Designed Education

Designed Education - An Initiative to Make Knowledge Accessible for Girls in Developing
Worlds

Akshay Sharma, IDSA | Virginia Tech

Introduction

The paper presents a scenario for implementation of a system of learning objects in a rural village in
India. It will present the findings of the preliminary research conducted to understand the environment
where few of the prototypes will be tested.

In a report by United Nations on status of women it is stated; “Women who contribute half of the
world’s population by virtue of an accident of birth, perform two-thirds of the world’s work, receive
one-tenth of its income and owns less than one-hundredth of its property.” The report on February 21,
2010 emphasizes that increasing women’s access to resources exerts strong multiplier effects on a range
of development goals, including poverty reduction, child welfare and economic growth. Despite an
increased participation in the workplace, women’s wages, according to the International Trade Union
Confederation, are 16.5 percent less than men’s. In India, women produce 30 percent of all food
commodities consumed but get only 10 percent of the property or wealth of the country.

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