Education is known to be the key to success, especially in India. The world is changing at an extremely rapid rate and good education is at the center of it. Knowledge helps people think, feel, and behave in a more complex way which prepares people for life experiences. Not only does this improve the life of the individual and contribute to their successes, but it can also help their community. Unfortunately, India is not living up to the standards with its education system.
Indias education system is based on rote learning. This means that the focus is on memorization and recalling facts quickly. This may be helpful in developing a foundation for the subject but there are many disadvantages. Since memorization is the goal, it can be very repetitive and easy to lose focus. Also, the student does not gain a deep understanding of the subject and there is no connection between previous and new knowledge. Furthermore, social skills are often not able to develop since much of the learning is individual. On the other hand, we have meaningful learning which is focused on understanding and active learning techniques. This is a better way to approach learning, especially for older students.
It seems that this education system has been designed to train future industrial workers rather than leaders. Students are trained to follow rules and follow strict directions with little room for creativity. Not to mention that mistakes are sometimes met with cruel punishment. If a child is having difficulty learning then they are often marked as lazy. Most parents and teachers never even acknowledge that there could be a learning disability involved. Mental health is disregarded and unrealistic expectations are put on students shoulders without the proper support.
The framework for education is very stiff and straightforward which is not good because everyone is different. Everyone is taught the same and there is little to no flexibility to accommodate different learning styles. A few excel but many students fall behind or suffer due to having different strengths and weaknesses. Another thing that contributes to this is that there are unnecessary things being taught and important life lessons ignored. A general rule of thumb is that if a subject is not applicable to most peoples lives then it should not be mandatory. Instead, subjects revolving around human rights and global issues should be addressed.
Overall, India has managed to make so many advancements in just the past decade and yet nearly nothing has changed about the education system. Education should evolve along with the rest of the world. Meaningful learning should be more prominent, creativity should be embraced, mental health should be acknowledged, and important topics need to be talked about. The first step is to be aware that there is a problem. Only then can we take the needed steps to bring issues into the spotlight and change them.
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