Education is Power
Education is the most powerful tool for changing the world. Nelson Mandela, a South-African anti-apartheid revolutionary, said, “The power of education extends beyond the development of skills we need for economic success. It can contribute to nation-building and reconciliation.”
Education, has the strength in itself, to make structural changes in the society. It has the ability to create powerful and accomplished individuals, who can look after themselves and people around them. This tool unites the society, it allows and gives us immense opportunities to do something and to bring in change. Education, has helped us grow; today we can dream for a sustainable and successful future for ourselves because of the presence of Education in our lives. This consequential tool, therefore, is our Fundamental Right- which means that nobody can stop us from getting our education- the government, in fact, ensures us that Education would be accessible to everyone. Education has shaped our lives in various positive ways, it has allowed many significant changes in our society. These changes took place because of the hard-work of many important leaders, and their special focus on educating the society. They believed that educated individuals are rational beings, they are not just going to contribute to the economy of the society, but will also make the world a better place to live in.
Social Mobility-
We all know that our society is immensely socially-stratified, it functions not only on the basis of class but also on the basis of caste. Caste is characterized by ritual status of hierarchy; it has systematically oppressed the groups of people who belong to the lower-rungs of the caste hierarchy. These divisions are vivid and inevitable even today, therefore, a necessary tool must be used to dismantle the oppressive and regressive ideologies of the Caste System. Important leaders like, Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar and Jyotirao Phule, spend their entire life to fight against the Caste System and the dogmatic ideologies it holds. Ambedkar wanted to open all spheres for the Dalit Bahujans, he wanted to give them the authority to seize power in the structure of society. He wanted the Bahujans to have access to education, he wanted to break the barriers of the Caste System that controlled their lives. Through their hard work, the Mandal movement and the implementation of Reservations- SCs, STs and OBCs started having access to the educational institutions, which they previously didn’t have. This was a revolutionary change, which played a major role in uplifting the Dalit Bahujan masses. Educational qualifications, gave them the power and authority to change their social conditions in the society, the importance of acquiring education started becoming more relevant. It was understood that education is the most substantial tool that can change the world, it can change your social status and position in the society, it has the power to end all forms of systematic and oppressive discriminations. Therefore, it becomes really important to ensure that education is available to all, even to all the marginalized groups of our society.
Elimination of Gender Inequalities-
We live in a patriarchal society, where conditions of woman have been poor. We’ve seen draconian practices like Sati, female infanticide, child marriages of girls in our country. Daughters were always looked down upon and always considered a burden for the family, they were valued on the basis of their ‘cooking abilities’ in Indian households; girls were always encouraged to look after the family, and they were not allowed to study. Well, times have changed and we see that educational access are being expanded for girls and women of our country. Through significant efforts of woman struggling for their Rights, many substantial changes have been made. Strong educationalist, Savitribai Phule, became the first female teacher in India and later opened a school for girls. The Indian Parliament had passed ‘The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education’ on 2009 for children between the age of 6 to 14 years. This landmark Act gave the Right to all the children to have access to education irrespective of their caste, gender and class.
Girls are encouraged to get educated and be financially independent, financial independency plays a major role in uplifting the position of females in our society. They have been constantly oppressed and controlled by different people; now, they can have control over their own lives through the medium of Education. Campaigns like, “Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao” addresses the issue of the declining sex-ratio of the girl child and works towards the promotion of their education.
These reforms tell us how education plays a primary role in refining the conditions of our society, it fosters peace and ensures that the talents of our generations are not wasted. It is the new tool by which different nation maintains economic success, therefore, it allows the growth of a sustainable planet. We cannot imagine a better world without the presence of Education, it strengthens our commitments and efforts to make this world a prosperous place to live in.
