Education Funding

Women’s Education in Modern Times

; The voice of the working woman “a document of U.N.O. 1982 makes a significant stoical statement” women make up 50% of the world’s population. This alone justifies, serious, positive, down to earth policy on empowerment of women. Most of own people are content to precedes image of our women prove then individually.

; In addition of national policy on women, most of the state level have framed state policy.

; The issue of women and social change in India is not as simple as it appears. Women were blessed to be mothers of “heroic sons”.

; Despite the patriarchal onslaught women did challenge the world view of their periods. King Ashoka had to face brave women in the battle of kalinga which changed him thoroughly. No wonder many important contributions of women have been neglected and ignored.

Gandhi has to be given the credit for involving women in the nationalist movement.

The tabling of the Report and the International decade for women (1975-1985) hightened the awareness of people on the plight of Indian women. Women’s movement for freedom from patriarchal practices and oppression, started. It was no more men crusading for women’s issues but women and some men for women’s issues. Lots of women’s organisations emerged which aimed at conscientising every one on women’s issues and collectivizing experiences of the oppressed women to channelise the urge for change in the position of women in all spheres. This new consciousness gave rise to not only feminist (women and men) activists but also feminist-activist-researchers.

What awakened and brought together women’s organisations all over the country to fight against oppression of women was the Mathura rape case, in 1980.

; The plight of Indian women continues to be a matter of concern. A siege has been laid on women. The discontent is brewing amongst oppressed women. The employed women, though encountering role-conflict, have learnt to become firm and assertive. Today due to them, women’s cause has acquired a moral and political legitimacy.

“INDIAN WOMEN : THE POWER TRAPPED”

English education was sought for professional development in the process of remodeling the society and women received ample attention. Social reformers and administrators as well realized that social transformation could take place only by the spread of education to women. British educationists felt the need for medical education for women after witnessing the sufferings of women during home visits.

The training and teaching of Indian women in the medical science was recommended.

; A commission was appointed to study the problems relating to the education of women since there was no satisfactory demand for women’s education.

; Empowerment strategies are varied and refer to those strategies which enable women to realize their full potentials.

; Self – reliance self respect and dignity of being a woman;

; As in any subject, literature on women in science/research are found at varied levels.

As mentioned in the beginning, literature on women in science have been varied and sporadic. Women students, it was found, receive slightly higher scores on tests of verbal facility incorporated into the nationwide GRE, but men do considerably better than women on test of quantitative skills (Zuckerman and Cole 1975).

Several analyses have been conducted to show the slow career mobility of women in science. Greater stress is placed on the economic and social development of women and a greater understanding of the plight of low – income women. With welfare oriented family centered programmes which assumed motherhood as the most important or rather the only role for women the shift is towards a diversity of approaches emphasizing the productive role of women.

The role of Government of India in Women Empowerment

; The first few plans followed a welfarist approach and treated women as recipients of aid. The focus of second plan was on the problems of women workers. On the social welfare side the largest share was provided for expanding rural welfare services and condensed courses of education for adult women. The fourth plan continued to emphasise women’s education. The fifth plan gave priority for training of women in need of care and protection, women from low income families needy women with dependent children and working women.

The Bureau was entrusted with the major responsibility of implementing the National Plan of Action for Women besides co-ordinating the activities relating to women’s welfare and development.

; The sixth plan for the first time in India’s planning history contained a separate chapter on Women and Development. In the rural development sector the IRDP gave priority to women heads of households and about 35% of total number of beneficiaries under TRYSEM were women. Many voluntary organizations were requested to avail funds from the government for the above schemes and benefit women. Under Science and Technology for Women varieties of activities were taken up. It is only during the seventh plan ‘Women Development Corporations’ were established for promoting employment generating activities for women.

; Thus with the beginning of International Women’s Decade in 1975 a number of schemes were introduced and earnest efforts were made by the government to improve the status of women. Inspite of implementational loopholes theses policies strive their best to integrate women into the mainstream of society. Thus the Department of Women and Child Development being the national machinery for the development of women plays a vital role assited by the The Central Social Welfare Board and the National Institute of Public co-operation and Child Development. While the Central Social Welfare Board is an apex body with state level branches to encourage voluntary effort in the field of women’s development NIPCCD is an advisory –cum- research – cum national level training institute in the field of child development with a separate division for women’s research and development. In India legislations and programmes favouring women had never been wanting.

Voluntary Efforts and Women Empowerment in India

Many voluntary organisations are successful in carrying out small projects. Voluntary organisations simply fail to acknowledge that the target group has problem solving skills.

; Women entering into the business field is not something uncommon today. The following are considered to be the major contributory factors: the influence of women’s movement, changing psychological attitude of women, the need to maintain a decent standard of living amidst the rising cost of living, gender discrimination in the labour market, restricted vertical mobility and above all the rising aspirations of women to lead an independent assertive life, and finally facilities offered to women for starting enterprises. Upper middle class and middle class women with the required education and information are comparatively better off in venturing into business when compared to the poor illiterate, marginalized women. Gross unemployment and underemployment suffered by them have forced these women to take up self employment, and wherever women have formed ‘groups’ they have successfully solved the problems like risk, finance and marketing in their self-employment. Women’s initiative with regard to business, is the main focus of this study.

The Need for Fostering Self-Employment Among Women

After the World War II, a large number of women in western countries resented their deprived status. There was a general awakening among women about their secondary status. Women’s movements helped the women to get-together, to discuss their problems and to develop confidence. In women’s movements, only the high class women had the opportunity to sort out issues pertaining to their status as perceived by them and women of lower strata were left out.

; Although labour movements tried to improve the status of women in various societies, their achievements were very limited. Only a few women joined the trade union. Most of the women did not participate in it. Only a few women occupy the managerial or executive position.

; The middle class educated women, though face multifaceted problems in undertaking business ventures do enjoy certain advantages like education, access to information, credit worthiness, exposure etc. over the poorer women. Moreover, the concept of group formation is the best strategy to enlighten women on certain important social issues like small family norm, healthy environment, education etc. The Population Crisis Committee (USA) using different indicators of gender inequality examined the state of women in 99 countries there was gender equality.

; It is in this context that the concept of empowerment of women assumes great significance. Empowerment would enable women to perform certain social roles which they cannot perform without it. In the Indian situation, this would mean helping women to enjoy their constitutional and legal rights to equality.

Politics of Women’s Equality

; The global situation of women’s marginality in the top decision-making bodies of the different countries raises the question whether there is any relationship between the proportion of women in parliament/legislature and progress towards women’s equality. Are conditions for women more favourable in Finland with 39 percent women legislators; than, say, conditions in the US with only 10.8 percent or in UK with only 9.2 percent? Pakistan under Benazir Bhutto shows that the condition of women can even deteriorate under a woman Prime Minister.

; Thanks to the efforts of the United Nations Organisation, all national governments have been alerted to the need for equality for their women citizens. The observation of the International Women’s Decade and the Nairobi Congress have gone a long way in impressing member nations of the imperative need for social justice to women.

; We shall now examine the Indian situation in the matter of women’s positions in decision-making.