ACADEMIC JOURNAL ARTICLE Madhya Pradesh Journal of Social Sciences

Role of Education in Social Development: An Empirical

Analysis
By Venkatraja, B.; Indira, M.

Article excerpt
Education plays an important role in human development. Human development encompasses
development in several dimensions of human well being. Social development is one of the
important dimensions. The main objective of the paper is to analyze the contribution of
education to social dimension of human development. The present exploratory study is based on
the micro level household survey conducted in ten villages of Dakshina Kannada (D.K) district
of Karnataka state. The frame work developed by Oxford Poverty Human Development
Initiative (OPHI) was used for the identification of the indicators for the Social dimension of
human development. Accordingly the five indicators are health, empowerment, safety and
security, ability to go about without shame, and meaning and value in one's own life. UNDP
methodology with appropriate modifications is adapted to quantify development at individual
level as well as aggregate social development. Results show that there exists high correlation
between attainment of education and social dimension of development at individual level. This
reflects on the importance of education in influencing the social well-being of individuals.

Introduction

Education is one of the most important means to improve personal endowments, build
capabilities, overcome constraints and in the process, enlarge available set of opportunities and
choices for a sustained improvement in well-being. The process of education and attainments
thereof has an impact on all aspects of life. It is a critical invasive instrument for bringing about
social, economic and political inclusion of people (NHDR, 2001). In this context, the present
paper makes an attempt to assess the contribution of education to one of such several dimensions
of life of individuals, i.e. social development.

Social development first attracted widespread attention through the principles set out in the
millennium development goals of the United Nations in 1995 (the Copenhagen Declaration-
"World Summit for Social Development"). Midgley (1995) conceives social development as a
"process of planned social change designed to promote the well-being of the population as a
whole in conjunction with a dynamic process of economic development". The goal of social
development in the context of modern welfare is to produce a social well-being that makes
people capable of acting and making their own decisions in the broadest sense. In this context,
Oxford Poverty Human Development Initiative (OPHI) has proposed a methodology to evaluate
development including social sphere of well-being of individuals. According to OPHI health,
empowerment, meaning and value in life, external humiliation and safety and security are some
of the major indicators of social development.

Gould (1993) opines that the rapid expansion of education over the last three decades is one of
the most outstanding achievements of the developing world. This book examines the origin of
this expansion and its impact on the improvements of social and economic development at local,
national and global levels. Through discussions of the historical, economic and political contexts
of the demand for education, a review of the issues in educational planning in the developing
world and the governmental and community response at all levels is provided. His survey reveals
that expansion of education has greatly contributed to the quality of life, economic and social
development. The text concludes with an overview of the social effects of education and also
specifies its failure to meet the aspirations of all individuals and communities.

"Health literacy as a public health goal: a challenge for contemporary health education and
communication strategies into the 21st century" authored by Nutbeam (2000) explains the role of
health education in addressing the social determinants of health. In this analysis, improving
health literacy means more than transmitting information, and developing skills to be able to read
pamphlets and successfully make appointments. …