School Education in India starts from the day a child is born. Parental control of the child’s fortunes is so severe that there is an understanding as to the child’s future study, vocation and career shortly after the birth of the child.Parental aspirations carve an image for the child and schooling becomes the first step towards realizing this aspiration.
Uncertainty about economic fortune and eagerness to establish a security for the child is driving millions of Indian families into investing time and money disjunctive to known principles of Education i;e the child’s interest and aptitude. Those parents who send their children to Public schools (Govt or Govt aided) make these decisions at a late stage or do not make at all. Others make these decisions as early as the 5th or the 6th standard admitting their children in IIT foundation schools or IIT Olympiad schools etc in the private sector.
Every year nearly 26 crore children are enrolled in schools across India. Another 1.29 crore children in the age group 6 to 17 are out of school. The number of school going children in India equals the population of Russia and Mexico put together. The number of schools in India in the year 2020-21 was nearly 15 lakh. The number of teachers in India is around 95 lakh. The figures are an indication of the magnitude of the task and the gamut of issues which are involved in the process of providing quality Education to children.
What is Education and what is Quality Education? Does it mean preparing the child for employment? Does it mean preparing the child for life and facing the challenges of life? Is it improving you as a human being? Is education the means to realize your inner potential? The child’s or the parents’ socio-economic condition definitely influences these decisions and determines the path of the child. But strictly education cannot be exclusive and independent of any of these factors. Education may allow the child to blossom and realize his/her inner potential, but what is the purpose of such an education if it cannot provide gainful employment or make the child a more concerned and connected human being ?
When it comes to the more elementary questions, I think there has to be a general consensus about what education has to be. One of the fundamental principles about School education ought to be making education enjoyable. Making the learning process more enjoyable, productive, participative and democratic. In a country like India where the divisions across the population are marked and stark in terms of caste, class, language, region and gender the questions regarding participation, involvement and inclusiveness become more important. Coming back to the question of quality education, does it mean more infrastructure, state of the art facilities, latest aids, digital technology etc? The term has been used widely and loosely as in all other Market economies where the consumer is promised quality and falls for it. It promotes a consumerist culture where the child enters the school as a commodity and comes out of the school with a certificate of having undergone years of quality education.
One of the myths which is carefully cultivated about education is the attainability or achievability of it. If one were to declare I have got a good education, let it be construed that the child has worked consciously towards it. In other words getting a good education is more of an individual effort and all the other aspects of it are more catalytic and facilitative in nature. A school which has well equipped labs and a library for example can enrich the child’s learning experience by providing a more experiential and demonstrative learning set-up. Physical infrastructure in the form of courts, grounds and equipment can kindle an enthusiasm in the child towards sports and games. Support in the form of mentors, counselors will help the child to engage more deeply with select topics and issues. But all these are in the form of additional support and Education from the individual’s point of view is an unceasing aspiration towards constantly improving the self and being ready to learn.
The role of the Teacher: Many teachers have a poor understanding of the role they are performing in the school and the classroom. Teachers can present a world that is at least a few years beyond the imagined realm of the child. By virtue of their engagement with the subject, with the world and with books, teachers can introduce the children to a wider world that opens new areas of understanding and experience to the children. Given the onerousness of the task, it is proper to mention that the Education of the Educators is not getting the right amount of importance that it requires. Part of the problem is the low value: socially and economically, attached to the profession and the dilution of standards in Tertiary education. The lack of motivation is hampering many teachers in performing their job. Individual teachers are making relentless efforts to kindle an inner passion in the performance of their duty. Such teachers are hailed as path- breakers and regarded as inspirational. Why other teachers are not able to attain the same levels of achievement or approval needs an analysis.
A teacher is an extended version of his/her students in the classroom and the students are mirrors of the teacher. The benefits of School Education will become exponential when this Human resource breaks through and engages in the Culture of learning.