Let us #Vote4Children.

Image Courtesy: Anirban Saha| www.anirbansaha.com

‘India is the youngest nation in the world’- the statement itself captures the responsibility, the youth of India has.

India has been on the brink of becoming a major force in the world for some years, but has always fallen short. The reasons behind this are much viz. poverty, corruption, lack of political consensus, lack of good governance, but the most notable encumbrance is illiteracy.

Statistics show that, 4% of Indian children never start school, 58% do not complete primary school and 90% do not complete high school. Agonizingly only 10% of our children go to college. What would become of India, if it boasts of the youngest population but the majority of the youth are uneducated? 

An online research done by me and my team also shows education as one of the important factors the new Government needs to address.

Source: www.online-research.org

“A child without education is like a bird without wings”- Tibetan Proverb. The importance of education in a child’s life cannot be stressed enough, but is enough being done? In recent times the education for children movement has moved forward with the Right to Education Act being inserted in the constitution in 2002. But still many have fallen behind in the process of learning. The possible steps which can be taken should be a holistic educational environment in which the child can grow. Instilling in them, the sense of learning, is the key. NGO’s should play a vital role. They can increase a child’s willingness to read and learn through activity based studies. For example, letting them play a board game will also help them learn and at the same time, enjoy. Even a few words of inspiration can do magic! 

But again, does education only mean sending a child to school? Take for instance, a 12 year old boy working in a tea stall is the sole earner in his family and also has the responsibility to take care of his ailing mother, is sent to school. The question arises that, who is going to take care of his ailing mother now? Also, how does only bookish knowledge help him in his everyday life? He might prefer working to support his family than study things which he feels are irrelevant. 

The children, who cannot afford not working, should be given small chores like helping the teachers during and after school. They could help teachers to check papers, monitor the library and computer laboratories (if available). The children should get monetary assistance for his work, which would negate the need for them to work in order to support their family.

So, even though child education is of utmost importance, I am of the opinion that education for the sake of education does not have much significance but education for value addition is the way forward.

This post is a part of the #Vote4Children Blog-a-thon on Youth Ki Awaaz. Find out more at: http://www.youthkiawaaz.com/vote4children