Dr Sr Kaisa Rosalind CMC
St Joseph’s College, Jakhama, Nagaland
Today more than ever education is becoming a check to what a society will be tomorrow. Whether one realizes it or not it is the testing ground as well as the formation ground from where a future is to be churned out that will decide the fate of the future. One cannot deny the fact that the wealth of a nation will depend on how education is given. The government as well as the private sector vies with each other to get the best of product for its company. Great plans are drawn to enhance the product, to enrich and increase the resources. Whatever the outcome a great chunk is attributed nay depends on the personnel who drive the whole process and here in lies the place and importance of the type of education one receives.
What has academics given to the world? Today Indians are doing well in many branches both in the private and government set up in different parts of the world. They are sought after and even Barak Obama, the President of the United States has said that the world needs to look at India. Education has done and brought about a lot of benefit for our daily lives.
Looking around the world today, however, somewhere some things have gone wrong that needs to be rectified. Every year various educational institutions produce a number of Graduates that cannot fit into any institution. It looks as though at times the very purpose of educational institution is defeated for a number of unusable degrees are produced every year. Today India is the biggest country producing unemployable and unemployed graduates. The educated unemployed that are in the society are alarming. 40% of the population of India is constituted by the youth and it calls for urgent need to address this situation. Does this mean that talents are wasted and the efforts of many people who devote themselves to building the nation go wasted? It definitely calls for reflection from all sects of the society.
One of the greatest challenges the world faces today is to educate so as to bring out the best that is found in the society and in the environment around. A truly educated person can never be unemployed. What an educational institute can formally give in the form of the 3 ‘R’s, reading, writing and arithmetic is done in the best possible manner. However, all willpower from one side alone cannot help give the best result. Wholesome effort from all quarters is a must to progress in life. If education does not facilitate one to be usefully employed in one or the other field, than education has not completed its job. Education should enable a person to fit into one or the other system. And herein lies the need for flexibility in the framing of proper syllabus that can build a person.
The craze to be employed in the government sector or in some recognized or well rewarding institutes has become the in thing. Chasing this game has caused huge implications in terms of time and resources. The natural resources have much to offer to the world. Much of the world’s resources are to be invested in the right places, for right purposes. Being on the lookout with a mind to labour will open unending vistas. If one’s mind is geared right from the start to find out one’s own livelihood, having an attitude to explore and utilize the available resources, feel respectable that the entrepreneurship effort will bring greater help, will boost in uplifting the face of the earth and in turn uplift oneself.
The challenges in education can be underlined from different angles. The spiraling speed with which the market today is flooded with goods that sweep the total attention of youngsters and even of grown-ups is disturbing. Going to gadgets, even before you get familiarized with the purchase the ad is coming up with another that catches your imagination. The temptation that entails will just empty one’s purse if the reins of self-control do not hold one firmly. The influence that the alluring world can give to an individual is where education can get in to lead the way.
Learning the right and proper use of the modern gadgets for building and for constructive purposes is the need of the hour. There is no dearth of information from the world of Information Technology, and it is not just the duty of the educational institutes alone but the concerted effort of everyone starting from home that requires to work together. If this area is taken seriously, we can expect a great way forward, though of course much is left to be done particularly on the part of the concerned authorities to reflect and implement to meet the growing demands from Technology. For without it education cannot be carried forward effectively and efficiently.
Campus recruitment and others who seek students to give some jobs after the graduation is in galore. Strangely a good number however are unwilling to get into jobs. One reason that deters one from entering into such great possibilities can be the unwillingness to work hard. Cultivating the right work culture and willingness to put in proper labour is a must to progress.
What do we need to do? We need to look at the Community Colleges in the West; they assessed the Need of the Community and Opportunity in the Community. They prepare Syllabus according to the Opportunity and Need and the Syllabus is renewed almost every year. We are all aware of the Nokia phone company. The product that was once acclaimed as the best is today on the verge of decline. The CEO of Nokia company remarked: we did nothing wrong, but we failed to improve ourselves, which means, we need to keep working, updating to compete and shine otherwise other competitors will overtake us.
