Concept of Individual Difference

 

                Dissimilarity is principle of nature. No two persons are alike. All the individuals differ from each other in many a respect. Children born of the same parents and even the twins are not alike. This differential psychology is linked with the study of individual differences. Wundt, Cattel, Kraepelin, Jastrow and Ebbing Haus are the exponents of differential psychology.

                This change is seen in physical forms like in height, weight, colour, complexion strength etc., difference in intelligence, achievement, interest, attitude, aptitude, learning habits, motor abilities, skill. Each man has an intellectual capacity through which he gains experience and learning.

                Every person has the emotions of love, anger, fear and feelings of pleasure and pain. Every man has the need of independence, success and need for acceptance. Individuals that separate them from one person to another and make one as a unique individual in oneself are termed as individual differences. Osborne considers individual differences as dissimilarity between persons that distinguish them from one another.

Areas of Individual Difference

 

Difference in Attitude

                Difference in attitude is psyche related to some specific area. Few learners have positive attitude towards a specific topic, subject, and profession than other.

 

Difference in Aptitude

               Aptitudes are present patterns of traits which indicate an individual’s future potentialities. They imply fitness, suitability, and a readiness to acquire proficiency in a given field or job. Aptitudes are probably inherited, but they cannot appear unless the environment is favourable- that is unless the opportunity is provided. Very often a great deal of training is necessary before an aptitude reveals itself in performance.

 

Differences in Interest

                Interest means you observe some students like a particular subject, teacher, hobby, or profession than other. Interest may refer as a motivating force that impels us to attend to a person, a thing, or an activity.

 

Difference in Psychomotor Skills

                Psychomotor skill is related to some skill acquisition. Some students differ in this area also. Some students easily learn operating a machine and some may not. A wise teacher should diagnose students’ psychomotor skills abilities and encourage them in proper desirable directions.

 

Difference in Values

                Values be given importance by every learner. Some learners value materialist lifestyles other moral or religious lifestyle etc. So, education must mould the mind of young generation to have a balance value between materialism and spiritualism.

 

Difference in Study Habits

                Some students markedly differ from other students in study habits. Some students are studious and study all the subjects with interest but other may not. Some study in isolation and some in group.

 

Difference in Self-Concept

               Difference in self concept is the totality of attitudes, judgement, and values of an individual relating to his behaviour, abilities, and qualities. Some students have positive self-concept that boost their confidence level and perform better against those who have negative self-concept.

 

Educational Implications of the Psychology of Individual Difference

 

                The notion that individuals differ in various abilities, capacities and personality characteristics necessitates the adoption of individual tendencies in education. It compels the teachers to realise following facts:

·     Aims of education, curriculum, method of teaching should be linked with individual differences considering the different abilities and traits of individuals.

 

·     All students cannot be benefitted by one method of instruction and a uniform and rigid curriculum the teacher must adopt different types of methods of teaching considering individual difference related to interest, need etc.

 

·     Some co-curricular activities such as drama, music, literary activities (essay and debate competitions) should be assigned to children according to their interest.

·     Every teacher should try to have the desired knowledge of the abilities, capacities, interests, attitudes, aptitudes, and other personality traits of his pupils and in the light of this knowledge should render individual guidance to children for maximum utilisation of their potentialities.

 

·     Teacher uses certain specific teaching aids which will attract the children towards teaching considering their interest and need.

 

·     Various methods such as playing method, project method, Montessori method, storytelling methods are to be used considering/discovering how different children respond to a task or a problem.

 

·     Curriculum should be designed as per the interest, abilities and needs of different students.

 

·     In any group there are individuals, who deviate from the norms of the group. Along with the average, the presence of very superior and extremely dull is equally possible in his class.

 

·     The division of peoples into classes should not be based only on the mental age or chronological age of children but the physical, social, and emotional maturity should be given due consideration.

 

·     In case of vocational guidance, the counsellor is to plan the guidance technique keeping in view the needs and requirements of the students.

 

·     It is wrong to expect uniformity in gaining proficiency or success in a particular field from a group of students. On account of their subnormal intelligence, previous background, lack of proper interest, aptitude and attitude some students have to lag behind in  some or other area of achievement.

Coping with Stress

 

               Many of us are facing challenges that can be stressful, overwhelming, and cause strong emotions in adults and children. Public health actions, such as physical distancing, can make us feel isolated and lonely and can increase stress and anxiety. After a traumatic event, people may have strong and lingering reactions. Learning healthy ways to cope and getting the right care and support can help reduce stressful feelings and symptoms. The symptoms may be physical or emotional. Common reactions to a stressful event can include:

·     Disbelief

·     Feelings of fear, shock, anger, sadness, worry, numbness, or frustration.

·     Changes in appetite, energy, desires, and interests

·     Difficulty sleeping or nightmares, concentrating, and making decisions

·     Physical reactions, such as headaches, body pains, stomach problems, and skin rashes

·     Worsening of chronic health problems

·     Worsening of mental health conditions

·     Increased use of tobacco, alcohol, and other substances

               It is natural to feel stress, anxiety, grief, and worry during traumatic events such as mass shootings, natural disasters, or pandemics. Below are ways that you can help yourself, others, and your community manage stress.

Healthy Ways to Cope with Stress

               Feeling emotional and nervous or having trouble sleeping and eating can all be normal reactions to stress. Here are some healthy ways you can deal with stress:

 

               Take breaks from watching, reading, or listening to news stories, including those on social media. It’s good to be informed but hearing about the traumatic event constantly can be upsetting. Consider limiting news to just a couple of times a day and disconnecting from phone, tv, and computer screens for a while.

·     Take care of yourself. Eat healthy, exercise, get plenty of sleep, and give yourself a break if you feel stressed out.

·     Take care of your body.

·     Take deep breaths, stretch, or meditate.

·     Avoid excessive alcohol, tobacco, and substance use.

·     Make time to unwind. Try to do some other activities you enjoy.

·     Talk to others. Talk with people you trust about your concerns and how you are feeling. Share your problems and how you are feeling and coping with a parent, friend, counselor, doctor, or pastor.

·     Connect with your community- or faith-based organizations.

·     Avoid drugs and alcohol. These may seem to help, but they can create additional problems and increase the stress you are already feeling.

·     Recognize when you need more help. If problems continue or you are thinking about suicide, talk to a psychologist, social worker, or professional counselor.

·     Check out Taking Care of Your Emotional Health for more information and resources.

Helping Others Cope

               Taking care of yourself can better equip you to take care of others. Helping others cope with stress can help you and your loved ones feel less lonely or isolated.

 

Helping Children and Youth Cope with Stress

               Children and youth often struggle with how to cope with stress. Youth can be particularly overwhelmed when their stress is connected to a traumatic event—like a natural disaster, family loss, school shootings, or community violence. Parents, caregivers, and educators can take steps to provide stability and support that help young people feel better.

Tips for Parents and Caregivers

               It is natural for children to worry when scary or stressful events happen in their lives. Talking to your children about these events can help put frightening information into a more balanced setting. Monitor what children see and hear about stressful events happening in their lives. Here are some suggestions to help children cope:

·     Maintain a normal routine. Helping children wake up, go to sleep, and eat meals at regular times provide them a sense of stability.

·     Talk, listen, and encourage expression. Listen to your child’s thoughts and feelings and share some of yours. After a traumatic event, it is important for children to feel they can share their feelings and that you understand their fears and worries.

·     Watch and listen. Be alert for any change in behavior. Any changes in behavior may be signs that your child is having trouble and may need support.

·     Stressful events can challenge a child’s sense of safety and security. Reassure your child about his or her safety and well-being. Discuss ways that you, the school, and the community are taking steps to keep them safe.

·     Connect with others. Talk to other parents and your child’s teachers about ways to help your child cope. It is often helpful for parents, schools, and health professionals to work together for the well-being of all children in stressful times.

Tips for Kids and Teens

               After a traumatic event, it is normal to feel anxious about your safety and security. Even if you were not directly involved, you may worry about whether this type of event may someday affect you. Check out the tips below for some ideas to help deal with these fears.

               Talk to and stay connected to others. Talking with someone you trust can help you make sense out of your experience. If you are not sure where to turn, call your local crisis intervention center or a national hotline.

               Take care of yourself. Try to get plenty of sleep, eat right, exercise, and keep a normal routine.

               Take information breaks. Pictures and stories about a disaster can increase worry and other stressful feelings. Taking breaks from the news, Internet, and conversations about the disaster can help calm you down.

                If you are struggling to cope, there are many ways to get help. Call your healthcare provider if stress gets in the way of your daily activities for several days in a row.

               During times of extreme stress, people may have thoughts of suicide. Suicide is preventable and help is available. Free and confidential crisis resources can also help you or a loved one connect with a skilled, trained counselor in your area.

 

 

Role of Motivation in Learning

               Learning is a complex process, and it involves different phenomena, such as retrieving new information, processing it, and motivation is an essential part of the learning process. Motivation can be described as the internal condition which stimulates behaviour and directs it. Motivation to learn is a desire to get information, develop skills, and attain mastery. In learning, motivation can be described by several main variables: interest and responsibility, or sense of duty, and external motivation – expectations of the learner.

 

               For students and pupils’ willingness to learn something new is occasional. Then extrinsic and intrinsic incentives come into force; extrinsic ones are necessary if the learning is not thought of as a reward; intrinsic motivation deems learning activity as rewarding in itself because it is interesting, exciting, or challenging.

 

               Interest is an affective state that represents learners subjective experience of learning; it represents an integration of feelings, motivation, and cognition and is arguably the most important form of intrinsic motivation. Students or pupils are usually interested in different things and expect different results from learning: academic achievements – interest can be individual or situational, structure of acquired knowledge, external incentives like certificates of grades, etc. Situational interest is a good way to switch interest from one task to a general interest – say, from exploring flowers to biology in general. Also, there are pupils who like learning for learning’s sake, and they just get their kicks from it – such people can be called personal developer. For teachers it is vital to arouse interest of all kinds in order to make the learning process desired and interesting. Those who are interested in gaining knowledge are motivated to learn more and have good grades.

 

               There are also important factors of motivation like rewards, approval, high grades, certificates, etc. They are also important, as they renew the interest to casual subjects. For many pupils, disapproval of their parents is very strong motivational factor when they have no intrinsic incentives.

 

               Motivation is largely researched upon. The reason of this attention is quite simple – very few children like learning. Even though they are eager to learn something new when they come to school, their enthusiasm fades quickly. When learning becomes an obligation, it seems to be a burden. A good example is reading – those who start to read enjoy the process, but when they achieve the teen age there are hardly anybody who reads books for pleasure. When the interest to learning fades, then teacher must apply his or her knowledge of the motivational basics in order to refresh the interest to the subject – stimulate situational interest, offer new and provocative topics for discussion, organize competitions, or provide approval of successful students.

             Motivation is a very important factor of learning. Whatever kind of motivation is discussed – interest-based, or external, or any other motivation – it is a key element of education process. Internal motivation resides within the learner and is uncontrollable, but predictable. Extrinsic motivation influences personal and situational interest to learn, thus improving internal motivation. Knowledge of motivation sources is important for teachers as it enables them to control the interest to the subject and thus the grades and successfulness of the students.                

              

Procrastination in Hamlet

https://online.fliphtml5.com/etsra/gpkj/ 

LEARNING TEACHING by Jim Scrivener

Details of the selected book

Name of the book: LEARNING TEACHING by Jim Scrivener

Name of the editor: Adrian Underhill

Publishing year: 1994

Publishing press: Macmillan Private Limited

Price: Paperback $63.36

About the Author

              Jim became an English teacher as a temporary measure until he could decide what career to choose. His first post was with Voluntary Service Overseas in a rural school in Kenya, and since then he worked as a Lecturer with the British Council in the USSR, as Director of Education at International house Hungary and as Director of Studies of Teacher Training at International House, Hastings. He has run numerous short courses around the world and is a regular conference speaker.

               Jim was leader of the team that designed the EURO language exams. He has written Teaching Grammar (Oxford) and is author of teacher’s books and resource materials for the Straightforward coursebook series. He writes a monthly ‘teaching tips’ column for the Guardian Weekly and onestopenglish.com. He has an MA in Creative Writing but has not yet worked out what he can do with it.

Introduction

               Learning Teaching is a book of ‘Macmillan Books for Teaching’ series. These books are for trainee teachers, practicing teachers or teacher trainers. They help you to develop your skills and confidence, reflect on what you do and why you do it, improve your practice and inform it with t theory and become the best teacher you can be.

               The book written from a humanistic and student-cantered perspective offers practical techniques and ideas for classroom activities, key insights into relevant background theory and ways to apply techniques and insights into your work.

               The author Jim Scrivener is himself a teacher and trainer. He takes a ‘learning as you go’ approach in sharing our experience with you. This book helps us to reflect on ways we can facilitate learning and bring our personal strengths to work.

               The book offers insights from research into language and language learning and suggest ways of using these insights in the classroom.

               This book encourages us to experiment and to develop variety and choice, so that you can understand the how and why of work and develop confidence in our own teaching and in our ability to respond creatively to new situations.

 

Analysis

 

            The book Learning Teaching is an essential guide for the first years as a language teacher and an invaluable resource for teacher training courses. The author is a teacher with many years of experience who has worked in many countries and currently works as Director of Education for a branch of a chain of language schools.

               The book is unusual because it has many distinct parts to it. There are technical parts on the theory of how to teach – how to arrange your classroom, the nuts and bolts of lesson planning, tests and exams – but there are also some much more practical chapters on ideas for fillers and games, with some photocopiable resources for use in class, and there's also a brief introduction to the parts of speech, for those teachers who can't quite remember the difference between an adjective and an adverb.

               The book discusses a lot of ideas we may be already familiar with from our course, but usefully includes the proper names for things. It is a chicken and egg thing to know which came first, this book or the widely used methods of teaching it discusses, but several chapters are word for word what we learn in some of the input sessions, and therefore serve as a useful, permanent reminder.

               The book is clearly written by someone familiar with the EFL classroom, and realistic about demands placed on teachers working in this arena. This book mentions 'proper' lesson plans but it also details some more user-friendly alternatives such as flow charts or brief running orders, which make much more efficient use of planning time. The section on planning courses should be appreciated. Similarly, section on conversation classes  is highly beneficial.

               This book is accessible and easy to read, as well as interesting. It is a textbook, but it is not boring, and the anecdotes keep it interesting.

               The book contains a section on English for Special Purposes, a reference guide at the back split into two sections, key terminology, and abbreviations and also many other important sections on English language teaching.

               On the whole the book is well organised with thorough contents and index, plus an additional 'help index', so it is easy to find the topic you are looking for. The book has many uses – it could be read in lieu of doing a course and get all the theory necessary. We could use it when we are stuck for inspiration or need a new game for a class who are flagging. However, we use it, I guess learning teaching from a book is possible after all.

 

Conclusion

                Learning Teaching has been one of the most successful guides to English since it was first published in 1994. Its no-nonsense approach has made it a superb teaching textbook for initial training courses, and also an essential handbook for practising ELT teachers.

                This is a book for language teachers. Mostly it is a guide to methodology. The book gives instructions on what might work in the classroom. Learning Teaching can help you learn to teach in more effective ways. It is about a kind of teaching where you are also learning. However, it is not a book about the right way to teach. The author gives a toolkit of possibilities from which we can take those ideas and options that we find most useful.

References

 

 

·     Scrivener Jim – Learning Teaching- 3^rd edition

·     www.goodreads.com/book/show/25155487-learning-teaching 

Literary Translation as a Language Exercise

 

LITERARY TRANSLATION AS A LANGUAGE EXERCISE

 

Literary translation is a very specific and particular type of translation. It requires specific linguistic preparation and skills, a particular sensitivity to language, a certain creativity, a good ability in the artistic and figurative exposition of speech.

 

Characteristics of literary translation

                The style of the original text is maintained. The author's voice and emotionality are maintained. It is the translator's responsibility to carry out the translation in accordance with the choice of the author's lexicon, the word runs, and to search for expressions that are at least equivalent to the source language.

                A creative approach to translation. However, this does not mean that the translator can change the meaning and/or content of the original text. Creativity lies in the mastery of choosing, during translation, the right synonyms, epithets, metaphors, so that the translated text is as natural and readable as the source text.

                Adaptation of the translated text to the cultural characteristics and mentality of the country of the target language. Literary translation has been going on for thousands of years, so it is difficult to discuss it in one go. There are five volumes of the Oxford History of Literary Translation in English, which testifies to the complexity and depth of this topic.

                Many literary translators have come and gone. The works of sixth century Roman philosopher, consul and senator Anicius Manlius Severinus Boëthius, or just Boethius, was translated by Geoffrey Chaucer and King Alfred the Great. Throughout the years, the Holy Bible is the most translated work. Among the classics, The Little Prince (French) is the most translated, followed by Pinocchio (Italian), Dao De Jing (Chinese), Pilgrim’s Progress (English) and Alice in Wonderland (English). Among the modern works, some of the most translated are Harry Potter (English), Sleep Tight, Little Wolf (German), Seven Brief Lessons on Physics (Italian), Before I Go to Sleep (English) and The Book of Mirrors (English).

               Each book is a source of knowledge, a way to broaden horizons, learn about the world of foreign literature, become more educated and enlightened. Illustrative material in a foreign language cannot be understood without the intervention of a professional translator.

 

Difficulty In Doing Literary Translations

                The variety of literary works being translated shows the demand for different genres. While we cannot deny the importance of translating literature, the process of translation is difficult and involves a different process than regular content translation. It is one of the toughest among the types of translation works.

                One of the most obvious is the number of words, because most works contain hundreds of pages. Another category that is very challenging for literary translators is poetry. It demands a high level of creativity and fluency in the source and target language because the translator must maintain the essence and beauty of the original.

                Translators involved in literary translations, especially poetry translation are very much challenged. There is the need to keep a balance to remain faithful to the original source with the requirement to create a work that is distinctive and unique, which will elicit the same feelings and reactions as the original work.

                Any translator who has done literary translation will confirm that even one word can be exceedingly troublesome for them. This is because the author carefully chooses the words they use for a particular reason. It is therefore critical for the translator to fully understand the entire story and the actual intent of the author to ensure that the true message of the author is delivered faithfully in another language.

                The more challenging time for a translator is when there is no direct translation of a specific word or phrase or when several options are available and each one has a slight variance in nuances. Literary translators have different approaches when they do translation work. Some focus on retaining the ambience of the local culture as reflected in the content instead of the language.

               When it comes to translating novels, the complexity and the challenge could be even on a higher level than translating poetry.

                Best-selling author of The Kingfisher Chronicles series, Patrick Rothfuss, says that it is not only the length of the content that proves problematic in literary translation but also the names, which are mostly made up by the authors. The names may sound like actual names in English, but these could give translators a more difficult time when translating the novel into another language.

                Another complication is the need to retain the true intent of the original text while the content is not literally translated. The translator must be concerned about recreating the ambience of the novel despite avoiding word for word translation. It is also made even harder by the implications shown by the plotlines, play on words, irony and humor that need transposition without resulting to giving explanations.

                Another thing that complicates the translation of novels is the reader’s knowledge. You cannot pick and categorize the people who would be reading the translated novel. There are readers who are fans of a particular author, while others like to read best-sellers. Others are attracted to a particular genre. Some prefer fiction while others go for true-to-life stories.

                But novels are written by authors who come from different cultural backgrounds. Therefore, their references to traditions, practices and customs may be understood by readers who speak the same language as the author or have the same ethnic background. The job of the translator is to deliver that kind of inherent knowledge to the reader speaking another language and may not be familiar with the cultural oddities of the original language.

               In translating literature, the style of the author and the story’s atmosphere should be preserved. You may have missed the point that you are enjoying a book originally written in another language due to the skills and creativity of the translator.

                Translators of literary works do not care for literal translation. The job requires the translation of idioms and local sayings. It requires that the translator have a specialized dictionary and a large personal vocabulary. Literary translation deals with humor and play on words that must be transposed into the target language.

                The translation not only complies with the style used by the author but should also comply with the specific eras, cultures, and settings of the literary work.

 

Required Skills of a Literary Translator

                A more specific skillset is required when a translator translates literature. The task is more creative that other translation works. In technical translation for example, the focus is on delivering text that is a literal interpretation of the original source. When it comes to prose and poetry, creative writing goes hand in hand with linguistic fluency.

                The translator should also have the confidence in his or her ability to do the job. One of the most important things is the ability to make the right choice when bogged down with words or sentences and move forward to tackle the rest of the content.

                Likewise, the translator should be capable of delivering continuity, especially when translating novels that are exceedingly long. The translator should be able to remember the facts, especially those that were used in the early pages of the novel that reappear in the middle or latter part of the literary work.

 

The benefits of translation exercises for language learning

                Translation helps you tackle weaknesses in vocabulary, grammar, and style. But when you come to some focussed work to take your language up a level, it is sometimes good to tackle the gaps. Having to translate a specific common word or phrase as precisely as possible really puts you on the spot. You either know an equivalent (even if an imperfect one) or not.

                Words or phrases move from being ‘unknown unknowns’ to ‘known unknowns’ and then you can find out how to say them. Translation helps you ‘notice’ and remember. This act of realizing you do not know and finding out will help you to remember.

                Doing written translation exercises into L1 forces you to engage and ‘notice’ things that you don’t understand at an even deeper level than word-for-word ‘intensive reading’. Translation into L2 can flag up stylistic mistakes and patterns of interference from L1.

                It is true that those benefits come from freehand writing in L2 as well but, to repeat, when you are translating, you are up against it. You cannot avoid the issue.

                Translation forces you to understand the intention of the writer. You can’t translate a text well if you do not understand what the author was trying to say. You must convey the word-for-word or ‘bottom up’ meaning. You also must interpret what is being said overall or ‘top down’. In other words, you need to bring to bear your knowledge of the cultural rules around how language is used (pragmatics) and of the culture more widely.

                At all levels the difficulties you will encounter with translation, and it will make you more aware of the conventions of your own language and culture. You will thus be better equipped to communicate effectively between cultures. Translation is a real-life skill too.

                First, at the beginning stages, the reality is that we often translate from L1 to L2 in our heads, whether we engage in formal translation exercises. It is often assumed that our aim as language learners is total immersion in the new structures that the learner. We want to enter the cultural and linguistic system of L2 and be more like a native speaker.

Population education, population explosion and adverse effects, need for population education and trends in demography

 

POPULATION EDUCATION

 

            The term “Population Education” provides a tendency to misinterpret it as the education of population, but the actual meaning of the term is different. If we go deep into the matter, we will find that population education is education about population matter, such as fertility, mortality, migration etc. It is an educational process which helps people to understand the nature, the causes, and consequences of population events.

            “Population education is an educational programme which provides for a study of population situation of the family, the community, nation and world, with the purpose of developing in the students rational and responsible attitudes and behaviour towards that situation.”- UNESCO

            It is a factual knowledge about population dynamic. Population education is an educational process, which helps individual to learn about population and particularly the effect of population dynamic and the related problem on the individuals, family, community, nation, and the world. Its main purpose is to create awareness, to provide knowledge and to develop positive attitude for improving population situation to ensure a better life now and in future.

 

POPULATION EXPLOSION AND ADVERSE EFFECTS

 

                In simple terms population explosion refers to a sudden, large increase in the size of a population. A population explosion is a sudden increase in the number of individuals in a particular species. The term is typically used in reference to the world's human population, especially the population boom that followed the end of World War II due to a combination of an accelerated birth rate, decrease in infant mortality, and an increased life expectancy.

                The explosion of a species population can throw an ecosystem out of equilibrium. In the case of the human population, explosive growth can have far-reaching environmental and economic impacts. Human population explosions are sometimes cited as a cause of resource scarcity and a lack of opportunity for individuals.

 

Effects

                 The effect of population explosion is multi-layered. It not only impacts the environment and the availability of resources, but it also impacts the health of individuals within the population.

                Natural resources are depleting constantly with the increasing demand and consumption. Fossil fuel which is the primary source of energy that drives the technology-driven world is fast depleting. Which poses a very important question on what we depend on once this natural resource has exhausted. Although there is growing awareness on the use of renewable energy like biofuels, solar, wind and tidal energy and others there is still a long way to go where these renewable resources can replace the use of fossil fuels.

                With the increasing population and the rising demand, there is an increased level in the air, water, and soil pollution. This is not only impacting the lives of humans but has also affected the lives of many animals resulting in the endangering of many species and the extinction of many. The high levels of pollution have resulted in contamination of water and soil that has rendered many patches of land and water bodies unfit for use. Drinking water is fast becoming inadequate to support the needs of millions of people. With the increase in the demand for crops to meet the global food requirements, there has been an increase in deforestation to provide for agricultural land.

                This has led to a significant contraction in the biodiversity of many regions. Deforestation, on the other hand, has serious repercussions on the climatic condition of the planet. It leads to an increased level of carbon dioxide which is one of the contributing factors to global warming.

                Apart from the environmental effects there is a huge socio-economic impact as the country’s resources become inadequate to support the needs of a growing population. Countries with high population have high unemployment percentages as well which means that a greater number of people live in poverty, incapable to support the needs for sanitation and health care. It not only means malnutrition, but it also leads to increased incidences of epidemics and pandemics. Living conditions become increasingly compact and crowded which is detrimental to a thriving society and good mental health. It breeds crime and antagonism and higher mortality rates. Overpopulation impacts the entire biosphere as it impacts the environment in multiple levels.

 

NEED FOR POPULATION EDUCATION

           

              Population explosion affects every aspect of man’s life- individual, national, and international. It affects health, wealth, and happiness of individual and families.

              In order to minimize the problems like food problem, economic problem, younger generation problem, environmental problem and educational problem, there is an urgent need of population education at all levels. Thus, the idea of population education is based on the following assumptions:

·    Rapid growth of population is a constant threat to our economic development.

·    Over-population affects the health and well-being of the younger generation.

·    Population explosion creates an obstacle for raising the standard of living of the masses.

·    Population education is not to be mixed with sex education or the methods of family planning. Rather it should be a motivational force for creating the right attitude to family size.

·    Population education is not a “once for all affairs”, rather, it should be continuous process.

              Hence, population education needs to be given top priority in the present scenario. The younger generation needs to be informed about India’s populations problems. They need to be properly educated with new ideas for leading a better adult life.

             The present situation needs population education because it is a new content area and is highly relevant to the lives of the people. It also encourages improvements in methods of teaching, in the structure of the system of education, in the value of the students and the teachers and in so many other areas.

 

TRENDS IN DEMOGRAPHY

 

                Demography is the study of statistics such as births, deaths, income, or the incidence of disease, which illustrate the changing structure of human populations.

           Demographic trend is a popular term for any measurable change in the characteristics of a population over time. E.g., increased, or decreased concentration of a particular ethnic group, sex ratio, etc.

                The various aspects of demographic trends in India are:

·    Size of population

·    Rate of growth

·    Birth and death rates

·    Density of population

·    Sex-ratio

·    Life-expectancy at birth

·    Literacy ratio

 

a)          Size of Population

                Over a period of 100 years, India has quadrupled its population size. In terms of, size of population, India ranks second in the world after China. India has only about 2.4% of the world’s geographical area and contributes less than 1.2% of the world’s income but accommodates about 17.5% of the world’s population. In other words, every sixth person in the world is an Indian. In fact, the combined population of just two states namely, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra are more than the population of United States of America, the third most populous country of the world. Some of the states in India have larger population than many countries in the world.

 

b)         Birth rate and death rate

                 Crude Birth rate refers to the number of births per thousand of population. Birth rate was 39.9 in 1951; it fell to 21.8 in 2011. Although the birth rate has declined, the decline is not so remarkable. The death rate has declined from 27.4 in 1951 to 7.1 in 2011. However, from the data it is clear that the fall in birth rates is less than that of death rates.

                Kerala has the lowest birth rate (14.7) and Uttar Pradesh has the highest birth rate (29. 5). West Bengal has the lowest death rate (6.3) and Orissa (9.2) has the highest. Among States Bihar has the highest decadal (2001- 11) growth rate of population, while Kerala has the lowest growth rate.

 

c)           Density of population

                 It refers to the average number of persons residing per square kilometer. It represents the man - land ratio. As the total land area remains the same, an increase in population causes density of population to rise.

Density of population = Total population / Land area of the region.

                Just before Independence, the density of population was less than 100. But after independence, it has increased rapidly from 117 in 1951 to 325 in 2001. According to 2011 census, the present Density of population is 382. Thus, the pressure of population on land has been rising. Kerala, West Bengal, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh have density higher than the India’s average density. Bihar is the most densely populated state in the country with 1,102 persons living per sq.km followed by West Bengal with 880. Arunachal Pradesh has low density of population of only 17 persons.

 

d)         Sex ratio

                 It refers to the number of females per 1,000 males. It is an important indicator to measure the extent of prevailing equity between males and females at a given point of time.

                In India, the sex ratio is more favourable to males than to females. In Kerala, the adult sex ratio is 1084 as in 2011. The recent census (2011) shows that there has been a marginal increase in sex ratio. Haryana has the lowest sex ratio of 877 (2011) among other states, while Kerala provides better status to women as compared to other States with 1084 females per 1000 males.

 

e)          Life expectancy at birth

                It refers to the mean expectation of life at birth. Life expectancy has improved over the years. Life expectancy is low when death rate is high and / or instances of early death are high. On the other hand, life expectancy is high when death rate is low and / or instances of early death are low.

              During 1901 – 11, life expectancy was just 23 years. It increased to 63.5 years in 2011. A considerable fall in death rate is responsible for improvement in the life expectancy at birth. However, the life expectancy in India is very low compared to that of developed countries.

 

 

f)            Literacy ratio

                 It refers to the number of literates as a percentage of the total population. In 1951, only one-fourth of the males and one-twelfth of the females were literates. Thus, on an average, only one-sixth of the people of the country were literates. In 2011, 82% of males and 65.5% of females were literates giving an overall literacy rate of 74.04% (2011). When compared to other developed countries and even Sri Lanka this rate is very low. Kerala has the highest literacy ratio (92%) followed by Goa (82%), Himachal Pradesh (76%), Maharashtra (75%) and Tamil Nadu (74%) . Bihar has the lowest literacy ratio (53%) in 2011.