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Education forms the basis of a country’s economic foundation. Developed countries are a testimony to this fact. I wish to present a sorrow but a true picture of India's education system, known all over the world for its progress in the IT sector. As a student here, I am very much associated and acquainted with our education system.
Firstly, there is primary education. Thousands of villages do not have a single primary school. Even in villages where schools do exist, almost all of them are run by the government, and they are in total disarray. It is a privilege for children to find a roof over their heads.
Absenteeism is rampant among teachers. They are preoccupied with other duties like electoral work and paperwork given to them by the government. The teachers have been asking their students to do their personal work. No wonder you can find a 7th grader unable to write his own name! India may claim to have a 65% literacy rate (according to the 2001 census) but many of these are literate only for the records.
Major cities and towns, however, have high schools and colleges. But again there is a glaring difference between public and the private schools. Students from the lower economic strata of society suffer the most, having to contend with dingy classrooms and non-existent sanitary facilities. Private schools have reasonably decent infrastructure and staff, but are prohibitively expensive for a major chunk of society. (In some cases, the annual fees are higher than the average per capita income of an Indian.)
Another malaise of Indian education is that of a strong private tuition culture. Teachers involved with schools offer private tuition, which leads to an imbalance among students because only the economically well-off can afford it. A teacher might also pay more attention to students who pay him for teaching them.
Innumerable coaching classes have mushroomed, run by those who are more business-oriented than student-oriented. Once regarded as a noble profession, teaching has become a money-making business.
In India, learning is more theory and textbook-based. This has narrowed the vision of students. Emphasis is not placed on practical learning, which should be more important. So, young minds do not know how to apply their knowledge. Examinations are memory-based, not application-based, which would test the fundamentals and conceptual clarity of students.
I think India produces some of the best brains in the world (being the world's second most populous nation also helps). The problem is that we have failed to nurture this talent. We have no institute of repute in higher education except the IITs (Indian Institutes of Technology), the IIMs (Indian Institutes of Management) and a handful of others. However, we find some of the best managers in foreign countries like the US and the UK are Indian. There are numerous reports of Indian kids being the brightest of all ethnic groups in these countries. We have failed to hone our advantage of having a population of 1 billion.
Indifference and a lack of initiatives from the government have made brilliant minds leave India to places where their skills are recognized and rewarded, and utilized to the fullest. There is a mad rush among Indian students to be admitted to foreign universities.
One more factor that has been a bane is the reservation of seats in colleges. It is essential that equal opportunities should be provided to each and every section of the society. In India, it has reached such levels that merit has taken a backseat. Meritorious students are frustrated and ultimately it is a loss for the nation.
To fulfil its dream of being an economic superpower, India will have to bring about drastic changes in its education system.
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Joshipura
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