Education - Aiding generations
The main purpose of education is creating a human resource ensuring knowledge will be carried forward through generations and hence maintaining its sustainability. Its importance as human existence's basis is accepted in India significantly since ages.
Beginning with guru-shishya parampara and now reaching the heights of distant-learning, we realise the legacy of Indian education's grandeur through Nalanda- Takshashila universities which flourished and made its remarkable impact. Also, scrolling back to pre-independence and independence era of India, we see an awakening created by thinkers and philosophers regarding mass education in society. While Tilak staunchly supporting the concept of 'National Education' and considered it's purpose to till the soil of existing social order and to plant the seeds from which new social orders grow, whereas Mahatma Gandhiji, a promoter of oral education said often, ' The true textbook of student is his teacher'. And so, in the little ashram (Tolstoy Farm) he created in South Africa; he taught his students through his voice, disregarding the need for formal written work.
Despite of having such great educational heritage, after 72 years of Independence, today we have mediocre literacy rate (74.04%), especially female literacy rate (56.08%). Though child education being one of the fundamental rights in our Constitution, when seen in context to implementation - we find lack of efficiency and transparency there. Talking about the recent consideration of reforming National Educational Policy (1968), I personally feel that reforming policies, enacting laws theoretically won't make them absorbed into the grassroot level. One ignores at one's peril the role of educational growth of learners and helping them for paving a way to be responsible citizens.
Once I read - 'India's education system neither consists of education nor system'. I was awestrucked. But still, there are few personalities who concern about prevailing education system, especially those making some efforts about bringing an ideal one into existence. For eg., Renu Dandekar's 'Kanavu', Mrs. Malati's 'Vikasana' - all these institutions weren't only out of the box establishments but also constructed their own way proving to be beacon light. I'd like to mention about 'Tottochan' written by Japanese writer Tetsuko Kuryonagi, wherein her school (Tomoe Gakuen) organised unique activities complementing academics and life lessons. The reason I mentioned these all is because they'd develop children's interest towards school and studies.
Many of us fail to understand that education isn't the 'end' but the 'means' to achieve anything. Hence I feel - today, instead of understanding and formulating its objectives, the real meaning of education has been diverged from its path and so generations to generations are pissed in this cycle. Therefore, it is necessary to cherish the 'individuality' of every child- because classroom, teacher may be same but child sitting on every bench is different. Thus, before creating a human resource, understanding a child is a pre-requisite in any educational system. Ergo, when India's educational system achieves the target from 'Right To Education' to 'Right Education' irrespective to every child, the meaning of education in real sense resides there.