Sunday 17 November 2013

Woman: The Power of Man


                                                                                        - Dr. V K Pathak


The National perspective plan for women 1988-2000, which has made a free, frank and objective analysis of impact of developmental programmes of Indian women, with special reference to rural women, gives us the following profile of women in India. There is a continued inequality and vulnerability of women in all sectors economic, social, political, education, health care, nutrition and legal. As women are oppressed in all spheres of life, they need to be empowered in all walks of life. Kamala Bhasin (1992) asks the question -why women need to be empowered? She believes that they need to be empowered because women have and will lead us in our search for a world free of violence and war. Women have led the peace and ecology movements in many parts of the world. She believes that sustainable development has to be women-centred. She does not say this because she is a woman or feminist. Historically and even today women take care of the basic needs of society like food, fodder, fuel, shelter, nurturing. They are also more in tune with nature. As child bearers they have to be more in tune with their nature. They have also been creating and nurturing. She does not say that; it is because of their pre-occupation with sustenance, nurturing, nursing. Empowerment of women means the following many things to Bhasin:
  • ·        Recognizing women’s contribution.
  • ·        Helping women to fight their own fears and feeling of inadequacy and inferiority.
  • ·        Enhancing their self-respect and self-dignity.
  • ·        Enhancing their self-actualization.
  • ·        Controlling themselves.
  • ·        Becoming economically independent and self-reliant.
  • ·        Controlling resources like land and property.
  • ·        Reducing women’s burden of work, especially within the home.
  • ·        Creating and strengthening women’s groups and organizations.
  • ·        Promoting qualities of nurturing, caring, gentleness etc.

          Women’s empowerment includes both personal strengthening and enhancement of life, and collective participation in efforts to achieve equality of opportunity and equity between, genders, ethnic groups, social classes and age groups. It enhances human potential at individual and social levels. Empowerment is an essential starting point and a continuing process for realizing the ideals of human liberation and freedom for all. Thus when we talk of women’s development and women’s status; it is important for us to recognize that intervention at all levels namely, social, culture, political, economic are required and are possible only if changes take place in existing life systems and social structures; which are not at all favorable to women today.     
          Any intervention that contributes substantially towards women’s active and critical participation in overall development in the real sense can take place only when the systems or structures of the society are changed in favour of women. Women empowerment cannot be separated from the empowerment of nature, empowerment of all the marginalized people and countries, women’s struggles are linked to peace movements and movements of democratization and decentralization of society. Women, especially rural women, are also the ones whose survival is most threatened by ecologically disastrous development. Women know the pains of creation; she hates distinction most. That is why in the struggles to save forests, struggles against pollution, in movements of militarization, women are in the forefront. For all these reasons women have to be at the centre of sustainable development. Women are more likely to insist that if their basic needs will be satisfied then their speedily increasing death ratio will also be controlled. Women are also said to be more emotional, more passionate and movements for sustainable development definitely need heavy doses of passion and emotion. Cold rationality alone is not enough. In order to play their various roles in the preservation of ecological balance there is an urgent need for strengthening their hands by empowering them. The World Ecology Report; based on US Report 1991 “Challenge to the year 2002” says that “the empowerment of women has multiple benefits not only for the empowerment but also for humanity as well. It requires their full participation as planners, managers, scientist and technical advisors in all environment and development fields.” Empowerment of women is not a one way process. It is a two way process in which we empower and get empowered. This is an ongoing journey for all of us. No one can be empowered for good and then become an expert in empowering others. 


           
               As women account for more than half of all world’s illiterate population achieving literacy would be one of the first steps to empowering women to participate more equally in society and free themselves from economic exploitation and oppression. The empowerment of women and the empowerment of their status, particularly in respect of education, health and economic opportunity it is a highly important end in itself. In addition, this also enhances their decision making capacity in vital areas especially in the area of reproduction. Education is the one of the most important means of empowering women and giving them knowledge, skills and self-confidence are necessary to be full partners in the development process. Women need to be empowered for gaining collective strength. Why do women want collective strength? When we discuss the role of women, we talk of the change in the equilibrium of social forces to treat them as equal partners in the society and to bring recognition to all their roles. When we are concerned with poor women, we need to change both social and economic focus in favour of their work role in particular and other roles in general. Such a perception of poor women’s work, places their empowerment as the central thrust of the desired goal, which is beyond increase in income levels and in financial terms. “Empowerment entails struggle; it entails learning to deal with the forces of oppression; it entails having a vision of a deliberate interventions and efforts to enhance the quality of life. Collective strength is necessary for building solidarity and support among workers to achieve empowerment. On the one hand, a struggle against existing forces of oppression has to be undertaken and on the other, support for women workers has to be generated through collective strength. Empowerment through organized efforts helps to sustain both the struggle and the support base. In order to fight against gender biases, women have to swim against the stream that requires more strength. Such strength comes from the process of empowerment.      

Dr. V K Pathak
Republished with thanks from:   D E I Magazine (2001-02), Pg. 37-39  




Thursday 17 October 2013

Real Feminine Face of Modern India

Real Feminine Face of Modern India

Today with the help of science and technology we have bridged the gap of time and space and have worn the mask of modernity. Today blind westernization has become the symbol of modernity. No doubt, no area is left where women have not put their feet. From the conquering heights of flights (Air Force), we can see the feminine face in every field whether it is politics, defence, science and technology or any other. But think for a minute is it the real feminine face which is mentioned above? The reality is entirely different. Although we cannot deny realities of Meera Nair, Ekta Kapoor, Kohinoor, Hampi, Sonia Gandhi and Ritu Sharma. But this is an only a handful amount of the half of the population of the entire world. If we open our eyes towards reality we shall find that it is very disheartening. Violence against a woman starts even before she puts her feet on the earth. To be a woman is the biggest curse for a woman. She seems to live her life on the double register law and languages; which emphasizes her roles as standing outside of language and law. The law book of Manu declared, “Where women are verily honored; there the Gods rejoice; where however, they are not honored these all scared rites prove fruitless.” When we our ancestry we find that Manu who was a staunch believer in the co-ordinated and harmonious development of human personality; assigns a very reasonable place to women in the framework of society. He does not regard them as necessary evils to be tolerated anyhow but as the prime factor of the man’s worldly as well as spiritual happiness. Man cannot make any progress if there be no woman standing by this side ready to co-operate with him in all his activities. Man’s powers lie dormant so long as they are not touched by the spark of a woman’s love and affection. The wheel of the world cannot move in the absence of a woman.
In ancient times, are women had the ceremony performed for them. They were entitled to study of ‘Vedas’. They were also entitled to chanting of Gayatri Japa. When Vedic civilization was at its peak, the wife of Manu Maharj had desired a female child at ‘Putrayesthi Yajana’. But in the later ages the condition of women deteriorated. The Indian women today are rarely considered as an individual. Instead she is viewed in her roles of daughter, wife or mother. Since she is thought to be lacking any internalized norms or self-discipline, it is imperative that her father, husband and sons protect her from the outside world. Due to restrictions placed upon women by the nature of their roles, initial attempts to improve the conditions of women were taken up by men. From Raja Ram Mohan Ray to M K Gandhi; many reforms highlighted the excessive restrictions placed upon woman as social evils which need ameliorations. The founding father of our constitution had envisaged the concept of full equality of women in competition with men which has not fully become a reality till date, and women who theoretically enjoy an equal status with men in the Constitution of India have not been able to exercise that equality in letter and spirit. In 1976 surgical abortions were recognized as legal acts. The reason behind it was to provide health protection to women. But in the present days sonography has become a very cruel means to kill the female child before birth. In spite of special laws, women have not been able to get justice. There has been a constant increase in the number of crimes against women. Harassment of women at workplace is also on increase which is because women do not come forward and raise their voices. In the modern world, the role of the women goes much beyond the home and the bringing up of children. She is now adopting a career of her own responsibility for the development of the society in all its aspects. This is the direction in which we shall have to move fast. In a male dominated society, the women suffer from the varieties of gender bias and repressive laws in all fields of life. Right from the moment of birth up to that of death, they suffer from severe handicaps in the field of education, health care, child bearing and rearing, laws related to marriage, inheritance rules and also personal laws. Women must muster enough courage and fight against all inequalities and repressions in whatever from they may be. Women must take part in organized activities. In this, the trade unions can be of great assistance and they must take more and more interest to promote their career related prospects. Women are not aware about their fundamental rights to from association or unions. It is high time that at least they should awaken and take active part in decision making bodies; only than they will be able to enjoy equality with men. Participation of women not only makes them visible but also strengths the movements and gives it publicity. Further, their participation helps to steer the movement in certain directions often away from violence. It is only recently that women have awakened and realized their strength. Anyway it is never too late. 21st century will be women’s century and let us all work untidily to shape it.       

           Dr. Surat Pyari Pathak
Republished with thanks from:    D E I Magazine (2001-02), Pg. 43-44.  


Sunday 13 October 2013

RELATION BETWEEN CAREER MATURITY AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE


Dr. V K Pathak
Dr. Surat Pyari Pathak

ABSTRACT

This paper presents the seeming lack of traits and characteristics that need to describe career maturity among youth of secondary school students. Terminal points of the study are secondary school students of CBSE Delhi using a randomly selected sample from Agra & New Delhi. The authors drew data with a validated set of questionnaires on the status and level of their Career maturity. Data revealed that more than half of the sample are low on the maturity status while another considerable percentage are just barely mature, displaying traits of not having a specific career in mind. It was also found that the youth at secondary level do not spend time to think through possible employment in the society, they mostly never consult with adults on the demands of the world of work among other immature traits. Positive correlation between academic performance and carrier maturity was found in the study. School activities may improve the status of the students’ career maturity status was suggested as a improving measure.


Keywords:  Career maturity, Career maturity status, secondary school students, Academic Performance, Grade point Average (GPA).



Successful completion of schooling represents a channel for greater earnings and upward career mobility, and also increases the likelihood   for better earnings and employment. Additional benefits found to be concomitant with advanced education include greater occupational choice, political participation, and better mental health (Levin, Guthrie, Kleindorfer, & Stout, 1971). Advanced education is also a means for personal achievement, for a role providing service to others in the community and to participation in admired and rewarding professions in contemporary culture.

Secondary level students have to face various difficulties to successfully completion their schooling. As they stand at the threshold of the age of stress, strain and storm (G. Stanley Hall). Several factors affecting academic performance in the present study have been identified and examined, yet found to be inconsistent predictors of academic achievement (Huffman et al., 1986).
 


 Studies have shown that career maturity, realistically deals with occupational choices, correlates positively with academic performance in most student populations, including academic groups (Walsh & Hanle, 1975; West, 1986). Some distinct subgroups, however, are exceptions (Burkhead & Cope, 1984), and minority ethnic groups have been found to score consistently lower on career maturity than comparison to other groups (Loesch, Shub, & Rucker, 1979; Pelham & Fretz, 1982). Researchers working with secondary students often conclude that more study is needed to understand and address the problems in both educational and career processes of this group (Gade, Fuqua, & Hurlburt, 1984; Huffman et al., 1986; Lee, 1984). Consequently, we decided to examine the career maturity and its relationship with academic performance among students.

Students’ scores were found to be influenced by the factors other than ethnicity, including rural or urban background of the students, age, educational grade level, and gender. This present study shows an attempt to investigate and compare the career maturity of the Delhi and Agra students, and to determine if the positive correlation between career maturity and academic performance found in the population exists in this group.

Objectives
1. To study is there any correlation between Career Maturity and Academic Performance.
2. To study whether the variation in Academic Performance effects upon Career Maturity of students or not.

Hypothesis
H 1. There is no significant relation between Career Maturity and Academic Performance.
H 2. There is no significant effect of Academic Performance on Career Maturity.

Methodology of the Study
Sample of the Study
Selection of Sample for Study

The sample used in the present study consisted of 100 students who were enrolled at Delhi and Agra during session 2011-2012. The students were drawn from participation in two assignments. One group of 25 students participated voluntarily in a study of the effects of a computer-based guidance system conducted by a counselor in the school’s Career/Life Planning Center. In the second study, a Career Services program at the school administered a career maturity instrument to 25 students to obtain information regarding their educational and career planning characteristics. Career planning services and workshops are some of the activities offered by Career Services. These students voluntarily completed the instrument and a short data sheet, and were encouraged to make appointments to review their scores with the counsellor.

Fig.1: Sample of the Study

There was no significant difference in the mean age of the two groups. Grade-point average (GPA) was used as the operational definition of academic performance in the study, and the results of a t-test on GPA showed a significant difference (t = 3.04, p<.01) between the two groups, viz. students of Delhi & Agra.

Table: 1:  Student’s Distribution
Variable
Level
Students of Delhi
Students of Agra
Total
Academic Achievement
High
15
13
28
Medium
24
27
51
Low
11
10
21
Total
50
50
100


The total sample consisted of 28 students of High academic achievements, 51 students of medium academic achievement and 21 students of low academic achievements. The examination of the present study was based on four equal working weeks same as Delhi and Agra. The examination revealed no significant difference of the two groups examine for the study.
Instrument of the Study
The Career Maturity Inventory by Dr. Nirmala Gupta (An Indian Adaption of Crites’s CMI Test) was administered to the students in both groups. The score on this instrument was used as the operational definition of career maturity. The Attitude Scale is used for the study is Career Maturity Inventory (CMI), and "elicits the feelings, the subjective reactions, the dispositions that the individual has toward making a career choice and entering the world of work" (Crites, 1978, p. 3). Crites states that "Maturity of these attitudes is also associated with an individual having definite career choices, being consistent in choices over time, and making realistic choices" (p. 4).
CMI is the most widely used measure of career maturity, and has been in use for over a decade [Palmo and Lutz (1983)]. The CMI was developed initially for use with grade school and high school students. The CMI or its precursor, the Vocational Development Inventory, have been used in studies involving college populations (Anderson, 1976; Walsh & Hanle, 1975; West, 1986), ethnic minority populations (primarily Black students) in high school and college (Pelham & Fretz, 1982; McNair & Brown, 1983), other high school populations which included American Indian students (Lee, 1984; Schmieding & Jensen, 1968), disabled college students (Burkhead and Cope, 1983), rehabilitation clients at various stages of retraining (Strohmer, 1981), and disadvantaged students, some college-aged who dropped out of high school (Palmo & Lutz, 1983).
Procedure of the Study
Pearson product-moment correlations between career maturity and GPA were computed. The mean career maturity scores were compared with t-tests for significant differences.  
Data from the study were also investigated by three methods for the effect of class standing on the relationship between career maturity and GPA, and for career maturity differences in each class. I, the Pearson product-moment correlation between CMI score and cumulative credit hours was found for the total sample of two groups. II, the Pearson product-moment correlation between CMI scores and GPA was determined for each group in the total sample. III, the mean career maturity scores for each group were compared.

Results
The relationships of career maturity and academic performance are reported in Table 1.

TABLE 2:  Correlations between GPA and Career Maturity (CMI)
Category
N
Correlation*
Total Sample
100
r=.3949(p=.030)
Students of Delhi
50
r =.4174 (p =.022)
Students of Agra
50
r =.3953 (p =. 026)
*Pearson product-moment coefficient. 

 Results showed a significant positive correlation between career maturity and GPA for the total sample of students. A significant positive correlation was found for the group of students in the sample.

TABLE 3:   Mean GPA, Mean CMI Correlations through Levels
Category
No. of Students
GPA
CMI-AS
Correlation, (p)
Total Sample
100*
2.47
37.1
.3233 (.36)
Low Academic Achiever
21
2.36
33.5
.4177 (.022)
Medium Academic Achiever
51
2.63
37.6
.4687 (.057)
High Academic Achiever
28
2.67
38.0
.2173 (.497)
*N=100[Delhi(50)+Agra(50)]

Discussion
Implications of the Study
Present study reveals that students often score as fewer careers mature in relation to their academic achievement. It shows the results of the comparison of mean career maturity scores for the students have significantly related with their academic achievement. In fact, while the career maturity was nearly equal to the scores of academic achievements.
This study also investigated whether the positive correlation between career maturity and academic performance found in populations existed in this group of students. It can be concluded from the results that career maturity is positively correlated with GPA.
The mean career maturity score and the correlation between career maturity and GPA for students also suggest that career education might be used to address the problem of the educational attention rate of students. Career education has been shown to influence academic achievement for the better in other populations.

References
Anderson, A. (1976). The validity of the Career Maturity Inventory as a measure of career maturity among first-year community college students in southwest Virginia. Dissertation Abstracts International, 37, 5595A-5596A.
Burkhead, E.J. & Cope, C.S. (1984). Career maturity and physically disabled college students. Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, 27, 142-149.
Crites, J.O. (1978). Career Maturity Inventory: Administration and use manual (2nd ed.). Monterey, California: CTB/McGraw-Hill.
Gade, E.M., Fuqua, D., & Hurlburt, G. (1984). Use of the Self-directed Search with Native American high school students. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 31, 584-587.
Gupta, Nirmala (1971). Career Maturity Inventery (An Hindi Adaption of Jhon O’ Crites CMI: Agra, National Psychological corporation.
Havighurst, R.J. & Levine, D.U. (1979). Society and education (5th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Huffman, T.E., Sill, M.L., & Brokenleg, M. (1986). College achievement among Sioux and White South Dakota students. Journal of American Indian Education, 25 (2), 32-38.
Lee, C.C. (1984). Predicting the career choice attitudes of rural Black, White, and Native American high school students. Vocational Guidance Quarterly, 32 (3), 177-184.
Levin, H. M., Guthrie, J.W., Kleindorfer, G. B., & Stout, R.T. (197 1). School achievement and post-school success: A review. Review of Educational Research, 41, 1-16.
Loesch, L.C., Shub, P.A., & Rucker, B.B. (1979). Vocational maturity among community college students. Journal of College Student Personnel, 20, 140-144.
McNair, D. & Brown, D. (1983). Predicting the occupational aspirations, occupational expectations, and career maturity of Black and White male and female 10th graders. The Vocational Guidance Quarterly, 32, 29-36.
Olson, L. (1979). Does career education influence academic achievement. Journal of Research and Development in Education, 12 (3), 71-74.
Palmo, A.J., & Lutz, J.G. (1983). The relationship of performance youngsters. Measurement and Evaluation in Guidance, 16, 139-146.
Pelham, J.P. & Fretz, B.R. (1982). Racial differences and attributes of career choice unrealism. The Vocational Guidance Quarterly, 31, 36-42.
Schmieding, O.A. & Jensen, S.F. (1968). American Indian students: Vocational development and vocational tenacity. The Vocational Guidance Quarterly, 17, 120-123.
Scott, W.J. (1986). Attachment to Indian culture and the "difficult situation": A study of American Indian college students. Youth and Society, 17, 381-395.
Strohmer, D.C. (198 1). Exploratory use of Crites’ CMI-Attitude Scale with rehabilitation clients. Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, 24, 370-373.
Walsh, W.B. & Hanle, N.A. (1975). Consistent occupational preferences, vocational maturity and academic achievement. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 7, 89-97.
West, D. (1986). The relationship of career maturity and GPA, age, gender and class status of selected students at Eastern Montana College. Unpublished manuscript, Eastern Montana College, Billings.
Zytowski, D.G. (1978). A review of the Career Maturity Inventory. In O.K. Buros (Ed.), The eighth mental measurements yearbook, (pp. 1565-1567). Lincoln: University of Nebraska, Buros Institute of Mental Measurements.



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