ISSN: 2311-1550 Vol. 3, No. 3, pp. 43-59 Towards Inclusive Education: A Case Study of IGNOU S.V.S. Chaudhury1, Pankaj Khare1, Sanjay Gupta1 and Suresh Garg2 1Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi, India 2 Himalayan University, Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh, India Abstract: Towards the end of the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007 -2012), India catered to about 20 per cent of those in the age group 17 to 24 years. However, to achieve the threshold level of about 30 per cent by 2020, and address concerns that perpetuate inequalities in opportunities to higher education, the Government of India (GoI) formulated positive discrimination policies. Establishment of Open Universities in general and Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) in particular was one such positive step in this direction. Since 1987, IGNOU has been striving for inclusive education and reach to all groups to meet their educational needs. As a result of its dedicated efforts, at the end of 2012, it had reached 639 out of 659 districts in the country, including those in the red corridor (with a large concentration of Naxalite and Maoist extremists) passing through the States of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Odisha, and West Bengal. IGNOU has been successfully imparting education and training to the socially, economically, physically and/or geographically disadvantaged, in addition to women, minorities and jail inmates. Our results show that participation of rural women is particularly encouraging in all programmes but the dropout rate of these groups is rather high and the success rate comparatively low. Keywords: Inclusive Education, Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Other Backward Castes (OBCs), Socially Marginalised Groups Introduction With about 17 million students, 634 universities and 33,023 colleges, the Higher Education (HE) system in India catered to about 19.4 per cent of the eligible youth in the age group 17 to 24 years towards the end of Eleventh Five Year Plan Period (2007–2011) (UGC, 2012). Another 10 million students were attending polytechnics and other certificate/diploma level programmes (MHRD, 2012). (The number of universities and colleges increased subsequently to 700 and 35,539 (MHRD, 2013), respectively, with similar growth in the number of students.) According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), India will have 116 million workers in the age group 20-24 years by 2020, as compared to China’s 94 million. And the average age in India at that time is expected to be 29 years as against 40 years in USA, 46 years in Japan and 47 years in Europe (MHRD, 2013; p. xiii). To be able to reap the benefits of demographic dividend, initiatives such as inclusive education is important since age structure rather than the size of the population should play a more pivotal role. In India, democratisation of higher education is quite challenging due to a complex milieu characterised by multiple identities: social status (caste), gender (female), geographical location (rural, remote, slum), religion (minorities), region (North-East, tribal, economically and educationally backward) and disability. These groups have historically remained on the periphery of educational development even in free India. They comprise large numbers in absolute terms and there is a need This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 4.0 International License. now more than ever before to bring all marginalized groups within the fold of higher education. As such, ‘inclusion’ is not a new concept. Social inclusion has been deliberated on in many debates around injustice and inequality prevalent in various societies. For integration of physically challenged students with their non-challenged peers, expressions such as special education, mainstreaming, integration and flexible education have evolved in a more value-oriented nomenclature of ‘inclusive education’ (Erwin, 1993) as it is ‘responsive to diverse needs and circumstances of learners and gives appropriate weight to the abilities, skills and knowledge they bring to the teaching-learning process’ (MHRD, 2008, p. 10). However, confining the domain of inclusiveness to the particular group of physical disability is in our view not quite justified because disadvantage in any form limits the scope of growth and sustainable development of an individual. It is therefore important to create an inclusive environment for all, irrespective of the nature of disadvantage. In India, hierarchies of castes, economic status, gender relations and cultural diversities deeply influence issues related to access and equity in education (MHRD, 2008, p. 9). Inclusive education is an engine of social cohesion (FEFC, 1997, pp. 8-9) as widespread alienation poses a threat to the stability of society (Fryer, 1997). Through inclusive education, one strives to bring learners from under-represented communities into the fold of higher education. To this end, every institution needs to review its processes and structures. Our findings show that learners coming from disadvantaged and underprivileged sections of society can be served more effectively provided they have easy and equitable access to open and distance learning (ODL) environments because availability is not necessarily availability. Our findings are based on the analysis of institutional learners’ data. The Open and Distance Learning System The ODL system in India, in its initial incarnation as correspondence education, was pioneered by the University of Delhi ‘as a second opportunity’ provision. Enthused by its success, the Education Commission (1964-66) recommended that the provision of part-time and own-time education should be extended as widely as possible without being unnecessarily concerned about quality. It was appreciated by everyone, since opportunities to get higher education at a low cost were extended to all without spatial and temporal barriers. However, this educational innovation failed to realise its true potential for varied reasons and serious concerns were raised about the quality of processes and products, as well as the effectiveness and efficiency of training methods and techniques (Panda, Venkaiah, Garg, & Puranik, 2006). By 1980, the second opportunity motivated learners were relegated as ‘poor cousins’ of their full-time peers and distance educators began search for a way out. This heralded the beginning of the Open Era in the country in 1982 (Prasad & Venkaiah, 2005). Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), established in 1985 with jurisdiction over the entire country, began by offering a Diploma in Distance Education and Diploma in Management in 1987 to 4,528 working professionals. The spread, scope and offer of programmes evolved with time and so has the learner demography. Starting from a predominantly working population, now about 50 per cent of fresh school pass outs enrol in IGNOU’s programmes. One of the basic reasons for the success of IGNOU has been that it practiced the ethos of collaboration, sharing and partnership in all operations all along. From curriculum design, planning and development of study materials (in print and e-media) to delivery of education and learner support, IGNOU continues to utilise existing infrastructure and the services of acknowledged experts in conventional higher education and research institutions, industry, the corporate world and civil society on a part-time basis to provide 4 4 Face-to-Face (F2F) contact. (Some aberrations crept into the system with time due to politico- bureaucratic interference for activating very ordinary institutions as student support centres, lack of enthusiasm in the university faculty for revising and upgrading learning materials, misplaced priorities, lack of quality and lack of direction from the management.) IGNOU’s March Towards Inclusive Education Following recommendations of the New Education Policy–1986 and Programme of Action–1992, IGNOU led the way towards Inclusive Education (Swamy, 2011). In the 10th Plan Period (2001–2006), IGNOU’s collaboration with regional, national and international developmental agencies reached an enviable height, and it began to practice public-private partnership. In the 11th Plan Period (2007- 2011); controversial initiatives, such as on-campus teaching, were taken and the university could not see the forest for the trees. India has 29 States and six Union Territories (UTs), in addition to the National Capital Region (NCR), Delhi. These are spread over 659 districts. Of these, about 60 per cent were declared educationally backward by the University Grants Commission in 2007-2008 (UGC, 2007). Therefore, a serious challenge confronting IGNOU in promoting inclusive education was to reach out to people living in such areas. Obviously F2F institutions could not be established there for lack of resources (financial and trained human capital.) In this paper, we have discussed the efforts made, strategies evolved and techniques used by IGNOU towards inclusive higher education. The institutional data has been analysed in two parts: 2007–2012 (end of the Eleventh Plan Period) and 2013–2015. While the former part captures efforts and facilitates comparison with reliable national data and statistics available in the public domain, the latter part helps us to know the latest status of reach at IGNOU. The cumulative enrolments, certifications made and number of programmes on offer for the years 2007–2015 are shown in Figure 1. As may be noted, enrolments as well as certifications made have grown with time. However, the number of programmes grew exponentially in the period 2007–2012 but there was drastic reduction subsequently, because F2F teaching on campus and programmes offered by private as well as public partners under MOUs were discontinued in 2012–2015 after a considerable debate about openness in and mandate of the university (Basu, 2011; Panda, 2011; IGNOU, 2012). (The university has recently revived some of the programmes under MOUs with publically funded institutions.) From this discussion, we can say with some degree of confidence that IGNOU has succeeded in its mandate to provide inclusive higher education to the deprived and isolated groups. However, its outreach can improve further following the value added approach advocated by Garg, Ghosh, & Khare (2013). 4 5 Figure 1: Cumulative enrolments, certifications made and number of programmes on offer by IGNOU By December 2012, IGNOU had ensured its presence in all but 20 districts in five States (Chhattisgarh: 7 out of 27 districts; Punjab: 2 out of 22 districts; Rajasthan: 2 out of 33 districts; Tripura: 4 out of 8 districts, and Uttar Pradesh: 4 out of 75 districts) and one UT (Dadra and Nagar Haveli through Study Centres/Programme Centres/ Skill Development Centres functioning under any one of its 58 Regional Centres (S.K. Mohapatra, Personal Communication, July 12, 2012). It is important to mention that: • Even in areas like Gadchirolli (Maharashtra), Baster (Chhattisgarh) and Koraput (Odisha), which come under Maoist dominated tribal belts, IGNOU has been offering skill-oriented programmes and the learners got regular jobs soon after certification (P. Sivaswaroop, Personal Communication, October 16, 2014). • Many of our students, including jail inmates, have completed their programmes of study in the minimum time and have been offered assured placements in government jobs (P. Sivaswaroop, Personal Communication, October 16, 2014). • In addition to the North-Eastern States, which have predominantly Scheduled Tribe (ST) population, IGNOU has significant presence in districts with large Scheduled Caste (SC) population. • IGNOU increased its presence in the insurgency-hit State of Jammu and Kashmir as well. To support these global conclusions, it would be worthwhile to compare IGNOU’s reach based on microscopic data with national statistics. According to the Census – 2011: • The rural population in India was 68.85 per cent (Census, 2011a). • Females formed 48.5 per cent of our population. • Minorities accounted for about 20 per cent of total population and about 15 per cent of them were Muslims. • SCs, STs and Other Backward Castes (OBCs) respectively formed 16.2 per cent, 8.2 per cent (Census, 2011b) and around 40.94 per cent of our population (Times of India, 2007). 4 6 • About 2.2 per cent of our population was challenged with different disabilities (Census, 2011c). Though visual disability was most prevalent in every state, loco-motor problems and autism were fast emerging as leading disabilities (Times of India, June 30, 2014). In some states, these accounted for up to 50 per cent of the challenged population and some experts attributed these to development and the fast pace of life. The national averages of Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) for various groups towards the end of Eleventh Plan were as given below: • The participation of SCs, STs and OBCs in higher education was respectively 12.5 per cent, 4.2 per cent and 31.7 per cent (AISHE, 2012, p. 10), which was less than the respective proportions of their population in the country. As per National Knowledge Commission Report, the gross enrolment ratio for Scheduled Tribes (STs), Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) was 6.57, 6.52 and 8.77 respectively, much lower than the all India figure of 11 (National Knowledge Commission, 2006). • The overall enrolment was 18.8 per cent (male - 20.9, female - 16.5) (AISHE, 2012, p. 1). • There was vast rural-urban disparity - rural: 7 per cent against 68 per cent population and urban: 23 per cent against 32 per cent (Konwar & Chakraborty, 2013). • Women’s enrolment in higher education, which was less than 10% of the total enrolment on the eve of Independence, rose to 41.5% in the academic year 2010-11. Out of 16.75 million students enrolled in higher education in 2010-11, almost 7.049 million were women (Nair, 2012). • Differently-abled group: less than 0.5 per cent (research report by NCPEPD (2003): status of mainstream education of differently-abled students in India is available at http://ncpedp.org/Education). • Minorities: 4.5 per cent from Muslim minorities and 2.1 per cent from other minorities (AISHE, 2012, p. 10). • Out of the total enrolment reported, enrolment under distance mode of education was about 17 per cent. (MHRD, 2012, p. 69). IGNOU has been playing a pro-active role in providing higher education opportunities for all with considerable success. We here present details for the socially marginalized, females, differently-abled and minority groups. Socially Marginalized Groups In Table 1, we have shown the data for SCs, STs and OBCs enrolled in IGNOU in the period under reference (2007 – 15). We note that: • Average enrolment of SCs, STs and OBCs in the 11th Five Year Plan were 9.09 per cent, 10.41 per cent and 20.59 per cent, respectively. • The growth rate dropped marginally for STs but increased for OBCs after 2012. 4 7 Table 1: Admission Data for Marginalized Groups in all Programmes of IGNOU Category Data not Year Total Available SC %SC ST %ST OBC %OBC 2007-2012 2187214 92700 190440 9.09 218087 10.41 431332 20.59 2013 379348 3148 33916 9.02 38513 10.24 85809 22.81 2014 407820 1405 39674 9.76 40552 9.98 91561 22.53 2015 476405 822 48684 10.24 43962 9.24 105841 22.26 Total 1263573 5375 122274 9.72 123027 9.78 283211 22.51 As such, participation of SCs and OBCs as a whole in IGNOU programmes is below their respective national average. It is partly because of increased provisions for higher education in F2F mode for these groups. Also it seems that they are yet not fully convinced about the acceptability of the ODL system. Though IGNOU follows Government of India reservation policy wherever the number of seats is limited by national regulating agencies, more affirmative action in the form of seeking relaxation of numbers would be advisable over and above the fee waiver to reach out to these groups and contribute to national priorities of “Development for all”. Moreover, to facilitate learning, IGNOU will do better by relaxing conditions on Study Centre infrastructure and educational qualifications of academic counsellors in educationally backward districts, while appointing them even for conventional programmes for about five years after the activation of a programme (Agarwal & Ghosh, 2014). A closer examination of the data for STs shows that their enrolment in IGNOU is almost double the national average. This is a very positive indicator of the acceptability of IGNOU and its inclusive approach as a viable option for higher education. In fact, the educational mode and techniques used by IGNOU are better suited for learners in the North-East because of its geography and sparse population. Moreover, being a national university gives confidence to learners. A differential analysis of the marginalised group was made keeping in view their marital status, rural-urban settings, religious affiliations and employment. These are given in Tables 2(a) to 2(d). Table 2(a): Distribution by Marital Status Marital Status Year % % Married % Married Married Total Married Total SC Total ST Married Married SC SC ST OBC OBC ST OBC 2007-2012 190440 107962 56.69 218087 114673 52.58 431332 250904 58.17 2013 33916 21502 63.40 38513 24191 62.81 85809 50171 58.47 2014 39674 22985 57.93 40552 25833 63.70 91561 49273 53.81 2105 48684 26288 54.00 43962 27894 63.45 105841 55688 52.61 Total 122274 70775 57.88 123027 77918 63.33 283211 155132 54.78 4 8 Table 2(b): Distribution by Area Area-Wise Distribution Year % % % Total Rural %Rural Tribal Total Rural %Rural Tribal Total Rural %Rural Tribal Tribal Tribal Tribal SC SCs SCs SCs STs STs STs STs OBCs OBCs OBCs OBCs SCs STs OBCs 2007-2012 190440 66167 45.48 2852 2.31 218087 52939 47.53 46577 25.35 431332 196216 53.39 4350 1.05 2013 33916 15527 45.78 563 1.66 38513 15088 39.18 14182 36.82 85809 48919 57.01 1038 1.21 2014 39674 18674 47.07 650 1.64 40552 17738 43.74 12252 30.21 91561 52058 56.86 1155 1.26 2015 48684 21821 44.82 618 1.27 43962 19803 45.05 11465 26.08 105841 57678 54.49 965 0.91 Total/Avr 122274 56022 45.89 1831 1.52 123027 52629 42.65 37899 31.04 283211 158655 56.12 3158 1.13 Note: available around 2.07% SC, 27.75% ST & 0.89% OBC data not and not considered while calculating percentages. Table 2(c): Distribution by Religion Distribution by Religion Year % Muslim % % % % % % % Sikh % Muslim Muslim Christian Christian Christian Sikh Sikh SCs STs STs OBCs SCs STs OBCs SCs OBCs Average (2007-2012) 1.84 10.05 11.56 1.35 40.11 3.03 2.54 0.31 0.86 2013 2.32 15.11 15.79 0.83 0.83 1.45 1.20 0.03 0.59 2014 2.49 3.40 12.43 1.32 1.32 4.11 1.30 0.05 0.57 2015 2.27 3.56 12.01 1.32 1.32 3.56 1.07 0.05 0.57 Average 2.36 7.35 13.41 1.16 1.16 3.04 1.19 0.04 0.58 Table 2(d): Employment Status Employment Status Year No. of Employed Employed Employed Employed Employed Total SC Employed Total ST Total OBC SC (%) ST ST (%) OBC OBC (%) SC 2007-2012 190440 46864 30.30 218087 25902 18.70 431332 119429 33.02 2013 33916 8568 25.26 38513 9721 25.24 85809 21277 24.80 2014 39674 11310 28.51 40552 10783 26.59 91561 33156 36.21 2015 48684 12760 26.21 43962 9937 22.60 105841 34009 32.13 Total/Avr 122274 32638 26.66 123027 30441 24.81 283211 88442 31.05 Note: around 1.72% SC, ST and OBC data not available. On closely examining the data, we note that: • Every alternate learner in the socially deprived group is married, implying that mature learners opt for the ODL system. However, except STs, the percentage of married learners has gone down successively in the period 2013 – 2015, implying positive correlation of education with mature decision making. • Almost half of the learners from the groups under reference come from the rural areas but the percentages of tribal SC and tribal OBC students in IGNOU are fairly low. Moreover, the average percentage has changed from 2.31 and 1.05 to 1.52 and 1.13, respectively, before and 4 9 after 2012. However, the situation in respect of tribal STs is significantly different: more than 40% of all STs are rural and 25 - 31% are tribal. It means that unlike tribal STs, IGNOU has not created good impact among tribal SCs and OBCs in rural areas and the significance of education for sustainable development by these groups is yet to be realized. A spin-off effect of these efforts could be a literacy induced drop in Maoist insurgency areas, leading to societal development and saving precious human lives as well as resources. • In terms of religion, the average percentages of SCs, STs and OBCs that had enrolled in IGNOU till 2012 were respectively 1.84, 10.05 and 11.56 among Muslims, 1.35, 40.11 and 3.03 among Christians and 2.54, 0.31 and 0.86 among Sikhs. In the period 2013 - 2015, these changed respectively to 2.36, 7.35 and 13.41 among Muslims, 1.16, 1.16 and 3.04 among Christians and 1.19, 0.04 and 0.58 among Sikhs. The high enrollment of Christian STs is essentially from the North-Eastern States and signifies that IGNOU has made inroads in the region. However, in respect of other groups, the success is rather limited and needs greater thrust. • As far as number of employed learners is concerned, the trend is fluctuating for every category. However, one out of four employed SCs and STs and one out of three employed OBCs join IGNOU. Proceeding further, we now examine the success of the university in the inclusion of marginalized groups through its academic programmes at different levels. Analysis of Socially Marginalised Groups by Programmes The programmes offered by IGNOU have been put in four categories depending on their levels: Certificate (CERT), Diploma (DIP), Undergraduate (GD), and Postgraduate (PGD). In Tables 3(a) to 3(d), we have presented the number of students who joined IGNOU in the period 2007 – 2015 from marginalised groups. Table 3(a): Certificate Level Programmes Category Year Total Data not Available SC %SC ST %ST OBC % OBC 2007-2012 162819 9400 13984 9.19 12622 7.94 27239 18.44 2013 17315 32 1404 8.12 602 3.48 4000 23.14 2014 23986 163 2618 10.99 956 4.01 6412 26.92 2015 25530 38 2718 10.66 1176 4.61 7238 28.39 Total/Avr 66831 233 6740 9.93% 2734 4.04% 17650 26.15 5 0 Table 3(b): Diploma Programmes Category Year Total Data not Available SC %SC ST %ST OBC % OBC 2007-2012 367184 53582 30727 9.63 63977 19.17 62150 19.84 2013 26424 249 1797 6.87 6205 23.71 4794 18.32 2014 30087 14 2305 7.66 6032 20.06 6436 21.40 2015 30575 171 2375 7.81 3083 10.14 6615 21.76 Total/Avr 87086 434 6477 7.45 15320 17.97 17845 20.49 Table 3(c): Undergraduate Programmes Category Year Total Data not Available SC %SC ST %ST OBC % OBC 2007-2012 831519 16672 79250 9.64 68689 8.40 192987 23.11 2013 174636 1190 17988 10.37 15500 8.94 46423 26.77 2014 186642 712 20165 10.85 16143 8.68 46162 24.83 2015 221160 562 24767 11.23 20022 9.08 52984 24.02 Total/Avr 582438 2464 62920 10.81 51665 8.90 145569 25.20 Table 3(d): Post-graduate Programmes Category Year Total Data not Available SC %SC ST %ST OBC % OBC 2007-2012 586870 10785 42510 7.63 39824 6.74 104765 17.94 2013 127937 1336 9115 7.20 10813 8.54 24292 19.19 2014 135950 409 10981 8.10 13017 9.60 25971 19.16 2015 172900 54 15375 8.90 15992 9.25 33156 19.18 Total/Avr 436787 1799 35471 8.07 39822 9.13 83419 19.18 We note that: • The average percentage of learners from SC, ST and OBC groups in certificate programmes were respectively 9.19, 7.94 and 18.44 at the end of 11th Plan and 9.93, 4.04 and 26.15 for the period 2013-2015. On comparing this data with that given in Table 1 for respective groups, we note that for SCs and OBCs, the percentage level of enrolment is almost the same as their overall average in IGNOU. It shows that the programmes offered by IGNOU cater to their interest. However, in the case of STs, the enrolment is almost half of their overall average. It implies that STs are less interested in pursuing enabling/non-employment generating programmes. • On average, 9.63% SCs, 19.17% STs and 19.84% OBCs enrolled diploma programmes in the 11th Five Year Plan, whereas the corresponding figures for the period 2013 - 2015 are 7.45%, 17.97% and 20.49%, respectively. It may be seen from Table 3(b) that, in absolute terms, more learners enrol in diploma programmes than certificate programmes. However, the percentage 5 1 of SCs and OBCs enrolled in the period 2013 – 2015 in diploma programmes was less than that in certificate programmes. This is somewhat anomalous. • The total number of learners enrolled from SC, ST and OBC groups in undergraduate programmes in the period 2013 – 2015 were 79,250 (9.64 per cent), 68,689 (8.40%) and 192,987 (23.11%), respectively. As may be noted, for the period 2013 – 2015, the increase in enrolment of UG programmes in absolute terms was fivefold in certificate and 2.4 times in diploma programmes. This is quite expected because in India, the first degree is the minimum eligibility for getting a job anywhere. • In post-graduate programmes, 42,510 (7.63%), 39,824 (6.74%) and 104,765 (17.94%) students enrolled from SC, ST and OBC groups, respectively in the period 2007-12. In the period 2013 – 2015, there is a slight increase in SC and OBC enrolment. However, a quantum jump is witnessed for STs. This signifies significant development in the growth trajectory of IGNOU towards inclusive education. A detailed analysis of all PG enrolments shows that, notwithstanding dwindling numbers in MBA, MCA and teacher education programmes, the growth has become possible essentially due to increase in numbers in and acceptability of PG programmes in the humanities and social sciences. Differently-abled Learners The distribution of differently-abled learners across various academic programmes is shown in Table 4. As may be noted, this group also exhibits a pattern similar to that of socially marginalized groups insofar as enrolment in certificate and diploma vis-à-vis first degree and post-graduation degree is concerned. Moreover, the overall numbers as well as the percentage is dismally low compared to their national average in the population. It means that in spite of establishing a National Centre for Disability Studies, IGNOU has not been able to penetrate the physically-challenged group. It would, therefore, be advisable to involve the Rehabilitation Council of India to renew collaborative efforts and approach national/international agencies to augment teaching-learning tools so that more effective training can be imparted. It is unfortunate that in 2013, the university discontinued UG programmes in sign language sponsored by the Ministry of Social Justice, GoI. It is time to proactively retrieve sign language and add programmes in braille using emerging technologies, because the ODL mode is most suited for this group. Table 4: Distribution of Differently-abled by Programmes Differently-abled Total YEAR Admissions Total PH % PH Students AWR/ FOUD PREP CERT DIP GD PGD Students 2007-2012 2187214 11819 0.54 742 394 695 5353 4635 2013 379348 1646 0.43 71 34 51 1159 331 2014 407820 2006 0.49 70 33 56 1533 314 2015 476405 1323 0.28 37 31 69 848 338 Total/Avr 1263573 4975 0.40 178 98 176 3540 983 AWR: Awareness Programmes; FOUD: Foundation Courses; PREP: Preparatory Programme; CERT: Certificate Programmes; DIP: Diplomas; GD: Graduate Degrees; PGD: Postgraduate Degrees 5 2