Are the schools relevant?

Since time immemorial businesses have tried to delight their customers, whether it be through their products or services. This was made possible by recognizing the customer's individuality, in terms of their thinking, social associations, gender etc.

Now, can such individuality be recognized in schools?

Traditionally, the school system was envisaged to instill in students a level of thinking ability. The various subjects were meant to enable the students to think about different dimensions of the world such as sciences, arithmetic, logic and speech.

The new questions:

In the present times is it possible for a child to cultivate the same level of thinking ability using technology at home?

Can schools utilize technology to help the students in the same, considering that every one of us learns differently?

And is it necessary for a child to be taught all the basics like it was done for the previous generation?

These are some of the questions our society needs to ponder.

Students of the new age

With the Ed-Tech startup funding climate gathering steam amidst Covid-19 we are forced to ask ourselves, is the education landscape changing. If yes, is it for the better?

Earlier the process of education was simple, find a good school, enroll your child and voila, you put your child's future on autopilot. But with the emergence of the internet, MOOCs, e-learning platforms and skill-based courses took the centre stage. The focus shifted from brand names of the prestigious schools to the development of mental faculties & skill sets of students.

Within this emerging climate, all the stakeholders take on a different role:

Role of students: Students might have to balance two frames of reference. On the one hand, they hear of the news of a student getting a 1 Crore package from IIT and on the other of a school dropout who learned to code and built the next unicorn. Should they focus on building skillsets or getting into prestigious brand names?

Role of teachers: Teachers need to compete, first to get the job and then to teach better than the teachers online. It is good for students as the teacher now has a benchmark and strives to be better every day. But does such a competitive scenario bode well for the teachers when there is already a deficit in their numbers?

Role of administrators: Administrators have to balance not just the short-term needs but also innovate for the future. The opening up of the economy and the internet demands effective business managers. Due to the talent crunch, they need to create policies to ensure the growth of the talent that they employ. The call for a next-generation curriculum while the regulatory authorities operate in the primitive age is another factor they consider on a daily basis.

Now the question is, should schools innovate just for the sake of innovation? or Is it because of increased customer awareness, they just need to do things better? Time will tell, but it will be a great story as it unfolds.