Abstract
The level of education and its response to different educational opportunities vary from one spatial unit to another depending on various factors like social, economic, cultural, and institutional. It is understood that certain regions acquire relative advancements over others in terms of human resource development and human capital formation. The key purpose of this research is to examine the intra-district disparities in primary education in Bankura District one of the districts of West Bengal. It ranks 11thamong the 19 districts of West Bengal (Human Development Report, 2007). Overall literacy rate of the district stands at 70.26% but the district scores low in terms of female literacy rates, which is 60.05%,whereas the male literacy rate is 80.05%, which is a huge gender literacy gap of 20%. There are also regional inequalities existing at block level. Kotulpur ranks first with a literacy rate of 78.01% while Saltora occupies the bottom position with literacy rate of just 61.45% (Census of India, 2011). The level of educational development is dependent on several factors—enrolment ratio, dropout and repetition rates, pupil-teacher ratio, habitations covered by educational institutions, space-student ratio, drinking water and sanitation facilities in school, etc. In this context, the present study aims at examining the issues of intra-district disparities in educational attainment with regard to various educational amenities of Bankura district, West Bengal. Ten attributes have been selected to examine the level of development in primary education. It is clear from the study that the level of development in eastern part of the district is relatively better in comparison to other regions. Economic backwardness and physical bottlenecks continue to be major issues in western blocks.
Highlights
The various dimensions of socio-cultural changes in any society can be understood in the light of the levels of literacy and education
It is well known that education plays a vital role in socio-economic progress of a developing country like India where the largest resources that it can command at any given time are its human power or human resource (Rahi, 1996)
The NPE called for a ‘child-centred approach’ in the primary education system and launched ‘Operation Blackboard’ to improve the same nationwide (Ministry of Human Resource Development, 1986).In the 1990s,Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) with an objective of universalisation of primary education for all was floated with the launching of District Primary Education Programme (DPEP) alongside a funding made by the World Bank for establishments of schools in rural areas having easy access for the communities
Summary
The various dimensions of socio-cultural changes in any society can be understood in the light of the levels of literacy and education. Achievement of universal primary school attendance for boys and girls was one of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) approved of in September 2000 at a United Nations summit, which aimed at complete reduction of the existing gender gaps in literacy under Goal 2 (achieve universal primary education). In the post-2015 period, the MDG goal is known as Sustainable Development Goal 4, which ensures quality, equitable and inclusive education aimed at promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all. After nearly two decades of independence, the first National Policy on Education (NPE) was announced by the Prime Minister Smt. Indira Gandhi in 1968, which called for a ‘radical restructuring’ and equalisation of educational opportunities in order to achieve national integration and greater cultural and economic development.
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