Education in India has always been a hot topic for debate. Various reforms, change in pattern, and ways of examining have been highlights for years. The topic of education should not be limited to parliament or on-road protest. It is high time now for every household to talk about education as they discuss other family matters but discussion should be more than deciding the school, submitting the fees, or buying the resources. It is very important to know the child is learning right. I remember an incident when I was in nursery and my mother was reviewing my notebooks. She discovered that what was being taught was wrong. She tried making me rectify the error but I was reluctant to do so as I thought how a teacher could be wrong. So my mother made sure that it has to be the teacher who will make it right. The next morning, my mother went to school and reprimanded the teacher for teaching wrong and she also told her don’t let the trust of students ever break. When I look back now, I can count not one but several instances that had an impact on my education journey – ones that made me think.

I want to bring few instances that I think are still prevalent and those should be addressed. In class five or so, I was having a Hindi lesson where the teacher was teaching how to write a letter. She wrote the whole letter on the blackboard and made us note down on our respective notebooks. Since childhood, I was scared of mugging up long paragraphs so I always preferred writing on my own after understanding things. So I asked the teacher if it necessary that I write the same on the examination paper rather than writing in my own words. She said – “no, you have to write each word that is on the board.” There, the right to creativity and expression was killed. 

Another instance that I remember is something that is unjust and is a big question mark on the school authority. I belonged to the school where the students opting for science in their plus two were considered superior. You were either forced to take commerce or if you take out of your interest you were looked down and the whole class of commerce was treated as untouchables. “The students of science should not mingle with the ones pursuing commerce” – said the vice-principal one day. I don’t want to throw light on the treatment but want to highlight here how a mark-sheet of tenth can decide the career choice of a student. Is it necessary that if a student performed poorly in tenth board can’t excel if he/she opted science in plus-two? It wouldn’t be right if the student decides what he/she wants to study and what group of friends he/she wants to make. It will be again unjust if the students will be forced to opt for subjects based on the score assigned to them by the school authority in the tenth board based on their past performance.

The pandemic today has forced us to look at these issues and think about where the traditional education system has brought us to. The teachers oppose online examination fearing the students might cheat as there is no one to monitor. I ask why to conduct such exams where a student needs to spill everything that he/she mugs up from the book or notebook. Aren’t the teachers judging the student based on their memory power rather than their intellectuals and way of thinking? Oh, I forgot the power to think and creativity are murdered at an early age. And we say the child of age can’t even think.

 I came across an article recently which focused on a similar issue and suggested that it’s time to change the pattern of examining. The students should be examined based on their views something that they can never get the answer from textbooks. They should be given a chance to explore, put views, or suggest a solution to the problems. For them to examine, we need teachers with a positive mindset who are ready to judge what comes their way rather than examining the same set of answers. 

One has to accept the fact as early as possible that the education system has shaken. The cancellation and postponement of examination at the higher level have given an up-lift to the unemployment. And the promotion at the lower class without examination has lead to cracks in the basic foundation. This adds fuel to the issue as it will affect the employment level by adding more unskilled laborers for years to come. In short, a decade is impacted and it will take a long to recover the economy. If we do the root cause analysis in every domain we will be able to fix the issue at a nascent stage preventing it from spreading at a larger scale where the recovery will be next to impossible. And if we recover then it will be too late because by then many lives will be suffered and harm generations to come.  So, I request all the teachers, parents, and students to step forward in bringing reform to the traditional practices because it is doing no good. It’s time to accept the drawbacks and adapt to the changes. A small step today can lead to a greater leap towards a sustainable economy.