Speech delivered at The Third Annual Public Affairs Centre Lecture at Bangalore on 'Universal Elementary Education: A way forward for India' 
Azim Premji, Chairman, Wipro Corporation

22 February, 2003

Chairman of Public Affairs Centre Dr. Samuel Paul, Exec Director Dr. Balakrishnan and Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a great honour for me to be present amongst you all today. I am thankful to Dr. Paul for this opportunity.

When I was asked to choose the topic for this speech, I had no hesitation in choosing "Education" as the topic.

The importance of education is best driven by the Chinese proverb that says:

"If you want to think one year ahead, plant rice
If you want to think 10 years ahead, plant trees
But if you want to think 100 years ahead, give education to people."

I recall our President Dr Abdul Kalam's passionately inspiring comment that we are a nation of a billion brilliant people and if each person is educated, the power of knowledge can transform India from a developing nation into a strong and economically developed nation.

Among the various challenges and priorities before our country, I personally feel "every child receiving basic education" as the most important priority. In my opinion, education is the only hope for our country to change its current status of a "developing country" into a "developed country". And we cannot make this change happen unless we ensure the 50 Mln out of school children are in the school and ensure that all children in school are learning.

Though "right to education" is now a fundamental right, I am aware of several debates that happen among the urban intellectuals when it comes to the education of the under-privileged children. A lot is spoken about the kind of education that they should receive and also the kind of education that is not helpful to them. Attempts are made to link even the elementary education to "employment opportunities", "vocations" and "opportunity to earn money". Yes, all this is important. However, the urban intellectuals do not ask these questions when it comes to enrolling their own children in the school. It comes very naturally to them. It is like "second nature". No questions are asked about how much the education that they would receive is relevant etc.

To me the most important issue is that "every child has a right to childhood". We need to examine, whether we are mentally accepting this concept.

Being associated with business and corporate life - all my life, I view the importance of education from the point of the end output we expect from our education system.

The all-important question is: why do we educate our children?

There are multiple answers. To become good citizens. To be good professionals. To be good leaders of their families. To be good leaders in their area of work. To be good subject matter experts. And above all, to be good human beings who can make informed decisions in their life. Human beings that promote human values, care for others, allow others to express and promote peace, fraternity, harmony, principles of equality without any prejudices of religion, gender, caste and creed.

The foundation for all the above is each child receiving "elementary education".

In our country of 1 billion people, we are talking about an elementary education system that deals with about 700,000 schools, over 2 million teachers and 186 million children in the age group of 6-14.

It is a matter of shame and concern for all of us who have been fortunate to receive education that some 56 years after independence, we still have over 50 million children in the age group of 6 to 14 years, who are outside the school and thus deprived of education.

What is keeping these 50 Million children outside the school?

There are several theories and reasons. Poor quality of access, poor quality in school processes, lack of participation by the community in the school affairs and poverty are among the key barriers to universal education.

Though poverty is clearly the number 1 reason, our experience of having worked in the field suggests that the poor parents are willing to sacrifice one meal and willing to send their children to the school, once they see education helping their children. The resounding success of several state governments' enrolment drives is enough evidence for the same. In Karnataka alone, over 300,000 out-of-school children have been mainstreamed during the past three years.

The issues of real concern are the national average drop out rate for children in 1-8th standard at 57% and the drop-out rate for the girl children at 60% for the same standards.

My hypothesis is that children do not find it worthwhile to remain in the school. Children find it threatening, boring and confusing. They do not learn enough. The only way children could be retained in the school is when they find their existence inside the school gainful, relevant and beneficial for life. And the most powerful way of achieving this is to ensure that the children in the schools learn in an interesting and joyful way. That they achieve the learning competencies commensurate to their grade - so that they themselves feel the difference and become the ambassadors for those children who are outside the school. The competencies acquired by the children should convince their parents and the community at large to actively participate in the process of universal enrolment and retention.

It is important to create and drive the concept of "Learning Guarantee" versus "Education Guarantee". Both at Wipro and at Azim Premji Foundation we believe that a sustained Universalization of Elementary Education can be achieved only through dramatic improvement in learning in the school.

When we speak about "learning in the school" it is a very complex issue. It raises fundamental issues such as what we mean by "learning". Achieving "learning guarantee" in the school is beyond the fragmented view of the education system. It is not just about the number and quality of teachers. It is not just about how the Government is playing its role effectively or not. It is beyond the issues of a "mid-day-meal Programme" or "training of teachers" or the "kind of text books" that are followed.

"Learning guarantee" consists of more serious and deeper issues such as understanding of the pedagogical processes in the class room, clearer understanding by the teachers of what competencies are to be developed among the students, the class-room practices that bring out the best among the children in the most non-threatening and exciting manner, the competitive spirit that the school is able to create, the parents' untiring interest in their children's learning, the pressures created by an active and lively parent teacher committee for better delivery of learning in the school etc. It is a social process as well as a high quality management process. It is no different than how organisations create some of the best competencies among their employees.

It is about accountability of every key stakeholder that can influence learning and education. Children and parent being the end users of the education services, the system must be oriented to delivering them the end benefits of learning.

To me, the biggest issue in education is the cumulative "lack of accountability". We read in the newspapers every year that the SSC board results of most states range from 35% to 45%. Which means over 60% children fail in the examination. Who is accountable for this?

I am happy to learn that the Public Affairs Center deals with issues related to governance and accountability. These are very critical issues for any public system that is responsible for delivering end results and services.

At Wipro we launched a Programme "Wipro Applying Thought in Schools" that focuses on enhancing the quality of learning for children in 3rd to 7th standard in some of the premier schools in identified metros and mini-metros. The objective of the initiative is to address key issues in the school that impact children learning in an interesting and innovative manner. This includes issues ranging from teacher training to administrative, pedagogical and academic interventions that impact children's learning.

In Azim Premji Foundation, we are working in rural Government schools in identified geography with complete focus on improving quality of learning in these schools. For the next 24 months, we will be working in about 3700 habitations in northeast Karnataka, 1000 habitations in Andhra Pradesh and in about 300 municipal schools in underprivileged areas in Gujarat. This work is entirely focussed on improving the learning in the rural Government schools.

The most heartening issue for us so far is the extremely positive response from the Government of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. To our proposals of working shoulder to shoulder with the Government, these states have responded constructively.

We are partnering with the Government in trying out a number of innovative proofs of concept and if they succeed, the Government has promised to integrate them as a part of their system. It is necessary that the proofs of concept are tried out on a large scale that is robust enough to succeed in the Government system. Our budget for the next 12 months is about Rs.50 crores. What we bring to the table is our passion, our sincerity, our result orientation, our process orientation and our quality orientation. It distresses me no end when I read in the newspapers that education is the third highest in the ladder of corruption in the country.

For the Universalization of Elementary Education to be successful and achieved in the stipulated timeframe, I have the following suggestions :

1. We must clearly define what we want to achieve through the education system for our children
2. Benefits of education and learning must be clearly explained to and understood by the parents and the children. The stark difference between the conditions of children who receive education and those who don't must be very evident
3. Innovative experiments in learning that have a potential to deliver "learning guarantee" must be actively encouraged and tried out intensively.
4. In addition to the Government, the community members, the corporates, the parents and the teaching community must take keen interest in education
5. The management of education system must adopt the look and feel of a corporate organisation without necessarily "privatising education" in the first go
6. Systemic changes in the education system that bring in "meritocracy and professionalism" in appointment, transfers, movements, training and compensation of teachers must be considered on priority
7. The huge funds currently deployed by the Government - $ 4.6 Billion per year by center and state - must be effectively leveraged by appropriate contributions of the community where possible
8. Technology must be used in a huge way - not only to bring in computer assisted joyful, interactive learning for the children - but also for undiluted training of the teachers, Government education officers and the community members
9. Focus must be shifted from the current text-memory and marks driven children assessment to "competency based assessment". This also necessitates shifting of focus from "teaching" to "learning" and much higher importance of the ability of the teacher to manage class-room practices than mere subject knowledge
10. Provision must be made to provide a structured mechanism for a comprehensive review of curriculum and expected competencies at least once every 10 years

The task at hand is complex and multifaceted. It requires many like-minded individuals and organisations to come together and address issues together. Education is the foundation on which we can build our country. It has to be the first national priority. It is an investment, which has the biggest multiplier. Let me share a story I am very fond of.

There was once a poor Scottish farmer named Fleming. One day, while trying to make a living for his family, he heard a cry for help coming from a nearby bog. He dropped his tools and ran to the bog. There, mired to his waist in black muck, was a terrified boy, screaming and struggling to free himself. Farmer Fleming saved the boy from what could have been a slow and terrifying death. The next day, a fancy carriage pulled up to the Scotsman's sparse surroundings. An elegantly dressed nobleman stepped out and introduced himself as the father of the boy Farmer Fleming had saved.

"I want to repay you," said the nobleman. "You saved my son's life." "No, I can't accept payment for what I did," the Scottish farmer replied, waving off the offer. At that moment the farmer's own son came to the door of the hovel.

"Is that your son?" the nobleman asked. "Yes," the farmer replied proudly.

"I'll make you a deal. Let me take him and give him a good education. If he's anything like his father, he'll grow to a man you can be proud of." And that he did. In time, Farmer Fleming's son graduated from St. Mary's Hospital Medical School in London, and went on to become known throughout the world as the noted Sir Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of Penicillin. Years afterwards, the nobleman's son was stricken with pneumonia. What saved him?

Penicillin.

This is not the end. The nobleman's son also made a great contribution to society. For the nobleman was none other than Lord Randolph Churchill. And his son's name was Winston Churchill.

The story also brings out another important truth. Education is the greatest gift that anyone can receive because it has a cascading effect on the Society at large.

I thank all of you for providing me this opportunity to share my views.

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