Education is the preparation of mind, training for how to live your life, and practising of morality. Instead of giving real education to children we give degrees to young people. Every year we pass students from school, college, and university with a degree but many of them lack ‘education’. We have unemployment in the country because we lack skillful youth. Undoubtedly, the educated youth is better prepared to create opportunities.
Developed countries like Japan, Germany and China take skilled youth from universities to create opportunities to provide their people with a life of ease. So many of the items of our daily use are made by Japan, Germany, or China. These countries work on their youth to be skilled and educated to boost their economies and create ways for people to have a good standard of living.
We, as a nation, need practical education. Education is not merely a degree but also a qualification that can be practised. Morality and ethical values are two of the main subjects of education, and our youth, unfortunately, do not have access to these subjects. We, as citizens of a Muslim country, must focus on the study of these subjects. Creativity and excellence of education coupled with moral values are always conducive to the success and progress of an individual and a nation.
It is high time that we revised the values of our education. Instead of teaching students to cram a subject for passing an examination or for qualifying for a degree or a certificate, we should teach our students the power of practical learning.
We should learn some lessons from the British movie Slum Dog Millionaire and the Indian movie Three Idiots. In the first movie, we see a boy Jamal Malik, played by Dev Patel, raised in extreme poverty on the streets of Bombay. He had no education in his entire life, but he is highly aware and qualified to deal with the day-to-day issues of life and society. He does not fail to answer the questions in a quiz show. He wins the competition with his practical and everyday knowledge based on the experiences of his life.
One of the lessons of the story of Slum Dog Millionaire is that a degree or a certificate is not required to be truly qualified. A real education is the qualification to live your life learning from practical experiences.
Three Idiots is the story of the importance of a real qualification. Rancho, the central character of the film, is played by Aamir khan. He talks about the real purpose of education that is important to get practical experience for a good life. The other two characters, Farhan and Raju, are directionless and are following the traditional path of education, although Farhan has interest in photography, and Raju is seeking education with the fear of remaining in poverty if he fails to get a degree.
The difference in these characters is clear to the audience: education is not rote learning and cramming like a robot. Rancho believes in the essence of education for creation and a practical aptitude. He had ideas, inputs, and lessons at every step of his life. His belief that “necessity is the mother of invention” is practical and not theoretical. He believes in doing what you want to do and not what others expect you to do. All his ideas have a connection to our day-to-day lives. His friends were motivated because of his ideals of what a real education entailed. Education must not be a pressure cooker for us as fear makes us robotic learners. It is education that enlightens our life and teaches us that all shall be possible when we learn to be practical in life. If we have a degree, it does not really benefit us; a degree can entitle us to be called qualified, but real education does not require a degree. History is replete with the stories of people who proved their worth in their fields with their practical vision and education that enlightened their minds.
