Empower the child to Question …to make Decisions…..You have secured his future…

The future of a child will always be dictated by how strong his foundation has been. The foundation is laid by the education the child gets in the first few years of his life through the parents , school and the environment around. I am a firm believer that the primary aim of education , formal or informal , is to empower the child to question the prevalent and to make his own decisions. Is our education system fulfilling this requirement?? For me the answer is a Big No. The effects can be seen all around us. Most organisations and the nation as such suffers cause of lack of decision making abilities. 

The child starts learning, through observation and hearing, very early in life. The child observes and registers everything he / she sees around. It is on the parents and elders to create an environment conducive to good learning. What do we end up teaching the child??? I am basically referring to the environment prevalent in Indian subcontinent or may be in some other Asian countries. though I think it won’t be much different in other parts of the world as well. Basic values , the child gains from the parents, he will behave the way they do. Most parents do not encourage the child to question. It is simple, you have to do it because we are saying so. Very few will take the pains of hearing the child and giving a logical explanation for any action. Most of us shy away from explaining our stands because we ourselves are not very sure about it. The child is hardly ever given the right to make his own decisions. Even the smallest of decisions, at times , are enforced. The basic job of the parents should be to help the child reach a decision by giving him options and teaching him the art of rational thinking. However, hardly any parent / elder wants to forego their self-proclaimed right of making decisions on behalf of the children. Fear and cautions are usually being ingrained deep in the child’s mind by the elders .  All attempts are made to make the child risk averse. 

Life doesn’t get any better for the child in school. The students is continuously / relentlessly fed rather overfed with data / information and formulas. Hardly any stress is laid on practicalities of life , learning from personal examples. Emphasis is more on scoring marks than on values / overall growth ( mental & physical) . Decisions are imposed , questioning generally not accepted. Teachers have no time , they are struggling to complete the official syllabus , how can they devote time on teaching the true meaning of life to the young minds. 

Restrictions on the child’s ability to question curbs his ability to make decisions. Imagination is limited. “The mind which cannot fly free cannot create new” . 

All this has a long-term effect on just not the overall growth of the child but on the national growth itself. Just look around and see how many thinkers , researchers or decision makers you find around you. Yes some do rise to the position of decision making but how many can actually take risks ( calculated or otherwise ) or make the right decisions. Majority rise to become just good ‘SERVANTS’ ; How good is again a question mark .

“Empower the child to question the status quo….

Empower him/ her to take risks….

Let the mind be free….

The child and the society both will grow”