Access to Learning through Skill Development Approach: A Case Study of Karnali Group Panchayat

Abstract

The paper reflects the prominence that ‘skill building’ as a concept is gaining. It aims at exploring if entrepreneurship could be relied upon as a means to empower people and to extend sustainable livelihood options to members of a community who lack majorly on the fronts of education, exposure, awareness and opportunities. Can skills be developed among people from such disadvantaged backgrounds and if yes, how are these trades shortlisted and what is the process adopted towards skill building? It is also worth highlighting here that skill development is gaining priority and holds the potential of assuming a major role in growth, across sectors and economies. There needs to be a simultaneous focus on skills, alongside education, right from an early age, to ensure that the incongruity between what the market demands and what is taught in the classrooms is minimalized. The paper explores how skill training initiatives for societies dominated by heterogeneity, poverty and low education levels, is a challenging proposition, yet when the process is adopted methodically, it leaves its trails in the form of improved soft skills as also sustainable livelihood opportunities, leading to sustained competitive advantages. The paper analyses the case of the Karnali Group Panchayat in the district of Baroda, Gujarat and throws light on the kind of trades which could be undertaken for training to make a diverse community, self-reliant. Selected trades and the kinds of inputs that go into ensuring that the learning is result-oriented are discussed. A combination of theoretical and practical training has a perfect correlation and ensures attainment of the objective. The journey from a non-earning community to an earning one, can be skill based. Given the background of the members of the community, skills are mainly developed in small trades; complex skills are difficult to cultivate and only small innovations in products or limited creativity can be expected. A replicable model which traces the importance bringing in cognitive and non-cognitive skills to generate results, is what is reflected upon. All-in-all, the paper establishes the role of skills in building knowledge, attitude and competencies, leading to an entrepreneurial venture. There is also an understanding that skill building must permeate all levels of education, implying that it must be an integral aspect of entrepreneurship education.