Indian Education System - Confessions of a confused mind
I had 18 years of education, just like many, but end of it, I am sad to realize I literally do not know many things! I do not really know if I should blame the education system for this, even though I know the main reason for my realization is indeed the education system.
When I was in the school I questioned my Maths Teacher about the practical application of Calculus in real life for any person and she could not answer it. She was also angry with me for asking that question! Later I realized that almost 70% of what I learnt in school did not have any practical use in day to day life for 90% people except scoring marks and getting into an engineering college.
Why can't we be taught basics of plumbing, electrical and electronics in secondary school level? Even now I do not know answers for questions about things around me? Here again I can't entirely blame the education system. Why was I not curious enough to know them myself? Is it the education system again that made me dumb? Unanswered questions again!
I was passionate about Biology and ended up doing an engineering degree in Bioengineering. I had the opportunity of doing a B.Sc. in Zoology in one of the good institutes in Chennai, but my Ego (for scoring more marks than many who will end up becoming engineers) made me do Engineering in Thanjavur.
Again, my father being a Mechanical Engineer, suggested and highly recommended me to take up the same, but my blind passion for Biology, made me choose Bioengineering, not knowing the details of the course or its scope! 3 years of Engineering simply flew with many subjects having no proper book. When searched on the internet you get the syllabus of a reputed University in US which is the same (word by word) of my syllabus. I ended up passing all the subjects and mostly ended up as a topper also, with the burden of shame of not knowing anything useful about the application of the subject in real life.
End of third year got me placed in the first company that came for campus interview. No core companies were queued up in the list of companies for campus interview, as expected. I was happy about being placed, what with the superb starting package offered!
Final year flew in a jiffy! Most of my classmates were confused but I was clear as a crystal to join the reputed I.T Company! I was neither interested in mugging a million words for GRE nor going abroad for higher studies and putting my future in a great uncertainty!
3 months were spent waiting for a call letter to join TCS. To while away my time, I took tuition at home! My first salary was 300 rupees and after 3 years of earning 5 figures a month, I realize the happiness on receiving that 300 rupees never equaled my happiness for the 6 figured annual salary! My mother advised me to search for a core job and asked me not to worry even if the salary was half of what I was about to be paid by TCS. Money lured me into I.T then. I thought I will save something in 2 years and quit!
When I joined my first project in TCS, I used to literally cry and go to office everyday, I never cried to go to school even at the age of 3. I decided to leave the company at the completion of my bond period with TCS, which I never did. I then decided to leave it after marriage, which I did not do again! The decision was entirely mine! The money maya did not allow me to take a strong bold decision against my unhappiness and unrest in TCS. Such is the power of money, I realized!
I have complained, accused, discussed and cursed my three years in TCS enough, not to do it again here. Thinking about all this now, I realize two things:
-> Had I joined B.Sc, I could have done my M.Sc and B.Ed and joined a school as a Teacher, with teaching running in my blood and soul
-> Had I joined Mechanical Engineering, I could have taken over my dad's business from home and enjoyed the designing work, which is not only creative but definitely not monotonous or repetitive
Now, if I end up gaining the courage and determination required to pursue my passion against money, teaching, whether I will succeed doing it is a different topic of discussion. The question now is, say I indeed become a teacher, will I also become a part of the same educational system that has confused me so much? Will I be able to make any difference at all?
Time has to answer the many many questions that run in my dangerous confused mind! Amen!
