The reasons for the sorry state of education and resulting unemployment are many. In fact, instead of solving the unemployment problem, the present state of education is only adding to it. How can we really make education a passport to the future?
Last week after the announcement of the HSC results, one young girl who got 55% marks visited me for career guidance. She came with her parents and was utterly confused as to where she should try for admissions and what course to opt for. Her parents wanted her to join the Commerce stream while she had a liking for fashion designing. She was even prepared to take up training in beauty and make-up in any leading beauty parlour if she could not get admission into a good fashion designing institution. It was tough advising her parents that the girl should be allowed to pursue her interest.
Many teenagers face this predicament when they pass out from school. This confusion continues even when they complete their graduation and prepare for the job market. The basic cause of confusion is the lack of proper counselling at school, college and home. Most students follow the conventional route to become doctors or engineers or chartered accountants or lawyers. After graduation many want to go for MBA or postgraduate diploma in management. In keeping with the interest of students there is a mushrooming of professional colleges. Every year, a large number of students pass out from professional colleges but many of them are not employable.
Recently, there was a statement by the CEO of Tech Mahindra that only 6% of IT graduates are employable. He further added that the burden of imparting skill is on the companies which hire the graduates, as they are very raw when they pass out from the engineering colleges. He mentioned that there is a huge demand in the field of cyber security as Nasscom requires six million competent IT graduates by 2020, but there will be a supply shortage of skilled manpower. There was a similar survey about management graduates, where it was discovered that 93% of them are not employable. The reasons are many for this sorry state of things. In fact, we are promoting unemployment instead of solving it.
One important reason is poor schooling in the initial stages of education. We are adding schools all over the country without monitoring the quality of teaching and facilities available in the schools. In many schools, particularly in our villages and small towns, teachers are not competent enough to teach. In addition, teachers remain absent and there is a lack of adequate supervision. In quite a number of schools, students suffer due to lack of basic amenities. There are cases in villages where school buildings are in dilapidated conditions. We hear of various scams where teachers are appointed, not on merit but on extraneous considerations. In one state, an ex- CM is in jail because of one such scam. Even in big towns and cities, many of the private schools have the sole objective of making money rather than improving the standard of teaching.
The other big reason is our way of thinking. Education for us is for procuring degrees or diplomas and not for adding skills. Students pass out from schools without learning any skills and then rush to colleges for getting degrees. Both our government machinery and our students are indifferent to learning new skills or innovating new techniques. Our colleges and our institutes have become a degree-manufacturing industry but cannot produce employable youth. The emphasis of our teaching in schools and colleges is on passing the examination by cramming or even by cheating, sometimes.
The number of colleges being less in comparison to the demand, capitation fee is being charged by some colleges. Many educational institutes are run by big business houses and politicians with the sole objective of profiteering and the actual imparting of education takes a back seat. The government is not investing enough in centres of higher education and this field remains open for private investors who may not be ethical.
Though we are a country with a population of more than 130 crore, we do not have a single institute in the top 100 institutes of the world. We have just three institutes in the top 200. Our education system and students suffer as there is lack of world-class exposure. Our students try to go to other countries for quality higher education because of this. The government should try to bring leading international institutes to India. They can have tie-ups with our existing institutes or they can start new branches. There should be healthy competition in the educational field and more quality educational institutes should be opened. Our professional institutes suffer due to shortage of good professors as many professionals choose to join the industry because of better pay packages. Incentives like tax-free salary for professors can be introduced. The quality of professors and teachers is an integral component of quality education and hence we must start focusing on that without any delay.
The mushrooming of coaching classes is a symptom of failing education in schools and colleges. The disturbing factor emerging is that many of our teachers in schools and colleges are indirectly promoting coaching classes where they are attached. Coaching classes so far are not regulated by any government agency. Even aspirants for seats in IITs and IIMs prefer to go to these coaching classes. Intelligent students who do not go to coaching classes are at a disadvantage. Our premier institutions will do better if intelligent and innovative students take admission rather than students who have marshalled the tricks of cracking the entrance examinations at coaching classes. Coaching classes also cause a divide between the rich and the poor. Such a divide is not good for an egalitarian society and for the inclusive system of education.
The problems of our failing education are many. We have to look for solutions, both shortand long-term. For the short-term, we have to start deputing well-informed counsellors who can help students as to which stream of education will be most suitable to them, depending upon their liking and capability. We have to regulate the number of students who go to colleges into routine courses just to get a degree and then remain unemployed. It may be easier to get employment if new skill-building courses are introduced. Pursuing subjects that are to their liking and passion can take youngsters to greater heights. Students can be counselled to convert their hobby into business or profession. For example, if a youngster has a flair for cooking, he can become a good chef by following the requisite course. If a school student is good in drawing, he can venture into the field of designing. Bharat Ratna Bismillah Khan had love and passion for the shehnai, and he followed his passion to reach the peak. Higher education in different fields should be based on merit and capability. Colleges and institutions should admit students who actually want to learn and become employable. We do not want our graduates and post-graduates applying for government posts of peons or sweepers, which has been happening recently.
In addition to curriculum-based education, we have to devise ways to give lessons in moral values, discipline and in various extracurricular activities. Sports should be promoted in all our educational institutions. The objective of the educational delivery system should not end in just giving information but also imparting knowledge to make our youngsters enlightened citizens. They should be capable enough to create jobs and not just be jobseekers.
'The basic cause of confusion is the lack of proper counselling at school, college and home. Most students follow the conventional route to become doctors or engineers or chartered accountants or lawyers. Every year, a large number of students pass out from professional colleges but many of them are not employable'
In the long run, the government should come up with a visionary policy of education where all the factors are taken into consideration. There should be tie-ups between colleges and other educational institutes and the industry so that along with education, students also get on-thejob training and thus acquire the necessary skills. There should be a higher allocation of expenditure on education. Ideally, it should not be less than 6% of the GDP. There should be a policy on FDI in the educational sector so that we have better resources. There should be dedicated institutes for research and innovation and incentives should be given to students for joining these institutes. The curriculum of higher-learning institutes should be periodically changed and the same should align with new developments in the world. Students should be exposed to the latest technologies and developments happening in other countries.
Modernisation of education is necessity and not an option. Education is essential in preparing young people for the world of work, helping them to be the innovators of tomorrow. We have to go for structural challenges irrespective of the difficulties. “Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today,” said Malcolm X. Let us start bringing about changes in our educational system before it is too late.
by S K Jha
