Level of

education
in India

By Swadesh
Kumar
Bhardwaj
 In the Beginning

 In ancient times, India had the Gurukul system of education

in which anyone who wished to study went to a teacher's
(Guru) house and requested to be taught. If accepted as a
student by the guru, he would then stay at the guru's place
and help in all activities at home. This not only created a
strong tie between the teacher and the student, but also
taught the student everything about running a house. The
guru taught everything the child wanted to learn, from
Sanskrit to the holy scriptures and from Mathematics to
Metaphysics. The student stayed as long as she wished or
until the guru felt that he had taught everything he could
teach. All learning was closely linked to nature and to life,
and not confined to memorizing some information.
 The modern school system
 The modern school system was brought to India, including the English
language, originally by Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay in the 1830s.
The curriculum was confined to “modern” subjects such as science and
mathematics, and subjects like metaphysics and philosophy were
considered unnecessary. Teaching was confined to classrooms and the link
with nature was broken, as also the close relationship between the teacher
and the student.
 The Uttar Pradesh (a state in India) Board of High School and Intermediate
Education was the first Board set up in India in the year 1921 with
jurisdiction over Rajputana, Central India and Gwalior. In 1929, the Board
of High School and Intermediate Education, Rajputana, was established.
Later, boards were established in some of the states. But eventually, in
1952, the constitution of the board was amended and it was renamed
Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). All schools in Delhi and
some other regions came under the Board. It was the function of the Board
to decide on things like curriculum, textbooks and examination system for
all schools affiliated to it. Today there are thousands of schools affiliated to
the Board, both within India and in many other countries from Afghanistan
to Zimbabwe.
The Different levels of education
India today is the second largest higher education network in the world. Universities in
India are set up by the Central or State Governments by means of legislation, while
colleges are established by both the State Governments and public/private non-profit
societies as well as charitable trusts. Business and commercial organisations can’t
establish educational institutions in India. Each college or institute is affiliated with any
university. The different levels of education i.e. school education and higher education
system have been described
 School Education:
Primary, Secondary and Higher Secondary education: In the Indian
system, higher education includes the education imparted after the 10+2 stage
- ten years of primary and secondary education followed by two years of higher
secondary education.
 Higher Education:
Under-Graduate/ Bachelor’s level education: The under-graduate course
i.e. the Bachelor's degree is obtained after three years of study in the case of
arts, science and commerce. However, undergraduate courses leading to a first
degree (bachelor’s degree) in professional subjects like Engineering, Medicine,
Dentistry and Pharmacy are of a longer duration ranging from four to five and
a half years. Most of the engineering courses are for a duration of four years,
while the medical courses are for a duration of about five and a half years
 Post-Graduate/Master’s level education: Post-graduate courses in Arts,
Science, Commerce, Engineering and Medicine are usually of two years
duration, leading to award of Master’s degrees. Master’s program can be
pursued only after completion of a bachelor’s degree e.g. M Tech, MD, MS and
MDS programs take 2 years to complete after B.Tech and MBBS/BDS
respectively.
 Doctoral studies/ PhD level education: M.Phil. Program is of one and-half
year duration. It is a preparatory program for doctoral level studies. PhD
program is for 2 years and can take several years while D.Sc. and D.Litt. are
awarded by some universities after PhD for original contributions. Doctoral
courses like M Phil and PhD are available only at the university colleges. These
courses involve research work under a chosen/allotted guide, leading to thesis
submission and viva-voce. Successful completion of PhD course designates the
title of 'Doctor' to the individual.
 Vocational Education & Training: Vocational education and training programs prepare students
for entry into different professions. These programs have varied duration, from few months to few
years however mostly upto one year. Vocational education and training programs provide students
with theoretical knowledge as well as on the job training in order to make them productive from
the first day of the employment. There are several thousand Government owned, Government
aided and private technical and vocational institutes across India.
 Certificate and Diploma programs: In addition to the degree programs, a number of diploma
and certificate programs are also available in universities. Their range is wide and they cover
anything from poetics to computers. Some of them are undergraduate diploma programs and
others postgraduate programs. The duration varies from course to course and program to program
an usually ranges between one year and three years.
 Distance Education: Open and Distance Learning (ODL) system is a method of learning in which
teachers and students do not need to be present at the same place at the same time and therefore
is flexible in terms of modalities and timing of teaching and learning. Classes in this system are
conducted or in other words lectures are delivered “from a distance” through the use of electronics
and communication technology such as the Internet, satellite television, video conferencing etc. For
you, it means, you can acquire an Indian degree without leaving your home country.
The major participants in the Indian open and distance learning system are State Open Universities
(SOUs), Institutions and Universities offering education and includes Correspondence Course
Institutes (CCIs) in conventional dual mode universities. This is becoming more and more
significant for continuing education, skill update of in service personnel and for quality education of
relevance to learners located at educationally disadvantageous locations.
In fact, within a very short-span of time, distance education has become very popular not only
among students but also among working professionals for everything from a short professional
course to a graduate degree. Today, there are several institutions spread across India that offer
short-term certificate course to doctoral level programs through distance mode.
Problems with Indian Education System

 Our Indian education system faces a lot of problems that do not let it prosper and help other
children succeed in life. The biggest problem which it has to face is the poor grading system. It
judges the intelligence of a student on the basis of academics which is in the form of exam
papers. That is very unfair to students who are good in their overall performance but not that
good at specific subjects.
 Moreover, they only strive to get good marks not paying attention to understanding what is
taught. In other words, this encourages getting good marks through mugging up and not
actually grasping the concept efficiently.
 Furthermore, we see how the Indian education system focuses on theory more. Only a little
percentage is given for practical. This makes them run after the bookish knowledge and not
actually applying it to the real world. This practice makes them perplexed when they go out in
the real world due to lack of practical knowledge.
 Most importantly, the Indian education system does not emphasize enough on the importance
of sports and arts. Students are always asked to study all the time where they get no time for
other activities like sports and arts.
 Government Initiative
 Universal and compulsory education for all children in the age group of 6-14 was a cherished
dream of the new government of the Republic of India. This is evident from the fact that it is
incorporated as a directive policy in article 45 of the constitution. But this objective remains far
away even more than half a century later. However, in the recent past, the government appears to
have taken a serious note of this lapse and has made primary education a Fundamental Right of
every Indian citizen. The pressures of economic growth and the acute scarcity of skilled and trained
manpower must certainly have played a role to make the government take such a step. The
expenditure by the Government of India on school education in recent years comes to around 3%
of the GDP, which is recognized to be very low
 In recent times, several major announcements were made for developing the poor state of affairs in
education sector in India, the most notable ones being the National Common Minimum Programs
(NCMP) of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. The announcements are;
 (a) To progressively increase expenditure on education to around 6 percent of GDP.
 (b) To support this increase in expenditure on education, and to increase the quality of education,
there would be an imposition of an education over all central government taxes.
 (c) To ensure that no one is denied of education due to economic backwardness and poverty.
 (d) To make right to education a fundamental right for all children in the age group 6–14 years.
 (e) To universalize education through its flagship programs such as Sarva Siksha Abhiyan and Mid
Day Meal.
Conclusion

 Indian Education is a unique and specialized Education system that is offered

primarily to Indian students. It incorporates culturally relevant and inclusive
elements not found in mainstream Education but is subject to many of the same
mandates.
 The government and other entities who are associated with the education sector,
need to understand the importance of quality of Education. Education should be a
holistic process that must focus on the overall development of the physical,
emotional, social, and cognitive skills of a child. It needs to be a slow and cyclic
process and must take place gradually to help the child develop into an
autonomous, independent, and knowledgeable individual.
 An educated individual is an individual who should be able to contribute towards
the betterment of the economic and social development of the society as well as
the country. The true goal of Education must exceed awarding the degrees and
certificates to the students. Education is not a tool to earn livelihood, but it is a way
to liberate the mind and soul of an individual.