Reason Behind the Rise of Women Teachers in Indian Education Circuit
In India, women spend 299 minutes on household chores and 134 minutes on caregiving activities per day on average, compared to 97 minutes and 76 minutes for males.
By Rishabh Khanna
Surveys show that almost 58% of women employees in India quit their jobs due to increased family responsibilities post marriage. In fact, 41% of women pointed towards lack of family support as the main reason behind their resignation. These facts put a big question mark on the ‘equal opportunities for all’ narrative. The important side of the facts is to identify the reasons that successfully keep women professionally engaged inspite of the roadblocks and how more opportunities could be created. Out of dozens of reasons, digital innovation, that continues to reshape the world in which we work today, provides multiple opportunities for women to realise their economic potential for a brighter tomorrow.
Last years of pandemic and post pandemic opened a new working framework where one can choose from permanently working from home or blended work opportunities with flexible hours using technology. This brings more opportunities for everyone with family commitments and gives them the flexibility to decide their workplace and better manage their responsibilities. Surveys highlight that 62% of women look forward to work-from-home arrangements while 28% prefer hybrid mode.
The flexibility and the convenience brought by such measures has inspired more female professionals to join the academic workforce as online teachers, tutors, among others. It is now possible for women to build freelance careers and earn online or establish e-businesses. Another area of concern that stopped women from professional growth was not finding enough opportunities for skill development and learning.
However, the skill gap for female students has dramatically shrunk as a result of the growth of online education. Many people select online education over traditional classroom training in order to better balance careers and families. Hence, all professionals, men and women, in the country have the option of completing their studies, obtaining their certification, and developing their teaching skills online. They are using ed-tech platforms to upskill themselves and getting prepared for job opportunities in today’s digital economy. Infact, research shows that 42% of women want their organisations to have upskilling/reskilling programmes for them.
Another interesting opportunity that has opened up for people seeking professional flexibility is in the field of teaching and learning online. One can not only learn online but also earn online while giving lectures over the internet. In fact, different educational institutions including online platforms allow teachers to find more work, earn more money, and have greater stability in their careers.
Focus on women workforce:
In India, women spend 299 minutes on household chores and 134 minutes on caregiving activities per day on average, compared to 97 minutes and 76 minutes for males. Hence, women (especially mothers) are far more likely to report having significant career disruptions due to responsibilities for their families.
However, the number of men taking over childcare is rising by the day, especially post the pandemic. From an professional and relational standpoint, over the years men continue to understand how important it is to be physically present for their family and the work from home culture has created opportunities for men to equally participate in household activities while allowing their female better halves to focus on their careers and work life.
So, flexible work hours, increased opportunities in teaching and learning industry and better support from family for professional growth are some of the major reasons for women to take a front seat in teaching jobs. And while these are some of the many reasons why women teachers are outnumbering the male counterparts, we cannot ignore the gender stereotyping that prevents men from entering the profession. But, nowhere does it mean that men do not want to teach. Teaching creates equal opportunities for both men and women and has the capability to attract young minds into teaching as it offers better career prospects and work conditions that is making teaching a more competitive and mainstream career choice for everyone.
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