Excellence in education

The Principal of the pre-primary school my 4 year old kid studies in, recently requested us, as parents, to share our thoughts around what we feel is / could be “excellence in education”. The management, in its own words, rightly counts us as equal stakeholders and hence values our opinions.

Most of the schools, especially in urban areas, have realized the need to consider scholastic education as an overall development programme for children, rather than just being a wrapper around bookish academics. Quite evidently, kids, especially in primary schools are in the best age to absorb everything around, and schools are tapping this opportunity quite well. Conscious thoughts are being put in designing curriculum, reserving ample space for art, craft, music, recreation, outdoor activities, language and vocal abilities, building and enhancing fine motor skills, apart from regular studies.

The education system has certainly scaled miles in improving the ways education was hitherto imparted. Rewinding to the yesteryears, particularly for my generation who grew up in the 80s and 90s (and generations before), education would only mean academics- good grades that would guarantee (?) a good job which would further translate into good money. Personal success was measured only on professional and monetary scale. Rote learning, rather than clear understanding became the mantra for “success”. In generic situations, a good memory could level, at times beat intellect, while wisdom stayed well beyond reach. As Amir Khan explains quite succinctly in 3 Idiots, generations were all well trained, rather than well educated.

Although the system today has changed the methods and processes of imparting education, the underlying motive has not changed much. It still strives to “train” students to become successful (professionally), while educating them to become good, civilized and happy human beings is beyond the purview. That part, quite explicitly is left for the parents and society to teach. Insulating growing kids from all they see in the society and media becomes next to impossible for parents. The degrading social fabric plagued by the bankruptcy of morals and civic sense has all stemmed from the lack of quality education over generations.

So why things look different on the other side of globe? What makes the Europeans and Americans more civilized and developed? Quite evidently, their standard of education plays a major role. Most European kids do not start formal education before the age of 6. They carry no shame in not knowing English (or local language) alphabets or numbers till they turn 6; this heavily contradicts our ways where it is no less than a social taboo if our kids don’t start counting 10 by the time they turn 3. European kids rather learn basic life skills- cleanliness, good eating habits, self discipline and social manners. A 3 year old would clear his / her own dish after eating, wash his / her own hands and tie / untie his / her own shoe lace- self dependence is imbibed quite early in them. They do play, socialize, develop their fine motor skills but don’t start counting till 6. Not being biased, we too have schools which follow these activities, however more differences surface as the kids grow.

Empathy is percolated quite early in European kids, something which our kids lag in. Empathy proves one of the most valuable human traits in maintaining a morally healthy society. Ways to weave empathy in curriculum and / or school activities using inputs from scholars in human psychology remains an unexplored avenue.

History too might contribute here. Although widely disliked for being too taxing on the memory, it carries immense potential to inspire masses and shape an entire generation’s way of thinking. If handled properly in our education system, it could surface lot of different perspectives and parallel realities. Understanding, discussing and debating on various historic movements, decisions taken under prevailing circumstances, considering different perspectives, concerning differing masses could well alter the way we think. Rather than memorizing who did what, making to concentrate on the “why” part of history could broaden our minds and implicitly contribute towards a more stable, tolerant, accepting and a judicious society. It also makes us more reasonable towards responding to real-life situations and making levelheaded decisions, and possibly avoids blatantly painting historic figures in absolute black or white.

Lee Kuan Yew, who is rightly attributed as the founding father of modern Singapore, has steered the transformation of his society from rags to riches in less than 4 decades. One of his earliest reforms was in the education system where gratitude, politeness and good language and soft skills were emphasized a lot. Consciously drumming these values in kids for couple of generations have well transformed into habits and possibly a genetic virtue in generations that follow. Almost every global business entity has a shop in Singapore today and experts attribute a lot of this to the social manners found in locals. Aren’t we listening?

Readers Digest offers a lot of valuable insights in human psychology and one of the recently read articles emphasized on being vocally clear and carrying a good diction as sine qua non for building confidence which apparently attracts success. Sadly, languages – as curriculum subjects, are seldom emphasized as important as Mathematics or Science in our education.

Hobbies and creativity cry a similar apathy as languages in our country. Being too focused on the “(professional) success recipe” deprives the kids of sparing time for their hobbies. Hobbies form an important ingredient in personal happiness. Imbibing this importance and allowing hobbies to flourish could also contribute in excelling the standards of education. Again, making the kids realize the happiness derived from “non-materialistic success” should also be a focus area of our education system.

I personally feel money management should be a part of curriculum during the later school years. It is one of the most neglected, however the most important lesson that any student might learn. We generally tread the path our parents followed in money management and feel safe, as we hardly know of alternate avenues to save, invest, maintain and grow our wealth. Even if we hear – “Mutual fund sahi hai”, half knowledge plays the spoiler. Our education system should also consider relieving the future generations of the financial stress induced by monetary mismanagement.

“Leadership skills” is another area where the right education might fill in. The land of Chanakya should not remain deprived of his great teachings. Distilled knowledge from Kautilya’s books, along with books like APJ’s “Ignited Minds” should find a place on every desk in higher secondary school. The articles in Readers Digest too could contribute a lot in teaching leadership and life lessons, along with enhancing language skills.

Lastly, I feel importance of physical and mental fitness should be imbibed early and should be percolated deep. Embracing “Yoga” through formal education might benefit coming generations of the land that introduced it to the world. Dedicated hours to enjoy clean humour, as mandatory part of educational curriculum could also aid in de-stressing. After all, an active mind and a healthy body only nourish the human urge in achieving all forms of successes.

“Excellence in education” should ultimately target on making the human roots strong. Just like strong roots that run deep and absorb nutrients from surroundings to maintain a healthy tree, right education feeds into a happy and successful human life.