THE NEW LEARNING CURVE!

Over time, education appears to have been driven by diverse forces. Some of these are:

·     Socially driven education

·     Skill based education

·     Market driven education

Socially driven education is what is generally considered acceptable as a minimum requirement or as a societal need that is driven by acceptance, for example, in India, graduation is something like a basic benchmark, that everyone needs to have – whether it is of any use or not is a different story altogether. 15 – 20 years back, a class XII education was acceptable as the norm. What changed to make it a graduation level is something that needs analysis.

Skill based education is education that leads up to something that makes someone “job worthy”, but not necessarily “job ready”. This starts off with the “difficult choices” of selecting streams of science / arts / commerce after class X and then wondering what to do after class XII. The need of the hour is a complete walk through, for each stream, from standard X to retirement, at least in a broad based manner. Such an effort would go a long way in reducing the confusion in the minds of our children and even parents for that matter.

Now I come to the villain of this otherwise idyllic setting – market driven education. Do not mistake this for educational needs driven by market requirements; here I refer to the ruthless creation of esoteric courses & trainings with promises ranging from a villa next to the Trump mansion, to a plot on the moon! One needs to only skim through the array of "educational" sites or magazine to end the day in utter confusion and financial distress. There are a cornucopia of “skill / professional / job oriented courses & curriculums” that “assure” job assistances to “job consulting” to “job placements”. Alas, most of them are like the proverbial pot of gold at the end of the rainbow…elusive as ever yet alluring till the end.

In my humble efforts to learn and to demystify education, I interacted with students from all levels. After sharing my thoughts with academics, teachers and employers, here is a suggested perspective on how we could restructure education. These are in four stages:

Stage I             -          Till class V

Stage II            -          Class VI to Class X

Stage III           -          Class XI & XII

Stage IV           -          College & pre employment

Stage I-Till class V

What is it that a child needs to be taught, to live, to evolve & to prepare for life? Can we give a child his or her childhood back? Instead of enjoying childhood, playing games, having fun & experiencing the joys of life, our children are imprisoned within walls of illogical syllabi, taught by many a demotivated teacher & forced to learn by rote, books that are written expressly by poorly ‘qualified teachers (sic)’, primarily with the aim of making money. The formative years or early childhood, need to be spent on making studying FUN and I do not mean playschool. Here I am referring to a very focused, deliberate & well conceived effort to make learning FUN. A child must want to study, not be forced to study. Make childhood learning an inquisitive journey through mystical lands of stories, wonders of scientific discovery & forays across great lands & vistas. Awaken & empower the magnificent power of childish inquisitiveness, eager eyes of wonder & instill an insatiable quest to learn. If we can do that, be assured that the child in well on its way to great learning & knowledge!

Stage II - Class VI to Class X

The inquisitiveness, the desire to learn that was instilled in stage I, needs to be nurtured & nourished. This is the period of consolidation of base knowledge. Fundamentals of all subjects need to be firmed in, so that the spirit of inquiry will infuse energy & the desire to create something new. This is where the bedrock of great discoveries & invention will be created. The principal building blocks are:

·     Sound fundamentals.

·     Clarity in morals & ethics.

·     Spirit of adventure & learning.

·     Desire to create, to achieve & to invent.

·     Clarity on avenues of study – science vs commerce vs arts.

·     Individual aptitudes. Steer children towards their strengths.

Stage III - Class XI & XII

This the stage at which teachers would open up vistas as per each option, further channeling children towards their interests. Teachers must lay out the actual possibilities, including negativities, so that students can make as informed choices as possible. Where possible, complete life cycles of each profession must be articulated. Teachers would also groom students towards achieving college ready mindsets, learning to apply to various institutions & to start looking over the horizon, on issues that would be of use in their college life.

Stage IV - College & pre employment

College is the time for building networks, germinating ideas & concepts and also of learning the craft of one’s subjects. This is the time for coalescing knowledge & ingenuity, so as to prepare for experience, the experience that will give ‘the Eureka’ moment, the experience that will germinate a million ideas. College is also the place where one must learn to transition from a child student to an adult student. College must also start nurturing the leadership traits & qualities of individuals. College must teach students that life is all about teamwork. We are not alone – we need to coexist in synergy!

How do we engineer the change?

The efforts of academicians, the industry pundits, parents & especially that of the youth, must find appreciations for this concept. We need to build human humans, not machine humans. One needs to merely revisit the industrial age, where societal needs created generations of clock punching automatons, merely because industry needed workers at their machines. Synergy and focus are the key. Academicians & Industry pundits need to formulate content. This content needs to be scripted by trainers, entertainers, visualizers & social media experts, duly scrutinsed by SMEs to ensure content integrity. Delivery methodologies need to be revisited & even relearnt. Social media & interactive learning delivery are critical tools. Decision making, change management & critical thinking must be integrated into the learning platform. From the ground up, let us instill respect for all, humility, curiosity, honesty & sincerity of purpose in the generations to come. Failing to do so, would be disastrous. Let us not make that folly. The industrial age was a small period in the evolution of man – our present era is where the future of MANKIND itself hangs in the balance. Are we up to the responsibility? I sincerely hope so!