Editor,
I would like to shed some light on the hollowness of our current educational system through your prestigious newspaper.
A person often devotes the most productive seventeen (17) years of his life – that is, 10+2+3+2 – to pursuing higher education in humanities, only to discover that at the end it, if he has not passed the NET/SLET or any placement interview, he has not developed any skills necessary to get employment and become financially independent.
In the present scenario in our state, following completing the undergraduate or postgraduate programme, one must re-enrol in one of three courses to become employable and seek employment: the two-year BEd course, the one-year computer/tally course, or, in our state, the three-year LLB course – commonly referred to as the backup course for many.
Under the current educational system, it takes an average of 27 years for a tribal man to find employment, begin living his life independently, and start to establish a work-life balance. It is imperative that the authorities apply a mind, heart, and hands (or the H3) formula to learning, in order to address this issue, in addition to other strategies.
This method will enable students to use their hands to apply what they have learned practically, their hearts to reflect emotionally, and their heads to critically analyse. By incorporating this strategy into our educational system, we can create a young workforce that is equipped to boost our economy and be employable in a variety of service-related fields.
Strategies such as providing skill development programmes, entrepreneurship adeptness, computer learning programmes, stenography, tallying, and other vocational courses during higher secondary level, as well as undergraduate and postgraduate courses, are some of the actions that have the power to completely alter the situation. This would not only reshape our society but also grant our state’s economy an additional boost to compete with other states at the national level.
Furthermore, our chief minister’s vision for ‘healthy human resources’ can only be realised by harnessing young people’s potential from an early age. To preserve those valuable extra years of youth before they are lost, our educational system should integrate life-sustaining skills and entrepreneurial aptitude in schools, colleges, and universities. This will help them acquire the necessary skills to enter the workforce and provide support not only to themselves but also to their state and the country’s economies.
Yiri Kamcham,
Kamcham,
Lower Siang