World is doing fine, you are doing fine ! – How can education system be a failure ?

Quite often supporters of deschooling, opponents of schooling or anyone who critiques current education system is asked one very logical sounding question – “ You are yourself a product of schooling and you are able to critique and do whatever you are doing because you were educated in the same old system, how can you say that it is a failure ? Are you not a walking evidence of success of our education system ?”



Another much broader, related question is – “The world is doing fine, GDPs are improving, poverty is reducing, many countries are doing much better, quality of life is improving, great R&D and scientific development is taking place, technology is empowering mankind like never before, lot of people are even talking about saving earth and protecting environment. Does that not mean our current education system is doing a fantastic job?”

Yet another argument in support of this view is –“Many great leaders have been produced by great institutes and good schools which belong to the old system. How can you say schools are still a failure or needs an alternative solution?”

 

I’ve personally heard it many times as well and I think these are really very apt and valid questions which must be addressed. Hence, I thought that thinking on these questions and sharing my perspective would make a useful post for this blog.

Let me share my view through a simple analogy. Suppose you are to travel from African jungles to Himalayas and you do manage to complete the journey from a particular path which posed lot of threats to life, you loose one of your leg and a part of your brain but still somehow manage to reach. Hence, upon reaching Himalayas you share your view with other folks who have come from the same way that – “This way seems to be way too life threatening, I am sure there can be a better alternative way.”

Then you go on to share your views and ideas on how you can avoid the major pitfalls and find a better new way. At this point someone comes and tells you –“Stop criticizing the path you’ve come here. We have all come through the same path, you are here only because of the path you followed. How ridiculous to criticize the same path? How dare you even talk about some silly alternatives?”

You try to explain them, “But can’t you see we all have lost half of our brain and a leg ?” To which you are told, “ Ah ! how does it even matter. We are all same. We can still do with whatever we are. Can’t you see we are all still happy and still doing just fine ?”

Education as we know it and schooling has taken away a lot more than a leg or half brain. It has taken away entire ability to create, to question and reduced most of us to mediocre citizens. No doubt, we are all product of same system that we are rebuking but it can’t be denied that if only our education supported our holistic development, focused on our individual requirements, nurtured our creativity and originality – our lives, our worlds would have been quite something else. Most likely, better.

Secondly, the credit of whatever few thing going right or whatever few leaders being produced cannot be given to education system. It is not the education system that made these leaders, it is these leaders who managed to survive the odds in our education system, they took the best out of it and emerged as winners. Unfortunately, except very few most of the products of our education system are substandard.

 Our education system has produced a superficial man instead of deep thinkers, cribbers instead of rebels, dumb minds instead of creative minds, mechanical labors instead of compassionate human beings, materialist society instead of joyful communities, followers instead of leaders.

We need an alternative model if we are to bring some fundamental changes in the world and in the way we live. If GDPs, few celebrations of pseudo developments and satisfying skewed reports are all we value than of course let us stick with the education system we have.

Human spirit is unformidable. Human mind has shown their brilliance in extremely tough situations – it’ll survive and even flourish in whatever crappy system we provide it. However the question is – why are we sending our child to schools or why are we getting educated ? Is it to struggle through it to come out alive or is it because we want our lives to be better than what it could be otherwise?

Alternative Education : A solution for selected few ?

I visited some slums and the schools near them. They are in small dilapidated buildings, with few ill equipped unskilled teachers. Some of them do not even have proper toilets or drinking water facility. Most of them have no laboratories. Students usually sit on floor without mats, use one notebook for all subjects for the entire year. These students belong to poor families. Father of some work as daily wage labor, mother of other works as a maid in someone's house earning hardly enough for their survival. Their living standards are quite low, most of them are malnutritioned and their seems no evidence of light at the end of the tunnel. They don't have access to basic education, forget about quality education and don't even think of any "alternative" education. (at least how we know it)

Lets look at most of the alternative schools around the world. They are expensive and mostly for the elite. With my exposure to both the worlds, I was faced with some very disturbing questions/thoughts like -

1.) Is alternative education only a dream for the elite ?

2.) For the disadvantaged, perhaps the traditional education system which prepares them only for industrial jobs is a better way out.

3.) Is it fair to focus/spend on "alternate education" for some while others struggle for their basic education and survival ?

4.) Can alternative education be made affordable or is it impossible by its very nature  ?

As usual, I've questions but no answers.

From world bank to governments, from NGOs to corporates everyone is busy educating the world. They are massively supporting education for all. Millennium development goals, Free education, Right to Education Act, Teach for India, No Child Left behind etc are just few of many such initiatives.

In India a lot of NGOs are working on education for the poor. Many surveys have shown that "Education and Children" are most supported causes by the donors. Almost every humanitarian billionaire in the world has a foundation working on education. Huge number of volunteers come from developed nations to developing/underdeveloped nation to teach the poor kids. We are all busy trying hard to make sure every single child goes to school, gets educated.

On the other hand, what we have to offer is a failed education system. "Failed" is subjective. You rob a poor child of her creativity, intelligence and love but equip her for a job so that she can earn basic amenities in life, is it still a failure ? Perhaps without this the child would not have even survived.

What is the place of creativity, fun, intelligence, compassion, love and individuality ? Especially when they are pitched against basic survival. Perhaps towards the lower end.

I am disheartened at this sad state of our humanity. I don't see any other practical solution in near future at least except to put these kids into the failure system of education. Yes, their creativity will die, they will end up a photocopy, they'll exploited by the capitalistic giants - but at least they'll be alive and self sustained. Not begging, not depending on government for their lives.

My hope from alternative education is to create leaders, compassionate human beings who might change this sad state of ours. Alternative education could be an agent of radical changes in our world but at the moment it is a solution for the selected few.