Measures to Initiate Educational Reforms in India

BAJPAI

Measures to Initiate Educational Reforms in India

Submitted By: Submitted To:ALANKRIT BAJPAI Mrs. Alka MehtaRoll No. 8, SECTION C DEPT. OF ENGLISH SEMESTER 1, B.A. LL.B (Hons.) HNLU, RAIPUR

HIDAYATULLAH NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITYUPARWARA, NEW RAIPURDEPT. OF ENGLISHDATE: 20-08-2014

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that this research work titled Measures to Initiate Educational Reforms in India is my own work and represents my own ideas, and where others ideas or words have been included, I have adequately cited and referenced the original sources. I also declare that I have adhered to all principles of academic honesty and integrity and have not misrepresented or fabricated or falsified any idea/data/fact/source in my submission.

...(ALANKRIT BAJPAI)

Date:

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I, ALANKRIT BAJPAI, would like to humbly present this project to Mrs. Alka Mehta.I would first of all like to express my most sincere gratitude to Mrs. Alka Mehta for her encouragement and guidance regarding several aspects of this project. I am thankful for being given the opportunity of doing a project on Measures to Initiate Educational Reforms in India. I am thankful to the library staff as well as the IT lab staff for all the conveniences they have provided me with, which have played a major role in the completion of this paper.I would like to thank God for keeping me in good health and senses to complete this project. Last but definitely not the least, I am thankful to my seniors for all their support, tips and valuable advice whenever needed. I present this project with a humble heart.

-ALANKRIT BAJPAI SECTION C, ROLL NUMBER 8 SEMESTER I, B.A. LL.B (HONS.)TABLE OF CONTENTS

COVER PAGE....1DECLARATION.2ACKNOWLEDGEMENT....3TABLE OF CONTENTS.4INTRODUCTION..5THE REAL PROBLEM...6MEASURES TO INITIATE EDUCATIONAL REFORMS IN INDIA..7SOLUTION METHODOLOGY9ONE NATION ONE INSTITUTION...12SUGGESTIVE MEASURES..13CONCLUSION14

INTRODUCTIONIndian Education System needs serious reforms and changes. In India, the preferred choice of learning is memorizing facts. To judge the students talent has only one parameter i.e. marks in examinations. The general current system focuses only on examinations rather than training students for the future and really testing their knowledge. Because of this, students are forced to take tests that show only their retention powers, not their actual capacity or knowledge. So the students just mug up the facts with no actual gain of knowledge, just to get good marks and not with the intention of learning something new. Indian education is therefore spoon-feeding. The Indian education and hence the social systems are very harsh on kids and completely ignore their capabilities and ambitions. Kids are pushed to study from the age of 3. Non-performers are treated as dolts and are shunned by parents and the community. Every parent thus expects its child to score 95% and not less. According to me there should be only two grades; pass or fail, at least till 10th grade. So that the main aim of any student becomes to gain knowledge and not score 95% marks by mugging up.

THE REAL PROBLEMThere is no practical knowledge in our education system. Our education system mainly focuses on theoretical knowledge. Some basic theoretical knowledge is indeed needed but practicality brings in more understanding. So that in future, if a situation arises where in a person is required to apply the knowledge he had learnt in school, he can easily apply it practically rather than speaking up like a parrot and not actually applying it. For example, the schools can take the students to market and make them analyze it as a part of economics syllabi or taking them to parks and telling them about various trees as a part of Biology syllabi. It will not only make it interesting but also bring in the implementation and the execution of the theoretical knowledge. It should be based on creativity rather than mugging.Basic mannerism should be taught at primary level teaching that earlier-times schools used to do. Children should be taught how to eat, pray and speak to elders. The basic development of a child takes pace between 5 years to 8 years of age. So at that time, good habits should be inculcated in them.We are following the same procedure and subjects again and again. There is no change in the basic structure of the syllabi since ages. If we want to get the desired output, we have to make changes in that algorithm and execute it. There are some topics that are of no use so as to be studied in schools. Topics like integration and differentiation or co-ordinate geometry are of no use in everyday life, unless one becomes an engineer. So, these topics should only be taught at higher levels as the specialization subjects. So, if one aims to go to an engineering college, he gets to read it. If not he doesnt. Measures To Initiate Educational Reforms In IndiaSome subjects or rather, they can be regarded as activities, should be made a compulsory part of syllabi. These include sports, public speaking, current affairs, etc. Sports are very much essential in ones life. As it s well said, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Children today are very inactive. Neither do they prefer playing in the fields nor do they have stamina to do so. So, making sports a compulsory curriculum will make children active and zealous. Another thing that is talked about is, public speaking. Most schools do not have public speaking as a curriculum. Children of those schools may have knowledge but are afraid to speak up in public. Making public speaking a compulsory activity will make students not only interactive but also confident. Every person has to, at one or many time in life, speak in public. One has to give presentation, debate on particular topic and interact with a large gathering at some point of time in life. If this activity were introduced in schools as compulsory activity, one would never have stage fear and be afraid of facing public gatherings. The next thing is current affairs. We see that children of this generation do not read newspapers in general. Interest has to be developed for newspaper readings. Current affairs should be made a compulsory subject. Current affairs keep the person updated about the recent happening in the world around. So, if at the developing age, a child is kept updated about the current events, he will automatically develop interest in it and therefore, when he grows up, he will then still try to keep himself updated of the current affairs.So the main point is that the syllabus needs to be updated according to the need of the hour. Traditional method of teaching should be foregone. New subject and methods to teach are to be introduce which make the student skillful and not aim at scoring well in examinations.

SOLUTION METHODOLOGYAnother thing is that as subjects, the basic subjects that a child is taught are science and mathematics, with some of basic social sciences. After 10th he is expected to choose subjects from science (math and biology), commerce and humanities. When a child has no idea of what other subjects are except science that he has been actually taught till 10th standard, how is he expected to choose his area of interest amongst the three, of which he has knowledge of only one. The point is that, by making him study science throughout till his 10th grade, his thinking, interest and aim is narrowed and delimited to science and mathematics only and therefore, the two major choices most children have is to become either an engineer or a doctor. An overview of other occupational specialization should be given to them so that they can have a wider scope to choose between subjects and determine their area of interest with the knowledge of that particular subject. For example, basic law of the land can be introduced to student to develop their interest towards law. Being a law aspirant, in my 11th and 12th grade I had no specific subject to be chosen for this career. At the end of 12th, I realized that what I had studied may have theoretically added knowledge to my mind, but was practically of no use. So in this case, when all the classmates, who aspire to become doctors and engineers, find classrooms the most interesting place is, for a law student, just a place to be present for passing the minimum attendance requirement.

Another reform that is to be needed is in examination of 12th grade. There can be two things done. Either there can be two type of result, pass and fail. Or there should be entrance examinations in all the universities and colleges. The major problem is when a person even after trying at the fullest of his capabilities score 50%actually fails. Even after being very happy to score 50%, he has to face the trauma of not getting admission in any of the university. So even when his score sheet says pass he ironically fails to even apply for the university he wishes to go to because most of the universities dont give examinations to those scoring 50% or less. He then tries to re- appear in his 12th only to realize that he cant do any better. Instead, there should be either pass or fail category. Where in a person who fails is at least mentally prepared to re appear and then works harder and harder to pass. So all the students passing can at least apply for the colleges they wish to go for. The present condition is that firstly score above 50% in boards (which is 80% in most reputed universities) and then apply for entrance tests. Instead there should be only one criterion either boards marks, which is pass or fail, or entrance test that should have no relation with the board marks. Because a person may do exceptionally good in entrance test if it is of his interest and may not score that well in boards. Another important thing that is seen is the lack of capable teachers. A very important thing for becoming a teacher is that he should be able to convey his knowledge. A person may be very intelligent otherwise, but every intelligent person may not be a good teacher. Good communicating skills are required to be a good teacher. What we see these days is a student of even 5th grades going to tuitions because of the simple reason that the teacher at school is not interactive enough to make him understand the subject. The existence of tuition centers refutes the whole idea of having schools. When there actually arises a need to go to tuition centers, why do parents spend so much to send a child to school? Instead there should be proper training for teachers communication and interaction skills so that they can at least convey to the students what they try to teach. Course should be Qualitative not Quantitative.

ONE NATION ONE INSTITUTIONOne education board should be there that has proper evaluation system and gives equal importance to both practical and theoretical learning. Too many certification institutions with their own curriculum and procedural functioning have led to a state of chaos and confusion and due to this a proxy war has ensued between them for their ideologies. If government opens new schools/colleges providing quality education through same syllabus throughout the country, I think it will open doors towards higher education in a way that students from backward states and those belonging to poor families can avail quality education in the country's best institutions.The general education system is focused only on examinations rather than training students for the future and really testing their knowledge. Because of this, students are forced to take tests that show only their retention powers, not their actual capacity or knowledge. So, engineers today cannot do actual work in technology. Students are more oriented towards professionalism and they take examinations for the same rather than to gain knowledge, or do research in the subject. In our colleges, we have infrastructure and good faculty, but there is no motivation to do research. Even in the field of medicine, no one is motivated to do research because everyone wants to score good by mugging up as this is the only criteria recruiters follow to recruit.

Suggestive MeasuresTrue that educational pattern in India needs reformation. India reforming its education will become developed from developing. The steps that should be undertaken are: Despite having the desire and skills, thousands of students in the country are not able to pursue education. Only 50 per cent of the students in the country have access to proper education. This situation should change and be assured by the government. Practical knowledge should be given, to make the subjects more interesting and bring in implementation of the rote theoretical knowledge. More curricular activities like sports, public speaking etc. should be made compulsory in schools. Introduction and overview of commerce, law, architect and other professional subjects should be done so as to broaden and widen the scope and let the student discover his area of interest from the variety of subjects. Basic mannerism in primary schools should be introduced. The main aim should be that children be made skillful for subjects and not merely scoring good marks. Teachers should be made interactive and communicable.

CONCLUSIONAccording to a global survey conducted in 74 countries, India was ranked 73rd in terms of quality of education, while China got the top spot. We need to do more to improve the quality of our school education. Thus, it is high time that we take certain steps immediately so that not only the level of education is increased which will enhance an individuals knowledge but also it will in turn lead to the up liftman of the country that we really need and certainly India will become one of the best in terms of education and soon it will be a developed nation. Hence, it can be rightly said that Indian Education System Needs Serious Reforms. The society need to change its maximum marks mentality and encourage the children to go ahead in other fields also.The last and the foremost important thing is that the Central and State governments should work towards making the higher education accessible to all. Even after being able to afford and being capable enough to score good marks, in many areas, there is no existence of schools, let apart the infrastructure facilities. The assurance to open up schools in the rural areas is the first need of the hour. Now it depends upon the government as to how it interprets the real problem and how fast the reply comes on the face of it.