QUALITY EDUCATION COLUMN Busi n e ss I n di a
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Role of corporations in achieving SDGs Corporations must play a role in co-creating a shared-future for all humanity
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NESCO has a tradition of re-envisioning education, at key historical junctures of societal transformation. From the 1972 Faure report that promoted the concept of ‘Learning to Be’ to the 1996 Delors Commission report that emphasised the importance of a humanistic approach to education and updated the concept of lifelong learning, UNESCO has played a key role in framing the big picture questions that drive the global debate on education. Continuing that tradition, the International Commission on the Futures of Education led by UNESCO in its landmark report explored the regenerative potential of education in times of uncertainty and precarity. The report calls for a new social contract, grounded in human rights and values, required for education to build peaceful, just, and sustainable futures for all. It also recognises the need for urgent action to rebuild our relationships with each other, with the planet, and with technology, and outlines an agenda for transforming education. For UNESCO, SDG-4 of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, which advocates for ‘inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for all’, represents the core of the SDGs as it is both a goal in itself and a means for attaining the other goals. Not only is quality education an integral part of sustainable development, but it is also a key enabler for it. Therefore, making good progress on achieving SDG-4 targets is critical for achieving most other SDGs and stakeholders from all levels, including those from the private sector, must contribute to this endeavour. In the context of India, the National Education Policy 2020 is a holistic, scientific and evidencebased framework that provides a robust foundation to address various challenges facing the Indian education ecosystem. Some of these include the quality of general education, school to work transition and the provision of work-based learning opportunities, the widening gender gap and the digital divide that disrupts the continuity of learning. Corporations and the private sector can play a role in tackling each of these challenges. While India has made tremendous progress in improving access to school education, the quality and relevance of education must also be prioritized to ensure that children and students are actually learning and acquiring the knowledge, skills and competence to prepare them for the future. The 2018 Annual Status of Education Report (ASER)
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survey indicates that the average fifth grade student in India is at least two years behind in gradeappropriate learning. In addition to focusing on foundational learning, 21st century skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, and collaboration must become integral elements of the curriculum for tomorrow’s learners. So how can the private sector contribute towards improving the quality of education? Sparking pedagogical and curricular reforms through innovation, bringing efficiency and higher productivity in running government schools through public-private partnership models, and encouraging employees to volunteer as teachers, are only a few examples of how corporations could make a difference. When it comes to preparing youth for the world of work, corporations can engage more directly by offering high quality apprenticeship opportunities and providing master trainers and mentors who can provide guidance to young minds.
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The author is Director and UNESCO Representative to Bhutan, India, Maldives and Sri Lanka
nother significant improvement in India relates to girls’ education. Although girls’ access to education has dramatically improved in the country over the last two decades, gender gap remains and tends to widen with rising levels of education. Dropout rates for girls in secondary school are much higher as compared to those of boys due to prevailing social norms and gender stereotypes. Evidence shows that hygiene and sanitation facilities play an important role in keeping girls in schools but physical infrastructure must be complemented with awareness and sensitisation programmes. Earlier this year, UNESCO New Delhi joined forces with Proctor and Gamble (P&G) to design and develop an awareness campaign along with teaching learning materials on puberty and period education, which would be integrated into the national and state school curriculum, and teacher education. Digitalization and application of emerging technology is another important area where the private sector can contribute immensely. India is one of the fastest growing EdTech markets in the world garnering over $4 billion venture capital funding in 2021 alone and giving birth to several unicorn start-ups. However, these amazing gains must be translated into improving learning and socioemotional wellbeing of remote rural populations including the most vulnerable and marginalised, especially in the context of the pandemic which has deepened pre-existing education inequalities. The EdTech corporations in India must come
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