The time-honoured feature of routinely subjecting children to the not-much-liked schooling, a practice dating back to times lost in antiquity, has got morphed to mean scoring high marks first and later battling for securing a seat in top-ranking institutions offering professional courses for assured place in the job market. Even as the law-makers and bureaucracy of the day play around with the all-too-familiar nuances of the education portfolio including recognition to carry on by adhering to the rules relating to hiring teacher curriculum, textbooks, terms of service concerning academic staff and others including conduct, transfers, promotions, punishment and rewards, the parents have no option other than providing logistic support to their off-springs from day one. Virtually all aspects bearing on working of the education sector, many among the aforementioned ones, seem to be yet unsettled, thanks to public debates in circles of both protagonists and antagonists of the system in vogue from time to time.
The connect between the stock of knowledge, nay information, acquired during the course of 10 +2 years of schooling and the capability of human resources required for the multitude of jobs to sustain the land’s economy continues to be uncertain. One is reminded of the expression “The army uniform being one size fits all, fits everyone in general but none in particular.” There are no signs of changing this gross disconnect.
All will be well with the children who keep their parents happy and teachers finding fulfilment by (a) Being punctual without a miss during the years of schooling, (b) Doing homework assigned by their teachers, (c) Scoring marks high enough for passing tests and examinations with distinction and (d) Earning adoration for excelling in extra-curricular activities. The plight of children who are not fortunate enough to be among the aforementioned section and their parents for various reasons, including dyslexia and dropping out, cannot be expressed in words. In short, the factor of stress poses virtually insurmountable challenge in their life and it befalls the better-off members of society to spare their time and energy for reducing the societal imbalance.
Now, the issues of creating competent human resources in every generation cannot be addressed without working for the cause relentlessly. The quote, ”Hard work never killed anybody, but why take a chance” attributed to Edger Bergen (1903-1978), a well-known American film personality, says it appropriately.
This post was published on July 23, 2018 5:52 pm