Having private players doesn’t always mean “efficiency”. Need of the hour is to make the existing system work.

Competition and Innovation are the crux of the issue.

I watching a program on SBS here on Space Tourism. The launch of the XPrize provided the motivation for many new ideas to flurish in the space area and in 2004 this was achieved.

There are other X-prizes now.

However, it was just amazing to see what a small team achieved which only super powers could do before – space.

The problems of engineering and medicine in the country are for real. However, that does mean that there is still a supply problem.

Increase the supply and the best will come out!

For Abhishek:

I am surprised that Abhishek fails to see the growth of mobile phones in the country. I am not sure how the private sector cannot be congratualted for providing one of the cheapest phone services in the world in India.

Abhishek needs a reality check.

Suhit

There is no lack of people in this country – who know how to set it right. BUT, they are bloggers, critics, thinkers etc – They ARE NOT POLICY MAKERS.

Those in Positions of Power – can alone make a difference – BUT THEY DON”T WANT TO.

A Shining Examples:
Arjun Singh and Mr P Chindambram want to spend Rs 16000 Crore in Reserving Seats in Higher Education – while this money should go for Primary Education.

CBSE Chief (No Less!) – has presented a proposal to HRD Ministry to do away with MATHS as a subject for SC/ST students! Weird to absurd. Talk about Bureaucrats leading this country to greatness.

KARNATAKA Education Minister – has shut down 1400 schools in middle of academic session because Kannada is not medium of instruction.

SO,
No Dearth of Ideas.
Severe Dearth of Right People at the TOP.

http://apunkadesh.blogspot.com/2006/09/eminent-men-and-education-system.html

By any standards, do you believe that the education provided by private engineering colleges is by means of a decent standard? Not at all. The private sector has brought in not innovation, but more rigidity. These colleges hardly offer academics the freedom required to do half-decent research, or to make courses interesting. Really, it would be a big big mistake to assune that the rpivate sector can solve all the problems of the country.

I do not suggest that all education should be govt. funded. I only say that if we go by the experience of engg. and medical colleges, it would be wrong to believe that the private sector will be any better than the public sector as far as quality of education is concerned. I concede that they may be more efficient financially.

As this article by Prof.Krishna Kumar (Director of NCERT) points out, children are our collective responsibility. It is hence the state’s responsibility to educate them, irrespective of their parent’s economic background. If the voucher system is implemented, the parent can very well save some money by sending his son to a school that doesn’t function, and hence charges less. The assumption you make, that parents will always think in the best interests of ther child, might not be in sync with the harsh realities of rural India.

You are bang on target about private sector participation. It is because of lack of proper educational institutions that we have problems like reservation.You are also right about better vocational education for those who cannot qualify for higher studies.

The literal meaning of the word education (latin word educere)is to draw out what is already in and not blindly stuff in. This could be one of the reasons for the high drop out rate. Students should be encouraged to explore their interests- Make your passion your profession

Lets look at the glaring example of telecom. Despite all the hoopla of the private sector participation in mobile telephony, the present set up has resulted in oligopolies and the resulting “calling discounts” hasn’t clearly happened. Yes, arguably the PSU’s have had to firm up their delivery channels but in many ways, trying piercing the opaque structures of a private player while you are lodging a complaint.

I am no expert; but more than the professed private initiatives, I believe that moribund syllabus is more at fault. We see the same kind of drop outs in the West too, but it would be easier to argue that estimated numbers look glaring because of huge population base we have.

When the whole system is still based on what Macaulay advocated to churn out babus and clerks, it would do us no good. Ironically the stake holders as parents, do not have much say in the way their kids need to be taught.

It would be cool, if there was a “Guide” similar to Hitch Hiker’s Guide to galaxy. After having acquired the skills to speak and understand some what the kid is given this guide by the parents/govt. etc. It is expected that guide is intelligent enough to understand the level of the kid and provide adequate lessons. Of course the book can get input by multiple methods touch and sound when the kid is of small age, and then keyboard eventually. There is no need for the exams as the guide is measuring the skills all the time.

We can almost write a another fiction on this idea.

- Pankaj