Sunday, September 9, 2012

Banality of teaching

We request students who have an aggregate of 68 or below, not to attend our campus recruitment processes.
91.3… 97.5….75…. What happened in B.Tech ?
Why did you choose to be an Engineer ?

Now that the phenomenal “Campus recruitment Season” started in my college, I started experiencing different modes of mindsets – recruiters and the budding engineers. (That’s what they call us, can’t you see, we ain’t budding !). These instances took me through my beautifully decorated hall called Academic life’ where there were quite a good number of dusty windows called ‘examinations, through which my creativity and innovation might have escaped some day. That’s how I see myself and many other such souls amongst us.

Education – this is the term I would suggest anyone to end any misery – directly or whatsoever. But, I failed to realize that the mere definition in our system for it is different. It’s somewhere far away from our imagination, and most importantly, our sensibility.

Stupid Numbers
Grades, CGPA’s and marks - created a vacuum in both quantity and quality of confident and charismatic youth coming outside and henceforth, revamping the very masquerade of an ‘EDUCATIONALIST. In the earlier days, if you had boasted among your friends that you are a topper, a stoic shrug is what you could have been answered with. But now, THAT tag – be it IIT, IIM or a Gold medalist, is making that geek loftier than the rest. Even that is okay, why are the rest looked down? Education – is it a tiny marble to be locked and stored in a pouch of numbers? Or was Einstein / Feyman a topper ?

Institutions – brand and nothing else
I know there are institutions whose methodology towards teaching is different and humanely innovative. That’s not my concern is about. The rest 100000 of them survive because of the BRAND. It’s a toxic jelly I tell you, we are the prime victims of it. They offer direct and disguised pressure that imbibes all the confidence one can manage to keep at his heart. How many of our Indian institutions exactly adopt when they mean – “World class facilities at research and the all-round development of the student”? Countable with fingers, or even fewer.

Engineering/Medicine. No? Err…
It’s evident that the world isn’t under the mercy of them. You will be successful, beta. Engineering assures you of a bright future. Understand, it’s going to be great. Thank god, this bug ain’t passing from parent generation to its progeny. Where did the liberal arts, humanities and the rest of the awesome studies go? Can’t we just see them? May be they failed to impress us as they can’t draw a 6 digit pay check. Lets fill this gap, else, as in most of the keyboards – delete button is next to pause.

Where do we begin then?

With innovative syllabi and re-framed textbooks – please erase those methods adopted by primitive man. Let’s look at the future, how long can we keep adulating our freedom heroes and past victories. Time for us to crusade against the problems we confront now and learn the latest technologies. Efface all the ignorant notions and let every art and skill of human prevail, not being curtailed by anything.
Giving back “Teaching” that noble place it had earlier. At least a few organizations are striving for it. Relieved. Tune the mindsets that have been accustomed to the traditional means of living. After all, life is not divided into semesters of relative grading. Step out of that mob appreciation. Because its only then education can finally say

And, yes ! I am the bosom that will shelter you.