The Flaws in Our Education System
Introduction
Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by it's ability to climb a tree , it will live it's whole life believing it is stupid. This is a famous quote by Albert Einstein. All of us are born with varied talents and potential. But we follow a system of grading individuals only based on how well they can retain information and reproduce it. This is an insult to every other talent. Read on to find out some of the major flaws in our education system
Absence of leisure
Current Situation
The competitive world has created an unhealthy obsession. We are pressurized to use every minute of the day effectively. This might be an effective strategy in terms of time management. But, It is also important to take a step back and evaluate what is actually being done. It turns out that students all the way from nursery to a graduate level , have packed schedules. They are forced to do activities that their parents or the society thinks is beneficial. The world has convinced us to pursue activities that we have no inclination towards.
My opinion
This is not a great way to live. The mind should be free to do whatever it wants. Only then, it will start to show signs of inclination towards the innate talents and potential. How do you expect someone to discover their purpose, if you don't give them enough time to mindlessly wander and explore ?
Lack of opportunities
Most Ideal System
A proper framework must exist to nurture every talent. The system must ensure that talent grows to the fullest potential.
Slightly Downgraded Version
An education system where talent is not consciously nurtured. But it is at least allowed to flourish freely.
Current Situation
Creative talent is nipped in the bud. It faces every possible resistance before being allowed to flourish. There is a huge stigma around pursuing careers which are not considered mainstream. When we look around we see sportsmen , writers, poets and musicians stuck in jobs that they hate. The main reason for this is societal pressure.
Problem
The current system of education can only create employees. I am not saying that being an employee or working in a mainstream job is bad. But doing so when your heart lies elsewhere , is unjust to yourself and to the job. And the fact that a system that exists to develop human beings is destroying them, is most unfortunate.
Discouraging disruptive thinking
Disruptive thinking is a way of thinking that produces an unconventional strategy. It has the potential to start revolutions.
Importance of questions
Every child as he/she grows up tries to make sense of the world. Warren Berger, author of 'A More Beautiful Question', says kids ask an average of 40,000 questions between the ages of 2 and 5. The habit of questioning is not restricted to little children. I still have so many questions on why society functions the way it does. But people don't want to answer these questions because they are scared of facing the truth.
Problem
Constant questioning brings about change. For a lot of people, change is extremely difficult. Society has become very comfortable and secure with its old ways. It doesn't want to change even after realising that it might be functioning in an immensely ineffective manner.
Current Situation
When young individuals raise questions , their voices are subdued in the very beginning. This demoralization of disruptive thinking and subduing of free spirits happens at a young age. The education system acts as a catalyst for this. We spend the most important years of our lives being told what to do and how to do it. We are never asked whether we can do it differently. We are forced to conform to ideas instead of confronting them. We are forced to fit in when we were born to stand out. This is one of the biggest drawbacks of the education system.
Business mentality
Profit Oriented
Many educational Institutions function more as businesses than as service oriented organizations. Like any industry their primary objective is the maximization of profits. Advertisement is done accordingly. Courses with very little or no value addition are repackaged to look like career defining opportunities. An artificial need for additional coaching classes is created through publicity. This exerts more pressure on students, who are already struggling to manage their hectic schedules.
Live example
Entrepreneurship is taught as a subject and a certain fee is charged for the same. In my opinion , there is only one entrepreneur in that room. And that is the person who convinced everyone that a subject like this can be taught inside a classroom.
Conclusion
The current system of education might have worked at some point of time in the past. But it is obvious that it is not effective anymore. Science and technology is growing at such a rapid pace. But the system which is supposed to create more scientists is hopelessly outdated. At this point, our society has great intellectual capabilities and infrastructural facilities. So it is not difficult to bring in a change in the system. But there are people, who still cling on to the belief that this system works. And bringing a change in the mindsets of people is a herculean task. And until that belief is destroyed , I believe that there is no way forward.
On a scale of 1 to 5 ( 5 being the highest) , how would you rate the current education system ?
Related article
- The Gurukula System: Outdated Or Futuristic ?
The Gurukula system is one of the most ancient systems of education in the world dating back to the Vedic times. Once the English system of education took over the world, it started losing importance. But is this what the future needs ?
© 2020 Avyukth Krishna
