Education in the Modern Globalized World

After the Britishers left India, their British Education system still prevailed in Independent India. From time to time, many modifications have been made in the Education system according to the suggestions given by different Commissions and Committees. But how far these updates have actually been useful at the ground level? In the current scenario, a lot of emphasis is being given to marks. There is cut- throat competition leading to pressures on students to devote their energies and time to secure high marks in Examination. The Education system should be such that there is emphasis on understanding of concepts and not on achieving high marks in examinations. A qualitative shift is needed from emphasis on rote memorization for achievement of marks to the development of full capacity for critical thinking and the ability to learn how to learn. This would prepare the students for life-long learning and would help them in all phases of their lives. We are living in an „ICE‟ Age of Information, Communication and Entertainment. The role of internet in providing this to some extent cannot be denied. But all the information available online does not necessarily enhance our knowledge. Besides, the ready availability of information and ideas is greatly harming the creative thinking of the new generation as majority of them avoid spending time and energy in in-depth thinking for something innovative. To reduce the interests of children in the virtual world, we need to make the teaching- learning process both simple and interesting. For this the redundant components present in the curriculum, routine teaching methods and evaluation techniques need to be replaced by innovative and interesting methods so that students are attracted towards education. The need of the hour is to educate our children to be “unique and smarter than the machines”. The present Education system has to prepare individuals who will be imaginative, creative and intuitive. They have to be educated in higher order cognitive skills. The modern Education system should provide children with the knowledge and skills that make them capable of divergent and creative thinking that would prepare them to face the real challenges of life in the global society. Today creative and innovative ideas are the new age mantras for success. When children pass out from school, they often have marksheets and degrees that showcase their theoretical knowledge but often do not have the requisite practical expertise to make them indispensable for the professional world. Often the gap between what is taught in the classrooms and what is the current need of the workforce in the real world is very wide. A comprehensive strategy is needed to enhance employability skills in our children. Vocational streams have to be developed and expanded to equip larger number of students with occupation-related knowledge and skills. In addition to providing knowledge and vocational skills to the children, we need to adopt strategies for nurturing the life skills that address the 4H i.e. those related with the head, heart, hands and health. In the „Targeting Life Skills Model‟, Patricia Hendricks (1996) has mentioned the skills related to head, heart, hands and health. According to World Health Organization(WHO), Life Skills are the “abilities for adaptive and positive behavior that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of everyday life”. WHO has highlighted 10 core life skills: Self Awareness, Empathy, Critical Thinking, Creative Thinking, Decision Making, Problem Solving, Effective Communication, Interpersonal Relationship, Coping Stress and Coping with emotions. To ensure success and happiness of our children we need to inculcate values in the young generation so that they become aware and sensitive to the needs and problems of others also. We need to revive the culture of formation of values through strong family ties, inspirational stories, dramas and portrayal of great persons. “By education I mean an all- round drawing out of the best in child and man - body, mind & spirit.”- these words of Gandhiji rightly emphasize that education should be such that it leads to all round development of children. In the modern globalized world, we need to provide education that makes the children aware of their capabilities, develops life skills in them, equips them to face the challenges, helps them to think innovatively to solve the problems and prepares them to be successful in the professional field and personal lives.