Union Budget 2022-23 | Focus Should Be On Holistic Education

While we are going through a once in a century pandemic, last year there was a reduction in the annual allocated spending on education by 6 per cent. This was divided as Rs 54,873 crore for school education and literacy and Rs 38,350 crore for the higher education sector. Something the numbers won't show is the quality of education that has been provided, at both school and higher education institutions. Nor does it make provisions for skilling our unemployed young workforce which will help them be more competitive in the private job market. Here are some expectations from the budget this year. 

Allocating GDP For Education
 At least 8-9 per cent of GDP should be put aside for education. More allocation isn't only necessary at primary, secondary and higher education but, we need to also look at schemes for skilling our youth that are outside of the education system and make them eligible for employment opportunities currently there. 

Making "Digital" Accessible
 There is a growing need for us to address the elephant in the room. Online learning is not possible if you don't have access to high speed internet connection. We are not talking about 20mbps connections. But without a 2mbps connection with unlimited data, it is not possible to do online classes. Add to the fact that our teaching methods have not evolved to suit the digital medium. I don't think that writing on a black board on a small mobile screen is the best way for our young minds to learn. We need to enable them with the internet and develop resources for teachers to take classes on the phone efficiently. 

Promoting Skilling in Education
 Our education system is too focused on examinations and marks. We are really not looking at skilling. All over the world we are seeing governments moving to outcome based learning as the future of education. Private universities are now working with the government in the US to move to an ISA (Income Share Agreement) model as an alternative to education loans. This is something we need to focus on too when it comes to promoting skilling in India. 

Holistic Development at K-12 Level
 Over the last two years, school dropouts have increased. More Indian kids are not completing their class 12th. In the budget, we should see some interventions to keep students in school to complete their Class 12th. Government schools should also move towards holistic development. Communication & interpersonal skills, cognitive abilities, logical thinking need to come to the forefront. Wherever we are seeing this implemented, like in some states in India, we are seeing those students perform better. 

Tighter Control on EduTech
 This is something that needs to come out in the policy of the government and not just in the budget, but right now we are seeing predatory practices in the education tech space in India. The insight they are exploiting is simple; Indians spend unconditionally on healthcare and education. More and more customers are going in with big bucks to take certifications which have little or no value in the marketplace. We are seeing courses being turned into trends, with people buying courses out of FOMO. This needs to be flagged and addressed.