The coronavirus pandemic brought education to a standstill,
alike every other sphere as online education became the norm. It was
discernible that a vast digital gap among the students was imminent and lakhs
of underprivileged children had to forsake education to earn daily bread.
Studies report an uptick in child marriage and child labor cases especially in
rural areas. This wasn’t all, exams were cancelled and students had to be
promoted readily. The exigent demand for seats proved to be an impediment to
colleges that were already thrown out of gear due to the pandemic. How to assess
student’s learning? What format of assessment to adopt? These questions are not
yet answered as educators are still grappling with the problem. Exams must not
be the only yardstick of student’s performance. Further, the format of question
papers must be redesigned to gauge children’s overall understanding. Knowledge and
conceptual clarity must be the cornerstone of exams than marks.
As pandemic abated, schools opened up but students continued
to struggle. As a result of drawn-out online sessions and theoretical lessons that
seemed drab and wearisome, students’ have  |
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refrained from learning. This is a major setback
as offline exams are conducted after nearly two years. Consequently, majority of
the students have flunked exams which has greatly worried the teachers and
educators. Looking at it from another perspective, thousands of graduates are
seeking job in job markets that are reeling with the effects of the pandemic. Due
to societal pressure and expectations youths are coerced to give up on their
dreams and cave in. They continue to languish slogging all day only to be fired
and again hunt for another job. This creates a vicious cycle. Bereft of proper
skill set and in depth knowledge lakhs of youths are exploited, under-employed
and un-employed. When they finally analyze their dreams and start working, it’s
either too late, responsibilities or lack of resources bog them down. The coronavirus
pandemic has escalated this crisis and has helped to bring it under spotlight.
India is a young country with the average age of an Indian
being 29 in 2020. The demographic dividend needs to be utilized sagaciously. Providing
quality education and employment opportunities is the need of the hour. Communication,
creativity, critical thinking, collaboration and adaptability must be
incorporated in the teaching process. Academics and co-curricular activities
must go hand in hand so that students are prepared for the future. Non-conventional
courses like photography, graphic designing must be brought into the mainstream
of the society and promoted by the government through scholarships and career
options. Endorsing organizations that work towards proffering quality education
to the lower rungs of the society and aiding them to gain a foothold in the
market is a good start. Education lays the foundation of any country and any
shortfall will certainly have detrimental effects on other sectors like
economy, politics, business and technology. Policies needs to be instigated and
the government must strive towards bridging the gap between traditional
learning and implementing 21st century skills, inclusivity and
gender balance.
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