Aubaid Ahmad Akhoon
For the last few days, reports relating to a potential five-day working week with Saturday and Sunday as weekly holidays in government educational institutions have been going viral in the social media. It has created quite a buzz amongst parents, teachers and sections of the civil society. Whether the competent authorities consider the idea and its implications on academic, administrative and practical dimensions is for the latter to decide. But shouldn’t the most important question be; Are our children getting enough continuity, time and opportunity to prepare themselves for a growing increasingly competitive world?
This question becomes very pertinent with reference to the Alpha Generation. The children born in an era of artificial intelligence, automation, robotics, digital technology and revolution in the pattern of working and living; will require more than the ability to memorize. They will need to understand, comprehend, innovate, solve problems, communicate effectively and be in a constant state of learning.
The importance of one extra weekly holiday in the context of education would hence, seem insignificant; when the issue of continuity in education is considered. The former could be an icing on the cake but the latter makes all the difference to the former, specially, in the case of such children.
It is a matter of great surprise, and indeed of great concern, that it is observed that in many cases it becomes difficult for some students to retain the continuity of learning/teaching, especially those of the subjects like Mathematics and Physics where one concept is the building block of the next. Notwithstanding the numerous breaks during the academic year (in the form of vacations, holidays, weather breaks, etc.), there is a dire need to provide enough gap for the children to get set for the next level of learning and understanding.
The question hence shouldn’t be whether or not these children deserve to have one more day of rest; as they obviously do. The need for sleep, recreation, family time, sports and mental relaxation is felt by all. But the question is whether cutting down another school day is the right way to go about it.
The life philosophy of Allama Muhammad Iqbal would be worth pondering over in this regard. He believed that in order to be successful in life, a person needs to focus on his journey of self-development and move purposefully in life as under:
Wohi zamane ki gardish pe ghalib aata hai
Jo har nafas se kare umr-e-javedan paida.
“The fellow same is lord of freaks of fate and strife.
Who with every breath he draws creates an eternal life”
The interpretation of the couplet is that, a person shouldn’t be idle and waste his potential and energy in any given moment. In fact, every moment of his life should make him a winner. So it is not that he shouldn’t work without break but the break should make him energetic and prepared to produce better results, the next moment. And the same is true for a nation as well; it should use its resources wisely and without any waste to create a new intellectual and human resource every moment for its overall development and prosperity.
And it is this same wisdom that makes it imperative for us to consider continuity in education. A child learning algebra today needs to understand it so that he gets the concept of calculus right the day after. The lesson in Physics may depend on the one learnt the previous day. So a break in the continuity of education may make it difficult for some students to recall or revise the last taught lesson before starting with the new one; thereby, forcing teachers to take back the old and wastage of the teaching-learning process. Also, the very purpose of imparting education -to empower a person, wouldn’t be fulfilled if a person forgets the concept taught in the school because he couldn’t understand it due to the break in continuity.
If academic pressure is the problem, improve education-don’t simply reduce it
The answer to the problem of academic pressure shouldn’t be a reduction in education but quality education. If reducing the number of school days is the solution to a burdened curriculum, then why not rationalise it? If it is related to the pattern of examination, then why not reform it? If it is related to the provision of emotional support to the students, then why not strengthen the counsellors? If it is about lack of exposure to the students, then why not expand the sports and creative activities? And if it is about the need to make the learning process more interesting and lively, then why not train the teachers and change the pedagogy?
What is it that we want our children to be prepared for?
It is also a matter of deep concern that we still have examples around us in the present day world; where an illiterate person earns more than a graduate, simply because he has got a practical skill that the market demands. We can’t deny that such a person has not succeeded just because he doesn’t have an academic degree; rather such an example presents a glaring disconnect between education and employability.
Our syllabus therefore needs urgent revision and we need to introduce more practical, vocational and job-oriented courses as per the requirements of the changing economy. There is a dire need of vocationalisation of education so that the education system helps an individual to stand on his own feet rather than making an army of graduates who are still jobless.
Education shouldn’t produce examination candidates only; it should produce professionals, artists, artisans, craftsmen, technicians, entrepreneurs and innovators. The degrees earned should be a means but the skills possessed should be an end. That way, the young generation may have the ability to not just find a job, but also to run a successful business.
Instead of questioning whether our students should get another day off; we should also be considering the fact that the said day could be employed to train and equip our students with the very skills that could help them earn their livelihood. Job-oriented workshops, technical trainings, entrepreneurship events, communication courses, digital and vocational exposure, etc., can add value to the students as an add-on to their academic learning.
The purpose of education obviously cannot stop at the granting of a certificate. Education has to ultimately empower a person to lead a life of his own.
Modernise education before reducing its reach
The issue of the status of government educational institution also needs to be thought about seriously. Kashmir has thousands of government schools and colleges but why are parents still willing to spend crores of rupees on private educational institutions? The answer to this question needs to be objectively studied and understood rather than blindly attributing it to perception.
Parents want modern education; and they want it to be imparted in a disciplined atmosphere. They also want monitoring of the academic progress of their ward, exposure to new technologies, communication skills and a conducive learning environment. Therefore, the need of the hour is to modernise and not just build more government educational institutions. The teachers and staff must be trained regularly while the infrastructure should be upgraded to the level of the expectations of the new generation.
It is also a matter of great concern that many of the young graduates are not able to communicate in the languages they have been studying for the last ten to fifteen years of their lives. It is this problem that needs to be addressed by focusing on communication, presentation and practical language skills as a part of our education system. A degree may be there but if a youth doesn’t even have the ability to introduce himself with confidence and communicate, it defeats the very purpose of education.
The aim therefore shouldn’t just be the reduction of education. Its transformation, in fact, is the need of the hour.
If the student gets an additional day off from school, that day shouldn’t be lost in the process. That day should rather be allocated and made available to the children in the form of vocational training. That way, it won’t just be a question of shortening the reach of education but widening its scope.
Kashmir’s harsh winters are no joke and neither the children have any choice over it. The long term answer lies in better heating/ electricity/ classrooms/ drinking water/ sanitation/ accessibility, etc., while the answer to the question of lack of engagement in the schools may lie in teacher training, modern pedagogy, labs, libraries, technology, activity based learning, etc.
The Alpha generation needs movement
The Alpha Generation will enter a world that is unlikely to wait for it. Artificial intelligence is on the rise, the boundaries of science are expanding every day and competition for skills is growing every minute. Our children need more than just examination oriented education. They need to be curious, scientific, computer literate and creative. They need to be able to communicate effectively, and be resilient enough to compete in this world of globalisation. And they need to be motivated to learn continuously.
The life philosophy of Allama Muhammad Iqbal also suggests that we shouldn’t just follow the easiest path in life but should strive to carve our own path with our own sweat and blood:
Taraash az teesha-e-khud, jaada-e-khweesh
Ba-rah-e-deegaraan raftan azaab asth.
“Carve your own path with the chisel of your own effort;
To walk upon the paths made by others is to make life an ordeal.”
This couplet is very relevant in the present context as well. Our children cannot get ready for an increasingly competitive world by following the easiest path or by seeking the comfort of more holidays. They need to develop the habit of hard work, self-motivation and continuous learning. And if the world comes forward every day, our system of education should also be imbued with the spirit of musalsal mehnat (continuous effort).
There isn’t anything wrong in giving the children a chance to relax but the point is, relaxation and progress need to go hand in hand and both are equally important for a well rounded education. A balanced mix of study, play, sleep, introspection and family bonding is always better for the overall wellbeing of the child but we cannot let the latter become a substitute for the former. For thehraav (stagnation) can’t be the substitute for the progress of our children. We need musalsal aagay barhna (continuous advancement) for our Alpha Generation.
So before we decide to cut down on the school week, let us ensure that we have explored and maximised the potential of the existing school week to the best of its ability. We need to make the classrooms more engaging, the teachers better, the curriculum more relevant, the labs and libraries more accessible, the assessment more meaningful and the counsellors more effective. And above all, we need to make every day of the school a day worth spending.
Our children need more than just holidays. They need better education. They need enough continuity to understand tough concepts, enough time to practise what they’ve learnt and enough exposure to the domain of knowledge to prepare them for a very fast paced future. Along with academic skills, they also need practical skills that can help them earn their livelihood, rather than being dependent on government or private jobs that are not sufficient anyway.
When education is fighting to save itself from suffocation; shouldn’t we rather be providing it with the life-support instead of further cutting down its supply?
Let our children learn, question, experiment, acquire, compete and rise. Let us make every day of school a step forward in the journey of the future that these children are destined to inherit.
For the generation that will inherit the future, continuous progress is not a luxury but a must-have.
(The author is an educator, columnist and motivational speaker. He can be reached at [email protected])
