“Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” Albert Einstein .
Jubilation, celebrations, disappointment, reprimands, humiliation and in a few cases suicide! This is pretty much the scenario in many Indian homes in the months of May and June as it is the season of results. The boards and many other competitive exams are out with the results of lakhs of students who appeared for various exams across all formats, ages and classes.
This breaking news dominates all newspapers, social media, workplaces, parties, meetings etc. The question arises, why this hullabaloo for student’s marks? Grades are just a quantitative indication of one’s performance in academics. While one should appreciate the hard work put in by children who have done well, it is equally important not to humiliate or put down the others who did not measure up to the expectations.
“ In school we learn that mistakes translates to bad grades. This unfortunate lesson gets burned into our brains, and we go through life shunning challenges that might end in failure. ” Mark Frauenfelder.
I am pained at how some schools and parents stop all other activities for their wards with the sole aim of cracking the exams with top grades for the Xth and XIIth boards. By doing so, they fail to realize that they are laying impediments in their child’s path to progress in the long term. With the prime focus only on the numbers, they ignore training the child in life skills which is so essential to deal with challenges that life throws at them. No wonder today the demand for child physiologists and counselors is on the rise, in our country.
I truly believe that marks are not the true reflection of a student’s intelligence. Is it fair to judge a student solely on his performance for the 3 hours of exam? I still can’t fathom the Indian parent’s obsession with their child to achieve a near centum in all subjects. As parents, we all want our kids to do well academically, but if his results are not top notch, it definitely is not the end of the world. Our society seems to link the grades in this crucial years to a matter of life and death.
“Grades don’t measure tenacity, courage, leadership, guts or whatever you want to call it. Teachers or any other persons in a position of authority should never tell anybody they will not succeed because they did not get all A’s in school. ” Thomas J. Stanley.
With the ever changing world, isn’t it time we changed our outlook regarding this grading system? Today there is no dearth of opportunities for a student to excel in any field. His interest and passion for a subject can help him make a successful career out of it. As parents and teachers, it our responsibility to identify this in our kids and allow them to pursue subjects of their choice.
“A child’s mind is not a container to be filled out but rather a fire to be kindled.” Dorothea Brande .
Let’s not link our child’s worth to his mark sheet, but give him wings to soar across the beautiful horizon and charter his own path to emerge victorious!
So, do you think marks = intelligence? Would love to understand your views on this system.
Absolutely right…
And a Cracking post on the Education system of India.
I’m also a victim….
In my childhood,
often I’m being pressurised to get good marks and they keeping me from my own interests. Unfortunately, this made me a stressed child who didn’t open to too many people. Even not with the family.
Today, I have been left the studies forever and focusing on what I meant to be and for what I’m in being !?…
Great post… 👍
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Its sad that you were one such child who faced this pressure. There are many like you who would have done very well in life but for this unfair system. I am glad that you have finally found your true calling!
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Yeah !!…
It’s God, who shown me my way…
I’m happy and + right now. 😀😀😀.
❤
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Good luck my friend. Happy to hear that 🙂
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Thank you dear..
❤❤🙃
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A balance of theory and practical application is required Savio. Either by itself is not a great idea.
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Yes to that, we are killing off real learning, imagine if we employed those wholisitc methods, a revolution of learning!
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Absolutely Paul. We’ll get a whole new generation of talented and creative minds 🙂
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🙂
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Such a wonderful post and so relatable. This is a huge issue in Indian homes and I’m happy that you’re bringing up this up and trying to solve it. I love the little joke you’ve put there about an Indian scoring 95% and the parents asking where the 5% went. It’s so typical😳 I am victim… Sending much love💜
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I know many students can relate to this. It’s just that the entire system of examination and grading is so unfair. It pains me when I see children give up their normal childhood to be immersed only in books and tuitions. We have to put in a collective effort to bring about a change! Thanks so much Rageshree for sharing your thoughts 🙂💖
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Very true! It is unfair that all children have to study the sane books, get the same marks, do the same work and then we expect productive and unique people in the society🤔… You’re welcome❤️
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Exactly. In school they clip of your creative thinking skills and later when you are working, they ask you to think creative and come up with ideas out the box 😁
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Yeah! It’s very ironical! Let’s be the change we want to see in the education system… Thanks for sharing this🖤
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👍☺️
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We are all its victims Rageshree but there’s little we can do.
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Awesome write up………..!!Superb …..Education system needs to be changed ……Some times I wonder that joy of getting 35 is more than scoring 90 plus………Fed up with with the system how can they measure a person ability with just marks …..they are much more than that…………..Loved the post…..!1
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Thank you Bhavana. I have come across many students who have scored 90+, but lacking in the understanding of the subject, while students who have scored 70+ do have a good hold on the subject. It is grossly unjust to judge a student only by the marks.
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Great post Radhika,
the school system is generally overcome in the world.Children learn how to be servants to the system, and not how to think with head.We need a lot of courage to create our world on the way we want, no matter what we learned at school 🙂
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Concur with you Ben. The system has ensured that children have forgotten to think and be creative.
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Excellent article Ma’am. It’s surprising to see how Indian kids score so high but when it comes to actual knowledge they know not much. We’ve become enslaved to a system that only propagates rote learning and one wonders, where is education heading to these days.
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You reflect my thoughts Pradita. It’s really sad that the system is more favorable to rote learning than concept based application. Maybe that’s why they lag behind in professional courses in spite of doing very well in school!
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Exactly. Our children know nothing of practical life. The books they read only help them in their institutions and not beyond them. It’s high time we changed or we’ll never catch up to the real world.
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Absolutely. Our education system needs a total make over.
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The Indian Education system is flawed, Radhika along with this is the mentality of Indian parents too. It isn’t about marks or marksheets anymore…but where do people understand this?
Marks isn’t equal to Intelligence. No way!
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Glad you agree with me Savio. The mindset of the school, teachers and the parents need to under go a radical change. Isn’t it so sad that after slogging for years and achieving good grades they are still lacking in social and communication skills. Our system fails to provide holistic education.
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Since you mentioned Holistic Education, this has started in Goa, with foreigners providing this kind of education to kids here. I am very susceptible to such kind of make-shift schools. I had a student who I was training for English Communication skills and though she knew things about the universe (as she claims she was taught in this holistic school) she didn’t know proper theoretical knowledge of any subject. That made me wonder! So I’m really confused!!
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By holistic curriculum I mean where a lot of thought has gone into drawing up the curriculum. Why not invite people from different walks of life, like educationists, parents, professionals, social workers, sports men etc to do this. I am sure we can come up with an excellent methodology of teaching and grading.
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Yes true. The Holistic training that happens here (with normally foreigners at the helm) is all about imparting information about the universe and various other things through activities but nothing concrete as in proper subject teaching, which is also important in a way.
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Excellent and so very informative and inspiring, Radhika and I so truly agree with your words. Our education system is awful no idea where it is wanting to take our children. Average children then like crazy kids have no choice but to commit suicide and the talents of our children are not taken into aspect at all. All this nonsense is happening for jobs and to make money. What happens to a child who is not intelligent. We have made Robots of our children our times were not like this at all. Look at the scores they are ridiculous. Great post.
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Robots is the right word Kamal. Barring a few, while they do get wonderful grades, they are unable to solve problems implementing the same concept they have learnt. And like you pointed out, the confidence of the student with average intelligence is totally shattered.
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Yes absolutely and look how children are committing suicides. Recently 5 kids have done that out of fear and society pressures. Even parents today are wanting their children to compete with others and in that nonsense they are loosing their childhood of enjoying.
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I agree Kamal. It’s high time we let our children have a normal childhood sans the undue pressure!
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Yes absolutely Radhika, hope all becomes normal and our children can enjoy your childhood.
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Amen to that thought Kamal 🙏
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Welcome dear.
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Isn’t it what we follow in jobs as well?
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Yes absolutely Siddhartha that is why I said today we have become robots to get jobs in big companies.
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and in big companies again we work like robots. creativity is lost somewhere.
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Yes absolutely true Siddhartha.
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Yes, it is a high time that we need to shift our focus away from marks or grades.
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You echo my feelings Megala 🙂
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but how to do that Megala.I find it very difficult to digest if teacher speaks even one point where in my daughter can improve. We all want our children to be superhumans.
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Super agree with your views Radhika.
I also know of parents who enrol their children to coaching institutes in grade VI itself, with a hope that the child will crack the examinations…
What a pain for the child with a sword hanging over their heads …
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A sword hanging over their heads…..that’s absolutely how they must be feeling! Thanks Deepika for your views.
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How r u Deepika. Where r u in these days, r u busy
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I’m doing good daneel. Thank you !! Yes, I was a bit caught up with work. Have re started my blogging now.
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When i started blogging then u support me. Always i thanking you for support. Hope for support in future.
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I absolutely agree with you.Talking about myself I was just an average student and failed twice in exams, yet am not unhappy with whatever I have achieved in life.
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Yagneshji, history is replete with examples of students who were average in academics at school, but who have achieved great success in life. Can’t we just give them knowledge and confidence to take on any challenge that comes their way.
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Yes, we must. As an aside I may tell you that during my school days only 40% of the students appearing for the Matriculation Exams passed. I distinctly remember a photograph of those dejected students who had failed appearing in a local Newspaper with the heading: Never mind, you are with the MAJORITY!
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That was such a positive encouragement in spite of failure, something for us to learn 👍
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That is quite a sad scenario. Kids are pressured to perform. And when stress wins, their health is affected.
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Yes Arlene. Not only physical health but it results in many psychological disorders too!
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An excellent write up.. i hope it reaches out the parents who crave and complain about marks.. in today’s world we have most of our youth as the ‘educated unemployed’ because they lack the wisdom to apply the knowledge.. what point in such grades and marks.. alas its better too late to realize this truth.
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Yes agree! With poor communication skills and lack of conceptual understanding of the subjects, they remain unemployed!
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I loved the post and the portion of rough satire
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Thank you Tanvir 🙂
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A brilliant post and a great take on education.
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Thanks Shantanu!
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My pleasure
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Nice post Radhika
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Thanks Daneel!
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Welcome, How r u Radhika
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I am doing good!
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That great
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Thanks, Radhika for writing such a thoughtful post. The picture you shred the first one is the blog is the reflection of the stark reality of our education system, where the interest or the aptitude doesn’t matter everything is graded as per the marks.
We all have been through this process but the saddened part is now the percentage has come so high and ridiculous that it just defeat the person of grading a student.
All the major colleges and universities whose cut off list is 99% is aiding and abetting to this nuisance.
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The system is so unjust Megha. Students get full marks in languages too. It’s absolutely ridiculous. I hope this unrest gives rise to a change in the system for the better.
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Yes..At least now the kids are exposed to more options and numerous oppurtunity but the sad fact is they are still are graded by their marks.
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Yes Megha, and sure has to change!
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Thanks Radhika for sharing your thoughts.
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I am afraid that it is very similar in most Western countries although there are
since some years big debates how to change this. Especially as the unhappiness
of the students can reach dangerous and suicidal levels.
With understanding parents there are many options out there and after all, do we really want to create carbon copies of our children.
May the imagination get more look in.
~ miriam
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Oh, I thought the situation is better in the West. In India too some parents are understanding and allow the children to blossom without the stress, but they are a minuscule. I do hope the debates fructify and some concrete measures are taken to revamp the system. Thanks so much Miriam. Amen to your concluding thought.🙏
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I am agree with you. There is a fault in our education system. Our education system is associate with money making which cause more focus on marks than creativity & knowledge 😔
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Glad you agree with me Hardip!
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A good one Radhika. Parents (many) who were brought up in such system deny to change their views when they become parent and even when they are not in the system any more. They take the same attitude no matter how far they travel from India. Race 1 2 3.
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Yes, it’s really unfortunate Rupali. I really do hope parents realise that sky is the limit for children if they are allowed to follow their passion.
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Totally agree with you. Marks and grades are such a poor measure of the talents that lie latent in each child, and get neglected because of these superficial measures.
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Thanks Vidur. I am sure like us there are many who feel the same. Shouldn’t the government be taking steps to initiate a change ? The ones they keep doing every couple of years hardly takes the focus away from marks.
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They should be. Maybe one step would be of creating more colleges and institutes that offer quality teaching. Though I am happy to see that atleast today there a number of creative/art related subjects that stdents can choose after the 10th and pursue as career options.
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Yes, that is a fact. What I find encouraging is that today atleast some students are trying to pursue non science streams!
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So true!! Time to change
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Yes. It’s high time to do so!
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Thanks for bringing this up dear . I resonate 100 % with you on this !
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Glad you think the same. Thanks!
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This is a thought that has been jogging in my head over the last two days. It was the sad news of a suicide of a child who broke under the pressures of her parent’s expectation. She was an athlete but had difficulty in managing to stand on a stage without her knees wobbling. She was a swimmer but did not manage to outshine the brightest student in class. But was not she a human, and not a machine to churn out perfection – task after task. So she gave up on life. It is sad, very sad. It is easy to change the syllabus but very difficult to change a mindset.
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It is always heartbreaking to hear about such sad news. A child who is good in so many other fields is never acknowledged. Academics is the prime focus for every one.This is what angers me about the education system we have.
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I cannot agree more. Focus is always on marks. The learning and the understanding bit among others like the other talents that the child has is thrown on the wayside.
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Sad truth about our educational system. A typical indian scenario.
Kudos to you for such an outstanding post. Keep going.
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Thank you so much Amal!
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I believe intelligence is needed for academics but correct decisions require a rational and balanced mind which are equally important
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No denying about that Rita. But since the degree of intelligence is varied among the students, the system of examination and grading should be a fairer one!
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So true!! Trying to prove oneself on the basis of marks and children giving up childhood in the pursuit of this!! Not fair!!
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Absolutely unfair, and I feel so helpless being a silent witness to it!
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You have started doing something atleast by your blog…hope the mindset changes soon
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Amen to that Sifar!
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India, perhaps, is the ONLY country that can produce uneducated gradulates, where education is equated with exam marks and not learning. Now in the US and visiting Canada, I find it so different.
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In indian education system, marks and intelligence are poles apart!
I have discussed this very topic in the form of a conversation thread bare with my friend.
Interested reader may please take a look to note the perspectives discussed and note the coincidence.
1. Conversation 011: Bane of modern education system: https://rajinikanthv.wordpress.com/2018/03/22/conversation-11-bane-of-modern-education-system/
&
2. Conversation 012: Bane of modern education system (Contd.):
https://rajinikanthv.wordpress.com/2018/03/22/conversation-12-bane-of-modern-education-system-contd/
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