Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world- Nelson Mandela.
Education and National Development are intertwined so much so that we can confidently say that without education one can hardly see the progress of a nation in various facets!
Over the last twenty years the role of education in national development has been one of the most discussed topics both in the social sciences and in the debate on planning policy, in national and international forums alike. Education has always been accorded an honored place in Indian society. The great leaders of the Indian freedom movement realized the fundamental role of education and throughout the nation's struggle for independence, stressed its unique significance for national development. Gandhiji formulated the scheme of Basic Education seeking to harmonize intellectual and manual work. This was a great step forward in making education directly relevant to the life of the people. Many other national leaders likewise made important contributions to national education before independence.
In order to assess a countrys development aspects one needs to know few internationally accepted indices like HDI(given by UNDP),multi dimensional poverty index etc.. which actually throws light on the development levels of a particular nation. In these indices education is given a pivotal role on a wider scale and it determines the ranking of a particular nation in terms of its development. Having said this one can see at the crude fact that developed countries far outweigh the developing and under developed countries in terms of their literacy levels.
If we relate various facets of a national development to education then one can identify a crystal clear pattern whereby these facets(such as politics, National economy, the social values, gender equality/opportunities, safer environment etc..) are extremely influenced by the educational aspects of the masses. If we take the case study of India, there are various regional disparities across the nation and their causes are attributed to poor educational standards. Be it the naxal affected regions along the red corridor patches, gender inequalities in rural-urban realm, low pupil-teacher ratio, low investment(both foreign and national) in infrastructural projects.. education has its take!
Starting from the ancient Indian history the class divide between the educated and illiterates has been visible. The uneducated came under the ruled class and the educated came under the ruling class. Even in the British colonial times the educated lot were very few and education has been a privilege confined only to upper caste people. Thanks to British who have introduced many educational reforms like the establishment of Sanskrit college by Jonathan Duncan in 1791, passage of several charter acts to spread the awareness of education among masses etc..Taking a leap from the past, today the educational standards of the country like India are matching with the international standards, though ambiguous hurdles still persist.
Be it the fundamental right of right to education(RTE) or the schemes such as Sarva shiksha abhiyan(SSA), Mid day meals programme etc the emphasis lies on the premise that Education is a sharp tool which can shape the Indias future. One can imagine what would be the impact of 100 percent literates in a country of 1.2billion people! That is why the government of India Invests in thousands of crores to meet these levels. Even if they can reach a level of 80-85 percent India could be a super power in near future. Provided with that, compared with China ,India is having large youth population base which provide one more stimulus to National development, when it gets the enough impetus from the friend called education.
Education is the most important lever for social, economic and political transformation. A well
educated population, equipped with the relevant knowledge, attitudes and skills is essential for economic and social development in the twenty-first century. It is the most potent tool for socioeconomic mobility and a key instrument for building an equitable and just society. It provides skills and competencies for economic well-being. Education strengthens democracy by imparting to citizens the tools needed to fully participate in the governance process. It also acts as an integrative force in society, imparting values that foster social cohesion and national identity. Recognizing the importance of education in national development, even the Twelfth Five year Plan(Indias) places an unprecedented focus on the expansion of education, on significantly improving the quality of education imparted and on ensuring that educational opportunities are available to all segments of the society.
Educated youth, if participated in politics, could be much beneficial than that of the uneducated lot. They can change the face of the country in all aspects and provide better opportunities for the coming generations. The march of educated people in the new scientific technologies actually helps the nation to build its economy to reach stronger and newer heights. Once the national politics and nations economy is matured enough then comes the Individual freedom and empowerment of the weaker sections like the women, lower class/caste/race etc to a greater levels. In fact this can be observed looking at the developed world like US and Europe where women have got equal rights to that of men in all aspects.
Having said all these things one simple logic lies here. An educated person is self confident, virtually aware of the rest of the world, he/she is more realistic in approach, financially more secure, emotionally more intelligent and last but not the least contributes high on the human development indices of a nation. This alone would be sufficient to say that education impacts many facets/all facets of life and thereby impacting the national development. If every individual is developed nation automatically develops!!
Rajesh Kumar Adepu
