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Education reforms - do they work as intended?
A few days ago there was a news item about scrapping Xth board exams or making them optional. Last year there was a ruling directing schools to compulsorily accept into class XIth, students completing class Xth in that school.
Both these ideas put forward by the education ministry are aimed at benefiting the students and their parents and need to be applauded.
The 10+2+3 system which was started in the 70s too was aimed at making further education such that each and every child need not run after the professional courses but could take vocational training more suitable to his/her temperament. A very good idea that has got derailed over the years. Instead of easing the making of life choices for those who are not suited for professional courses, it just added one more torturous step in their quest to become capable of earning a livelihood.
The directive that all students passing Xth board from a school are entitled to continue in the same school will also go the same route. Not because the idea is wrong but because the school managements are experts at finding loopholes in all such directives. In this case, the expedient way would be to refuse the child admission in the stream of his choice. A child heading for an engineering or medical field offered a seat in commerce because he did not score 90% in the Xth board would have no choice but to move to another school. So another good move derailed because of a few missing words in the directive - 'stream of his choice'.
Board exam at the class Xth level were introduced to separate the students into technical and non-technical batches to facilitate easy entry into the area best suited for them. Since this objective is not being served at all - rather it is being used to push out every one but the cream of the cream from the 'good' schools, Kapil Sibbal's idea has merit. But will it achieve the goal? A delegation from Karnataka is supposed to head for New Delhi to protest against this move. Why? What is the Xth board exam achieving right now?
One thing is indisputable - if the Xth board exam is scrapped, a lot of schools will lose out on the exhorbitant admission fees (read - donation) which they charge apart from the regular tuition fee. The admission fee also called non-refundable deposit by some schools can be Rs. 50,000 or Rs. 1,00,000 and on paper the tuition fee remains a 'paltry' Rs. 35,000.
The fact that this admission fee is only accepted as cash and the tuition fee by check will clear any doubts that might exist in the minds of those kindly souls who prefer not to believe bad about anyone unless given ample proof.
A very simple, but difficult to implement solution, is good neighbourhood schools providing standard education. Remove the disparity in the quality of education provided in different schools and the hegemony of the 'good' schools is broken.
Once that is gone the board exam at the class Xth level can become what it should always have been - a foretaste for the students of what the big one in class XII is going to be. A practice run so to speak.
We seem to be tall on intentions but short on implementation where educational reforms are concerned. Compulsory, quality education made available without torturous commute for children is the need of the day - not an easy task in a country of this size or population.
What we need is a revolution - adding noble purpose to the business that education has become today.
Both these ideas put forward by the education ministry are aimed at benefiting the students and their parents and need to be applauded.
The 10+2+3 system which was started in the 70s too was aimed at making further education such that each and every child need not run after the professional courses but could take vocational training more suitable to his/her temperament. A very good idea that has got derailed over the years. Instead of easing the making of life choices for those who are not suited for professional courses, it just added one more torturous step in their quest to become capable of earning a livelihood.
The directive that all students passing Xth board from a school are entitled to continue in the same school will also go the same route. Not because the idea is wrong but because the school managements are experts at finding loopholes in all such directives. In this case, the expedient way would be to refuse the child admission in the stream of his choice. A child heading for an engineering or medical field offered a seat in commerce because he did not score 90% in the Xth board would have no choice but to move to another school. So another good move derailed because of a few missing words in the directive - 'stream of his choice'.
Board exam at the class Xth level were introduced to separate the students into technical and non-technical batches to facilitate easy entry into the area best suited for them. Since this objective is not being served at all - rather it is being used to push out every one but the cream of the cream from the 'good' schools, Kapil Sibbal's idea has merit. But will it achieve the goal? A delegation from Karnataka is supposed to head for New Delhi to protest against this move. Why? What is the Xth board exam achieving right now?
One thing is indisputable - if the Xth board exam is scrapped, a lot of schools will lose out on the exhorbitant admission fees (read - donation) which they charge apart from the regular tuition fee. The admission fee also called non-refundable deposit by some schools can be Rs. 50,000 or Rs. 1,00,000 and on paper the tuition fee remains a 'paltry' Rs. 35,000.
The fact that this admission fee is only accepted as cash and the tuition fee by check will clear any doubts that might exist in the minds of those kindly souls who prefer not to believe bad about anyone unless given ample proof.
A very simple, but difficult to implement solution, is good neighbourhood schools providing standard education. Remove the disparity in the quality of education provided in different schools and the hegemony of the 'good' schools is broken.
Once that is gone the board exam at the class Xth level can become what it should always have been - a foretaste for the students of what the big one in class XII is going to be. A practice run so to speak.
We seem to be tall on intentions but short on implementation where educational reforms are concerned. Compulsory, quality education made available without torturous commute for children is the need of the day - not an easy task in a country of this size or population.
What we need is a revolution - adding noble purpose to the business that education has become today.
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