CAT, IIT JEE and AIEEE should be conducted thrice in a year

Entrance examinations for all professional courses like admission to Engineering, Medical and MBA etc. should be conducted thrice. This is similar to GRE, GMAT and SAT type of examinations.

Promoting Study of Indian Languages in Higher Education

There is need to promote the study of Indian Languages at University Level. 

UGC should provide for strengthening the study of Indian Languages at Graduate and Post Graduate Level. Each University should offer at least 8 different languages - 2 from each region - North, South East and West. 
There should be 60 seats at Graduation Level for each language. Hence increase of 480 seats. At Post Graduate level, there should be 20 seats for each language. hence increase of 160 seats. There should be 5 teachers in each language.

This will lead to greater unity in diversity of the nation. 

English or mother tongue

There is a craze for learning English in India. Even low income families are spending a large part of their monthly income in sending their children to English medium school. English is considered a passport to a good job. Despite these efforts, the results are not so good. In our interactions with large number of young persons, we find the persons from rural areas and small towns usually have low confidence on themselves because of being poor in English conversation. The large part of Indian Economy is with 15 % population which is English speaking. This segment has better jobs, adds more value in economy, and consequently is rewarded well. 

Any growth of Indian Economy will only be possible, if the remaining 85% population is imparted skills that create greater value. This is the link between micro and macro. Our economists are largely focusing on Macro and forget the Micro. 

My argument is that we can and should impart skills to 85% population without recourse to English. This would mean a large expenditure on teaching English can be saved if we focus on teaching in mother tongue. We are not arguing for Hindi over English. I am arguing for mother tongue as medium of instruction. And my argument is purely economic and borne out of practical considerations. Chinese have sent men several times in space. Is it because of English? Take example of Russians and Japanese too. (To be completed.)  

My Vision of School

Education is so important an issue that it cannot be left in academicians' hands alone. 

I propose that there are following six dimensions on which children should be developed during their school days: 

1. Ability to Communicate

2. Analytical Ability - numerical and verbal 

3. Understanding of how the world works - Understanding of Science 

4. Awareness of the world that we live in 

5. Sound Body 

6. Ability to perform 

Now that my children are already well past the school stage, I wish to see the report card of my grandchildren in above format.

Accordingly I visualize that in a new school of my dreams, there will be no department of English or Hindi or Tamil etc. There will be the department of communication having not only experts of different languages but experts in debating and public speech.

The organization structure would also be reflected in the architecture of the school. These will be as follows:

Six Components

1. Communication Wing
1. English
2. Hindi
3. Local Language
4. Oral skills
5. Listening Skills
2. Analysis Wing
1. Mathematical reasoning
2. Logical thinking
3. Science Wing
1. How the world works?
2. Why of the world?
3. Principles that govern our life.
4. Awareness about the world
1. History
2. Geography
3. Civics
4. Law
5. Physical fitness
1. Sports
2. Yoga
6. Performing arts
1. Music – singing, playing instrument
2. Dance
3. Drama
4. Acting
5. Debate
6. Lecturing – speaking - presentation
7. Painting
8. Sculpting
9. Photography
10. Designing

How good will be 4 year degree courses?

Delhi University is introducing 4 year degree courses. 

Overall many young persons now get 18 or 20 years of education. 

1 year in Nursery
1 Year in KG
10 years in Class 1 to 10
2 years in class 11 and 12 
4 years in Engineering or graduation
2 years in MBA

Academic/Research minded people will add 3 to 4 years of PhD. 
[I am excluding discussion of medicine profession.]

By the time a young person is ready to join the ranks of working adults, she/he is 24 years. It takes another two years to get a sense of settling down. 

And marriage? Marriage is ruled out for the majority before they are 26. 

All this is common knowledge. So why am I belaboring on this. 

My view is that lot of the learning in these 18/20 years is a waste of effort. 

I repeat that all the hard work put in by sincere students is partly useful and partly a waste. 

Most of the wasteful learning occurs in college or university. 

Consider the two segments. 
Class 11 and 12. In present day environment in India, you find that the students work the hardest to gain admission to a good course or a good institute - IIT, NIT or MBBS.

Class 11 and 12 also see sudden increase in the workload, complexity and the information deluge. 
Those who do not get admission in Engineering or medicine, 50% of what they learn during these two years is a waste.

Now I come to graduation. 

Take engineering. While the first and second years give a good grounding and cause good development of the young persons, a lot of what is learnt in third and fourth year is hardly used. These papers and classes only serve to give employment to the teachers and nothing else. Most of the times, young people end up in jobs where lot of this learning has no use. 

Now come to those who do MBA. For them again according to my estimate only 40 to 50 % of the learning in 4 years of engineering is useful rest is a waste. 

Even in MBA in two years of learning about 40 % is wasteful. Students specialize in some area and do not work in that area. 

Can we clearly identify the waste? 

My view is definitely "yes".

Can we eliminate it? Yes we can.

How? By reviewing the entire education system. 

Before I proceed further. I would also like to point out the trend of people marrying late and then having children even later. This is going to prove a sore point for the society in long run. My view is that young man and woman should normally get married around the age of 22/23 and have first child by the time they are 25/26. 

This would require compressing the period of study to really 16 years by eliminate wasteful learning. 

I would vote for four year degree course but not after class 12 but after class 10 itself. 

Out of these four years, first two years should be in the hands of academicians only. 

After two years, the industry or the employer gets in. They do the initial selection and take over the curriculum and make major decisions about what is to be taught. Learning continues in University but the academicians now have a coordinating role and they do ensure that quality of teaching does not go down.

(To be continued)