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Women Professionals from Home Science Background; An analysis *
The article is based on personal experiences, observations, interactions and review of literature of women professionals, many of whom obtained higher qualifications after attaining basic graduation in home science and have worked in different fields. A large number of them have reached to senior and prestigious positions at the national and international levels . These qualified professionals have worked both with government and private sectors and a number of them are self-employed and have also become job providers to many .Home science has also contributed towards national development by training students to take up leadership roles in extension and community outreach programmes. Not all home science graduates have worked outside home but the basic graduation coursehas helped them to be a successful home maker and it has also helped them to take care of themselves, their families and society as a whole .
The analysis is based on the period from 1980s onwards in India. The present article discusses different sectors and fields in which these qualified women are working and also about the content / subject matter and methodologies that are used in home science courses which have helped women to take up variety of challenging roles.
For the last many decades, women professionals who acquired graduation degree in home science as also post-graduation, doctorates and other professional qualifications have been working in varied areas like Food, Nutrition and health, Education, Human Development / Child Development , Women’s Issues, Fabric and Design Appraisal, Resource Management etc. They are working at the Block, District, State, Regional, National and International levels contributing in the field of teaching, training, skill training, research and documentation, community awareness and providing field services for welfare and uplifting of vulnerable sections of the society.
Many of them are working with the Centre, and State government departments at various levels. Some are employed by Universities, Academic institutions, Colleges like home science colleges and open schools. A large number of home science graduates are contributing in the nation building by working in primary, middle and secondary schools, play schools, nurseries and crèches. Many are providing social service to the needy people through Voluntary Organisations working for the welfare of people. Training Institutes providing training to functionaries of welfare programme like ICDS Training Centres for Functionaries and their Trainers also employ persons from home science background some like NIPCCD which is also an apex body for ICDS training. Other ICDS training centres are Middle level Training Centres (MLTCs) for Supervisers, Anganwadi Workers Training Centres (AWTCs) for field functionaries like Anganwadi workers and Helpers.
They have been working successfully at all the levels and their designations vary from Heads / Directors of academic departments of Institutions / Colleges, Professors, Associate Professors, Assistant Professors, Faculty members, Principals and Heads of Training Institutions, Coordinators, Trainers / Instructors of Training Institutions, Principals, Teachers, Researchers, Dieticians, Nutrition Consultants and Counsellors, Fashion Designers, Additional Directors, Joint Directors, Deputy Directors , Associate Directors, Assistant Directors, Research Assistants , Research Investigators, Programme Officers , Project Officers, Field officers,Child Development Project Officers (CDPOs), Supervisors, Field Workers, field functionaries, Food Technologist, Research Analyst, Editors and Writers,Consultants, Programmers ,Data analyst, Bank Officials and lawyers etc(list is not exhaustive).
The other category is self-employed / Entrepreneurs who started their own work and have been acting as job providers to many. This category includes; Crèches, nurseries , play Schools, Beauty Parlours , Centres for grooming and personality development , Food Centres, Take home food chains, Canteens( in schools ,colleges,offices , factories and other places ), Nurseries for plants, Welfare and Care Centres for children, adolescents, senior citizens, Boutiques of ready-made clothes, writers and creators of children's story and rhyme books, videos posters, cards, writers of recipe books. Academies, home tuitions, freelancers / consultants for research work and surveys, Interior Designers Training and Skill Training Centres are some more examples (not an exhaustive list ).
Personal and professional success largely depends on many inbuilt and acquired qualities, traits of a person as well as on many other external factors. The qualities like initiative ness, consistency , efforts and hard work , basic intelligence, right approach and positive attitude, creativeness ,analytical skills, health status (both mental and physical), drive and courage to do right things , ability of working with people, sincerity toward work , leadership , managing people , quest for learning and upgrading oneself ,adjustment with people and art of avoiding unfavourable situations, balancing act at home and work besides knowledge and skill of the subject matter, that is required to do that particular job. Here it may be mentioned that all above qualities are not required for each and every job one is assigned to do. Conducive environment ( supporting and encouraging people around her / him and working facilities, favourable work place ), opportunities available , favourable luck are other factors which play an important role . Now a days GRITfactor is considered a very important quality which keeps oneself going and growing. The following paragraphs discusses how home science helps in developing some of the qualities that are required to be a successful professional.
Home science helps in building a sound base for different fields;
An Analysis of graduation level home science syllabi indicates that ,it is blend of different subjects both science and humanities. Multilevel knowledge is provided through a number of Innovative and latest teaching techniques besides traditional methods. Subject Contents and teaching methodology is revised and upgraded from time to time as per theemerging needs of the society; The course is covered through an Interdisciplinary Approach.
Some of the subjects that are covered are nutrition and health , cooking and display , early childhood care and education / child development , human development , textiles science and appraisals (cutting ,stitching , colouring , embroidery , printing ,fabric care, fashion) , home management, family resource management, consumer economics , budgeting, extension and community education / development, basic accountancy , interior decoration.,communication skills ,use and maintenance of household gadgets and appliances , environmental science, fundamentals of sociology and psychology. knowledge of science subjects like applied chemistry ,physics and biology is taught in early semesters to make students understand and clear concepts of science and help them in other science based subjects that are taught at the later stage. (here it may be mentioned that subjects exact name may vary from one university to another). Contents are covered through teaching methods like discussions( both in small and larger groups ), hands on experiences ,project work , field visits and field work , individual and group assignments and presentations , besides traditional techniques like lectures.
A good combination of these techniques help develop interpersonal and communication skills of the students. Efforts are made to adopt latest and updated teaching and training communication technologies . Team approach is used to teach working with the community, to understand the local situations and problems (if any ),and think about their possible solutions to overcome those problems . As a lot of emphasis is given on practicals , each student gets personal attention by the faculty members. All these help students to develop and assess personal strengths and weaknesses ,think creatively and help develop self confidence. Observational field visits and placements are also done to various government departments and Institutions as well private Institutes working in the related and welfare activities.
In this process efforts are made to provide exposure of successful welfare programmes in the field being run for people by various organisations that are functioning or related to them . They get an opportunity to understand and get an insight of the working pattern and difficulties/ problems these organisations face . Students also come to know about latest opportunities as per their interest areas which helps them to get an idea about the possible employment avenues .They explore various fields for businesses/ start-ups which can be started after completing their education.
Emphasis is also laid on confidence and personality development by providing platform and opportunities through competitions within college and inter colleges ,interstate colleges and organising various events etc. It helps develop habit of hard work ,a creative bent of mind and knack of organising things/ events at small as well as at the larger levels. (Here it may be mentioned that training techniques varies from one college to another as per availability of resources).
Conclusion :
As can be seen from above paragraphs, that home science graduates have a vast scope for employment after completing graduation and more so after attaining additional qualifications and skills both in the academic as well as non-academic fields. One can specialise in any of the streams of home science like foods and nutrition, post graduate diploma in nutrition , dietetics and public health nutrition ,post graduation in health and gerontology, resource management and design application ,human development and childhood studies, fabric and apparel science and communication and extension. Besides these other good options are post graduation in any of the fields of humanities like sociology , psychology ,microbiology , teachers training (BEd), can appear in banks and other exams ,LLB , or any technical training for which basic graduation degree is a must .
They can work both in private and public sectors as well as can be a self employer and contribute in development of Indian economy . At present they can explore in the following fields;
- Production Industry; production of commercial food, ready to eat food (RTE food ), nutritious food using healthy crops, organic foods, packed nutritional and affordable food for different age groups and various economic strata as per their nutritional requirements.
- Production Industry; of toys, play material, local crafts and decorative items using local materials.
- Textiles and Appraisals and clothing industry; production of readymade garments using khadi / handloom, local / tribal / rural material and designs etc.
- Production of Ayurveda medicines and products,traditional medicines.
- Tourism and Service Industry; can work in food, housekeeping, supervision and management.
- Health care Industry; hospitals, health clinics, pharmacy, biotechnology, testing laboratories, yoga centres.
- Dietetics and Nutrition; nutritional guidance and counselling in hospitals, health clinics.
- Teaching, Training and Skill Training to different categories of people (children, youth, adults, women, adolescents, and others as per requirements).
- Writers of children’s books, story and rhymes books on themes of nutrition, health, healthy habits, patriotism and social values etc.
- Writers of nutritious recipe books.
- Miscellaneous; Environment management, waste management.
- Agricultural Universities ,Colleges and concerned departments.
- Mass Media; advocacy for creating awareness among masses about healthy eating, healthy life style and other important themes.
- Beauty Parlours and Grooming and Personality Development Centres.
- Cultural and Health / Medical Tourism Industry.
- Interior designers.
- Academies, home tuitions.
- Agriculture sector particularly growing healthy crops like millets, pulses, nutritious fruits and vegetables, plant nurseries, organic farming.
- Sea farming / sea agriculture / aquaculture.
- Welfare Centres for senior citizens, adolescents, women and youth clubs.
- Research and Documentation work in various emerging and upcoming fields by agencies / departments as mentioned above.