What is illiteracy?Illiteracy, in the strict, sense, meaning the inability to read, write and counting simple sentences in any language. Functional illiteracy is a term used to describe reading and writing skills that are inadequate to manage daily living and employment tasks that require reading skills beyond a basic level.

LOCATION OF MY VILLAGE

THE NAME OF MY VILLAGE IS BAHARAPUR. IT IS IN THE DISTRICT OF CHADPUR UNDER THE FORIDGEGONG UPAZILA.FORIDGEGONG UPAZILA WITH AN AREA OF 34.26 SQ KM, IS BOUNDED BY HAJIGANJ UPAZILA ON THE NORTH, RAMGONG UPAZILAS ON THE SOUTH,CHANDPURE SADAR UPAZILA ON THE EAST, LAXIPURE UPAZILAS ON THE WEST. 

The map of my village

Land   

• Total cultivable land 2,3544 hectares• fallow land 548 hectares• single crop 29%• double crop 50% and treble crop 39%• land under irrigation 32%

VARIOUS PROFESSIONS OF PEOPLE

TOTAL PEOPLE 32,675

• AGRICULTURE 23.89%• AGRICULTURAL LABORER 45.74%• WAGE LABORER 2.58%• WEAVING 1.9%• INDUSTRY 3.13%• COMMERCE 15.56%• TRANSPORT 6.16%• SERVICE 11.7%• OTHERS 12.34%

TOTAL NUMBER OF ILLITERATE AT OUR DISTRICT • AVERAGE ILLITERACY 30.6%;• MALE 28.3%, • FEMALE 42.2%.

CAUSES OF ILLITERACY?

1. Poverty

Poverty is the general state of living with the lack of basic human needs like food, clothing, shelter, sanitation, education, etc. Out of 2.2 billion children present int he world, almost a billion of them are suffering due to poverty and 121 million of them are deprived of education. In all countries, poverty presents a chronic stress for children and families. This in turn, also interferes with successful adjustment to developmental tasks. Children raised in low-income families are at the risk of suffering academic and social problems, as well as poor health and well-being, which can in turn undermine educational development. Most of the poverty stricken families, which cannot afford a meal once a day, have no intention of educating their children and often make them do certain menial jobs for a living, which is one of the main causes of child labor.   A nation is known by its people, most important of who are the children who comprise our forthcoming generation.

2. Insufficient facilities

Improper, facilities in some countries is one of the most common causes for illiteracy. Literacy laws, which have been enforced, quite often fail to reach many villages and remote places. Many of the villages have no schools and if present, lack basic facilities like infrastructure, proper lighting, desks, etc. which are required to create an ambient environment conducive to proper education. The environment in which education is imparted to students plays a very important role and must be given careful consideration. Unfortunately, many children filled with the zest to learn lose hope eventually and drop out due to the scanty availability of basic necessities. The governments should bear in mind the rate of population growth and try to develop modern techniques at an equal pace, while also ensuring its implementation evenly throughout nations and the world.

3. Social EvilsThere are a myriad of societies living in our world. Each one has its own characteristics. However, it should be noted that no society is perfect. Every society has certain evils and disadvantages associated with it. Even in today’s modern world, certain social evils like corruption, poverty and crime continue to exist, which brings in social disruption including disharmony and challenges like illiteracy. The one social evil at its peak currently is corruption. It is because of corruption that the money which is provided for the construction of schools and educational institutions ends up filling pockets of people at each and every level, depriving many of their right to education. It is very important to curb corruption; otherwise the rich will keep getting richer and the poor, poorer.

4. Population explosion

In 2013, the world’s population reached 7 billion, as estimated by the United States Census Bureau (USCB). China tops the chart by accounting for about 19% of the entire world’s population, followed by India contributing to 17.4% of the aggregate. Indian also has the world’s largest illiterate population. The population of the world is continuing to soar up whereas the resources available are diminishing. This mainly affects the poor population. Most of the people below poverty line and close to it, who have large families, send their children away to factories or mines for work to earn money for their sustenance and deprive them of primary and secondary education. Population growth and illiteracy are inextricably related to each other. Illiteracy leads to growth in population, and vice-versa, and if either of them is not kept in check, there may be no way out of the vicious cycle.

5. Gender biasGender bias has always been and continues to be an insidious problem in countries like India, Pakistan and various others. While many people notice it, few attempts to stand up against it, and even fewer succeed in it. Many people, often illiterate, have a misconception that a son, being the bread winner of the family, has the right to education. On the other hand, a daughter is considered, in many cases, a burden, and is denied many things, the most important one being education. It was not until the 19th century that people came up with reforms which had female education as their main goal. These reforms did have an impact and relieved women of

the abominable restrictions that had been imposed upon them. In spite of all the reforms which got implemented, and today’s modernization, people still tend to remain ignorant to the fact that when a woman is educated, she educates her entire family and the society, unlike a man who gets educated alone.

6. Emigration of Educated IndividualsEmigration is a steadily increasing phenomenon in today’s globalized world. Many Indians are working abroad in search of more opportunities. Many such individuals decide to settle overseas on account of better working conditions and higher compensations, to acquire greater living standards, or to advance their own personal development by exposing themselves to new cultures. The out flux of such educated individuals creates a negative impact on the literacy rates of our country, lowering it further. The well-educated and professionally successful class of workers are also the ones who own the finances involved in such migration. The illiterate masses who often lack the means to educate themselves obviously cannot dream of shifting to another country to do so. Hence, as far as national literacy is concerned, emigration of educated individuals is detrimental to the improvement of educational statistics in the country.

7. Individual DisabilitiesThe most unfortunate are those whose physical or mental conditions do not allow them to educate themselves easily. Disabled children find it exceedingly difficult to read, write, absorb and remember information. For example, a dyslexic child will find it hard to remember the letters of the alphabet and to interpret words when they are formed with those same letters. (Dyslexia is a reading disorder in which individuals, despite having normal intelligence face problems with reading and comprehension.) Physical disabilities also inhibit literacy. A blind child will find it difficult to read without assistance. A child with a disabled arm will find writing a tough

task. Such persons are often neglected and shunned from schools. The truth is that with proper care and assistance, many of these differently-abled children can be taught to read and write almost as well as anybody else. This will not only empower them to overcome their disabilities and become achievers in life, it will also improve the literacy situation of the entire country. Such children and adults require special schools where they can be taught with suitable methods so that their disabilities do not come in the way of their education. With a little humanity and compassion, we can change their lives for the best.

8. Backward ThinkingA section of our society has been unable to move with the times, owing to generations of being ensconced by religious dogma or orthodox family practices. They reject modern education as a threat to their beliefs and way of life. Consequently, the children of such households are also deprived of the opportunity to study in modern schools and free their minds of meaningless conventions and conservative ideologies. Man has made religion and tradition integral aspects of his being, but they lose their purpose if we allow them to constrain our liberties and blind our minds to the virtues of new learning, innovation and discovery. Such backward thinking limits the scope of human achievement and is an unfortunate cause of illiteracy in our country. Spreading awareness and convincing theses sections of our society to open their eyes to education is the only way to rid them of such ignorance.

9. Geographical FactorsThese contribute too, to the illiteracy rate. If a family lives in a remote location – like deep within the Himalayan forests or in the arid desert lands of the Thar, they are often cut-off from mainstream civilization and all convenient facilities of education. This is true especially in the case of wandering tribes like the Warlis of the West and the numerous forest communities residing at the foothills of the Eastern Himalayas. These tribes often follow shifting cultivation as a result of which they have no permanent dwelling place. Moreover, their culture and practices are so different from the mainstream that it is difficult to bring them in sync with modern society

and provide them with similar kind of education. There has also been great debate on whether these communities should be modernized and taught to read and write like the rest of us, as many assert that such efforts might lead to the destruction of their indigenous tribal culture and loss of identity. Bringing them out of the hills and forests and forcing them into education is a step which might lead to great resentment on their part.

10. Attitude towards LearningWe believe that education uplifts us. It is the only path which can lead us to wisdom and liberation. This is what we believe. But there are certain sections of people who think otherwise, who look down upon education and regard it with contempt. They claim that it is of no use to build a scholarly mind or enlighten it through academics. They forget, however, that education comprises holistic development of the mind, body and soul. It does not concern academics alone. Families of poor financial standing often discourage studying in their households as they wish to engage the children in work as soon as possible to expand their collective remuneration. They do not realize that uneducated workers can never survive comfortably in a fast changing world where competition is extreme. Depriving children of basic reading and writing skills limits their opportunities to a bare minimum and inhibits their mental capacity to contribute productively to society and to their own betterment. All members of a society need to look up to education with respect and a will to learn. Parents must inculcate such a will in the minds of their children, for only then will the future generations be adequately equipped to take care of our world.

How to remove the illiteracy?1 spread of education: education is sweet and light. This light should be given to all irrespective caste, creed, color, gender and religion. So the removal of illiteracy is a must. If the measures discussed above are taken, illiteracy will disappear shortly. The government should give top priority to the removal of illiteracy.

2 .Agricultural development: There are many agricultural challenges that the practice of rural development can overcome. Some of the obstacles facing the agricultural industry include soil that might have been damaged by overuse, in addition to shortages in seeds, fertilizers and other irrigation supplies. A farmer's crops must be protected from disease and other threats, such as bugs and extreme weather conditions. Without the development of any of these basic farming components, a farmer cannot sell his or her goods to the market.

3 .Industrial development: The development of industrialization will increase the production and solve the unemployment problem and also increase urbanization, but it is lack of our country.

4 .Govt. Steps: government has taken a number of steps to increase literacy, ramp up higher education particularly in science and engineering, impart skills to young citizens and develop vocational education.

5. Promote and facilitate the integration of a gender perspective in policy planning, programming, implementation and evaluation in activities.

6. Address and promote women’s priorities and vision of development goals and approaches through greater participation of women at all levels and in all areas of UNESCO action.

7. Establish region-specific programmers and activities that benefit grills and women of various ages.

8. Set up capacity-building in member States

9. Increases the awareness of and respect for women’s human rights as explained in the convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)

10. Ensure equal access to education

11. Develop non-discriminatory education and training

12. Promote lifelong education and training for everyone

Conclusion:Government alone cannot cope with such an uphill task of eradicating illiteracy. People themselves should come forward to perform this national duty so that the literacy drive may come to the top in a mass movement. Bangladesh is sure to be left far behind in comparison with other countries in point of socio-economic improvement unless and until the intelligentsia of the country think deeply over this cancerous disease of illiteracy.We can saw Above all, govt., public and private agencies through their joint efforts should play vital role to remove the illiteracey.

Sources:1 .Primary sources: Observation, Questionnaire Interview, etc. 2 .Secondary sources: Book, statistical gazetteers, Internet etc.

My village picture

Unemployment

Beggar