Let us try and recall; when was it that we dreamed our greatest dreams? When was it that we were full of hope, vigor and energy? Of course, when we were young! We are wasting a vast pool of enthusiasm and energy by total lack of attention to what the young people need. We need to think how our society can best utilize this wealth.
Let us ask ourselves “What percentage of learning that we had at school and college do we really use?” Most of us would say “Very little?”
Why? Because what we learn at school and college is not related to the business of living. It is so remote from the skills required for the real life! It is like some hurdles that a student has to cross till he is eligible to join the ranks of adults who are allowed to make some kind of living. School, college, further studies, still further studies ad infinitum… Gradually more and more books and years have been added to courses and the time when a person is considered mature enough to join the adult society has been pushed further, 16, 18, 21, 24, 27, 30…?
The moment a young one matures physically in the plant or animal world, it moves towards creation of the next generation. In case of human species, the human beings are generally not ready and independent to join the stream of life, despite the physical maturity. They have not acquired the skills to live independently by then.
This time lag is one of the causes for the strife in the family; the constant tug of war that goes on between young ones and their parents. There are the young, who are bright, energetic and full of ideas and dreams on one side and the parents who restrain and cling, on the other.
There are a whole lot of parents who try to live their own dreams through their children. There is coercion; emotional, mental and economic. A whole lot of energy is wasted in this conflict. Perhaps the parents can not be blamed. They want the best for their children and want their gene pool to survive and do better. Perhaps the social and economic conditions around them force them to do so.
The girl child gets the brunt of all restrictive traditions and discrimination. The young girls voice these ideas when they are given a chance to express them.
The boys generally enjoy greater freedom and preferential treatment in our patriarchal scheme of things, but they have the pressure to perform and earn a living. This causes a lot of stress in boys too.
Fortunately some educated parents do not discriminate between girls and boys. They are involved in their children’s education but are intelligent enough to give them freedom. Their children fare better but many problems still remain.
For the economically backward, the lower class, minority and lower caste students the pressure is even more intense. The opportunities get blocked due to lack of funds. Despite all the talk about liberty, equality, fraternity and the laws, there is tangible social discrimination. It may not be expressed verbally but it is palpably present, waiting to explode.
Learning is a life long process that continues through the whole life, but we can not lock up our youngsters in schools and colleges and expect them to behave like automatons that we have programmed.
We need a system that can equip the young ones for the future. It should help them to learn the moral, ethical, cultural, social and economic values and skills to lead happy and meaningful lives. Our system of education needs careful thought and reform. The success of the survival of our species depends upon it.
