What was ancient Indian education like?
It is a million pities that a modern Indian is very much aware-let alone proud-of India’s heritage. In the long process of assimilation of foreign influences we have lost our own identity. After nearly half a century of freedom our educated minds are not free from foreign ideas and influences.
How true? And how justified this criticism?
Everywhere school fees are rising. Why not? That’s how school managements justify the fee hikes in the face of rising costs. While this doesn’t make use in our dailies, in Delhi the school fee hike is a raging public debate.
Is there anything called pure education?
Education standards as such can’t do much to improve the standards of living or the quality of living. For the later virtues we have to search for salvation, not in education but in economics and culture. Here in a perceptive review of an education report just published in the UK, the author examines education reforming. And comes to the inevitable but sad conclusion that no prodding of children or parents to go (or send their children) into schools would do.
A short history, an English headmaster, a mix of many contradictions, claims to pedigree, pressures of paying high fees and the consequent pushing off the more genteel classes by the new commercial and business tycoon families make this once proud imitator of the British model into India’s own new model.
The crack of a cricket bat upon ball, a tree line furled on a sunny afternoon, the bell calling languid boys to tea etc. are some of the golden memories of the British public schoolboy. But the hills in the distance are the Himalayas and the boys are all Indian. This is the Doon School, India’s most elite boarding establishment.
Are they living up to their ideals?
Public schools are said to give the best education to youngsters from well-off economic and social backgrounds. Yes, this perception is right. These schools have been inherited from the British administrators who founded them in India. The British founded two types of public schools. Schools like the Lawrence schools were founded originally for children of the British soldiers and the army’s lower ranks. While the other category of schools like Mayo and Rajkumar were set up to educate Indian princely families. This latter category of schools was supposed to train children of upper class Indian feudal families with leadership qualities.