Rethinking Schooling for the 21st Century

development and teacher preparation in both science and mathematics. 74 Under
the Right to Education (RTE) law promulgated in India in 2010, subject-specialist
teachers are supposed to be appointed to teach maths and science at upper
primary and junior secondary level, but the paucity of teachers has made this
goal difficult to achieve, especially in the northern Indian states where retention
rates have traditionally been poor and child labour has persisted. Methods for
teaching mathematics and science have also given cause for concern because,
despite changes in policy, older behaviourist methods of teaching continue to be
widely popular. Box 5.2 provides an example of the challenge of translating policy
into practice and efforts to overcome this challenge.
Box 5.2 Improving science and mathematics teaching 75
India’s NCF 2005 recommends constructivist pedagogic practices, and these are also now
mandated in new teacher training syllabi. However, the use of drills and cramming for
introducing small children to basic mathematical concepts remains common, resulting
in poor capacity for application of mathematical skills or problem solving in different areas,
including science. Similar problems have been noted in other countries of the region.
NGOs in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Nepal have been quite active in
promoting progressive methods of teaching science and mathematics. In certain pockets,
these efforts have borne fruit, and, to a certain extent, NGO-initiated innovations have
been mainstreamed in curriculum policy too.
The Hoshangabad Science Teaching Programme (HSTP) 75 for rural schools, initiated in the
1970s, provides a case in point here. The HSTP is the first example in India of collaboration
between voluntary groups and professional scientists in a participatory curriculum development
exercise aimed at accommodating innovative methods such as the ‘discovery’
approach to science teaching in place of the conventional textbook-centred methodology.
Later, environment-based education came to be incorporated as an integral part of science
teaching. The state government of Madhya Pradesh gave the Programme space in
the development of the curriculum — including textbooks, low cost experiments with a kit
for every classroom, an open book examination system and intensive teacher education
programmes. Subsequent reforming efforts in India and neighbouring countries have taken
inspiration from HTSP. India’s NCF 2005 built on lessons learnt from this programme.
Gender equality
For the region as a whole, gender equality has emerged
as a major social policy issue over recent decades. In
general, it has also been increasingly highlighted in
official statements of educational aims. In documents
from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Bhutan,
gender equality figures frequently (see Appendix II-5).
For the region as a
whole, gender equality
has emerged as a major
social policy issue over
recent decades
74 In the case of India, for example, see: India. 1993. Learning without burden. New Delhi,
Ministry of Human Resource Development.
75 See https://www.eklavya.in/index.php?option=com_content&task=category&sectionid=12&id=52&Itemid=74.
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Chapter 5: South Asia