Ok, so foreign universities will not come calling...

Its reiterated, Forbes India says that despite the opening up of the Education sector, the best foreign universities will not come calling. We have a huge demand and they may not be able to fulfill that demand alongwith quality. The demand, like I mentioned earlier, in education per se in India is huge. And its going to get bigger.

At the K-12 level, where again the demand is tremendous, private schools are going to help. But schools not allowed to make profit is what we need to rethink.

Freedom In Higher Education

I see students of higher education struggle with freedom given to learn. Perhaps because they haven't learnt to learn. Simple as it may sound I think the folly of our school boards (read CBSE) in encouraging a huge quantum of academic rote vis-a-vis well rounded individuals who would make serious contributions to society is hardly debatable.The rote and the methodology at school level in many ways discourages exploration and self learning. To produce learnt answers in exams is diametrically different from creating, exploring different aspects to a subject and the finding applications around us. The latter being non-existent at school level in India hampers original thought in higher education . So students expect platters doled out.....and then getting to work becomes more and more a struggle...with not much importance to life skills, they fall short - not because they can't but because they don't know how.

3 Idiots and Indian Education

Now everyone seems to have seen 3 Idiots and everyone seems to like it - Chetan Bhagat's crib not withstanding. Quite an entertainer. Looked at Aamir Khan reinventing himself (does that sound over-the-top ?) He has definitely reinvented himself in my perspective. Till a couple of movies ago, he seemed like a mix of an aggressive marketeer with decreasing focus on acting. But, this time I was forced to eat my thoughts (read 'words'). Brilliant acting.

The comment on education was extremely relevant to the times. We are all questioning our traditional education systems. The classroom education which was meant to produce people who could fit themselves into repetitive and clerical government jobs or probably just fit into the requirements of the industrial era, must undergo a change. Quite simply because if the times change and everything changes, so should how we teach and learn. In fact education should be forward looking. It should be able put a finger on the requirements of the world in the next few years and prepare the learners for that.

Does rote help in all this? Well, that's a no brainer. If we are looking at life skills, values and a love for learning to be instilled at the K12 stage then our current education system is not geared up to do that. A collective change is the need of the hour as against the sporadic little efforts that are happening at some schools.

Need for Teacher Training in India

The India education space is probably one of the largest markets in Asia with a population of over 1.13 bn. With the government planning to spend around 5% of GDP in the next 5 years on education, the market could be any where worth $ 50-55 bn.

Per household, spending on education is roughly 9% which is next only to grocery. So India, having a focus towards families and children is a market hugely conducive to growth in the education sector.

Public private partnership is widely believed to be the way ahead if the huge demand for education institutions has to be fulfilled.With this there would be a proportionate demand for teachers. So a large scale and consistent teacher training would also be the need of the hour. I think there is a need to revamp the BEd degree in India and also to make the teaching career glamorous.

India Education services being taken forward by Mr. Kapil Sibal seems to be a step in the right direction. Looking forward to hearing more on this front....

wish I had written this....

I have been questioning the current Indian education system for many years...from little things like learning to read and write letters of the alphabet to the applicability of the various subjects of study in high school and then relevance of our college education...

Unbelievably, I read an article which summed up everything that I had been thinking in bits and pieces. Do read Sudhakar Ram's article (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Opinion/Comments-Analysis/Reinventing-education/articleshow/5345874.cms?curpg=1) in the Economic Times. It sums up our education system as comprehensively as possible and also beautifully provides solutions. Must read for any educator and parent in India.

One of those write ups which makes me think....'wish I had written it'.

Academic Pressure in India on School Kids

It is heart wrenching when a child feels pressurized for not scoring well and therefore not getting admission to a college of choice......Don't we parents/teachers have it all confused in our minds ? Aren't we giving too much importance to any kind of academics, too much importance to any kind of institution - their so called 'reputation' (read 'elitism').

We all deserve to be acknowledged as whole individuals by everyone around. To achieve that may not be easy. On the other side,to counter this would need a strong, centered person. What is it that we as parents/teachers are doing to inculcate this inner strength and calm? Are we hinting that exams are a test of a child's being? Or are we saying that an exam is an exam is an exam. And in India, in many cases exam is not a test of real learning and application. Are willing to take that risk for the sake of the being of our children? Hasn't it come to academic achievement versus the child's existence? And if it has, then what else are waiting for?

Kids and Books

I look around and see that a lot of parents are worried about kids not reading enough.....Now, frankly I am a proud parent of a girl who reads like crazy....I don't exaggerate...like i say ...if she doesn't get a book in the loo she even reads the labels on the shampoo bottle!!

I try that it is not at the cost of peer interaction....but books are important in early education. Especially in our systems where most classroom education is meant to cater to the lowest common denominator, books are a great tool for self education.

For an avid 5 to 15 year old reader.....http://www.walker.co.uk/ would be a good source................

Read on!