Indian education system – still a long way to go

While the problems in the current educational system in India are one too many, the five most important ones can be ascribed to lack of resources, imbalanced focus on the language issue, political interference and neglect of practice experience, undue pressure on students, and diluting the position of teachers. Every education system brings its advantages and disadvantages. No matter how advanced the country is in terms of technology, learning material, or the quality of schooling, there can always be some obstacles on the road. India is no exception.

One of the most important things that affect the work and progress of educational systems is the economic status of the country. Even though the Indian economy is currently the fifth biggest in the world, India's population of over 1.2 billion makes it a stupendous task to do justice to the education sector. With such a huge population to cover dozens of priorities, lack of resources for the education system is kind of expected. This results in a lack of fundamental things for the students across the country. Because of this, students get short of appropriate learning material, school libraries are rarely present, and schools are missing the latest equipment for scientific projects. The controversy arising out of medium of instruction i.e. English versus the native languages also disturbs smooth functioning of the education system. On top of that, when the ruling dispensations embark upon policies to spread their political ideologies through text books, useful knowledge in the classroom takes a backseat. Something characteristic of Indian educational institutions is the neglect of the practical experiences. Studies are mostly focussed on providing students with theoretical knowledge which affects their ability to use the knowledge they gained in the applied fields.

The learning process, as well as the entire period through school and college, is often stressful for the Indian student. Indian educators often go over the line with the curriculum and put the students under pressure that they can't handle. The quality of available teachers also affects the Indian education system. Other than that, teachers are additionally troubled with a non-scholarly responsibility that veers their concentration away from instruction.

The Indian Parliament enacted the Right to Education Act 2009 for free and compulsory education for children between the ages of 6 and 14. The Act makes education a fundamental right for every child, requiring even all private schools to reserve 25 percent of their seats for poor children. 12 years after that, in August 2021, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan announced that at least 15 crore Indian children are still out of school. He reiterated that the Central Government wants to bring them into the formal education system. He let the country know that the Government has now combined the education and skill development departments, creating a new approach for leading a productive life and earning a decent livelihood. Let us hope that it starts showing results soon. Education is often referred to as the great equaliser: it can open the door to jobs, resources, and skills that help a person not only survive, but thrive. This is why access to quality education is a globally recognised solution to poverty. This is true for India as also for the rest of the world. Hoping against all hopes, this country can surely make it much better in the future.

The writer, Nurul Islam Laskar, is a motivational speaker and public relations consultant. He can be reached at nurul.laskar@gmail.com.