TOPIC: GS 2 Issues Relating to Development and Management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.
The blank pages in India’s online learning experience
What is the news?
- The world is presently grappling with the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the social, economic and political spheres. In short COVID-19 has affected all sectors.
- There are areas where countries such as India should be more worried about. One of them is education.
Why?
1) Around 300 million children across all age groups are reported to be out of school in India now the number is of the period when all schools were closed
2) The education sector faces issues
- Challenges of delivery, especially of pedagogical processes
- Classroom assessment frameworks, (As many must have missed content offered on the various e-mail platforms )
- Students’ support and teacher-student engagement.
- Poor access to digital data
3) The children were burdened with household/farm work; girl students in particular were apprehensive of being given away in marriage.
Impact-
- The chances for an education-enabled social and economic mobility appear to be grim in the country individual as well as community level
- Following closure of schools, boys became inattentive to studies while girls, with lesser opportunities, were more involved in household chore
- More dropouts led to poverty which is a mother of many evils for eg- insurgency, terrorism
- It can be related to demographic dividend utility as failure to utilize demo graphic dividend led to humongous crisis- can be related to economy.
- With their educational routine having been disrupted, children, in many cases, have also forgotten what they learnt earlier.
- Again, the decision to postpone the board examinations and to allow automatic promotion to the higher classes is bound to affect the quality.
Initiative Taken by government–
- Push to the digital distance learning method. The focus was on the use of text/video/audio content through SMS, WhatsApp, radio and TV programmes to reach out to students and engage them.
- The Union Ministry of Human Resource Development in March 2020 started sharing free e-learning platforms.
They included
- Diksha portal which has e-learning content aligned to the curriculum
- E-Pathshala, an app by the National Council of Educational Research and Training for Classes 1 to 12 in multiple languages.
- SWAYAM hosts 1,900 complete courses including teaching videos, computer weekly assignments, examinations and credit transfers, aimed both at school (Classes 1 to 12) and higher education.
- SWAYAM Prabha is a group of 32 direct to home channels devoted to the telecasting of educational programmes. While this looks fairly impressive, there are many pitfalls.
Mains Question
What are the impact of Covid pandemic in the education ?
PRELIMS PUNCHERS
- Ashwagandha
It is an annual evergreen shrub in the Solanaceae or nightshade family that grows in India, the Middle East, and parts of Africa. Several other species in the genus Withania are morphologically similar. Although thought to be useful as a medicinal herb in Ayurveda and sold in many countries as a dietary supplement, there is insufficient scientific evidence that it is safe or effective for treating any disease. Because of its lack of demonstrated efficacy and possible side-effects, it is currently not recommended for any condition
Withania somnifera is prone to several pests and diseases. Leaf spot disease caused by Alternaria alternata is the most prevalent disease, which occurs in a severe form in Punjab, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh. A decline in the concentration of its secondary metabolites occurs by leaf spot disease. A treehopper feeds on the apical portions of the stem, making them rough and woody in appearance and brown in colour.
- The Tebhaga movementÂ
It was led by the sharecroppers of the Bengal region against the oppressive jotedars in 1946-47. The uprising was due to the sharecropping system that prevailed in Bengal. During the early nineteen century a new class of rich peasants known as jotedars emerged in the Bengal region.
The jotedars collected huge tracts of land in rural areas. They also controlled the local markets, money lending activities, and exercised control over the poor cultivators. In rural villages these jotedars exercised more control than the Zamindars, who often lived in urban areas. The large agricultural areas under the jotedars were cultivated through sharecroppers also known as bhagadars, who handed over half of the crop after the harvest to the jotedars. The jotedars were mainly concentrated in North Bengal, whereas in other parts of Bengal they are known as haoladars, gantidars, or mandals.
- TReDS
TReDS is an electronic platform for facilitating the financing / discounting of trade receivables of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) through multiple financiers. These receivables can be due from corporates and other buyers, including Government Departments and Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs).Corporates, Government Departments, PSUs and any other entity can participate as buyers in TReDS. A Factoring Unit (FU) is a standard nomenclature used in TReDS for invoice(s) or bill(s) of exchange. Each FU represents a confirmed obligation of the corporates or other buyers, including Government Departments and PSUs. Banks, NBFC – Factors and other financial institutions as permitted by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), can participate as financiers in TReDS. A settlement file provides information as to how much amount has to be debited from and credited to the accounts of participants sellers, buyers and financiers, due on a particular date / time. In other words, it indicates how much a financier has to pay to an MSME seller, and how much a buyer owes to the financier on a particular date / time.
- World Food Programme
The World Food Programme is the food-assistance branch of the United Nations. It is the world’s largest humanitarian organization, the largest one focused on hunger and food security, and the largest provider of school meals. Founded in 1961, it is headquartered in Rome and has offices in 80 countries. It is an executive member of the United Nations Development Group, a consortium of UN entities that aims to fulfil the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), with a priority on achieving SDG 2 for “zero hunger” by 2030.
In addition to emergency food relief, WFP offers technical assistance and development aid, such as building capacity for emergency preparedness and response, managing supply chains and logistics, promoting social safety programs, and strengthening resilience against climate change. The agency is also a major provider of direct cash assistance and medical supplies, and provides passenger services for humanitarian workers.
Sources : https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/open-page/a-well-deserved-nobel-for-wfp/article33046644.ece
PRELIMS QUESTIONS
Qn 1.Consider the following statement with regard to The Tebhaga movement
- The uprising was due to the sharecropping system that prevailed in Bihar
- The large agricultural areas under the jotedars were cultivated through sharecroppers also known as bhagadars.
Select the correct statement using code given below.
(a). 1only      (b) 2 only
(c).Both      (d). None of above
Answer : B
It was led by the sharecroppers of the Bengal region against the oppressive jotedars in 1946-47. The uprising was due to the sharecropping system that prevailed in Bengal. During the early nineteen century a new class of rich peasants known as jotedars emerged in the Bengal region.
The jotedars collected huge tracts of land in rural areas. They also controlled the local markets, money lending activities, and exercised control over the poor cultivators. In rural villages these jotedars exercised more control than the Zamindars, who often lived in urban areas. The large agricultural areas under the jotedars were cultivated through sharecroppers also known as bhagadars, who handed over half of the crop after the harvest to the jotedars. The jotedars were mainly concentrated in North Bengal, whereas in other parts of Bengal they are known as haoladars, gantidars, or mandals
Qn 2.Consider the following statement with regard to World Food Program
1.It is an legislative member of the United Nations Development Group
2.It aims to fulfil the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), with a priority on achieving SDG 4 for “zero hunger” by 2030.
Select the correct statement using code given below.
(a). 1only      (b) 2 only
(c).Both      (d). None of above
Answer : D
The World Food Programme is the food-assistance branch of the United Nations. It is the world’s largest humanitarian organization, the largest one focused on hunger and food security, and the largest provider of school meals. Founded in 1961, it is headquartered in Rome and has offices in 80 countries. It is an executive member of the United Nations Development Group, a consortium of UN entities that aims to fulfil the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), with a priority on achieving SDG 2 for “zero hunger” by 2030.
In addition to emergency food relief, WFP offers technical assistance and development aid, such as building capacity for emergency preparedness and response, managing supply chains and logistics, promoting social safety programs, and strengthening resilience against climate change. The agency is also a major provider of direct cash assistance and medical supplies, and provides passenger services for humanitarian workers.