"Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the
overcoming of it."
—Helen Keller (American,
1880-1968)
Word for the day
Gobsmacked (adj)
Utterly astounded; astonished.
Malice towards none
Ajay Singh reportedly bought
SpiceJet for a consideration of Rs2 only.
Some power companies in
Gujarat have offered the government to buy their ultra mega plants @Rs1.
Someone suggested Air India
may be sold only if government pays the buyer something.
And RBI still loves to
discuss inflation!!
First random thought this morning
Your dalit vs. my dalit
Your GST vs. my GST
Your loan waiver vs. my loan waiver
Your secularism vs. my secularism
Your India vs. my India
Where have we reached after 70yrs of independence!
Back to school - 2
I did not hear any voice of
concern. To me so many students scoring near perfect score in political
science, history and literature means that system encourages only those
students who are conformist. The examiners are trained to punish the students
who like to differ and offer alternate views on history and political issues,
even at 12th standard level. This cannot be a good sign for a progressive
society.
Our education system, in my view,
is examination oriented rather than learning oriented. And to that extent, it
continues to be an extension of the colonial model.
In fact, as per the government's
claim, many parents have raised concern that since the abolition of compulsory
Board Examination (independent evaluation) at 10th level under CBSE in 2011,
the students were not taking enough pressure in their studies and thus lagging
behind the students of State Boards which were conducting Board examination.
Many of the readers of this post
might have read or seen social media messages proudly claiming the glorious
knowledge traditions of India. The messages claim how Indian scientists have
pioneered path breaking research in the fields of mathematics, physics,
medicine & surgery, astronomy, astrophysics, metallurgy, public
administration, weaponry & war strategies, maritime technology & skills
etc.
Many enthusiasts (including senior
ministers, governors and chief ministers) want us to believe that Indian
scientists had achieved excellence in the complex fields of nuclear warfare,
space technology, civil aviation, genetic engineering, bio-technology, citing
examples from epics like Mahabharta and Ramayana.
What I gather from scriptures and
research (Pardon me, I claim to be no expert and know only a tiny bit) is that
traditionally India had been a knowledge based society. There was a great focus
on learning. Both elite and commoners got an opportunity to learn and excel,
under patronage of the State. All centers of learning (Gurukul, Mutt, Temple,
etc.) were mostly financed by the State and managed autonomously by the learned
people. Divergent views and theories were encouraged and appreciated.
I feel proud about my legacy.
Accepting all these claims of greatness makes me feel proud about my glorious
legacy. But me, or anyone else for that matter, owning our legacy may not help
much if our actions actually try to destroy it. Our present education system
precisely tries to do that.
The education system widens the
socio-economic divide, as the standards of education in elite private
institutions and publically funded institutions diverge significantly. It
discourages independent thinking and divergent views. It demotivates and
demoralizes students scoring 85-95%....to continue next week
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