For the new generation of Indians to be truly global, one needs to go to back to the basics. The Indian education system has long been in the need of overhaul, points out Abid Hassan.
Education builds the man, so it builds the nation. Today, we claim to be the biggest human resources supplier to the world. But are we concerned what quality of human capital we are building, and for whose needs? We supply bureaucrats to the government, software engineers to IT companies around the world, highly paid managers to multinationals, engineers and science graduates as researchers to foreign universities. What capital are we building for ourselves?
India aspires to be powerful; she wants to play a role in the international community. This requires a huge force of entrepreneurs who could transform her into a strong nation, which produces good citizens. India needs artists who could make her culture the most popular in the world; a culture that is not only saleable, but also helps India to make her presence felt in the global platform. In a nutshell, India needs Henry Fords, Bill Gates, Thomas Alva Edisons and Michael Jacksons, all of whom are born and educated in India.
Yes, we do have an MSS waminathan, who strives to make India self-reliant in food grains; Dhirubhai Ambani, India’s very own rags-to-riches legend; Dr Varghese Kurien, father of the White Revolution who pioneered the cooperative milk movement; Dr A P J Abdul Kalam, who dared to build missiles for India; and Pundit Ravishankar, who took Indian classical music to the world stage; to name a few. Such people, though in small numbers, are not the products of our present education system. This system did not teach them how to become innovators, entrepreneurs or artists.
Youngsters in India do not have the freedom to choose their own career. They are forced to become engineers, doctors, MBAs and IAS officers by their parents. But our educational system has not helped the youngsters to nurture a vision either. The system has not enabled them to think beyond what their families envision for them. And, neither their parents nor their grandparents had any such vision for themselves. That is the root of the problem.
Generations have gone through a rusted system. Now even the law-makers and educators of today’s India are products of that age-old system.
We needed a film to highlight the evils of the present education system. Three Idiots, a path-breaking film, showed the flaws in our learning methods. The movie had a great impact on Indians. It seems to have changed the thinking of students as well as teachers in society. But have people really realized that the education system must stress on knowledge, and not on grades? Will our education system change to accommodate application-based studies, rather than the rote system? These are questions yet unanswered.
The system can be made effective if the focus shifts from an exam-oriented learning to a development-oriented one. It might sound simple, but it is a tough proposition, given the competitive job market. There is no dearth of jobs, but there seems to be a dearth of human values in this 21st century. We are blinded by the glare of superficial things and have little time for introspection and self development.
Three Idiots threw up a few basic questions. Where are we running and why? It is possible to start life afresh and see things in a better perspective? The term Three idiots is used to refer to an irrepressible free thinker who follows his heart.
The Indian government is making changes for the uplift of the educational system in our country. The Union Human Resources Development Minister, Kapil Sibal, has brought in educational reforms that focus on overall development of the mind, rather than the rote system. It remains to be seen how far the reforms reach towards their desired goal.
