What is the objective of school education?
Success in life, whichever way we define it, depends on how, outside of a formal education system, we can keep ourselves on a path of sustained learning and development. The objective of 15 years of school education therefore should be to equip children with contemporary knowledge, adequate skills, the right values, balanced personality attributes and the right mindset before they pass out, either to work or to pursue higher education in a university. Acquisition of all these tools is also one of the prerequisites for maximizing the opportunity university education presents as well as for leading a successful life. In short, school education should focus on helping students Learn How To Learn.
Why should skills be the primary focus of school education?
We have often heard that the employment problem in India is not just because of lower-than-required jobs but also the unemployability of the youth who possesses degrees but no skills. There have been decades of effort on skill enhancement by various governments but developing them while in college or after passing out of college is too late.
The Indian school education policy has for a long time focused mostly on the transference of knowledge. Learning facts and procedures, memorizing them, and reproducing them has been the key to success in passing out of the school system. In this entire journey, there has been very less focus on developing the individual’s capacity to critically think, logically reason, form perspectives, and develop emotionally and socially.
The New Education Policy 2020 has clearly highlighted that this is far from enough. If our country wants to keep pace with the changing economic landscape worldwide and utilize the opportunity India’s young population offers, our school education needs to focus on developing our students more holistically. Skill development is central to such an effort.
Skills are what universities are looking for when admitting students and these very skills help everyone in leading a fulfilling life. University education is more useful with these skills already in place and they substantially improve the employment prospects of students too.
How is skill-focused school education different from traditional education?
Skill-focused education prioritizes skill development over knowledge. It emphasizes the process of learning over the content learnt. Content is just a medium to develop skills. Skill development stresses learning by understanding and assessing the ability to apply and create while traditional education focuses on knowledge acquisition and asses for memorization of information.
Classrooms focused on skill building would have high student involvement and participation. In such setups, teachers are more of facilitators and guides. Learning is student-centred and student-led. There is an emphasis on collaborative work and projects, non-academic activities are provided a significant time in the timetable and sports is almost a daily affair. Students in a skill-focused school have a significant voice and are treated as unique, mature individuals. Questions are encouraged in classrooms and learning is made visible.
Skills-focused education develops students holistically while traditional education stops at acing the school leaving exam.
What are the skills that should be developed during schooling years?
Development of all parts of a child’s being should be emphasized equally. Skills that can be developed and sharpened in school using the curriculum and the material are:
- Cognitive Skills
- Reading and comprehension in the English language is a pre-eminent skill that needs to be taught to students.
- Research skills that would include the ability to formulate, plan, record, synthesize, analyze, interpret, apply, and evaluate data and observations.
- Thinking skills that would include the ability to think critically, analytically, creatively, and laterally, ability to reflect and to practise metacognition.
- Social Skills
- They would include building relationships, learning to take responsibility, learning to thrive with a diverse set of people and managing conflicts.
- Communication Skills
- They would include active listening, asking thoughtful questions, non-verbal communication, and succinct articulation.
- Self-management Skills
- They would include time management, prioritization, organization, emotional management, staying focused, self-aware, ability to exercise self-control, managing adversity and setbacks and self-care.
- Building Self Through Values
- Caring for others by being empathetic, sensitive and responsive.
- Collaboration with others by being synergistic, respectful, inclusive, fair, open-minded and adaptable.
- Pushing for excellence by developing a growth mindset, being passionate towards goals, setting high standards, being gritty and having a bias for action.
- Having high levels of integrity by being honest, taking ownership, being transparent and conscientious.
About the author:
Harinder Chhabra, an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad, believes that quality school education is foundational to lifelong success. He decided to focus on school education in 2014 and since then has been working towards developing an ecosystem where students have an opportunity to thrive. He launched The Infinity School in 2019 with the aim of providing progressive, holistic education focused on acquiring skills, developing the right mindset, building character in children and not just help them acquire knowledge for scoring marks.
Harinder Chhabra had worked in the FMCG, Banking and Insurance industries prior to starting his journey in the field of education. His personal experiences of studying in a small-town school have shaped many of the initiatives in the school he has launched. He believes that the core purpose of school education is to help children become independent thinkers and doers with a strong drive to bring about change that makes the world more sensitive, empathetic, collaborative and sustainable. He is married and has 2 children. His wife works in the development sector and helps combat hunger worldwide. He loves to listen to ghazals by Lt. Jagjit Singh and likes to play badminton.
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