When I was small, a school was considered a divine institution next only to temples, we almost worshiped our gurus and grasped all that they taught with all our hearts and mind. Those values have remained with us till the present day and scores of years later, if we come come across them somewhere even on social media today, our heads still bow down in gratitude to them. We have been under their guidance for years and they have an undeniable contribution to what we have shaped up into, in our lives. Our parents have taught us ’Guru Devoh Bhavah’ meaning place your teachers next to God. This was the reason back then, teaching despite not very well paying, was considered the most noble profession and had the greatest satisfaction index.
But unfortunately in the past three decades, this has completely changed. It is heart-wrenching that today most schools maintain seller customer relationship with the parents of the kids enrolled in the school. That divine feeling is gradually vanishing. Even if there is a great vision and mission at the top, there is no means to ensure that it is adequately cascaded down to the root level with teachers attrition the highest among all. A profound leadership at top can in no way stop a teacher from leaving if her husband is transferred to another city. Plus the opening of innumerable schools at every nook and corner have increased opportunities for them to grow and prosper but does that justify frequent job shifts? Well all of us do it in our jobs right so why won’t they but all this leaves we parents in a soup who have entrusted the little piece of their hearts to the school with so much faith and trust.
As an educationist myself, I have visited innumerable schools in the past few years and while I was impressed by the global education model they sold to me in almost all of them, on the more practical level I still find them incapable of implementing them impeccably or even to a decent level at the root level. I believe there still are some fundamental misses in the way education is imparted in India despite the foray of many international schools as well global curriculums here.
Of course things are changing for good and kids are now taught what kids globally learn at least in some schools but it is being done by the same teachers swapping their jobs every three months. How does the school ensure their training part of the teachers when they themselves fail to find a replacement at the first place. Results are kids don’t have a particular subject teacher for months. This horrifies the parents and when the bridge of their patience collapses they change their kid’s school to another one which looks more promising. But is the tale going to be different there? Unfortunately no. We are all caught in the same vicious trap.
The commercialisation of Education in India has not only burnt a deep hole in the parents’ pocket but also has stolen the peace of their minds. Parents on the other hand are getting caught in the mad race of comparing their kids with the peers and changing schools because the herd is moving in a particular direction. Both these extremes are detrimental. Every kid is unique and has his set of strengths and weaknesses, accept them the way they are and give them what is suitable for them.
With each passing day I am getting to meet more and more parents who are adopting home schooling for their kids and confidently and merrily so. While I still have my belief in the institution called school but don’t know for how long. Somehow, I believe it it vital to a kid’s social growth at every age.
You have been extremely lucky if you have found a reasonable school for your little ones, congratulations, you are one of the chosen few but sadly quite a big chunk still remains hit by the above epidemic.
While the school should ensure good education and extracurricular imparted to them by respectfully retained and trained teachers, the parents should also be patient with the teachers and school to let them enrich your little ones. That’s the least I can say at the moment and pray that the soup the Indian education system currently is in, get sorted soon. We can’t sabotage the future of our nation.
If you like what I write, you can grab the copies of my four published books here: The Fragrance of True Love, Destiny's Favorite Child, Dare to Defy The Destiny and Empowered Women Empower Women
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