|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Way Beyond the Three
R’s
After India got freedom, our focus was on restricting entry to education, as it was thought that our economy can’t support jobs for all. However, there has been a complete shift in the social, economic and demographic situations prevailing in the present times. Now, we cannot afford to keep our youth out of the educational arena. The author makes an attempt to chart out a road map for how 40 per cent of our children can be equipped with relevant higher education and the rest with literary and basic skills. After giving a brief glimpse of the glorious past of Indian civilisation where the author highlights that the ways of Indian education are unique and should not be replaced by the Western system, he gives a crisp account of the present education system complete with clean tables, detailed figures and understandable statistics. Ultimately, he arrives at a scenario which is likely to emerge in future. Here, he recommends a nine-point system that, in his opinion, can bring in the desired change. Along with this, he also outlines the steps of implementation of his proposed system. He provides answers to posers and gives suggestions to tackle the issues that can be raised in this context and thus provides a well-supported argument. Gradually, he goes on to discuss other specific and significant issues such as how to nurture the more creative and imaginative children and also the education and skill needs for those who constitute the bulk of the base of the pyramid. There are discussions on a multipronged approach to produce Indians who will becomes world leaders, teaching of foreign and Indian languages, education of children of migrant labours, soft skills training, and funding and governance to make education truly inclusive. The author rightly points out that it is not the lack of funds, policies, infrastructure or manpower which are the reasons for our lagging behind but the rigid, obsolete and moribund mindsets that need a total reorientation to overhaul the present inefficient system. He spells out these archaic mindsets that hindering our progress in five clear statements which are very apt and merit serious thought and contemplation on part of the stakeholders. The author does not shy away from mentioning the retarding role of the petty politics played in our institutions, which puts a spanner to the progress. Though the book refers to a few research studies, these do not burden the style which is light, down-to-earth and practical. The book has been kept short and brevity is the beauty of its arguments. The author does not spend a single irrelevant word to explain his ideas. This sharpens the case. The easy flow helps the reader in getting a quick grasp of the argument. These qualities make it highly readable for the academia, policy makers and executives. In short, the book is one such presentation which are being routinely made in the last few years by the luminaries of present-day India — corporate and business leaders, professionals and experts who are giving fresh and innovative ideas to make India live up to the image of "India shining". Y.S. Rajan is a well-known name in Indian space research. We also know of his stint as the Vice-Chancellor of Punjab Technical University few years ago and we have read his earlier books coauthored with the former Indian President APJ Abdul Kalam. There is no doubt that the book lives up to the expectations that we have from Rajan. We may or may not agree with all the recommendations made by him, but the lament will surely remain as to who will clean the Aegean stables and clear the accumulated rot of the last six decades?
|
THE
recent fiasco of question paper leakage of the All-India Engineering
Entrance Examination (AIEEE) has brought to the fore unbridgeable
fissures in the education system that we have created for ourselves and
our future generations. The mad rush to get into some kind of
professional educational, the vast networking of tuitions and coaching,
the unemployable graduates are only tip of the iceberg. In fact, our
real challenge is to tackle the 85 per cent young population of which
remains out of the education system. Author Y. S. Rajan, through this
book, the forward of which is written by APJ Abdul Kalam, strikes on the
basic, simple and obvious logic that every child empowered with
education and skills is an asset to the country and if not done so,
becomes a burdensome liability for the society and the economy.