EDUCATIONAL CHALLENGES FACED BY THE LOWER INCOME GROUP DURING COVID-19

Mentor :

Prof. Asha Gala

Presented by :

Siya Gupta A001

Meyhar Sharma A018

Tanya Sabharwal A021

Muskan Nagdeo A032

​

• The Right to Education Act (RTE) is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted on 4 August 2009, which describes the modalities of the importance of free and compulsory education for children between the age of 6 to 14 years.

​

• India has the world’s second-largest school system, after China. Shutting schools to maintain social distancing during the COVID-19 crisis was the most logical solution. All education institutions in India were temporarily closed in March 2020.

​

• By April, 1.4 billion students were shut out of their pre-primary, primary, and secondary schools in more than 190 countries, in an effort to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.

​

• The COVID-19 outbreak that led to the closure of schools has had an unprecedented effect on all children’s education and wellbeing.

INTRODUCTION

• The impact on children from deprived, disadvantaged, or vulnerable sections can be expected to be far more adverse than on children from privileged backgrounds.

​

• In particular, the COVID-19 crisis has meant limited or no education for many who already experienced barriers in accessing education. This could force many children to discontinue their studies even after ‘normality’ is restored.

​

• Data from the National Sample Survey Organization suggested that economic factors are critical to children dropping out of school. The pandemic and lockdown have affected an estimated 40 million migrant workers and others working in the informal sector.

​

INTRODUCTION

Objective :

To Understand and Analyse the Educational Challenges Faced by the Underprivileged Children During Covid-19.

“

DATA COLLECTION - RESPONSES

Variables/Questions under study:

1. Name
2. Gender
3. Stages of education
4. Number of family members
5. Earning member
6. Number of earning members
7. Impact of Covid-Positive or Negative
8. Challenges faced in online education
9. Number of electronic devices at home
10. Assistance from school and government

DATA COLLECTION

Source of Data Collection:

​

• Government school

​

• Societies: security guards, helpers

​

• College: Security

​

• Telephonic interviews

​

Problems in Data Collection:

​

• The age group that we focused on was difficult to collect the data from.

​

• There was limited time.

​

• Some refused to give the data.

​

• Mothers were overprotective.

​

• Fathers were ignorant/unaware.

​

Link to Questionnaire : Educational Challenges Questionnaire

A short video on the respondent’s parents answering the questionnaire.

DEMOGRAPHIC DATA

Gender Distribution

Age Distribution

Education Distribution

EDUCATIONAL CHALLENGES FACED

• The data collected shows 19 out of 26, that’s 73% respondents were unable to cope up with online method of teaching and the same percentage had inadequate devices to attend classes from.

​

• Roughly 54% students faced Wi-Fi connectivity issues.

​

• While 34.5% said they missed socializing with peers and observed a decline in mental well-being.

​

• 38.5% children lacked the opportunity to go out and play.

FORMAL ASSISTANCE

• A surprising number of 23 out of 26 responses (88.5%) stated there was no assistance provided from either the school or government on any level.

​

• There was only a single response saying some assistance was provided by the school in terms of flexible timings.

• Data suggests that families in the lower income group required financial assistance and a reduction in school fees.

​

• Other provisions could have been subsidies for electronic devices, Wi-Fi connectivity plans, free education material etc.

​

• Most parents put their jobs on hold to ensure the education of their children goes smoothly.

CONCLUSION

• Beyond the staggering impact on human life, Covid-19 has greatly disrupted access to education in India.

​

• The outbreak has created a havoc in the lives of students as school closures due to the Covid-19 pandemic shifted the whole education system online.

​

​

​

• Online learning cannot substitute the immersive experience of school education as one understands and believes a student’s overall psychosocial development takes place in the school.

​

• Our analysis shows that the pandemic has had a negative impact on the education of children particularly in the lower income group.

​

​

CONCLUSION

​

• From our analysis we conclude that the pandemic has brought to fore the digital divide in the country and made education a privilege only a few can afford.

​

• Poor students have been struggling to access the classes because of internet connectivity issues and lack of electronic devices that support such classes.

​

• Majority of them were left with no option but to use their parents smartphone and also sharing it with their siblings who also had to attend online classes

​

• It has resulted in overall decline

in the mental well being and general

stress.

​

CONCLUSION

• There was a general dissatisfaction that neither the Government nor the Schools have extended required help to the marginalized community.

​

• All students need and deserve learning solutions and these solutions must be designed and delivered with much more care, expertise and resources by the government.

​

• Government should now rise to the challenge and build a better education system that creates opportunities for all children.

Use diagrams to explain your ideas

14

​

THANK YOU!