TAKING EDUCATION BEYOND THE CONFINEMENTS OF A CLASSROOM IS THE NEED OF THE HOUR. LET’S INTRODUCE A CURRICULUM THAT ALLOWS THE CHILD TO FOLLOW A DIFFERENT PATH OF LEARNING THAT IMBIBES VALUES LIKE TOLERANCE, FORBEARANCE AND HARD WORK SO THAT THE CHILD ATTAINS MORE THAN JUST AN ACADEMIC DEGREE.

What comes to your mind when you think of education? School buildings? Libraries? Textbooks? Curricula? Teachers? Examinations? Most of us, in all probability, associate education with at least one of the above-mentioned things, and surely many more could be added. But does education take place outside of such formal settings? Can curricula be found beyond that of the normal course of study? Can we find teachers who are teaching outside the classroom? Does education always needs be in a specific pattern? Is education only limited to textbooks and examinations? The students mind is programmed to pass the class with higher percentage so as to get admittance in good colleges.A profound analysis is required to understand the real meaning and essence of education.

From the time a child is born, the parents usually decide the career that their child should take when he grows up. The beautiful dreams on which every parent lays a foundation of their child’s future begins from the time the child goes to a playschool. This is the first encounter of the child to formal education. Here, they are taught how to eat, recite poems, pray to god, respect their parents and elders and lots more in a splendid environment. The costlier the playschool, the better it is considered. This practice continues when the child grows up and enters a world of superfluous competition, fallacious learning and superficial knowledge as he advances from Playschool to Gurukool. It has now become fashionable for parents to declare loftier goals for their children but their dreams are shattered when their children want to become a DJ instead of a doctor or want to take up the job of an Event Manager instead of becoming an engineer.

The difference between school and life? In school, you’re taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you’re given a test that teaches you a lesson.
Tom Bodett
Real education must ultimately be limited to those who insist on knowing, the rest is mere sheep-herding. Ezra Pound

It is very essential for every individual on this earth to realize that the sole purpose of education is not merely to open doors for students to earn fat pay packages or to be technology savvy. True education begins at home. Let us not limit our education to books, Internet and newspapers. Someone once said, “The highest function of education is to bring about an integrated individual who is capable of dealing with life as a whole.” India has been known as the Land of Gurus and Gurukuls.

The Gurukul was where the students resided together as equals, irrespective of their social standing. The Guru was more than merely a teacher. He was a father, a guide and a role model for all the students. The students of the Gurukul lived a life of tutelage and obedience. They would leave their homes and their loved ones and come and live at the Gurukul for years to learn the lessons of life from their Guru. Life at the Gurukul was tough but at the end of their training, the students emerged as responsible individuals that were well learned and capable of facing the toughest challenges of life.
It was the time where the only source of learning was the Guru and where degrees didn’t matter - only knowledge did. The Guru (teacher) and the Shishya (student) shared a spiritual relationship based on the ideals of the student’s respect, commitment and devotion. The Guru’s duty was not only to teach the student a particular subject but develop the entire personality of the student. The Guru tried to develop the student’s character, versatility, strength and overall vision of life. Acquisition of knowledge was helped in a value-rich environment with focus on the development of the entire self. Learning, as understood from the Upanishads, is a journey on which the teacher took the disciple, from the familiar to the unfamiliar, from the known to the unknown and from the concrete to the abstract.

Today, we have confined our learning merely within the closed boundaries of institutions that we refer to as schools and colleges but often forget that human learning happens outside the classroom and people continue to learn throughout their lives. Only securing the highest marks in the most difficult subject or attaining a degree of the most contemporary course has become the sole motive. The teacher “teaches” and the students “sit and listen” and believe that the books and the teachers are always right. There are a very few lucky souls on this earth who get a chance to experience education beyond boundaries and then there are others who often find something ‘missing’ in their lives. Even when they have achieved the heights of material influence, often end up asking the question: “Is that all?” Inspite of living in a mad rush, they detect emptiness and the pace of their lives soulless.

The only way to bridge up the gap between the two is to educate every individual to be fully awake. If children are taught about mindfulness from the beginning they would have a better understating of whatever they do. No curriculum in any school or college recognizes or seeks priority to the inner life or seeks a balance between the child’s/students inner and outer lives. Even if some schools have taken a step towards this, it is only regarded as ‘extra-curricular’. Why can’t such things be a part of the routine without adding the burden of the ‘extra’ to it? It’s not only schools but the whole culture which tends to ignore this aspect.

It is disturbing to see children suffering from ailments like stress and depression and their visits to the psychologists and psychiatrists at such a tender age. Most of us think that childhood is the time of happiness and innocence but the bitter truth is that even they are under as much pressure as the adults. Born into a mercilessly hectic and noisy world, children may find that the only quiet moments they experience are when they are asleep. Let’s make them learn the power of being at peace even when they are awake through meditation so that they can automatically enjoy everything surrounding them.

There are many institutions that claim to provide comprehensive and holistic education but no examples are required to attest the current scenario. No high funda jargons or techniques are required to imbibe the indispensable wisdom into the students. Let’s teach and learn to enjoy the beauty of nature, train them to be tough to face all the challenges of life…be able to pray unconditionally, make world a better place to live for the children.

It would be wrong to only hold the schools and colleges responsible for the children’s education beyond the classroom. The academic education is also very essential. It gives an individual a better perspective to think broadly as it opens many doors and minds to provide a platform for the children to develop their own abilities and talents and realize their potential in some form or the other. If there wouldn’t have been academic education we wouldn’t have had engineers, computer professionals, mathematicians and so many other qualified people without whom our lives would be very difficult to imagine.

It entirely depends upon us whether we prefer being literate or believe in being educated. If only children could be made to meditate they would have an added quality of attentiveness, awareness within them. This would make their mind sharper, analytical and enhance their observation power as well. A calm and consolidated mind gives them the best possibilities of learning and growing with knowledge. Knowledge from books can never bring transformation, life as a whole should be our learning. Changing knowledge into knowing should be the ultimate agenda for education system.

May teachers and students sit together to meditate in every school of every city and village of India. So that teacher gets his/her capacity to teach and help students to move on the path of neo education system and grow mentally, intellectually and spiritually.
So, does education take place beyond the classroom? Certainly! May God guide us to help students learn the proper lessons. It would be wise to sum up with the very famous Chinese proverb:

“What I hear, I forget.
What I see, I remember.
What I do, I understand.”

Learning should broaden horizon - Dr Umesh Sharma Clinical Psychologist

I certainly do not believe in just sitting in a classroom - which is unnatural, unhealthy, and should be limited. To educate the individual as a free individual is to understand and use critical thinking skills for determining the truth for themselves. All our knowledge, our clothes are produced by others. Thus we owe to the society and have a responsibility to give back something to the society.

There are many reasons why children should participate in these details. It broadens horizons. Participating in activities enriches children’s life experiences and promotes physical development. From playing video games to surfing the Web, today’s society lures children towards sedentary activities like these. Playing a sport gets children off the couch onto the field.

Activities encourage team spirit and social skills. Parents and teachers must not only discuss activity options with children, but give them the power to decide which activities to sign up for. At the end of the season, get together again to re-evaluate whether or not to continue the activity. Moreover, I believe that when children practice meditation, they come in touch with the self and their thought patterns; they come to understand the inner dialogue. Then, they learn to discriminate and finally, they learn how to work with the self. These seeds should be sown in childhood. Instead, believers of all faiths, clinging to external rituals, impose their ideals on their children and force them to participate in their time-honored customs. This will keep them physically, intellectually, emotionally, socially and spiritually healthy.

Meditation and Yoga are essential for child’s growth - Mrs M K Maan, Director, Doon International School

The emphasis on academic achievement has had a by-and-large positive effect on student’s development. However, it tends to ignore individuals who may be different from the others, i.e. those not necessarily good at academics but brilliant at other things like music, dance, sports, computers, spoken skills, writing skills. Creative activities play a significant role in shaping a student’s personality. However, they must be well planned, keeping in mind the child’s inclinations, interests and abilities.

Another absolute essential is meditation and yoga as part of the training program for the child’s growth. I have been doing both meditation and yoga since the past three years and it has made a huge difference in my mental and physical health, fitness, my attitude and has turned me into a positive human being. I feel these must be made part of the school program in all schools.

I would like to change the prevailing education system to make the syllabus broad based with weightage for varied abilities as music, dance, sports, computers, spoken or writing skills etc included in assessment rather than just academic achievement.