We need education to get employed first. The first priority is government organizations; if we fail to get one, then we shift our focus to private organizations. This is the philosophy of education in India. Employment decides the quality of education in India.
The first hurdle to quality education is getting through the JEE and NEET exams. Around 6,000 engineering colleges and 695 medical colleges are available in India to offer opportunities for 12th-grade students. More than 25 lakh students are appearing for entrance in both exams every year, with a less than 10% success rate. Therefore, as per available seats, 90% of appearing students are bound to fail to get enrolled in the MBBS, BE, and B.Tech exams.
The majority of students begin their lives as failures. They tend to lose their confidence at the early juncture of their lives. They forget to dream again to make big in life. One failure at this juncture put a dent in the character of the majority of students in India.
Students are not allowed to choose their subjects based on their interests. They carry the burden of their parents’ choices on one shoulder and their failures on the other. Therefore, their pace of walking free on the path of career building becomes slow because of the weight of double burdens. It also affects their decision-making process.
So, if the foundation is wrong, the whole edifice will start crumbling with each passing day, month, and year. This is the main pattern of the evolution of the Indian education system, which presents two conditions for Indian students to follow. One condition is that if parents are successful in their careers, they want their children to follow in their footsteps, or the second condition is that if parents themselves have been struggling in their careers, they want their children to achieve in their lives what their parents failed to get. And such a pattern of thinking has been cemented in our behavior over the years. If such a pattern is not going to change, we will face the music in the long run.
Out of 1.4 billion people, 52% are under the age of 30. And such a huge chunk of the population is disoriented and confused. This is the reason we copy others development despite our efforts to evolve ourselves. We have not developed anything so far on which we can harp. When the world discusses development and progress, we seek refuge in our mythological past glory.
Apart from this, private schools and institutions are making the situation worse. They present two options to the 12th grade students, such as a medical or engineering career. Private schools have set up criteria for subject selection after 10th grade. Students are getting marks between 80% to 100%, they can choose science stream (PCM, PCB), 70% to 100% can choose commerce stream, and below 70% can choose from the humanities. Schools and teachers decide themselves by following the above criteria based on percentage. Neither parents nor students are asked about the stream selection. If students and parents do not agree, then you have to search other schools for 11th grade admission. Such practices are exercised by every private school in Delhi-NCR. It also goes against the New Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
Many students are falling prey to percentage criteria in schools. InsightulTake asked questions to the principal of Mayo International School (IP Extension, East Delhi), and she said straightforwardly, “She has not received any circular from the government to implement NEP, therefore, school management is free to decide as they have practiced over the years.”
The categorization of the stream of subjects does not augur well from an educational point of view. Every subject is important, and it provides you with enough opportunities to carve your niche on the horizon of progress and development. A complete overhaul of education is important, along with the implementation of NEP 2020.