The Indian Thread #20 (a)

Student Lounge International Students
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<p>I have been following the last few posts discussing the Indian education system. The Indian education system is plagued by many problems but what actually are the problems is the major question ? </p>

<p>I feel the uneven economic distribution is the major reason. Posters here say that the teachers have failed to implement the CCE properly. Why ? Look at the pay an average teacher gets in a normal school. It is very low but she still has to evaluate a huge no of students. ( Most Indian schools have huge class sizes. ) The CCE has increased the responsibility of these teachers but their pay packages haven’t increased so where is the incentive for them to manage this extra workload with passion. </p>

<p>Posters also talk about the poorly ranked Indian colleges but do you know Delhi University, Indians premier university has a budget of only Rs 3600000, compare it with normal American states university’s endowment. Resources are needed for growth and development and Indian colleges don’t have the resources eventhough the government takes out huge loans from the world bank to better the education system. </p>

<p>One poster here lamented that the common Indian students don’t learn they study but another poster was so right when he said that most Indians have to look for decent job to better their family’s social and economic status. They don’t have a choice, they are forced to follow the one track road. I bet that out of the 5 lakhs students taking engineering exams in India, most of them had chosen something else instead of Science and engineering if they had a choice. Very few students in India get the privilege to follow their passion. </p>

<p>Practically the unequal distribution of wealth and the governmental policies favouring the select few have rendered the whole nation choiceless. Take into account the poll UP poll results recently, Mrs Mayawati lost the electionz to Mr. Mulayam Singh Yadav won the elections. But frankly did the people really vote for Mr. Mulayam Singh because they loved him or because they didn’t have a choice. There can be no growth and development till the people have reasonable choices to choose between. </p>

<p>The education system cannot change till there is a whole sale change in the political, social and economic system because everything is ultimately inter-connected. </p>

<p>And for this change the Indian youth has to take active part in the political system and the bureaucracy. </p>

<p>Better political system will result in a better economic system resulting in a better education system resulting in a better nation and ultimately a better society</p>

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<p>As JFK famously said " Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future. " and " Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country. " so let’s ask ourselves what we can do for our country and forgetting about the past let’s focus on how we can bring the changes we want in the future.</p>

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<p>@Anirudha1993> Nice thoughts an am sure youngsters like you get involved in the political system of the country things will change.But how many are ready do that sacrifice and it needs lot of patience to achieve even a small change in the system</p>

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<p>IMO, the whole political system is run by just plain corruption. The root of which is ultimately no education. Half of our politicians are not educated and tend to swindle money to meet their needs (buying fancy cars, etc.)</p>

<p>If educated people do in fact join politics and run the government, corruption would be reduced drastically (though not fully vanish). </p>

<p>The next generation or the generation after that would see such a phase as everyone is getting educated. There is definitely going to be an end to this madness. </p>

<p>So all this talk about the education system’s inefficiency leads back to lack of education. Everything is interlinked! :)</p>

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<p>@Manrosh</p>

<p>Thanks, </p>

<p>You are spot on when you say that lot of patience and sacrifices are needed to bring a small change. </p>

<p>But I am an eternal optimist, I believe that when you have belief, you can turn the impossible into possible. </p>

<p>I also have complete faith on the Indian youth, they can make huge sacrifices for their nation, they just need a little motivation. </p>

<p>Let’s be optimistic. Today might not be very rosy but tomorrow might be far better.</p>

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<p>Just education won’t solve the present mess because </p>

<ol>
<li><p>Better education is limited to large metropolis. ( Try to find out what percentage of people who clear JEE are from major metropolis and larger towns? ) </p></li>
<li><p>Our next leaders will be the sons and daughters of the present leaders and I bet they would be as there fathers are. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>We would be the future educated class and we need to understand that this is our motherland and we need to take control of the government and bureaucracy. If we don’t take active part in a " democratic system " education won’t have a major effect. </p>

<p>Active part doesn’t mean to just cast votes, it also means to give other people more choices to vote for by entering the political field. </p>

<p>Change cannot come without power. ( I wouldn’t have been able to bring any change in my school if I hadn’t become the president of the student’s union. )</p>

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<p>@anirudha <em>slow clap</em></p>

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<p>You just summarised my democratic politics textbook! :O</p>

<p>Yes I do agree that people who want change must actually take part in politics and work towards it. </p>

<p>But my point was also that education does bring out a humane face. When one is educated it does lead to better financial condition. This coupled with basic morals and values leads to reduced greed. </p>

<p>How many educated people would risk it and devote their lives to politics? In a country like our’s, largely dominated by poor, bribery has become a precursor for electoral success.</p>

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<p>Is it not a contradicting statement when we say that our leaders are illiterate and corrupted but we, the educated class, won’t become leaders ourselves because there is " risk." What is the risk? Why do we fear? </p>

<p>The system would only change when the rich and educated class starts joining politics instead of the illiterate rich politicians of today.</p>

<p>Education is the only way to empower the people and change the society but if it is only used for selfish means then the education would be useless.</p>

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<p>Look at the USA, most of their politicians are so well educated. Most of their presidents are Harvard or Yale graduates.</p>

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<p>Exactly! </p>

<p>Last elections in our city, an individual candidate contested. He had the guts to go against the parties which ruled for decades. He was well educated and had great intentions. He definitely has the potential and drive to bring about a change. </p>

<p>He lost. </p>

<p>Maybe because he was individual candidate. Maybe because he couldn’t raise enough money to ‘win’ over voters in rural areas. I’m just saying it isn’t very possible for a common man to win elections easily. </p>

<p>But I definitely believe that it is possible for us to overthrow the current system and establish a REAL government. </p>

<p>I don’t think we should go very off-topic or we’ll get the thread locked :P</p>

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<p>Ya right… Anyway we both agree on the same point so no more arguing.</p>

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<p>The US presidential candidates maybe ‘educated’ but people like Rick Santorum makes one realise that its not necessary that the educated ones are in any way superior to a sensible common man. Bush was from Yale and well…</p>

<p>Other people here will know more about it…</p>

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<p>I don’t think American presidents are the best example…</p>

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<p>Yo everyone. Here’s something useful for Penn applicants:</p>

<p>

</p>

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<p>The ‘state’ of our country does not find it’s roots purely in one problem or the other- it’s a huge boiling pot of current social, economic and cultural factors that have brought us to this spot today. Sure, the issues of a very corrupted system and an incredibly inadequate educational system are the game changers today. What matters is how we, the people (sorry for the melodramatic dialogue) handle them.</p>

<p>The very basic problem IMO is that most of our country is made up of people living in penury, deprived of basic rights and facilities. It’s only a question of providing them. That will automatically lead to an educated population. They WANT to send their kids to school, but how? The majority of the population sees no way out of their depressing living situations, because the paths which can lead them out of there- understanding leaders, educational facilities, assurance of opportunities for their children- simply don’t exist. This is not a situation that ONLY a good/clean political system or educational facilities or societal mindsets can change. It all has to come together, but FIRST the people who DO have access to basic rights and privileges (like us) need to stand up and realize that they must ask for, think about, and work towards a better country, like Aniruddha said.</p>

<p>@Aniruddha- the fear has a reasonable, well, reason :stuck_out_tongue:
It’s simply that

  1. Well-to-do people in the middle class do not want to throw their families/jobs/dreams away to pursue a tumultuous path with no sure ‘returns’, as such. Call it selfishness, that’s what it is. In that sense, kudos to the sense of responsibility and courage of our freedom fighters a 100 years back, because we as a people certainly lack those.</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Its a backbreaking job, to say the least, to attempt to resolve the current political scenario. There’s no one place to start, and it’s not a job individuals can undertake on their own.</p></li>
<li><p>When it comes to corruption, well, the system has thrived as long as it is only because the common man has let it go on unchecked, often giving in to ‘shortcuts’ through bribes and so on. After all, he values his drinking water and electricity supply more than an unremembered ‘assault to the governmental system’ which only hurts him in the end.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>In other words, whats required for this particular objective to be realized is 1. Leaders who know exactly what to do (motivation, like you said), and project so, and 2. A clear strategy.</p>

<p>Sure, in the end, every individual has to decide to take an active part, but it a spontaneous movement doesn’t seem to likely right now. But I’m sure it WILL happen. How soon depends on us.</p>

<p>And, one more thing- education is not necessary for someone to govern a place successfully. It’s more about having a complete knowledge of their constituency, the problems faced by the people, a good moral standing, a sense of justice, and some basic brightness/intelligence, which (as much as we may argue over it) most people invariably possess, whether it’s brought out in them or not. Education, in this sense, is not essential, but a tool for better governance. Of course, you need to be literate to make sure you aren’t being duped, but I’m assuming this is about the practicalities of governing a region.</p>

<p>Again, hope you don’t get bored by long post, lol :P</p>

<p>Anyway, we better change the topic now!
So, what are all of your top choice colleges? :D</p>

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<p>Your post is so right. </p>

<p>I hope I get ready for this back breaking job… </p>

<p>Corruption is not inherent. The extremely poor administration leads to corruption… Go to a railway station or an BSES office, the queues are huge. A man spends his whole day paying a bill or buying a ticket so he starts bribing to get his job done and save his time. Strict administration is so important to solve these deep problems. </p>

<p>Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose was right when he said that every developing nation needs a few years of strict rule for proper growth and development. Mao Zedong and China is a prime example of the success of this idea. </p>

<p>By the way my top choice colleges are - Harvard, Williams, Penn, Amherst</p>

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<p>Thanks :slight_smile:
And all the very best for that! :smiley:
I agree with you, but by now it’s become too ingrained into our lives. </p>

<p>Yep, that is necessary. I never understood why people burst out in anger against Anna Hazare when they found out that he dealt extremely strictly with the drunkards in his village. It was necessary to bring them onto the right path.</p>

<p>Cool! Mine are Princeton (practically no chance with low SAT scores/terrible interview) and Wellesley.</p>

<p>What about the rest of you? :)</p>

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<p>Hello there,
well, mine’s Princeton or MIT</p>

<p>chances, you can guess.</p>

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<p>I’d be happy anywhere. I’ll choose a top school once I get all my decisions :)</p>