School Dropouts In India

In the year 2011, India turned sixty two after her Independence from the British rule. It however continues to be called a developing country. Surprising, because on the one side there are sky scrapers, flyovers, metros, posh schools and tech parks, while on the other hand there are still slums, stinking, congested narrow by lanes, rural schools and dimly lit houses. Irrespective of however much emphasis is given on education, knowledge, and literacy education doesn’t’ seem to have progressed very much in the rural areas.

No doubt we now have International schools with some of the most luxurious facilities offered but on the whole, despite all this, school drop outs are a major problem in India. With school enrollments going up on one side, the number of students withdrawing from school is just the same or perhaps more. According to a study conducted by an education based non-governmental organization, children in the age group of 6-14 might be in the risk of dropping out.

Drop outs not only spoil their present and future of education but can throw the entire education system into jeopardy. The earlier the risk of dropping out can be detected, the greater the chances of ensuring all children have access to educational opportunities. Some of the main factors leading to drop outs at the primary school level across the nation are as follows:

• The need to support the family with an income. This is a major cause for rural children dropping out of school.
• The lack of support from the parents: Some parents view going to school as a sheer waste of time and prefer their children to work at the fields or get an income.
• The lack of an understanding of what education can give them: Sometimes children that stay in rural areas all through their lives have never been exposed to offices and the experience of earning in thousands. Daily wages keep them happy and they look no further. School is not an attractive option in such cases but a time waster.
• The educational system needs to become more responsive to individual needs.
• Research shows that gifted & talented children find school boring and they would work better if allowed to work at their own speed from home.
• Some children can’t stand the slow movement of education and want to get over with it. They only want the main classes and find the ancillary subjects a waste of time.
• The school fee is another barrier, even though primary education is free in India, another rule comes into play. There is no value for education.
• With the advent of technology, online courses make a better option than full time school. Online tutorials and distance education courses have made education a flexible option.
• The study of Computers is one subject that doesn’t necessary require a sequence of courses in prior and is a fulfilling career by itself. Computers can be studied at home and do not require to be studied at school or any formal instruction.