It is a globally acknowledged fact that at one point of time in the ancient time, India used to be the global hub for educational excellence. It proudly boasted of being the land of world renowned universities like Nalanda, Taxila, Vikramshila and many more. They were probably the first of their kind institutions the world had ever seen. The education system was equally commendable with ample opportunities for students for the development of knowledge and skill. But sadly, those golden days of yesteryears are gone into oblivion.
Impact of the advent of the British rule
Till the advent of the British rule in India, the education system was majorly still based on the ancient system. But with increased British influence on the Indian culture, the system of education took a sharp and radical turn. In the long run, history will prove this change to be so detrimental on the Indian education system that it will turn out to be suicidal in the later periods. As a matter of fact, the British were involved and interested only in the act of developing a stronger colonial rule on India. The prime objective of the British was to induct more and more government officials into the ruling system to ensure proper management of the colony. This made the British to customize the Indian education system and transform it into a machine of sorts that generates good quality government employees.
Further effects of the British education model
The students were trained with rote learning methods rather than educating them with knowledge and innovation based techniques. The result that ensued was a bunch of people who were experts in performing monotonous official duties. They were much below par in innovation and knowledge. This system got more degraded with time and evolved into a paradox where education means rote learning without knowledge and intelligent applications or innovations.
The presently existent education system
The current scenario of the education system in India is so pathetic that people ridicule it as an ‘exam system’ rather than a ‘knowledge system’. Instead of housing a humongous number of institutions where billions of students are enrolled to shape their careers, the practical number of employable youth of the nation is so pathetic that only as much as a third of the graduated students are practically employable on viable terms. The scope for innovation and original creativity are a thing of the past. The saddest part of the story lies in the fact that still a large part of the nation’s population still live s below the poverty level. This has made the availability of proper education a distant dream for them owing to the high costs for education in India.
Future prospects
The nation wants the situation to improve. The government as well as the people must be aware that education is not all about marks. Education is not simple a means to make a career and earn money. We must understand that education is all about knowledge, innovation, original thinking and creativity. The belief should be propagated that rote learning is not the answer to education but knowledge is. If the youth of the nation is not educated properly, it is feared whether India will be able to sustain its dynamic growth in the future that exists in the current times.
Tags:
British Rule In India
Government Employees
Indian Culture
Learning
Knowledge
Growth
