The Impact Of Gender On Access To Education In India

It is seen that approximately 14% of girls of the ages of 15 and 16 are not in school. The few primary reasons that women in particular miss out on receiving a secondary education are, monetary issues, especially due to the importance given to a son’s education over a daughter, being busy in household work, or partaking in familial labour. The literacy rate for women in India is a staggeringly low 62.3% compared to the 80% of the male population. 

A major cause of this disparity is marriage of girls under 18 without being able to complete a secondary education. As of 2021, 23.3% of women between the age of 20-24 were married as a child, a value that is higher in states with a higher rural population like Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Telangana, and West Bengal. Moreover, contrary to popular belief this is still a prevalent issue as the amount of cases registered under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, passed in 2006, has increased to 1050 by 2021.  

Furthermore, the taboo created around menstruation has led to innumerable girls being kept out of school. The lack of both knowledge surrounding the issue, as well as insufficient hygiene products available to young women have made it difficult for them to be productive at school or come in at all. In a study it was noted that over 23 million girls annually drop out of school due to lack of necessary resources. Also, many low income families do not have adequate funds to pay for multiple children and hence the male child is always preferred, due to beliefs of better chances of becoming the breadwinner. Whilst, the girls are often kept at home to take care of younger siblings when parents are out making an earning or not sent to school as a result of needing to work to support the family from a young age. Education is often also underestimated as girls don’t learn vocational skills that they need for more domestic jobs. However, to combat such issues the government of India has made school a compulsion till the age of 14, and has many schemes for free or inexpensive schooling for young women. 

As a consequence of this, women do not receive equal job opportunities in the future, the ratio of women to men participation in the workforce being 27.6 in India rather than the global 63.5. Even after receiving work, usually women due to having lower skill levels, are only able to go for low paying jobs; even if that is not the case the salary imparity still prevails. Additionally, prior cases of gender inequality in access to education create inter-generational problems. This occurs because, mothers who had no expectations to go to school, will pass down similar mindsets to their own daughters. 

To conclude, the gender gap in education is a significant issue in India today, that is being brought into the light and many organisations, like ours have diverted their time and help to the cause. Creating awareness and knowledge to women, directly, gives them the agency to become independent. Which is what we have in mind for our forthcoming session in various schools with girls about their health & bodies and autonomy.

-Stuti Desai