Primary Indian Education in 21st Century : Problems and Solutions

Contents: Preface. 1. Consortium for research on educational access, transitions and equity in Indian education system. 2. Public and private partnership in primary education in India. 3. Does cost of primary education matter: evidence from rural India. 4. Access to elementary education in India: politics, policies and progress. 5. The progress of school education in India. 6. The quality of primary education. 7. Higher education in India: issues concerns and new directions.  8. Primary education in India: current status and future challenges. 9. The right to education bill and its implications for elementary education. 10. School choice: assuring quality education to all. 11. Tackling gender disparity in primary and secondary education and the empowerment of women. 12. Scaling up primary education services in rural India. 13. The challenges for Indias education system. 14. Primary school teachers and the problems faced with teaching the English language. Bibliography. Index.

The origin of the present system of education in India can be traced to the beginning of the nineteenth century when a controversy raged over the issue whether oriental learning and science should be spread through the medium of Sanskrit, Arabic or Persian or Western sciences and literature be spread through English as the medium of instruction. Lord Macaulay was a central figure in this language debate. Though both the groups the Orientalists and the Anglicists stuck to their respective stands neither of these groups wanted to suppress the local vernaculars mother tongues of the people. In other words both the groups agreed that education would be conducted in the vernacular during the initial years of education. (jacket)