Good news – My daughter Krisha is now finally going to a formal well established public-school after her enriching journey at Kindergarten where she become an authority on colors and discovered the magical world of arts n crafts early in life.
Bad news – Every morning when I wake her up to get ready – I get the same request – “Please withdraw me from the new school as it’s not fun, the teacher wants me to memorize stupid stuff like numbers and even does not appreciate me by giving stars on the boring homework I now hate, what is the point of going to the new school, when I cannot chat freely with my new friends and make new craft everyday”
Sounds familiar? Read on…
The unanswered questions – What’s the point of the current education system and how does it help? Are we going to do the same to our kids what our parents did to us knowing well that most of what we learnt at school is of no use today? There are millions of unemployable graduates who either have to do a vocational course and learn afresh or take low paying jobs as they also lack confidence of doing something unique! Who is responsible? Are we wasting the formative years by sending our dear children to schools and colleges that are primitive in their approach? Would you like to get yourself treated in a hospital that looked exactly like what it was 100 years back with exactly the same facilities, doctors and prescriptions?
7 reasons why I feel the current public education system is a disaster –
1.) Lack Mutual interest – Kids are not at all interested to go and we need a discipline (fear, greed, manipulations) to send them. Teachers are also not interested in sharing knowledge but finishing the damn syllabus. Just like many of us go to offices out of fear of losing jobs and the security of a regular paycheck. Think about it as the necessary EVIL
2.) Nothing new to learn – It does not encourage discovery and zeal to learn new things but memorize facts with no guarantee of being correct. So many scientific theories have evolved and crushed yet no teacher admits that what he is teaching is an assumption while the truth is a still a mystery.
3.) Grading system – Kids are graded based on their age and seniority and not talent, interests or intelligence. Sounds like an army of laborers at a factory, isn’t it…well ironically that’s what the training is on for… and this is where ragging also originates from.
4.) Factory approach – The entire system is driven by the teachers with focus on completing the syllabus with loads of homework instead of being life coaches to the future generation through participation and open discussions.
5.) Financial outlook – The system is commercial and focused on looting unsuspecting parents, give peanuts to teachers, spoiling the kid’s future and make loads of money in the process to open a new school.
6.) Develop ego issues ( refer Sharmajee kids) and either boost the pride or hurt it by comparing fishes with monkeys and developing hate and jealousy from a tender age which will poison their whole existence forever.
7.) Reverse engineer – As honestly how and what elements of your own education and the career decisions have shaped your life and has it made your happy? And then remember the moment when you did held your child for the first time in your arms! Let your heart be your guide in deciding what your truly wish for your kid’s future!
I believe that if anyone is happy and confident, he will conquer the world with love and reach his true potential, if we don’t place colorful roadblocks with our prejudiced historic minds! Examples of life tycoons who never completed the formal education system and yet shone their light are endless and yet it sadly does change the scared adult phenomenon called parenthood for most of us.
I do not wish to say that all schools are alike, there very few who have risen and doing great work. So if you ae a lucky parent – well congratulations! For the rest (including me) may it’s time to reconsider the school or switch to homeschooling to suit your kid’s needs or if you can afford open a school for them like Elon Musk did!
I think it’s time to let our kids fly and defy gravity, rise and meet their dreams with the power of technology at their fingertips and not shape them into outdated and unfit models of yesteryear!
PEACE