Gender Equality in Elementary Education: A Dream or Reality

Abstract

For centuries girls were not treated equal to boys in many ways. The education of girls has become one of the most important concerns of 21st century not only at local level but also at the national level. Efforts by the government are on to ensure gender equality but government initiatives alone would not be sufficient to achieve this goal. Society must take initiative to create a climate in which there is no gender discrimination and girls have full opportunity to receive good quality elementary education without any barrier. The female literacy rate is also lower than the male literacy rate. The ground reality is deprivation and exploitation of girls especially from rural areas and those belonging to deprived sections of the society. Education is a powerful tool of social transformation. Hence, education for girls has to be paid special attention. Greater access for education must be ensured in the educational system. Gender sensitivity must be developed. A watch has to be kept on dropout rate of girls and corrective measures should be taken to check the dropout rates. There is no denying the fact that education of girls have made considerable progress in almost every aspect, but they still have to struggle against many handicaps and social evils in the male dominated society. The study found that there are 222 children in the age group of 06-14 years who are out of school from a single education zone. Taking this thing into consideration it seems a dream to achieve 100% literacy rate at elementary level if time bound steps are not taken to solve this problem. Hence, the study will help all stakeholders to become aware of the present situation and issues prevailing in the education zone Khag and can play an active role in solving these problems effectively and fruitfully.