M K Bhan
100 billions brain cells of babies form about 1000 trillion connection in their bodies till they enter Pre-Primary age and stage and this connectivity is two times more than what you and me keep as adults. Then what happens to the children born with such capabilities and capacities during their schooling and at colleges! Why only 12% of the high school graduates go for higher education? Why educated youth of today fail to keep the connectivity between what they possess and what they aspire for?
Question strikes, who is at fault and who will share the responsibility of preparing such educated human products which have no “market value”! Let me separate the term “market value” for education industry and give them liberty to choose any one of terms ‘Market’ or ‘Value’ for applying in their respective industries. With this choice we can either have right products for the ‘Market’ or at least good human beings with ‘Values’ in morally degraded society.
Our education system is a training ground for people to go to higher education. The question one should ask at this point of time is about the expectations from the school education. Most of the curricula do not encourage the thinking process in children. They normally emphasize giving information, reproduction of that information into the examination system probably and most of the assessments are done on how he can mug up and how he can reproduce it for the examination. There is hardly any scope given to the children for any innovative thinking. Most of the time, even off the cuff ideas that comes form children, are not encouraged. We try to suppress and mould his thinking into what we think is the right way of thinking. If you really see the long-term capability of the child, this may not be a good approach all the time. Our rigid curriculum is imposed on every child without worrying about their inquisitive capabilities.
We have a limited scope for accommodating people who do not fall in the straitjacketed sort of pattern. What we do, we normally concentrate only on the mean. We say 99% of our children are doing better. But remember, the 1% who does not fit straitjacketed into our system, they are the ones’ who are capable of changing history, because they are the ones’ who will challenge practically everything whatever you say. They are the ones’ who can become Srinivasa Ramanujam, Newton, Einstein, Socrattes, Abraham Lincoln, Jesus Christ, Ramkrishna Paramhansa, Karna of Mahabharatha……
ICT (Integrated Computer Technology) is becoming more dominant and is the main concern for all of us because it uses only our two senses- Vision and Hearing, but primarily-Vision. The touch, the taste and the smell is missing, which are really important for the development of human beings. A touch on somebody’s shoulder conveys what millions of words cannot convey. So called media-savvy young generation remain ignorant in understanding the relationship between ‘Education, Imagination and Natural World’, its unifying capacities and practical outcomes. The excitement which you get from many senses, if you focus everything in ICT, you will not.
Seeing a rose-garden on computer and being in the rose-garden-makes a difference.
ICT is killing the imagination and the capabilities of our children by not using it judiciously. Of course, ICT gives immediate solutions to the problems and we miscalculate that -‘faster you learn, earlier you forget’. A problem you get solved in about two days, you will remember for whole life, as compared to getting a solution in two minutes which lasts for 2 hours in our MMC (mind memory card). The minds are to be challenged with the problems and seek solutions using our all sensory skills. Now, think of giving lap-tops, computers and distributing free tablets to the children- are they really going to touch the sky (Akash)! What kind of generation we are creating? Will they be good technologists or good citizens or good human beings?
Adults who were imaginative children often proved themselves as problem solvers, innovators and creative thinkers. Unless the foundation at school education is very solid, the next generation, the higher generation cannot really come up to what really we are aspiring for. The thinking process, logical mind of child must be encouraged in the curriculum, so that they do very well in higher education. Right selection of books with exciting diagrams, languages and the presentations will do much better in nurturing the talents in a systematic way.
One thing that bothers all of us is that our value system is slowly going down. The value system is to be created at Primary age and not after reaching the age of 20 or 40. We should rather emphasize more on value system in our education; other things will automatically fall in line.
Finally; being a parent, be true to yourself first if you really want to understand the world of fantasy of your children. Be ready to understand his inquisitive feeling and answer his questions honestly. Give your children the wings of imagination. Let them watch and enjoy the beauty of nature, colourful dances of butterflies, humming bees in the corner side of garden, floating of paper-ships, flying of jet planes, falling of apple, leisure flying of seagulls, change of season, counting stars in the firmament, journey of the sun and the moon and what not…. practicing real-life skills, making a child in outer-form and inner-spirit. Don’t show them apples in Nursery Rhyme Book…let them taste apples!
Imagination like the potter’s wheel has got slowed down with the arrival of sparkling steel and flashing speedy wheels on restless highways. A substitute for imagination at the very outset in childhood is an open threat to nuclear families and an invitation to calculated disaster for society. Let’s stop the mushrooming of educational business shops and creating a tsunami of aimless educated youth. Let’s rediscover the tender touch of education and magic of imagination for the betterment of humanity.
The author is Director SGGJ Model Schools Sunderbani
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