Challenges for Secondary Education in India

Education is a Fundamental Right of every citizen of our country. But unfortunately, despite several commissions appointed to improve the state of education in our country since independence, not much headway has been made towards making it relevant to the needs of the time. Parrot learning and reproducing half-baked ideas in the examination halls has been the yardstick of assessing the quality of school goers in all levels whether it is Primary, Secondary or College Education. One of the greatest task before the nation is to expand and extend the outreach of good education to its younger generations, first at the elementary level and then more important emphasis to secondary education. The Constitution of India eloquently highlights the critical significance of these two levels of education. There is an urge to build a society that contribute progress and welfare and at the same time ensure that the next generation inherit a world which would make them proceed ahead further towards better conditions and situations. Education systems are encountering changes everywhere. The issues related to the educational changes have been analysed globally. These need to be understood and analysed. Educationist and educators all over the world come across certain board features which include (i) fast changing technologies and ever increasing impact of information and communication technology (ii) emerging emphasis on self-learning, self directed learning, self motivated learning and as also of co-operative learning (iii) issues related to infrastructures in schools and institution (iv) issues of professional development and growth. These issues related to the educational changes have been analysed globally and the Delors' Commission report, 'Learning The Treasure Within' presents a very comprehensive view of the emerging shapes of education globally. Several significant parameters identified in the report appear irrevocably relevant as these emphasis the indigenous aspects of education and strongly recommend that education must be rooted to culture and committed to progress. The quality and character of the people greatly depend on the education imparted to them at different levels. Mahatma Gandhi had perceived the essence of education as an integral part of life closely related to the requirements of a healthy and productive national life. He felt that an educational system must provide for a proper atmosphere to make the child of fully aware of the responsibility to his family, community and country. Gandhi says: 'By Education, I mean an all round drawing out of the best in child and man Body, Mind and Spirit.' In fast changing world, education needs to respond to the change. In fact education needs to respond everything that is happening in environment external to the process of teaching and learning and the system that is responsible for it. With the unprecedented advent of information and communication technology a global perspective has to be developed and one has to perforce respond to the implication of globalization. To meet the challenge, the new pattern of education, or the New Education Policy of 1986 recommended at the national level, envisages ten years of general education two years of senior secondary and three years degree course. In the first stage of schooling taking ten years, a student is expected to acquire the prescribed minimum proficiency in languages and mathematics. During these days also they are made aware of our cultural heritage and contemporary social, geographical political, economical issues. After this they join the plus two stage before joining college or universities. These systems appears good in appearance. But the system still not been able to make education socially relevant in our society. Education even at this stage really is confined into the four walls of classrooms where the teachers lecture on his specified subject and the students not actively listen to the lectures. The profession of teaching has just been reduced to passing on some information to the students so that the later in turn reproduce it at the time of examination. This fails to involve the students in the learning process and their critical faculties remain untouched. These course of study, patterns of education only brings uncertain future staring in the face of aspiring students. This uncertainty about their future provide potential fodder for the phenomenon known as 'students unrest'. This is the real challenge that lies ahead for secondary education in India. Coming to the context of secondary education in Manipur, the academic atmosphere in the school is haunted by uncertainties. Bandhs and general strikes are called at every moment at every drop of hat. The syllabi, moreover have not undergone any change over the years except some superficial ones. Nearly 95 percent of the grants made to our educational institutions are spent in paying salaries to the teachers and other supporting staff leaving little room for provision of infrastructures like classrooms, laboratories, playgrounds and other facilities to the students. About vocational education, vocationalisation of education. It is not made truly vocational in keeping with the needs of the time. Vocational streams were opened in some higher secondary schools but this is discontinued from this academic session as the Govt fails to provide materials, teachers and feeder colleges after secondary level. So in the end, responding to global and local socio-economic changes, decision makers need to know clearly what the changes and challenges are, why are these going to happen and how will it be tackled. Then the changes and challenges can be approach with confidence and enthusiasm. ________________________________________