Dear friends!
Have you thought of why we
studied or learnt for almost 15 to 17 years? Sometimes even more than 20-25
years for the people who have carried out some research, done PHD or are double
post graduate. I salute to the patience of all those who carried out the
studies for so long and double salute to those who really had interest in the studies.
Do you remember the shouts/words
of your parents while you used to ignore or take the studies casually or the
sweet advice for future? Most of them pointed just one thing – if you study
you will get good job, all materialistic desires and luxuries and if not the
life will be miserable and you will be a big looser or beggar. This is not the
fact which they learnt by themselves. The fact has been taught and transferred
from generations to generations.
In the empire of British we were
solely dependent on mercy of British officials or the local kings. British had
direct and largest competition with the Mughal/Muslim rulers so they started
favoring Brahmans and Kayasths as they were good learners. Kayasths
(Shreevastav, Kher, Khanna, Sinnha etc.) were more close to British as they
could mix well because of their drinking and eating habits which Brahmans
couldn’t. At the same time after 1857 (Mangal Pandey’s incident) they realized
that keeping Brahmans too close would be difficult as they have their own
intelligence and it can also backfire.
If we try to understand the
actual/original education system of India, it was a system which relied on
principal of making people aware of basic education and then specialization in
different streams and there was job security for everybody. Gandhi Ji had told
that, “there is enough on earth for everybody’s need but all the resources
would not be able to fulfill single person’s greed”.
The original education system
focused on interest of the person and glorified all the professions. Talent had
always been considered priceless by Indians but at the same time highest price
of being talented has been paid by just those communities only who were most
talented viz. Hindus, Mayans and Jews. Normally seeing the
activities and processes of a particular product or service automatically used
to draw attention of the kids being nurtured by the family and this way they
used to join as an intern and used to come out as masters.
The fundamental principal of
passing a skill was to pass or teach it after assessing the eligibility to
grasp and soundness to use (intent and content both). In today’s education
system it has vanished. In the race of aspiration at one way we are losing our
natural ancestral talent and at the other way the same thing is to be repeated
again and again to each unique learner. This normally didn’t happen in the
original education system.
I think now after understanding
the reality and side effects of modern education system we should return to our
fundamentals and core. I don’t advocate old techniques viz. disciple system or
training under trees but at the same time core and fundamental values of
education system must be replenished once again. This will certainly help in making the people more employable and independent.
