Indian Institute of Idiots - Current Schooling System in India
We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today.
After reading the article on Indian Institute of Idiots by Chetan Bhagat, I would like to fuel up the protest on reforming the current Indian education system. I think the education path of many Indians is misled at the foundation level itself. Parents, Teachers, Politicians and Society almost everyone has a part in ruining the education system. Many of you may be against this, but considering a larger section of the Indian community I think this is true. These are my views on schooling system.
At schooling (even at elementary) itself, parents are very much interested in the class position of their child. They insist on getting more and more marks and good rank rather than allow him to take a little break enjoying and telling him the stories about how to appreciate the content in their books. Children are not told the purpose of schooling. Schooling just means a level before going to a best college and a path to earn enough money and fame. Not surprisingly, they do not encourage the child to take a different paths like a career in sports, politics or just interest on only one subjects like Mathematics or Science.
Coming to the teachers, they play the major role in influencing the child. For many teachers (may be 80 %), teaching means lecturing the stuff in textbooks, grading the students and make their students get good marks. It more of spoon feeding rather than igniting the thinking process in the child. Children are not trained on how to question or challenge the current existing theory. How is our nation going to produce scientists like Newton, Curie, Ramanujam or Edison. Interestingly Ramanujam failed in non-mathematics subjects and Edison skipped schooling, though they were successful. In Indian schooling, theory in textbooks is taken for granted and is not encouraged to challenge it. Challengers are considered to be arrogant, rude. Its disappointing to see some teachers who insist students to write exactly as it is in the book and penalize the students otherwise. Schooling to students mean mugging up content, writing exams (with fear), getting good marks and making everyone happy.
Politicians, ahh they are afraid to make periodical changes in education system, very lazy to encourage content changes in text books. They are more interested in divding human race into groups rather than doing something good for human race. Unfortunately, sometimes uneducated dumb people are elected as Education ministers.
Even society is much interested in marks and grades of the student and evaluate him based on that.
Finally all these factors make the student forget his goal of education, make him a coward who is afraid to challenge. But I see some good signs in current generations where children are given more freedom. Yet there is a long way to go.
The bright future of India lies in its children and its education system. I wish we all work on it.
Comments
Interesting video on current education system
http://www.youtube.com/user/theRSAorg#p/u/0/zDZFcDGpL4U Thanks Nelson :)
Education definitely needs change, but what?
Firstly, I must appreciate your views and efforts in writing on this topic.
Education definitely needs a change at its fundamental level. The questions which come here are,
1. What should be "content" of Education?
2. What should be the "process" of Education?
Generally we feel that the content of Education is already right and we just need to change the process of Education. This assumption makes to improve the infrastructure in education, facilities, books style, teachers with higher qualification, creativity in the same content. Content of Education we already know in current education since we all have gone through it. The questions which comes here are,
Does this education system address the basic questions related to a human being?
Basic questions related to a human being like Happiness, Expectations in Relationships, Expectations from and responsibility towards Society etc. are not addressed. In fact a human being himself is not part of education.
Is this education system involved in making careers of human beings or making human being themselves?
Mostly the education is training people with the skills to earn more and more money and become successful but not making responsible individuals. It is just teaching people "How to earn a living?" but not "How to live?". In fact in current system, an educated person is doing more harm to the society than an uneducated person.
Does this education system promote learning by doing, learning by experimenting, learning by self-verification or just learning without knowing its connection with surrounding, nature, people or reality?
Like if we notice the methodology in education currently we start with words rather than objects/realities. A child in its upbringing it taught A,B,C,D first which are not the realities but are just words, letters and sounds. We begin to make them literate and train them more and several "skills" without making them really educated. A human being by birth wants to understand reality and everything around him. This can be seen in a small child, he asks several questions on everything around him and about himself right form the self to entire existence, for which we ourselves do not have answers.
What all I want to say here is, there is a huge gap between what education really is and what it currently is. We need to humanize education. Education should be for a human being, by the human being and based on human being.
There is no much difference which is going to come if we just change the process and not the content. The content of education is not right because we ourselves have not understood within ourselves what is more important to us, what is really valuable to us. Ultimately we all need to change.
I had written down a few articles on the similar topics which you can find here,
http://devanshmittal.wordpress.com/2009/05/29/mahatvakanksha-aur-pratisp...
http://devanshmittal.wordpress.com/2009/04/14/why-are-we-studying/
http://devanshmittal.wordpress.com/2009/03/05/education-and-happiness/
Hi Devansh, I appreciate your
Hi Devansh, I appreciate your thoughts on current education system. I agree to some of your views but not completely.
Yes, the children should be taught the value of relationships, responsibilities towards society. To say they should be taught how to be a human. To achieve this the content needs to be changed accordingly. May be there should be a compulsory course on humanities. This should be a part of education and not the purpose of education wholly. They should also be taught the other part. Delivering the knowledge (science) the human race gathered until now so that they use it for living a better life and not waste on reinventing things. This inturn helps them make a living and also help human race advance further.
Thanks Siva. You are right
Thanks Siva.
You are right in saying that the knowledge of Science which I termed as Skills is necessary. I totally agree to it. In fact that is already being focused a lot. The only point which I want to make is, it is not sufficient. Directionless science leads to destruction. Knowledge of Direction comes from Understanding Human, Human Goal, Human Culture. Science with Direction is a boon, without it, it is an evil.
In addition, only a compulsory in humanities is also not going to make much difference. We need a civilizational change which need much more work than this.
Thanks again for replying.
With Regards,
Devansh
I support science with
I support science with direction is a boon :)
Civilizational change is a big thing which I think is a very big aim.The aim can be fruitful if we can help the younger generations now so that the future generations are more civilized ;-)
I so very agree with ur
I so very agree with ur points, but parents, teachers are not the only culprits here. I bet most of us (even at premier institutes like IIT's, NIT's) atleast me never wanted to become a software engineer. But still we excel at what we do, aint we ? We chose this because, the guy next door is earning fat paychecks. Did any one of us ever tried to explain our area of interest to our parents ?
Reality Bites. Peace !!
Very true. An age should come
Very true. An age should come where every Indian should pursue a career which he is interested in. He/She should not take up a career just for the luxuries involved in it. I don't know if that is gonna happen in the coming 10-50 years or will it ever happen at all. The entire way of thinking of people should be changed to make it happen.
2009 is surely an eventful
2009 is surely an eventful year. People are responding to selfish and full of crap politicians and also to movies and books. Since this topic is on the basis of the movie "3-idiots", I would like to make a suggestion: "if you are doing research at IIIT and at the same time are apprehensive about the contemporary issues then I would suggest you to write a complete script and approach directors who like novelty". Even though this is the age of Blogs, Cinema has its niche in reaching to large crowds.
Just to be clear, if you are trying to expect change in a year or two then you are sure to be disappointed. "To Indians change is not innate. We are bogged down by legacies. You need to do more than just sticking out your neck to make change happen".
Since you have said "my
Since you have said "my views" nothing much to debate. But your article lacks the same things that you want to be imparted to the current generation. Where is the other side of the argument? I can find these same complaints or views in countless blogs. What is new? You havent tried to find the root causes.
"Merit students are treated well and the others are ill treated". I am not sure how you meant it but have to disagree on that strongly.
Hi Bhaskara. Yes I agree on
Hi Bhaskara. Yes I agree on what you say. I am just crying out here without proposing any solutions. I may not be able to change or impact current education system. But atleast my voice reaches some parents, teachers or others where they would think on what should be done and how not to behave.
The correct thing to be done is to give the freedom to the child. The role of elders is to help the child in creating an institution in himself/herself through which he/she can self judge which is right or wrong. That's it. There can be a huge change.
Sorry my words might be strong. Here by "ill treated" I meant elders shows certain difference between who study well and who don't.
Nice One
@anonymous ... do u feel shy to speak with real identity dude .... bcoz those who do that have to move on first ;) wake up dude ..... itz not 1990 itz 2010 we students have to act now.I know i am not the right person to say these kind of things but still some one has to point it out :P
@siva reddy : Getting lot of stuff these dayz ... whose that motivator for u :P
@spsy : is that nick necessary for u :P
@cherry : I am a bit worried
@cherry : I am a bit worried about recent political disturbances in the state and reading lotzz of news. Motivator is not really the one who you are thinking :P
Grow up kid. Now that you
Grow up kid. Now that you have got everything are you doing what you are supposed to?
Do you remember how many times zulu has said these or even better things in class and you used to sleep.
The entire web is full of this crap. Move on guys.
I am not be interested in
I may not be interested in Prof. Govindarajulu's class.. That doesn't mean I am not doing the right thing
I do my best in my research area and more interested in it rather than crawling on other stuff
@^^ dude.... let him give it
@^^ dude.... let him give it a try....
Interesting one ..!!
A good topic.... Hope somehow it reaches those "teachers"....
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