There she sat , a red rose, in a garden well-kept. She stood up, her ear-ring dotted with teddy bear faces dangling from side to side as she walked with her beloved barbie doll in her pocket. She kept her Cursive Writing note on the desk stealing shy glances at her teacher.Her rose cheeks turned to a lighter shade of red as she blushed, aware of the dozens of tiny eyes staring at her...And there!! Her teacher rewarded her work with a 10 on 10 and a star with a smiley face.YES! Her day was done!!
Don't we all miss those days when we had studied for the fun of it. Didn't we all sit in anticipation to know what the new lesson was going to be? How many of us sit with the same amazement twinkling in our eyes today?!
Long gone are those days when we studied formulae to shout them at the top of our voices with peers. Long gone are those days when a "good work" from our teacher and a smile on our mother's face were all that were needed to boost us to learn the day's lessons.Now the goals are different. What we want is a good score..We are hungry..for MARKS!
The focus has shifted from "testing your knowledge" to "knowing your score"."BY HOOK OR CROOK" has become the success mantra of many a student. They cheat and bribe to get a good score. HUH! All this for mere figures on paper!!Do you think these scores are the only criteria to measure your caliber?
So why this unsatiated hunger for marks? Where gone are those more intimate feelings of passion and love that once led human race to their goals?
The euphoric world of software engineers and hap-tic programmers with heavy paychecks rule our dreams today. 12 years in school, another 5 or 6 in a professional college.... There you come out with a diploma and a job in hand.All Thanks to campus selection! And of the UNFORTUNATE FEW who because of their LOW GPA , couldn't land themselves in some corporate office, the less said the better..Generation after generation of the student populace fall in line and follow what seems to be a routine of BOARD EXAMS , ENTRANCES and INTERVIEWS. Schools are happy enough to breed IITians and Civil servants.Anything less than that is TRASH and Anyone who ain't a TOPPER is a goner. It seems they are quite intent that no artist, musician , dancer or a story teller should ever find their place in the ALUMNI MEET.
International schools and Professional colleges are sprouting like weeds around every corner. They have something called CURRICULUM , resembling a ready-made shirt,which is supposed to fit each one of the student populace who dares walk through the gates . There is no room for alterations . Anybody who doesn't fit in, is shooed away with "HOPELESS" stamped in shouty caps on their forehead.To those who fit in, promises of a better position and secure careers are made.I just wonder ,' landing yourselves a job ', should that be the motto of our EDUCATION SYSTEM ? Should that be the dream with which you toil day and night ,spending sleepless hours at home and tuition centers?
Look around you.. There are a lot of fellows with a B.A, M.D or Ph.D. Unfortunately many of them do not have a J.O.B.Of all the people who have a J.O.B, very few have their eyes twinkling with satisfaction. And of the few blessed with satisfaction from what they do, very few have got B.A or Ph.D. What more evidence do we need? The promises of each new REVISION and EDITION made to our curriculum have not been kept.
So what you need is not a good score. These scores do not reflect anything other than the fact that you excel at the art of vomiting what is spoon-fed to you. So study not for the marks you may get, but for the knowledge you are sure to attain.For marks will take you to the road where everything is glitz and glamour.. whereas THE RIGHT KNOWLEDGE OF WHAT YOU LOVE will lead you to the road where bliss and contentment rules !
Take a minute to detach yourself from the world of cut-throat competition.Now ask yourself the one question that matters "IS THIS WHAT I NEED IN LIFE?" If the answer is a definite NO ,spare no time my friend. It's time for a deep introspection.
Don't we all miss those days when we had studied for the fun of it. Didn't we all sit in anticipation to know what the new lesson was going to be? How many of us sit with the same amazement twinkling in our eyes today?!
Long gone are those days when we studied formulae to shout them at the top of our voices with peers. Long gone are those days when a "good work" from our teacher and a smile on our mother's face were all that were needed to boost us to learn the day's lessons.Now the goals are different. What we want is a good score..We are hungry..for MARKS!
The focus has shifted from "testing your knowledge" to "knowing your score"."BY HOOK OR CROOK" has become the success mantra of many a student. They cheat and bribe to get a good score. HUH! All this for mere figures on paper!!Do you think these scores are the only criteria to measure your caliber?
So why this unsatiated hunger for marks? Where gone are those more intimate feelings of passion and love that once led human race to their goals?
The euphoric world of software engineers and hap-tic programmers with heavy paychecks rule our dreams today. 12 years in school, another 5 or 6 in a professional college.... There you come out with a diploma and a job in hand.All Thanks to campus selection! And of the UNFORTUNATE FEW who because of their LOW GPA , couldn't land themselves in some corporate office, the less said the better..Generation after generation of the student populace fall in line and follow what seems to be a routine of BOARD EXAMS , ENTRANCES and INTERVIEWS. Schools are happy enough to breed IITians and Civil servants.Anything less than that is TRASH and Anyone who ain't a TOPPER is a goner. It seems they are quite intent that no artist, musician , dancer or a story teller should ever find their place in the ALUMNI MEET.
International schools and Professional colleges are sprouting like weeds around every corner. They have something called CURRICULUM , resembling a ready-made shirt,which is supposed to fit each one of the student populace who dares walk through the gates . There is no room for alterations . Anybody who doesn't fit in, is shooed away with "HOPELESS" stamped in shouty caps on their forehead.To those who fit in, promises of a better position and secure careers are made.I just wonder ,' landing yourselves a job ', should that be the motto of our EDUCATION SYSTEM ? Should that be the dream with which you toil day and night ,spending sleepless hours at home and tuition centers?
Look around you.. There are a lot of fellows with a B.A, M.D or Ph.D. Unfortunately many of them do not have a J.O.B.Of all the people who have a J.O.B, very few have their eyes twinkling with satisfaction. And of the few blessed with satisfaction from what they do, very few have got B.A or Ph.D. What more evidence do we need? The promises of each new REVISION and EDITION made to our curriculum have not been kept.
So what you need is not a good score. These scores do not reflect anything other than the fact that you excel at the art of vomiting what is spoon-fed to you. So study not for the marks you may get, but for the knowledge you are sure to attain.For marks will take you to the road where everything is glitz and glamour.. whereas THE RIGHT KNOWLEDGE OF WHAT YOU LOVE will lead you to the road where bliss and contentment rules !
Take a minute to detach yourself from the world of cut-throat competition.Now ask yourself the one question that matters "IS THIS WHAT I NEED IN LIFE?" If the answer is a definite NO ,spare no time my friend. It's time for a deep introspection.
Just read your blog and I couldn't keep myself from commenting on it. This is just wonderful Aparna.. :) It is true that "Pen is mightier than sword"
ReplyDeleteWell!Tthe cut-throat competition for better GPA's has remoulded the focus of academia! Very recently I happened to read an interview on a chap who had cracked one of the toughest competitive exams in India and his initial comment was "I AM RELIEVED..NO MORE STUDYING NOW!" . This had me wondering... what exactly is the point of education??...getting good scores or savouring the taste of something you love
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