[Research] [Updates] Newsletter on the Education Emergency - August 2022
Anusha Sharma
anusha.sharma at educationemergency.net
Thu Aug 11 11:51:34 IST 2022
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Newsletter on the Education Emergency
August 2022
To join the National Coalition on the Education Emergency (NCEE), write
to us
<mailto:info at educationemergency.net?subject=Request%20to%20join%20the%20NCEE>
Please share with your networks so that more people worry about the
Education Emergency.
The NCEE is organising the first ever national consultation
<https://educationemergency.net/2022/08/state-of-access-to-education-for-children-of-migrant-workers/>
on the */State of Access to Education for Children of Migrant Workers/*
on *August 17, 2022 between 3-5 PM* *IST*. To attend the consultation,
write to us
<mailto:info at educationemergency.net?subject=Request%20to%20attend%20the%20consultation%20on%2017%20August%202022>
Did you know that one in five internal migrants in India is a child? Can
we even begin to imagine what their plight must have been like when they
were forced to walk back home with their parents almost two years ago as
the pandemic set in? The kind of mental, physical and emotional trauma
that they would have suffered?
At the NCEE, we thought to ask a deeper question. What about their
education? Their supposed ticket to a better life, perhaps, better than
that of their parents? We couldn't find any conclusive answers. Because
you know what, very little data exists on the education of migrant
children in the first place. They might as well be the 'invisible children'.
Most migrant children spend an average of six months in cities/towns
with their parents who migrate to these places in search of better
opportunities. For these six months, the children may or may not be
enrolled in a nearby school and even if they are, they may be learning
in an alien language and trying to cope up with peers who have the
advantage of studying in the same classroom for an entire year or more.
When they go back with their parents, yet again, they may or may not go
to school. If they do, they may be learning completely different
concepts. And the cycle continues.
Could we take a moment to think about how the almost-two year exile
would have been on their learning levels? They did not even have access
to whatever make-shift/temporary educational institutions they could
attend even as their families plunged deeper into poverty.
It is time to give these children back their right to quality education.
Together, let us fight for their right to a better life.
*TABLE OF CONTENTS*
/Some email clients do not support local links. Click here
<https://educationemergency.net/newsletter/NewsletterAug22.html> to view
the newsletter in your browser/
1. *NCEE IN ACTION* <#toc-ncee-in-action>
* ON THE GROUND <#toc-on-the-ground>
* MOBILIZATION <#toc-mobilization>
* EAR TO THE GROUND <#toc-ear-to-the-ground>
* TECHNOLOGY AND EDUCATION <#toc-tech-and-education>
2. *NCEE MAKING HEADLINES* <#toc-ncee-making-headlines>
3. *STATE OF EDUCATION EMERGENCY* <#toc-state-of-ee>
NCEE IN ACTION
*ON THE GROUND*
*The Education Emergency is more urgent than ever!*
The National Coalition on Education Emergency (NCEE) had an insightful
second plenary meeting on May 28, 2022 to decide on a definitive course
of action ahead to combat the education emergency that has become more
pronounced. All of us working closely as part of the NCEE have witnessed
the widening of social inequities brought on by the pandemic and
exacerbated further by inaction and apathy. Concerted and consistent
action on several fronts is the only option we have to ensure education
recovery and attempt to right social wrongs that have not only impacted
childrens’ education but also their health and well-being.
The NCEE will continue to focus on four primary areas of action:
*Education Support*
This arm will continue to work towards building a space for educational
discourse to address issues affecting the educational recovery process –
through resources, awareness building and capacity building.
*Social Mobilization, Communications and Outreach*
This arm will focus on building and supporting a network of like-minded
organizations to have more feet on the ground talking to relevant state
and social actors. The NCEE will also double down on leveraging the
media to create conversations around the education emergency so that our
work can go beyond the confines of organizations and individuals we work
with.
*Research*
We are representative only if we are able to raise issues that children
are facing in real time. The research arm helps stay tuned to issues on
the ground by conducting surveys, producing research studies, and
developing policy tracking tools to create awareness, persuade
governments and inform programs, guidelines and policies.
*EdTech Watch*
This wing will strive to bring in critical perspectives on issues
concerning EdTech to build a deeper understanding of its benefits and
harms, and tease out principles that should underlie its adoption.
In the near future, NCEE will continue to raise awareness around the
fact that the education emergency continues, despite schools resuming
physical classes, through multi-pronged efforts. We will need to
advocate the need for using education as a tool for social justice while
continuing to push for discerning use of edtech in classrooms.
*The Education Emergency needs all of us to act now!*
For the highlights, presentations and videos of the second plenary
meeting, click here
<https://educationemergency.net/2022/05/ncee-second-plenary-meeting-may-28-22/>.
To join the NCEE and contribute to the mission, write to us.
<mailto:info at educationemergency.net?subject=Request%20to%20join%20the%20NCEE%20and%20contribute>
*NCEE makes headway with Telangana Education Department*
The NCEE had a substantive meeting with the Principal Secretary of the
Telangana Education department that centred around the value of
technology to resolving crucial challenges in the education sector. The
discussion revolved around the fact that using ‘smart classrooms’ or
‘personalized devices’ was not the answer to addressing learning needs.
Rather, the focus needs to be on providing quality education through
conscious use of teaching-learning resources, of which technology-led
aids could become an integral part. Instead of hooking children onto
devices, digital technology can actually be used to aid development of
teachers; facilitate peer-to-peer sharing and to create and sustain
networks of teachers, educators and experts.
To join the NCEE and contribute to the mission, write to us.
<mailto:info at educationemergency.net?subject=Request%20to%20join%20the%20NCEE%20and%20contribute>
*/A Future At Stake/ - NCEE Guidelines on Education Recovery Appreciated*
*A Future at Stake: Guidelines & Principles to Resume and Renew
Education,* a comprehensive document put together by the NCEE, on the
ways in which education recovery for the marginalised and vulnerable
groups can be brought about, has been appreciated by stakeholders across
the country. More than 250 million children who had no access to
structured learning over the two years of the pandemic have been moved
up two grades with little or no additional educational support. *A
Future at Stake* puts together actionable perspectives and valuable
resources on what schools, teachers and civic institutions can do.
The Divisional Commissioner of Nagpur was presented a copy of the
guidelines by Venkat Reddy of MV Foundation, and it was well received.
To download *A Future at Stake* and contribute to education recovery,
click here <https://educationemergency.net/2021/11/a-future-at-stake/>
A *Hindi version* of A Future at Stake is now available for
dissemination in Hindi-speaking states. You can access it here
<https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YgyhD9J-BMQMO47xOcoS9Yw32i0ESnCf/view?usp=sharing>
or write to us
<mailto:info at educationemergency.net?subject=Request%20for%20a%20copy%20of%20A%20Future%20At%20Stake>
to receive a copy.
*NCEE Finance Policy Tracker in the Parliament*
Shri Gaurav Gogoi, Member of Parliament, referenced the NCEE’s Policy
Tracker : State Education Finance
<https://educationemergency.net/state-education-finance-policy-tracker/>
in his question
<https://drive.google.com/file/d/16GtMzB9gFlUQybc5qvZi2f2kN2o-RelP/view?usp=sharing>
to the Minister of State in the Ministry Of Education on the decrease in
Education budget allocations for 2020-21 by 12 states. The response from
the Minister, however, only referred to the education budgets from
2015-16 to 2019-20 and made no mention of the budgets for the year in
question i.e. 2020-21. There was no further follow-up by the MP.
*MOBILIZATION*
*NCEE supports Bihar Kalam Satyagrah*
The Bihar Kalam Satyagrah <https://youtu.be/61H0w4NHC6U> is a movement
that is seeking to bring together citizen awareness on the quality of
education in the state. It has been established beyond doubt that poor
quality of education further leads to unemployment, rise in crime and
unrest, among other things.
Bihar often features at the bottom of the list when it comes to quality
of education despite being the state with the largest population of
youth in the country. Bihar’s education system is impacted by
underinvestment by the state government. The state’s per-child spending
on education is INR 8,526 (2015-16), compared to the national average of
INR 14,615. Further, National University of Educational Planning &
Administration (NUEPA) revealed that a mere 21% of all primary school
teachers in the state had passed the 10th grade. The clincher: the state
has decided to shut down over 8500 schools while it is posited that by
2025, given the growth of population in the state, there will be a need
for at least 60,000 more schools.
This surely calls for a state-wide, even a nationwide movement at that,
on where the state is headed when it comes to providing students and
youth with a constitutionally guaranteed right. Envisaged as a series of
meets and discussions across university, district, block and village
levels, the Bihar Kalam Satyagrah seeks to use positive mobilisation as
a tool to empower both citizens and youth to make the state accountable
for the quality of education it provides.
We need more such movements in the country that focus on sensitising and
involving citizens in demanding and maintaining the quality of education
provided in schools.
To work with Bihar Kalam Satyagrah or support them, you can reach out on
Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/SatyagrahKalam> or Twitter
<https://twitter.com/SatyagrahKalam>.
*EAR TO THE GROUND*
*Tête-à-tête at Perumathura: Getting back to school*
It was a motley bunch of boys and girls, from Classes 9 and 10, who met
our research associate at Perumathura in Thiruvananthapuram district in
Kerala in June 2022. There was excitement about getting back to school
after a long time but there was also the fear of how they would cope
with ‘regular’ school after almost two years of online classes. Those in
Class 10 were worried about how they would appear for the board exams.
The effectiveness of online learning looms large. Almost all of them had
been part of WhatsApp groups or some kind of online platform that had
been set up by the school for disseminating learning during the lockdown
and beyond when physical schools hadn’t opened up. Yet, not all of them
were confident of having ‘learnt’ a lot during that period. Almost all
of them had found at least one subject challenging to learn through an
online mode.
Uninterrupted access to devices was a challenge for many. While there
were students who had managed completely on recorded audio/video lessons
sent to them over WhatsApp, there were those who had to share a device
with siblings for attending classes. If both siblings had school at the
same time, one would just log in for attendance and hand over the device
to the other for attending classes.
Social interactions too had been minimal during this period, especially
for the girls. Most boys had been meeting each other at playgrounds on a
regular basis but the girls largely interacted with their friends over
WhatsApp or video calls.
Overall, the group had largely mixed feelings about returning to
physical school. Excitement, apprehension, misgivings, feeling of being
left behind were among the predominant emotions experienced.
*TECHNOLOGY & EDUCATION*
*Education First, Technology Later*
/*Let us clarify at the outset that we are not against the use of
technology in imparting education*/. What we are against is the bandying
around of technology as the ‘only’ solution to what can be seen as a
failure of the system to address learning needs.
If the technocrats are to be believed, the entire education system as we
know it today is suspect. And the tool that will lead our children to
learning salvation is technology. Mind you, the technology that these
technocrats deem fit and at the price they say. At a time when the call
for ‘personalised education’ (read: one device per child) is gaining
greater ground, we need to pause and think about what value technology
is actually adding to our children’s learning.
In order to bring to the fore critical and constructive perspectives on
Ed-tech from those in the domain, and other actors such as educators,
activists, scholars, NGOs, government representatives, etc., a series of
webinars/panel discussions on various themes related to 'Ed-tech' are
being planned in the upcoming days. As a first of this series, a webinar
on “/Right Digitalization/" in Education?” was held on 23rd April. Click
here
<https://educationemergency.net/2022/05/right-digitalization-in-education-summary-note-with-suggestions-for-action/>
to read the note summarising the rich and insightful discussions from
the event and suggestions for further action
*Do you resonate with our perspectives? If yes, join the NCEE EdTech
Watch <https://t.me/+pdFCsvmZeBY3ZTBl> on Telegram for updates and to
contribute to the mission, visit the NCEE website or write to us
<mailto:info at educationemergency.net?subject=Requedt%20to%20join%20the%20NCEE%20and%20contribute>*
*NCEE to undertake research on effectiveness of SATS & DIKSHA*
As part of NCEE's focus on edtech, a research project is being
undertaken in Karnataka to analyse the impact and effectiveness of the
Student Achievement Tracking System (SATS) & Digital Infrastructure for
Knowledge Sharing (DIKSHA) platforms against their stated objectives and
expected outcomes, following which policy recommendations can be made to
the government.
Teachers in Karnataka government schools spend significant amounts of
time furnishing data about their students and schools on a daily basis
on the SATS portal. The research on SATS will focus on exploring the
following: what are teachers' experiences; who is really benefiting from
all this data collection, is it being used as was intended, has it
benefited the government in identifying out-of-school children
post-COVID and bringing them back to the education fold.
With respect to the DIKSHA portal,which is an online resource repository
and learning platform consisting of educational content, tools and
courses for teachers, examination preparation material, etc., the study
will look at whether and how teachers are using and benefiting from it,
the relevance and contextuality of the resources on the portal for
teaching-learning, and challenges faced by teachers in using the portal
will be explored as part of the research to study the effectiveness of
DIKSHA.
*To know more about the research study, write to us
<mailto:info at educationemergency.net?subject=Re%3A%20NCEE%20Research%20Study%20on%20SATS%20and%20DIKSHA>*
*NCEE urges due diligence by Government of Andhra Pradesh before
implementing MoU with BYJU's*
*/With multiple states joining the BYJU bandwagon, we ask: Are
personalised devices the answer to addressing learning gaps?/*
The Andhra Pradesh government, in a move that will cost the state
exchequer INR 500 crores, has signed an MoU with BYJU’s to include the
edtech player’s online classes as part of the school curriculum. The
funds will be used to procure and provide 4.7 lakh devices to government
school students. A similar MoU has been signed by the Maharashtra
government for BMC schools in Mumbai.
As an immediate measure, the NCEE has sought that the MoU be made public
and that the government discuss the dangers of implementing edtech
programs without detailed assessment of the costs/harms and benefits to
students, teachers and the public school system. As our opinion piece in
this newsletter on edtech and education explains, we are not against
technology in education. But we are against “personalised devices and
learning” provided by technocrats and edtech conglomerates being seen as
the panacea to addressing learning needs and quality of education.
To read the NCEE appeal to the AP government, click here
<https://educationemergency.net/2022/08/ncee-urges-due-diligence-by-government-of-andhra-pradesh-before-implementing-mou-with-byjus/>.
*To contribute to the mission, join the NCEE Edtech India Watch
<https://t.me/+pdFCsvmZeBY3ZTBl> Telegram group and, visit the NCEE
website <https://educationemergency.net/> or write to us
<mailto:info at educationemergency.net?subject=Re%3A%20Contributing%20to%20the%20NCEE>*
NCEE MAKING HEADLINES
*In modern India, myth = fact*
If the position papers on various subjects shared with the Karnataka
state government for inclusion of topics in textbooks under the New
Education Policy, 2020 are to be believed, then the Pythagoras theorem
is a fake. Also, Newton apparently did not discover the law of gravity
when sitting under an apple tree. Gurumurthy Kasinathan, Member, NCEE
was in conversation with India News Ahead on how, increasingly, the
lines between mythology and fact are being blurred to show ‘ancient
Indian’ wisdom as superior at any cost.
Watch Gurumurthy’s interview here
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqVTqldowFA>
*NCEE seeks review of Andhar Pradesh Government's MoU with BJYU'S*
The National Coalition on the Education Emergency (NCEE) has asked the
government of Andhra Pradesh to review its collaboration with BYJU’s and
have a team of experts assess the same. Read the coverage here
<https://www.educationworld.in/review-byjus-collaboration-say-experts-to-andhra-pradesh-government/>
STATE OF EDUCATION EMERGENCY
Image credit: Rubin D'Souza | Scroll.in
Primary Schools: Merger Muddle - Frontline
<https://frontline.thehindu.com/cover-story/article28259500.ece>
India's mass closure of schools is leaving lakhs of students stranded -
Scroll.in
<https://amp.scroll.in/article/1027639/indias-mass-closure-of-schools-is-leaving-lakhs-of-students-stranded>
While ‘rationalising’ small schools makes absolute ‘logical’ sense on
paper, what does it mean for children like Phoolmati who now have to
walk more than an hour to the ‘new’ school? Will her family, that
survives on sale of mahua alone, prioritise her education over
everything else? What about the one square meal that she was sure to get
as part of the mid-day meal program in her neighbourhood school? As
state governments decide to shut down schools for ‘greater efficiency,
how many more Phoolmatis are going to be deprived of a fundamental right?
Image credit: The Hindu
Karnataka study shows eggs in mid-day meals help children’s growth
<https://indianexpress.com/article/education/karnataka-study-shows-eggs-in-mid-day-meals-help-childrens-growth-8078892/>
- Education News, The Indian Express
Egg-spelled: Why eggs keep disappearing from midday meal menus
<https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/egg-spelled-why-eggs-keep-disappearing-and-reappearing-on-midday-meals/articleshow/93403807.cms>
- The Economic Times
Amidst heated debate, protests and discussions, the Karnataka government
has decided to include eggs in mid-day meals in the state for 46 days
through the year. It is neither the only nor the first state in the
country to include eggs in meals provided to children. It has also been
proven that mid-day meals, and nutritious ones at that, ensure
regularity of attendance and also positively impact the health of
children. Where is the opposition to eggs coming from? Parents of
children? The organisations who make and serve mid-day meals? Politicians?
Governments are ignoring the pandemic's disastrous effect on education
<https://www.economist.com/leaders/2022/07/07/governments-are-ignoring-the-pandemics-disastrous-effect-on-education?frsc=dg%7Ce>
- The Economist
Schools across the country have opened up after an almost-two year long
hiatus. But unlike popular opinion, things have not gone back to
‘normal’. Unlike children who were ‘connected’ to education through
online platforms, there are lakhs of children world over who have had no
access to learning of any kind over this period. They will need much
more than ‘remedial support’ and ‘bridge courses’ if they are to
meaningfully grasp concepts being taught in the grades that they have
been ‘promoted’ to. The education emergency is real. And it needs us all
to act now!
*NCEE is now on Twitter <https://twitter.com/EduEmergency>and Facebook
<https://www.facebook.com/EduEmergencyIndia/>. Follow our handles for
regular updates. *
*Media articles are updated regularly and available on the Education
Emergency portal <https://educationemergency.net/category/media-articles/>
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Education Emergency Newsletter August 2022
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