CHALLENGING TASK

Our education system is putting in bulk of efforts, day in and day out, to revamp the things. Money in crores is kept earmarked for the education sector to get streamlined. No stone is left unturned by our officials to make the education in our government run schools exemplary. Although before the abrogation of article 370, things appeared a bit blurry, yet after it, there are little chances for any section to give vent to their vested interests because Centre (Ministry of India) is directly ruling the states cum union-territories. The Govt. of India has adopted a rule called, ‘carrot and blood’ which means everything can be provided to the employees, far and wide, and in return everything can be taken from them. We call it in local parlance, khoon dena aur khoon lena’. Quality, transparency, dedication, etc will now prevail in every sector. A small negligence anywhere anytime will straight land a person in trouble. Be it an officer or an employee, from santari to mantari, so called, everyone is answerable (and should rather be).

In every sector, a proper screening of everything is done because now the mutilation and fraudulency has gone enough. However, certain sectors like health and education deserve prior attention. Unlike health, education sector remains among the top priorities for every government to reform because it is the education with which even the far fetched dream can come true. Though experts in alliance with the education ministry of India every day try to plug up as many loopholes as they can, to overhaul the system yet with the screening test of other things; textbooks in government schools too should undergo a screening test. This must happen not just up to the primary level but to the middle so that the dream of quality education is converted into reality.  

The new academic session has already begun amid Covid-19 pandemic in the schools of J&K. But gosh, the textbooks being taught in the government schools here are still not up to the mark! The curriculum in our government school textbooks unlike private school curriculum is so boring. Be it Maths, English, Science or any other book of the curriculum, the presentation is so revolting and unacceptable that one fails to understand how does educationists approve such stuff for the curriculum. From last two years some experts have been doling the sermons that books have been changed yet when one handles any book and flips pages, one concludes that it is ‘purani sharab nayee bottelun main’ (old wine in new bottles). Changing covers of books and giving them color is never called ‘change’ in true sense. Unless and until, books in government schools will not compete rather gain an edge over private schools books, the system will keep limping. Though bitter, yet truth is truth and it triumphs, always.

 Unlike government school textbooks, private schools books are replete with colorful, appropriate, attractive and eye-catching pictures that teachers love to teach their students. The text font size, the appropriate balance of the picture with the text, the line spacing, the arrangement of italic words with bold, glossary of typical words, and the color choice, etc makes private school curriculum interesting. One fails to understand how curriculum can be so below standard when a team of more than fifteen experts or so, puts it forth. The moment one turns the cover page of any textbook, a series of experts, all official rank are acknowledged by the academic officer. But, when one comes across the whole content of the book inside, it is so inappropriately and unattractively presented that even the enthusiastic teacher either leaves the target syllabus incomplete or teaches it half-heartedly. 

I remember even today when in 2008, I had to participate in a book selection stall at Iqbal Memorial Institute, Bemina, Srinagar in which many publishers from Delhi had arrived to advertise their books. I was one of the two teachers been chosen by the administrative body of Maryam Memorial Secondary School, Panditpora, Langate where I taught English those days. Separate sections for Maths, Science and English were kept to select the books for the coming academic session. No doubt, some teachers in the split-teams were young but then, besides us, there were retired college faculties who were assigned the task of content-selection scrupulously. I recall, we had to toil tough to choose a book from dozens of books kept available. Though this selection didn’t keep lingering for months like government school books yet the content selected for the students was worth readable and praiseworthy.

Those who are behind the formation and development of these textbooks have a duty. But alas! In Kashmir the trend has just been the reverse the minnows are captured and the whales are let loose!  I’m surprised. An English textbook, for example, of a private school is put forth by only two authors, so beautifully and attractively that one enjoys reading everything as prescribed. Where as, a government school English textbook is presented by a chain of experts in a tiny font and in an overlapping manner so inappropriately that irks the students as well as the teachers.

My more than two decades association with English subject has made me realize that private schools textbooks are worth readable which strengthen the very foundation of the students. Sorry to say that the Government school textbooks have ample mistakes what though one finds a list of experts being thanked in the starting pages. Whatever subject we may talk of, mistakes have crept in here and there. In all the English books up to class 8th, too much of content is shrinked in an illogical manner with inappropriate pictures. Things are presented in black and white style. Perhaps our experts don’t know that the time of black and white has gone. Modern time demands things illustrated in full color.

Take for example the new textbook of class 5th that was only the previous year published. Too many units are condensed to make the book appear slim but the content inside is inappropriate with no balance of pictures at all. Tagore’s beautiful poem, ‘Paper Boats’ is presented in such a ridiculous style that it evokes no nostalgic feelings of one’s childhood. The same poem when seen in the private school books of the same class is so beautifully and attractively presented that it gushes out an elixir of feelings of childhood days. In the same book Jonathan Swift’s, ‘Gulliver in Lilliput’ is balanced with a small black and white picture of Gulliver which doesn’t even suit the story. I, in fact, had to consult a private school English book to teach students interestingly the content where Gulliver’s picture was colorfully presented.

Similar is the story with other textbooks of other classes; for example, EVS (Environmental Science) of 5th and 4th, which is a simply headache for both, the teachers as well as students. And in 8th class English, if one meticulously goes through, at nowhere does match the pictures with the text. In the very beginning lesson, ‘How Teachers Learn’, our experts instead of illustrating little girl Nora with some attractive picture, have matched inappropriately the text/content with the picture from the mass communication department of KU.

Moreover, officials appointed by the state every year fail to publish the textbooks timely. The negligence reveals not only the lack of co-ordination of the system but it consequently wastes the precious time of the students. Higher-ups each time fail to plug the loopholes. If the Government didn’t strictly revise the curriculum before the new session starts, I’m sure revamping the education system will remain only a mere slogan. 

(Manzoor Akash is Rafiabad-based Rising Kashmir Columnist, Freelancer and Teacher by profession. He can be mailed at: manzurakash@yahoo.co.in)