Education curriculum has stopped producing intellectuals

India is a country that is accredited for being amongst the leading flag bearers to enlighten the primitive world dominated by ignorant people. It was India that realized the importance of aspects of life other than filling the stomach and covering the bodies, man is a special animal, special because of the grey matter God provided and it was India that by promoted free & radical thinking helped in quenching the thirsty brains. But on comparing the past with the present we find a sharp contrast in terms of the quality of intellectuals produced by the country, in the mad race for materialism it seems that the basic fundamentals that made us a great country are being trampled underfoot.

Intellects are people who see the world from a different perspective and on the larger canvas, It is such people who contribute to the world hence moving it in a progressive direction as is a saying ‘Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discuss people’. The intellectual growth of a person begins right from childhood when he starts to develop a thinking brain, when he questions the different aspects of life and the process continues till the individual survives so the primary reason for the stark decline in the level of intellect has to be improper foundation and upbringing in terms of the type and style of education bestowed upon them.

Nowadays, due to the education curriculum in practice, a lot of emphasis is given on the bookish knowledge, be it the class works or the strenuous homework, a student is confined to the boundaries of books and is restricted by the deadlines of assignments. The world is too diverse to be reduced to dull uniformities of rules. Education practice such as this pushes the student in a niche thereby closing his mind to the joys and beauty of life.

As a general practice a student is always asked to replicate the notes provided by the school teachers and swaying away from the set path leads to deduction of marks hence creativity is nipped in the bud. No student is ever asked what he likes to do or what he is good at rather the custom education curriculum is imposed resulting in mental fatigue and frustration so a student who if allowed to grow in a free environment could have contributed to the nation in a big way is transformed into a normal individual with no freedom of thought. As a direct consequence the quality of intellectuals found in our country is decreasing at an exponential rate.

The point stated above is proved when we have a look into the education system followed by the developed western countries where individuality is given foremost importance and their education curriculum is based on the same principle. As a result individuals with free mind and great ideas are produced contributing to the growth of their country in general and the world in particular.

Our education policy induces a herd mentality and hence curbs the growth of free thinking individuals who could lead to great ideas and discoveries. Small students are made to carry extremely heavy school bags harming them physically and then they’re made to follow the customary norm without expressing their feedbacks, hurting them mentally.

And now with the increase in the number of suicide cases amongst students it is clear that students are finding it tough to cope with the immense pressure of mugging up books aimlessly without being able to contribute something back. It is of grave importance to identify and combat this very serious matter else we will be living in an India where finding intellectuals would be a rarity.

I would like to end by saying that it is imperative to tackle one of the most urgent but overlooked of the litany of potential show-stoppers looming for the future Indian intellectuals.

By: Faisal Abidi

RESERVATION A HURDLE IN THE PROGRESS OF THE SOCIETY

Reservation what is there in this 11 letter word that has rocked the nation ever since its outset? What is it that’s fueling the generally harmless students to come out on roads and face the atrocities of water cannons and tear gas? Where is the future of our great country heading? Such questions can only be answered if we abstain from biased opinions and rise above emotions to come to a logical and well thought out conclusion.

Quota system was introduced in order to uplift the oppressed societies of Pre-Independence India, the idea was to bring those who have been suffering for years at par with the society, a noble thought indeed.

But the underlying problem of this country is that though we plan well the executioners of those plans, our politicians, seldom follow it and what is left is a good plan gone wrong. Reservations have become a political agenda for parties to contest elections and the real motive is trampled underfoot.

Giving seats without merit promotes hatred amongst those who are more capable and it further increases the gap between societies, moreover, by admitting less competent people in educational institutes we are leading the country in a wrong direction. An incompetent doctor with a scalpel is no less than a butcher with a knife. India is growing fast and is being recognized world over for its talent and brain, continuing the existing quota system shall lead to an increase in brain drain and the world shall benefit from those who could have stayed on and made India a better place to live.

Another question that comes to mind is that why is the quota system not applied to every walk of life? why isn’t quota applied to the defense services? why isn’t quota applicable in private sectors? or better still, why not allocate quota to the Indian cricket team? The answer is once again not very intricate, govt understands that these positions are performance based and altering with them might seriously affect the outcome. But, what it doesn’t understand is that in a haste of increasing reservations it is pushing the future of the country in a grave situation. Killing merit and promoting quotas is defying the point which led to the proposal of inducing reservations, that was social equality.

Instead of blindly increasing the quota, the govt should try to bring the oppressed academically at par with the society by promoting and providing good quality education right from the starting. This way backward class people and merit based selection could go hand in hand without comprising with the quality. It is the youth of today that go on to become the future of the nation and if the gravity of the whole situation is not understood and acted upon with an immediate effect that day is not far when we might be living in a socially divided India, very unlike of what our forefathers dreamed of for an independent India.

-Faisal Abidi

My true colour