Loopholes In India's Education Policy And The Way Ahead

The Indian education system today is all about studying and not learning. The question one can ask is, are we doing what we intend to? 

- Jaideep Gupta

Education is the most important tool any society can have and optimise it for maximum growth and success. Though Indian society has come a far way in education, it has still miles to go before it can rest. Many times people wish for a crystal ball to predict the future. But little do they know that the closest they can get to the future is by knowing the progress of their education system.

The current K-12 school system in India is one of the largest in the world with about 1.5 million schools and more than 250 million students. In the past six years, the number of students graduating from Class XII (CBSE) has doubled and those getting more than 90% marks have shown a 600% growth. So in essence when it comes to access to education, the increased literacy rate, we are doing an excellent job.

Where we lack is a space no one is looking at. Our students work extremely hard and strive to excel in every subject. They value education and yearn for more knowledge. But to what end? Even today, in 86% of the cases, parents are still the key decision makers when it comes to calling the shots in regard to career choices. There are hundreds and thousands of students who get pushed into the rat race of stereotypical careers without actually wanting to. All in the name of making their parents happy and their teachers proud.