EDUCATION A LIBERATING PROCESS –
DR. JOSHI
Education is a liberating
process for any individual. Every human being possesses an innate
need to learn. The endeavour of educators must be towards fulfilling
this need to learn, rather than on putting stress and pressure
on young children by laying down numerous parameters and dos and
don’ts. This was stated by Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, Union Minister
for Human Resource Development while inaugurating a three-day
International Conference on "Enterprising Community through Education:
Perspectives for Open Schooling" organised by the National Institute
of Open Schooling (NIOS), here today.
The Minister emphasised
that educators in the country must not blindly ape the western
way of teaching which is mainly in the form of instruction. We
must develop our own standards and must understand the difference
between education and instruction. When teaching focuses only
on the material benefits, such as jobs, that education provides,
the developmental paradigm of the country also gets oriented towards
mindless consumerism. In fact, even in the West now, the concept
of "learning from within", is emerging, he added.
Dr. Joshi stated
that it is very important for all Indians to be literate. Only
then will we be able to solve our problems at the local level,
whether in rural or in urban areas. He pointed out that the status
of literacy was not so poor in the country before the advent of
the British, as it is at present. This was because education was
community based and not part of an institutional structure as
it is at present. Now, through the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, the
Government is again laying stress on participation of the community
for school education.
The objectives of
the conference are to deliberate on strategies to identify models
of community education through Open Schooling and to evolve strategies
for networking among NGOs, Panchayati Raj Institutions and Open
Schooling organisations, Discussions are also slated to be held
on evolving policy outlines, strategies and programmes for holistic
development of community in terms of poverty alleviation, promotion
of social cohesion, strengthening cultural and community values
and sensitization on global issues.
The participants
include functionaries from NGOs, Panchayati Raj Institutions and
Open Schooling organisations. This is the first of its kind conference
on this theme.
