Education is a fire to be lit,
Not a vessel to be filled!
When I say the word coaching, I mean the educational extra classes or tuitions as they are popularly known as. These coaching classes are now found in almost every corner of the country just like those chat stalls. It’s the latest fashion trend in India. Parents don’t fail to ensure that their child must attend tuition after school; that is if the child is lucky enough to be spared by just one class. After all it isn’t surprising to find out that a child attends separate tuitions for each subject. Be it a KG child or a PG student, tuitions are a must. In such a scenario, just conceiving a picture of our country without coaching seems a Herculean task, doesn’t it? It’s difficult for me too. But I have got this mad craze of sharpening my imagination sword. So here I go; daring a humble try to create a picture which I’m sure shall prove to be a nightmare for honourable businessmen who love to “invest” in education.
Let’s follow a 10 year old kid who studies in class fifth. He comes home after school, has enough time to finish his homework and then play with his friends or plan other activities. He doesn’t have to run home, throw his bag, grab his lunch and pick up his other bag and run a race. Tuitions don’t follow the school’s method of teaching. They lack discussions and debates; all they do is spoon feeding the child, not allowing him to think and imagine. The child will now be more attentive in his school class. It’s not unknown that a child pays less attention in school because his mind knows that tuitions will cover everything. It also seems that a school teacher having a class full of students going tuitions is painfully aware that most of his students aren’t interested in his teaching. The rote-learning way of tuition proves to be a hazard, the tones of homework becomes a nightmare.
Other groups of extra classes are those who claim that nobody can crack competitive examinations without their coaching. Like priests who carry one ‘mantras’ to remove ‘kundli-dosh’, these renowned coaching guard secret exam mantras without which a student can’t even dream of clearing the ‘exam-dosh’. But unlike the mantras of priests, these exam mantras are available only at high prices. “Aakashian” and “Allenonian” have become a religion. You will have to take a dip in their holy river to get through the great sin of thinking to crack the NEET or JEE exam. Only a Rahul study circle can make you an IAS officer. Even the smartest child of the school is found to be attending extra classes. Why? Because his parents don’t trust him or because he doubts his own abilities? Let’s follow a student of a class 12th preparing for JEE in an alternate universe. He uses his own brains to learn and understand new concepts and shall interact with his college teacher, or visit a library; or the best, form study groups with his peers. He won’t be paying huge amounts in coaching institutes. No doubt he shall face troubles; he may find concepts difficult to understand without being taught but after all, self-study has been proven to be the best way of studying. Moreover the sense of victory he shall feel when he cracks the entrance exam on his own is something to be described beyond words! He shall gain self-confidence and a feeling of independence.
The above picture may not be convincing to many students. Parents too might not be satisfied, saying that there are few students who need extra attention, who need to be taught. But are the coaching institutes perfectly successful in that? I beg to differ! After all now-a-days tuitions are equally crowded as the schools are. Of course, in today’s ever-changing world where we believe in ‘collaborate rather than compete’, a collaborative way of study is beneficial. Be collaborative, not spoon-fed! Form learning communities, because in the self-learning process, a learner is also a teacher, so be the one to share, because as our scriptures say; everything, including knowledge increases by sharing! Parents and teachers need to understand the importance of self-study and must inculcate this method in their children right from their childhood. One of the major advantages of self-study is that students can take control over their own learning; and when students have control, they become even more interested in learning. Exploring a topic on his or her own encourages your child to actively engage with the information. Self-studiers think more deeply, make connecting maps and engage their minds in finding more and more, till they satisfy their never-ending curiosity! The feeling of independence and the confidence that they can learn on their own proves to be a motivation booster. Besides students can learn at their own pace, thus reducing feelings of frustration, anxiety or boredom.
Of course to get the above beautiful vision as a reality much ground work needs to be done. Schools need to be improved, the teacher student ratio should be increased so that parents don’t feel the need to get another teacher. Students need to realise the importance of self-study and self-dependence. Besides we need to change the age-old view that education is nothing but marks. This is a farce. The projects have become a mechanical process of copy and paste from the internet. In fact, we find project-sellers to students in some cities. So what’s the use if the very purpose of learning is defeated? We need to get our children out of the rat-race. Those in business are the winners and we, the society, the losers. We lose our children to a system that promotes rote-learning and spoon-feeding. As far as known, the New Education Policy seems a ray of hope, but it’s our duty to sow a seed to get nourished by the ray; the seed of a high self-esteem to become a self-learner and collaborate. We must come out of this rat-race which has a dead end. We need learners, not muggers! It’s high time that this coaching business comes to a dead-end forever.
-Varsha H. Kushwaha
