I am not an educationist, but a keen observer. In Goa we have the Goa Board (an autonomous Body) and the Education Department, which controls the education system. I feel, there is a need to bring in reforms in the education system, now or in the near future, at least for the sake of the less privileged ones (section of the students who find difficulties in learning some subjects imposed on them against their liking). I was one belonging to such a section.
The idea of mass promotion, which was introduced in the education system, at some phase, was a great blunder. Pushing a child to the next higher class, without improving his/her grasping power or without allowing the child to put in efforts, but simply promote him/her was a foolish act. Brilliant students of the same class were getting discouraged and so were skipping studies, because they thought that anybody could get promoted without putting in any efforts. Lazy students were the happy lot. Most schools, however, did not fall prey to such an idea but got stuck to their standards.
We have the Principal’s Forum’s, Headmaster’s Association, Parent Teacher’s Association, Super School Complex, etc etc. Do they have any say in the affairs of education? Are these bodies putting in any share of thoughts or ideas in the education system or just dormant or sleeping partners ? Compared to the other states of India in Goa we have very good Schools even at the village levels, but some ignorant parents classify these schools as bad and admit their children to urban or city schools. Every school in Goa which is recognised, does have good teachers, having academic as well as professional qualifications, as per the recruitment rules in force, of the Education Department.
Government has made it possible to provide good and free education to every child in these schools, which have well-qualified teachers but I still don’t understand why parents send their children for special or private classes or tuitions.
It’s their wish, may be because of today’s competitive level, they want their children to excel, and may be they think the tutorials they get in schools from the subject teacher is not enough. Are those people, giving private tuitions or coaching classes, have professional trained teachers with them?
Earlier, we had the ranking system, the same stands withdrawn now. May be the new grading system is a better choice but I still want to know whether the grading system is just? Grades are letters with values represented by figures. At some places in India itself, if the grade value of A is 10, at some other place, the same would vary, it would be something else. So the grade value is not constant but a variable. Unlike letters, figures speak for themselves, their value is not variable. If it is 10 here, elsewhere too it would be 10.
Ranking system was simpler to understand even for a less literate person. Someone would plainly ask, how much he/she scored in the subject out of 100? Whereas the grading system is like running around the bush and asking everybody what is the % age range or value of A, B, C, D, etc. etc. Suppose there are two students, student A and student B, studying in the same class, but with a marks scoring difference. Student A scores 1 mark each of the six subjects assigned to her, whereas student B scores 10 marks in each of the six subjects assigned to her. Which means the proportion of student A to student B is 06:60. It is indeed a vast difference. If these students were evaluated in the ranking system, student B was definitely a distant achiever compared to student A. Whereas if you put them in the grading band of values 1 to 10 then they will fall for the same grade. So grading is favourable for student A whereas ranking system would have been favourable for student B – a grave injustice indeed!
India is a one country, but there is no common grading system. No common grade values for grade A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, We have in India different examination boards, CBSE, ICSE, Karnataka, Kerala, etc. etc. Now, coming to another issue, we have managed to remove the word “fails” and replaced it by the word “needs improvement” on the marks statement issued to the student, so as to avoid students from omitting suicides, but how far has it succeeded?
Now a days passing class X is just not enough, you have to get a very good percentage to get admission in class XI. The joy of a student who has cleared class X is short-lived when he/she is rejected admission for class XI in every higher secondary he/she seeks admission to. What is the avenue for such a student? Have you, as an educationist, given a thought for these students ? What is their future although they have passed? The Education Department is busy collecting data and information regarding the number of students belonging to SC/ST/OBC/General Category/Minorities etc.etc.
Why are students made to break their heads and study subjects of their dislike such as the Hindi language, and unwanted mathematics, etc. I myself suffered because of Hindi language and I failed my class X. Although it was compulsory to study Hindi till class X, I am not reading nor writing Hindi in my day to day life till date. What a waste of time and energy. Besides, the elementary mathematics of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, I don’t think anything extra of mathematics is a necessity. It is desirable but not mandatory that we all should have the general knowledge of various subjects like history, geography, science, etc. etc. Some of us make our career through Arts, Commerce, or Science. So, as educationists, you should be able to understand a child in school and guide him/her to pursue his or her career according to his/her liking and finding such a thing will mean a reform in education. Students should be taught about career guidance from class VIII onwards.
Education, for some students means nothing. I still remember, my Teacher asking us, what is community living? And we the students would say in one chorus, ‘Teacher, community Living means, living happily together with others’. We were taught how we should respect our elders and teachers, we still do it when we come across and meet our teachers. Now, we teach our students EVS but how many students are educated ? I saw two school children throwing away chocolate wrappers and pet bottles by the road side, I stopped and asked them, is this the way to litter things? Don’t you study EVS ?
Instantly came a reply. ‘Our Government will see to it.’ We are living in the use and throw culture, are we educating ourselves? Every year our institutions are producing an army of graduates and post graduates, highly qualified and seeking employment. From where will employment be generated? Everybody cannot get a white collar job or a government job. Who is to be blamed for all this? The student community have forgotten to realise about dignity of labour and work. We have a vast area of agricultural land which attracts attention but no labour force to cultivate it. We have the coconut plantations but no toddy tappers or coconut pluckers, and the list goes on, we feel shy to work. Under employment is better than unemployment, we don’t realise it. We have graduated and done masters but still suck our parent’s blood. When will this be over? Now days, many intellectual parents have stopped sending their children to school, and have adopted the practice of home schooling and have succeeded.
