Now I know that this is a worn out issue and everyone is
tired of listening and reading about the state of education in India. However,
I’m still going to rant about it because I’ve just about had it with trying to
remember dates and Acts of the Constitution and the number of internet users
who are active on social networking sites. It has come to the point where it’s
probably screwing around with my mind because there seems to be a reference of
study material in almost every third sentence I utter!
What is the point of learning for the sake of learning?
And what is the point of learning something that has no
practical application?
And what is the purpose of learning something that one can
possibly have no interest in?
These are some of the questions that swirled around in my
head as I attempted to relax after the completion of my exams just a few hours
ago.
I’ve often wondered why nobody ever taught us how to calculate
taxes, how to survive in hostile conditions, how to defend ourselves in times
of danger, how to judge what was morally correct, how to apply logic, how to
understand theories and their application, how to give back to the society and
how to live in peace with nature.
Basic life skills do not seem to be taught at all. Even at
the graduation and post-graduation level, I’ve noticed people studying only subjects
that are necessary to get them a job. I’ve seen many a talent go to waste
because their passions do not coincide with the amount of money they hope to
earn. We do not even have the concept of doing something because one wishes to
do so. Study something because of genuine interest. It is just about money. It is
always about money. And the education industry today endorses it by ensuring
job placements and attractive salary options rather than good education.
Although I understand the need for education, I sometimes
really feel that,
‘We Don’t Need No
Education.’
Here is a poem that I’d written a long time ago about the
condition of education as I saw it.
A Student’s Burden
As I go a passing by,
I see some students trudging by,
With bag loads full of studying
books,
People giving them pitying looks;
Off they go to school.
Small kids & big ones alike,
Look like they’re speared on a
pike,
Schools turning out robots by the
ton,
Aw! Come on, when will they learn
The stark reality.
The education system is skewed,
With the kids’ language turning
lewd,
Universities turning to dust,
The students' brains rotting with
rust,
What is our future?
With money running through the
veins,
And students taking many pains;
The quest for knowledge now has
ended,
Its great fort now undefended,
Is falling down in ruins.
- Brendan R. Dabhi
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