Haven’t we all grown up with the infamous ancestral saying, “Padhoge, likhoge toh banoge Nawab. Khelogo, koodoge toh ho jaoge kharab’. This literally translates into an advice which asks children to not focus on any other activity or hobby except studying.

From the very beginning, it instills the idea in the minds of children that the only path to a successful life goes through academics and that there is absolutely no other way to lead a happy life.

However, it is inevitable for every child to be built of diverse talents, inclinations, dreams and hopes. To suppress these wants, is to suppress the life within a child. Thankfully, gone are the days when going out to play was considered to be a distraction in a disciplined life.

Today, sports, themselves are known to be the icon of a way of life that is the epitome of discipline and dedication. It has become an integral part of every child’s life even if it isn’t pursued as a career alternative. Sports are no less than a health pill, a fitness regulatory and a gulp of rejuvenation. Being outdoors and indulging in a sports activity is extremely essential to pump life not only in the body but also in the mind.

With countless platforms, institutions and trainers, pursuing sports as a career alternative is no more a far-fetched dream. Getting the right training from the very beginning of child showing interest in the field of sports, can fulfil dreams, undeniably.

It is no more mandatory to join exclusive training centres when schools also provide coaching for multiple co-curricular activities. Unlike the olden days, these facilities are no longer inaccessible and can be availed with no hassle. Competitions within and across schools, districts, states and countries contribute to providing ample exposure and opportunities to our budding sport stars.

Therefore, all of this, leaves everyone with no excuse to strangle the dreams of their child. We must nourish every wish of our young ones to ensure they live their lives to the fullest. These talented children are the future and pride of the nation.

Imagine, how would Cricket be had Sachin Tendulkar never stepped on the field. How would Badminton seem to be without Saina Nehwal grasping a racket? How incomplete the future of Indian Tennis would be had Sania Mirza never picked up the tennis ball?

So allow your children to run, to fly. To soar high in the skies and touch the tallest peaks and finish every marathon they decide to run, irrespective of the area that they choose. Only then, will every house bring life to a star, a star in every field of life.

Our ancestors would have blinked their eyes in utmost surprise if they had been told about the idea/ discovery of Digitalized Education System. Since time immemorial, education has been identified with a school in tall buildings, classrooms with fifty odd students seated in close proximity, a blackboard and a teacher with a piece of chalk held in her fingers. We could no other way imagine ourselves getting educated and holding degrees any other way except by travelling from homes to those school buildings in a yellow school bus, transporting hundreds like us.

Who would have thought that there will be a time in an era where classrooms will be on screen of desktops and learning will be merely a click away? This generation has always been the fortunate one for all the technical boons that they have. They have the luxury to avail all possible services by just tapping on their phones or other gadgets. Getting education online is one such luxury.

However, digital education is no more a luxury but a necessity while the world is clouded over with a grave pandemic called, Covid-19. The genesis of this dreadful virus is less of a concern as compared to the means of survival in its times. The fatality and uncertain treatment of this disease has led to mayhem all over the world. Governments of developed countries too are in a state of haywire while looking for the cure to this life snatcher. As a result, consecutive lockdowns are being imposed in various countries and India has been supportive of them since the very outbreak of this virus.

In a situation like this, where businesses are collapsing and economies crashing, education also could have taken a step back, unaware of its where to walk in the darkness of this pandemic. Fortunately, we are in an era where technology is at its peak of advancement and we have the opportunity to continue learning even by being at home in quarantine. Decades ago, this would have sounded like a farce, years ago, it would have turned into an idea of unnecessary luxury but today it has taken the shape of a need. Education couldn’t have stood strong had it not been digitalized.

Innumerable ways are surrendering in this time, but I truly hope that lamp of education lights bright and never falls dim, irrespective of the period we are in. As they say, learning must never succumb in any stage of life. The future of Digitalized Education is here!

Modern education system forces us into the mechanical drilling of academics and co-curricular activities so much so that we tend to lose the understanding of how important it is, to also inculcate values within growing children. We often forget that the world is constituted and run by humans and not by machines. Humans, in turn work not only on the basis of their degrees and grades but majorly, on the basis of values embedded within them. 

Most of the times, the terms knowledge and development are misinterpreted by many of us. We believe that these two terms are defined by the number of honors, degrees and positions that one holds. However, these two in reality, are very broad terms and can never be equated with only materialistic and technical education.

A person can be called truly developed when he has imbibed the right skills to survive in the practical world. On the other hand, he can be termed as a knowledgeable person when he has molded into a human being with a solid system of values and ethics. Intellect and values go hand in hand while you measure success. For a person to be successful, it is integral that the two are blended in the correct proportion.

In today’s world the cost of living for many is getting better, owing to the professional degrees that we win in the course of our schooling. However, we can visibly spot surging crime rates and slipping humanity. This makes me want to point out the rising need for schools to focus on certain extremely essential aspects of education that are being overlooked. These aspects are the true teachings of values and ethics to lead a life of success on the basis of merit, without harming those in the way.

Respect is one such value. Respecting people irrespective of their age is important but simultaneously, respecting opinions is equally essential. When a fellow student talks it important for the entire class including the teacher to listen to him with all due respect. This will not only lend a hand in building the self esteem of everybody, but also will make them feel counted and important.

Compassion is another value that is being ruthlessly forgotten. Most of us are so engrossed in our own lives that we become absolutely insensitive towards the problems of others. Helping others, even when it is completely in the zone of our capability, becomes a matter of distress. Kindness, therefore is losing its way through the madness of a successful life.

As parents, teachers and friends it is our responsibility to bring the era of these values back. Otherwise, this world will become a tougher place to dwell in, with each passing decade. Just as we create incredibly smart doctors, lawyers, engineers, architects, artists, journalists and many more professionals; we must also equally invest in creating good human beings. By doing so, we will shape this country into an unbeatable nation that never stoops below its Integrity.

Fierce competition is no hidden mystery in the world today, where the humankind strives to succeed in. With every passing year in the Education System, we witness squeezing availability of opportunities and expanding rate of potential candidates. As economies come closer, more aspects of career alternatives in various sectors open up. So much so, that innumerable areas of growth and development stay unexplored. Under the humongous shade of career paths, it is a matter of dire concern that majority of the students only aim to get into the overly heard options; which can be engineering, medical sciences, architecture, etc. What’s worse is that decisions are made on the basis of vaguely heard opinions, lack of knowledge/understanding and parental pressures.

It is extremely essential for schools to have a flexible curriculum that can be moulded to best fit a student’s age and interest. Education mechanisms, can by no means prove to be successful if they aren’t being timely altered and based on a student’s future prospects. Till the time a student reaches high school, basic learning should be aided with substantial holistic development lessons and physical training, besides co-curricular activities.

However, the time that a student spends in high schools and further escalated ladders on the system, his energies must be put in analysing the plethora of success laden opportunities that await him. In an era where technological advancement and modernisation are at their peak, there is no scarcity of alternatives in multiple fields. Those alternatives must be brought to the notice of a student who would be soon stepping into the world of professionals. An aspirant must be introduced to everything that the world can offer him/her in this new era of Education system.

Eventually, there must be regular career counselling sessions in the education system for students to understand the opportunities they can avail, basis their skills and interests. Students must reach a final career choice only after thorough research and study. It is no more than a farce when a student after all the years of schooling and tests, graduates out of college only to be left in a state of ambiguity and with the daunting question, ‘What next?’ whereas, by this stage a student should not only be confidently stepping into a concrete job sphere but should also be trained enough to enlighten his/her peers or juniors.

Therefore, the current education system needs to be revisited by policy makers and educationists. Students should be graduating as well grained and learned individuals who have attained adequate understanding of economies, opportunities and developing sectors, across the globe.

Education Systems are no more as simplistic as they used to be a couple of years ago. Today, the times have changed leading to an astounding surge in competition and complexities in education. Aspirations of students have risen along with tremendous parental and peer pressure. Everybody strives for a better lifestyle with prestigious degrees and extravagant employment opportunities. Even if we gauge the scenario at the level of educational policies and curriculum, the authorities want to instill a system that is advanced and in sync with the global standards of education.

Indian system too, aims to practice methods that will enable a student to undergo a recurrent and rigid training. The training is masked with three stages of learning. First is the teaching, followed by examinations and lastly ranking students in terms of their performance.

The entire system has undeniably turned out to be stressful for students. Through the years, parents and teachers witness innumerous cases of mental health issues faced by students that are associated with their schools. These can be tension, palpitations, anxiety, depression, panic attacks, etc. These issues can also be feelings of isolation, disappointment, low morale, loneliness, stress, bruised self-esteem and self-confidence, etc.

This pressure-laden environment at schools and homes require children to feel at peace for them to be able to focus. Therefore, starting a new day at school must be marked with a session of meditation. Everyday must begin with students spending some minutes meditating. This small step will undoubtedly, reap unbelievable results. Various cognitive and physical yoga pranayams too can be practiced for the mental and physical fitness of students.

The outcomes will include better results, refreshed minds, enhanced learning capacity, greater concentration levels, improved mental stamina and much more. Schools must also practice strategic breaks between continuous periods so that students are prevented from losing interest in learning. Continuous and long lectures cause mental fatigue and high exhaustion of energy in students. Hence it is essential that students must be allowed more frequent short breaks or a couple of long breaks during a day.

A holistic development approach must also be looked at. The basic goal of the holistic development curriculum should be to:

1. Introduce the child to education beyond the classroom through Indoor Sports, Outdoor Sports, Performing Art Activities and Team Work
2. Expose the child to varied activities facilitating the development of kinesthetic and spatial skills
3. Identify the inherent capability of the child in selected areas and provide specialized training in those areas

Provide a platform for the child to excel in the area of his choice and represent the school in inter-school and state level competitions.

A few initiatives by educational institutions, can save hundreds of students from succumbing to education related stress. It will nourish their minds and personalities while providing them with an enriching learning experience, leaving behind imprints of academic pressure.

Most of us have received education in an environment that was fiercely competitive as well as pressurising. We have been conditioned from an early age to believe that every good thing is scarce and to achieve it, we must defeat others. This scarcity has always taught people to aggressively run behind scores. If you don’t run fast enough, somebody else will and later, snatch the opportunity from you. The mental pressure created because of this mentality is unimaginable, for both adults and students.

The consequences of this pressure are not unknown to anybody. According to the National Crime Records Bureau, every hour, a student commits suicide which adds up to 28 suicides by students in a day. These statistics are spine chilling and scream for change in the way our education system functions.

It is integral to put a different perspective in practice that lays emphasis on learning and growth rather than scores and ranks. It is important o tell children from a very young age that everybody is blessed with his/her own unique talent and abilities. Irrespective of results and scores, each person finds a career path that suits their traits, the best. Life does not stop after an exam. It does not stop after you slip or get defeated. In fact, it never stops. The idea should be to be consistent in learning and to never give up.

Subsequently, counselling and timely mentoring for students, parents as well as teachers, if implemented, will yield miraculous results. Parents should be counselled over the right nurturing of children from very beginning. They must refrain from putting unrealistic expectations on kids, allow them the time to indulge in a variety of activities, teach them the importance of morals, inculcate the habit of reading in them, appreciate and motivate them irrespective of their achievements and avoid comparisons with their peers.

Teachers on the other hand, should be counselled over latest global trends in the education systems of various countries across the world. They must be made aware of positive changes brought about by local schools and also be trained to help students grow, holistically.

It is vital that teachers avoid threatening students against scoring less marks. They must be trained to enlighten students on all the possible opportunities available beyond focusing only on grades. Teachers must be the best talent detectors in a classroom and they should help every child feel special and supported.

Lastly, students too must be made to understand that scores don’t decide the path of their lives. Visible benefits with these changes are a definite. The benefits will be across all aspects of a student’s educational growth and will enable schools to nurture young minds, in the best way possible. Learning is always above only acing an examination.

The era that we live in, time and again infuses the discussions on technology/machines replacing the need for humans. Innumerous innovations have truly led us to the path of tech-based solutions and an aspect remains untouched from this transformation. The unavoidable requirement for manpower across all industries is being gradually yet in the blink of an eye, diminishing. Education too as an industry, hasn’t been spared of humongous technological advancement through various inventions. However, a part of this industry is irreplaceable, irrespective of infinite alternatives. That part is nothing but the role of a teacher.

Teachers do what no machine or application can ever accomplish. The constant mentoring, guidance and encouragement of teachers is undeniably a prerequisite for any student’s success. After home, school is the only place where children spend most of their time and therefore, after parents it is the teacher who the child in and out. Their role can never be misread as to be only restricted to teaching chapters from books. There is a much larger role that teachers play.

From gauging at children’s learning abilities to understanding the basic characteristics that build their personality; from witnessing them succeed to observing them fail; from having vastly varied conversations with them to penetrating in their emotional vulnerabilities; teachers are indeed, closest to their students.

With the proximity, comes a bucket full of responsibilities. It is extremely crucial for teachers to realise the role that they play in a child’s life and act in the most effective way to build their future. The relationship a student has with his/her teacher can positively as well as adversely affect the child’s career, personality, intellect, wisdom, values and psychological well-being. Every remark is an opportunity for a teacher to leave an imprint in the child’s mind, the good or the bad way. Notably, it is also through teachers that the child gets an understanding of his interests, talents, strengths and weaknesses. Teachers shape the lives of students in truly uncountable ways.

They are first idols of young, bright minds. They hold the ability to teach the lessons of ethics, morality, resilience and millions of other essentials. Technologies will come and go but our Gurus and their everlasting impact on our lives will stay eternally.