inkStainedme

I still remember that day, like it was yesterday…The sweat on my palms have carelessly trickled onto my exam paper and has blurred the inked fonts. Battling a headache I’m struggling to concentrate, but in my hurry to complete the exam on time, I seem to have forgotten vital details of ‘Ohm’s law.” 25 minutes left and 3 twenty-five mark questions to finish! The toughest meat could be cooked twice over under this kind of pressure.



And yet if you ask me, what the contents of my physics syllabus was for that year, when I was in the 9th grade. I’d have nothing to say. How ever would I remember something that was not learnt but was mugged. Remembered to serve me until the exam and then never hereafter.

I enjoy learning new things. And in retrospect would have perhaps enjoyed it even more if it were presented to me in an interesting and likeable manner. Not shoved down my throat as a means to make it to the next grade.



The Indian system of education is best suited for machines. It is outdated and burdensome. It has caused me unnecessary trauma as a child and has in so many ways been unsuitable for my intellectual temperament, which has been a cause of tension between my parents and me.



The fact that our country has one of the highest numbers of teenage suicides resulting from education based disputes, speaks for itself.



I believe that  the children of India have a lot to offer the world in every sense. Whether it’s in the arena of sports, music, education or individual talents, our education system in more ways than one, curbs it, instead of allowing us to follow a path that enhances it.



Looking back at my own life… There’s very little of that education I have taken with me. I don’t remember too many details of my secondary education. You may put that down to a bad memory. But it’s funny how I remember all the relationships and the great times I’ve had with friends from then.