EDUC 9609 Leadership and Management in Rural Context

Answer:

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to aware the chief executive to problem of improper infrastructure in the rural schools. The department is recommended to take some initiatives to tackle lack of infrastructure in the rural areas.

Background: The schools are supposed to be temples of knowledge but the schools in the rural areas are prospective to be a dirty and decrepit place without access to the electricity, washrooms and a few numbers of teachers (Andres, Briceño, Chase & Echenique, 2017). Having proper infrastructure is a necessary condition to improve the learning outcomes. It has been seen that most of the rural schools are run by the government. The schools face a challenge in developing and managing infrastructure. The quality of education is affected by the improper infrastructure. It is found that the infrastructure of schools brings variation in the academic progress of students. The infrastructure affects the learning through three factors, naturalness, stimulation and individualization. The building, classrooms, laboratories and the equipment are the crucial elements of the learning environment in schools. The poor infrastructure leads to inferior teaching, low student outcome and enhance the dropout rates (Van de Walle, Ravallion, Mendiratta & Koolwal, 2017).

Issues: The improper infrastructure in the rural schools is a great issue which is required to be resolved as it has a adverse impact on the progress of the rural education. The lack of infrastructure in the rural schools affects the quality of education and the schools lag behind in providing quality and high education to the rural students as compared to the schools in the urban areas (Singh, 2015). The infrastructure plays important role in creating a favorable environment for the growth of children. It has been proved that overcrowded and stressful environment can affect the learning capabilities of children. The reason behind improper infrastructure in the rural schools is that the government do not provide sufficient funds. Only the basic requirements can be meet by the funds sanctioned by the government. Moreover, the services and convenient facilities are less in the rural areas (Hallinger, 2018). The urban schools have better infrastructure as there are fewer convenience facilities in the rural areas. Moreover, the number of students is less in the rural areas. There are no proper sitting facilities and the children are made to sit on the floor due to no availability of furniture. The building of the school also lacks doors and windows and the animals enter unobstructed.

Discussion: The education system in the rural areas always has been affected by the infrastructural problems. The schools in the rural areas do not have proper infrastructures such as proper classrooms, playgrounds, teaching equipment and basic facilities like clean toilets (Mayer, 2017).  The department is required to take a step to drop the problem of improper infrastructure in the rural areas. This problem can be resolved by developing building, classrooms, laboratories and the equipment. The emerging technologies can improve the educational infrastructures. The technology represents a major opportunity for the children. There are other factors like a lack of resources and poor transport which creates an obstacle in the proper infrastructure of the school. The schools are not able to develop due to lack of resources. It creates an obstacle in the progress of children. The school building should have adequate lighting, boards, library, playground, and laboratories. As per the report of DISE, the six schools out of ten schools have access to electricity (Live mint, 2015). In the case of toilets, 86% of schools have a toilet for boys and 91% for the girl’s toilet. The efficient teachers are also important for the learning outcomes. As per the report of DISE, 69% of the school teachers in India have graduation degree and more (Live mint, 2015). There is a great need to develop rural schools in the north of India by taking some initiatives and conducting programmes. The Modi government has taken initiative to make digital education accessible via tablets and computers to the students in the rural areas. Technology as a part of infrastructure has the capability to affect the quality of education.

Recommendations: I would prefer to recommend that:

• The government should make an investment in more programmes in order to enhance infrastructures at school. More laboratories, teaching equipment, and well-equipped classrooms should be promoted.
• Both the government and the non- government plans should be endorsed to make rural schools independent from the point of view of infrastructure. A huge amount should be sanctioned for the development of the action plan.
• The smart learning should be introduced in the infrastructure of the school. There should be a minimum standard of maintaining infrastructure. 

References

Andres, L., Briceño, B., Chase, C., & Echenique, J. A. (2017). Sanitation and externalities: evidence from early childhood health in rural India. Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development, 7(2), 272-289.

Hallinger, P., (2018). Bringing context out of the shadows of leadership. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 46(1), pp.5-24.

Live mint, (2015). The poor state of school infrastructure. Retreived on 3 August, 2018 from https://www.livemint.com/Politics/h7WkzI77bMtmN9FLDvyo0M/The-poor-state-of-school-infrastructure.html 

Mayer, A. C. (2017). Patrons and Brokers: rural leadership in four overseas Indian communities. In Social Organization and Peasant Societies (pp. 167-188). Routledge.

Singh, A. (2015). Private school effects in urban and rural India: Panel estimates at primary and secondary school ages. Journal of Development Economics, 113, 16-32.

Van de Walle, D., Ravallion, M., Mendiratta, V., & Koolwal, G. (2017). Long-term gains from electrification in rural India. The World Bank Economic Review, 31(2), 385-411.