Accelerating progress towards education for all is one of the defining development challenges of the early twenty-first century. In recent context of India, approval of Right to Education Bill is a very important step towards the dream of the developed Nation. Prospects for achieving equal opportunity and accessibility to basic education will definitely influenced by this bill. Like any human right, this right should also be protected and extended as an end in itself.
In other aspects of education, prospectus for reducing poverty, narrowing extreme inequalities and improving public health are also heavily influenced by what happens in education. Accessibility to basic information and knowledge through basic education is one of the most important conditions for overcoming social injustice and reducing social disparities in any country. It is also a condition for strengthening economic growth and efficiency: no country can afford the inefficiencies that arise when people are denied opportunities for education because they are poor, female or members of a particular social group. Some benefits of education are less tangible and harder to quantify than others.
People denied an opportunity for achieving literacy and wider education skills are less equipped to participate in societies and influence decisions that affect their lives. That is why broad-based education is one of the foundations for democracy and government accountability, and why it is such a vital input for informed public debate in areas such as environmental sustainability and climate change that will have a bearing on the well-being of future generations.
The impact of education is strongly conditioned by other factors, from macroeconomic and labour market conditions to the state of public health provision and levels of inequality based on wealth, gender and other factors. The benefits of education are likely to be greatest in contexts marked by broad-based economic growth, a strong political commitment to poverty reduction, high levels of equity in access to basic services, and a commitment to democratic and accountable governance.
Opportunities can strengthen economic growth by raising productivity, supporting innovation and facilitating the adoption of new technology. And broad-based access to good quality basic education is one of the foundations for broad-based growth, since it enables poor households to increase their productivity and secure a greater stake in national prosperity.
The ultimate goal of education is to equip children with the knowledge, skills and opportunities they need to realize their potential and to participate in social and political life.
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