needs and rights as a citizen.
• Son preference: Some studies suggest that girls are over-represented in the government schools, demonstrating continuing son preference where boys (highlighted in economic survey 2018) are educated in private and better schools which are of (perceived) better quality.
• Violence against women and security issues is yet another reason.

• Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao scheme:It aims to generate awareness and also improve the efficiency of welfare services for the girl child. The initial aim of the campaign was to address the declining child sex ratio but it also include propagating education, survival and protection of the girl child.
• Digital Gender Atlas:Ministry of Human Resource Development has prepared a digital gender atlas for advancing girls’ education in India.
• National Scheme of Incentive to Girls for Secondary Education (NSIGSE):The objective of the scheme is to establish an enabling environment to reduce the drop outs and to promote the enrolment of girl children in secondary schools.
• Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan:In order to ensure greater participation of girls in elementary education, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan has targeted interventions for girls which include opening of schools, appointment of additional women teachers, separate toilets for girls, teachers’ sensitisation programmes etc. In addition, Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas has been opened in Educationally Backward Blocks (EBBs).
• Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA): It envisages enhancing the quality of education by providing a secondary school within a reasonable distance of every habitation, improving quality of education imparted at secondary level, removal of gender, socio-economic and disability barriers.
• Udaan:CBSE has launched ‘Udaan’ to provide free online resources to girl students of Class XI and Class XII for preparation. The special focus of the scheme is to address the low enrolment ratio of girl students in prestigious institutions.
• STEM education:To increase the participation of women in STEM education, supernumerary seats have been created in the IITs and NITs.

• Mandatory Educationfor girl child and retaining them in higher education. Providing proper infrastructure such as separate female toilets.
• Skill development:Provide them with job-relevant skills that employers actually demand, or that they can use in launching their own business.
• Security and safety:strong enforcement of laws and increased policing can help in this regard.
• Health:Strengthening of Anganawadi, Balawadies and frequent visit of health personnel is necessary to motivate them.
• Can take the help of Mahila Mandals in empowering the females of the country.
• Raise aspirations of girls and their parents: We need to give girls images and role models that expand their dreams
• Women Representation:Increase participation of women in local, regional and national legislation as it can raise their say in policy making.

Trends suggest that though much has been done in policy terms to increase female access to schooling, notably through improving access to primary schooling, there are still major policy challenges to be met. Efforts are needed to improve the quality of schools and ensure better opportunities for girls at higher levels of education, notably upper primary and secondary school.