At a recently held Edu-leaders’ consultation in Lucknow, over fifty principals of schools, colleges and other educational bodies discussed and deliberated on 'Preparing our students for the future' - a very relevant theme, underscoring the need and means of transformation in educational vision and practices in India today. The consultation was held under the auspices of the Lucknow based Institute for Career Studies (ICS-International) - a leading global provider of career guidance and counselling services - to celebrate their 30th anniversary of “bringing out the best in you”.
The overarching theme was discussed through presentations and interactive discussions by the participants under the following sub-themes:
- The dynamics of ‘purposeful learning’ in a “Happy School”.
- Embracing the Intangibles of Education
- Social Media and the Student
- Holistic Education and Career Development
Besides principals of various schools in India and Bangladesh, speakers at this consultation included the UNICEF Head in Uttar Pradesh, Niloufar Pourzand as the chief guest, Professor Debashis Chatterjee, IIM-Lucknow as the keynote speaker and Dr. Yaj Medury, V.C., Bennett University, NCR the guest of honour.
The eminent speakers commented on the shift in global conversation from "access to education" to “quality learning” and “learning outcomes”. For this paradigm shift to become a reality there must be a change from the information based teaching and learning model, (to which most Indian Schools are wedded), to critical thinking, inquiry and a value based approach. This will help schools to evolve from being just being dispensaries of information to 'a Universe of Care’.
The effective development of the brain, hitherto abandoned by most parents and ignored by teachers, in the rat race of childhood, needs careful nurturing. If generation Y is to survive and thrive in a highly unpredictable future, parents and schools must move beyond the dominating parameters of individual success, which is supported by “teaching to the test and little else”. We must acknowledge that there is more to education than data and scores, and that ultimately, non-achievement factors are integral to success, not only of the individual, but of our society as well.
School communities must look to developing interest, information, sensitivity and responsibility towards societal goals as well as individual ones. The practice of Critical thinking, Creativity, Collaboration and Communication are vital to everyday classroom learning. Key Action is a curricular preference which brings knowledge of a world which most children do not see; a world of hunger and deprivation, or one ravaged by war, crime and terrorism. Moreover it is a world doomed to disaster from lack of knowledge of environmental threats and concern for sustainable growth. The hidden curriculum, of nurturing humanness and of building social character and leadership must be brought to the forefront. Moreover, a balanced approached is required in developing left and right-brained intelligence. Other intangibles to be embraced are diversity and relationships with teachers and students, between people of varied faiths and cultures.
Digitally active and data driven teens and young adults will readily embrace these changes with ease. Social media, the new frontier, may be used in a myriad ways to engage, teach, learn and motivate students of all ages.
School curriculum, getting more unstructured and flatter by the day, makes an inter-disciplinary approach essential and vital to the individual and collective formation of a world view, that is balanced and rational, both scientific and humanistic. Questioning assumptions must be seen as an indispensable part of growth. Pre-conceived moulds for children must be dispensed with by teachers. The time has come to move generally from STEM (Sciences, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) to STEAM (the Arts and Humanities), which must necessarily be included in school curriculum to create a liberal base for pre-college education.
An educator’s task has assumed greater complexity and far-reaching significance. Professional development of teachers will need to be addressed with more serious and positive emphases on interdisciplinary approaches to teaching – learning, changing/ improving teacher disposition, focusing on technology-assisted, student-centred blended learning. Shared governance will emerge and evolve, once teachers step out of their silos of delivering syllabuses and leaping from one summative assessment to the next. They will begin to contribute to the whole school concept with a sense of ownership that invariably leads to a more effective and vibrant culture of inclusion, openness and progressiveness. Good classroom management, reflective teaching practice, action research are other areas where teacher engagement and participation in translating the vision of schools and colleges is relevant and vital, and must be studied and practised. A strong sense of “esprit de corps” among management, teachers and parents will point the way to schools becoming “Theatres of excellence”.
Comments Pritam Benjamin, consultant, The Indus Trust and Indus Training and Research Institute, "The future is indeed amorphous and unshaped; so is a dream. Educational practice should summon us to steer our learners away from memorisation to problem-solving, from individual progress to “global citizenship”, from embracing responsible digital pedagogy to humanising our children in caring for their environment. The list is longer, but making a beginning in our minds and hearts is an immediate imperative."
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