Where does the Indian Education system stand on a world scale?

As the world collectively enters into the third decade of the 21st century, it stands as witness to technological advancement around the globe. Many innovations were introduced by the genius of youth around the world and pave the way for future generations. These advancements were not limited to the production sectors but also education as well. Education has changed from the typical classroom blackboard system to improved system technological integration. Learning outside the classroom, working groups for mini and major projects, using digital services or tools to self learn. Students do not have to wait for a quarter of a year to get admission into any college now that education is available anytime and anywhere. 

Students and institutes are implementing interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary methodologies for education so that the education is given and taken with the integration of knowledge and expertise from different sources. Both students and educational institutions must keep themselves updated with the advancements so they can utilize them for improving their education. The education system has moved a long way from discussing hypotheses and learning to remember them to verify those hypotheses and testing them. Student lessons have evolved from learning to remember, to learning to implement. With innovations and technological advancements, students gain skills far better from previous methods in which their knowledge is tested with standardized tests. Now, students are gaining the ability to learn how to use technology and learn things faster and stand ready to implement them in the workplace.

Universities that give education to students that they gain the knowledge to work with the existing technology and also with the technology yet to come are the institutes the world depends on. It is important to create learning space by teaching students the importance of collaborative learning, increasing the practical knowledge along with the theories so they can learn the importance of both theoretical knowledge and its application. Students must also learn how important innovation is and to make a habit of it. 

Universities around the world are ranked based on the quality of education they provide, a survey of people considering studying in universities in a particular country and opportunities those countries’ education system provides to students. India stands at 33rd rank according to the 2020 survey. Although it is sad to see India not even in the top 10 list, there is a progressive growth in education in India. In 2018, it stood at 40th rank and in 2019 it stood at 35th. Though the progress is slow, this consecutive change proves that India is trying to push itself up and stand among the greatest. Being one of the largely populated countries in the world, India sends out millions of students for higher education. It is not that India does not have universities for students, they have excellent resources and technology. Some universities often give admission to those that pay huge amounts to get into those universities. Most of these universities have those students who are not hard workers but who have money to spend. These universities often carry a bad reputation. 

The other universities that give admissions based on the merit of the student have the lowest acceptance rate. These universities accept those who are the best and only the best, and the rest of them look for universities worldwide. Those who are passionate, with the help of loans or the money their parents have, get admission into prestigious universities outside India. In India, the contribution of the student is going so much to the entrance examination that the quality of education still lingers around how to remember than how to implement. Most of these prestigious universities still follow their traditional education system that they lack the spirit of innovation. They hardly go out of their curriculum and do not let students think out of the box. They train students qualified enough for jobs. With this attitude, students might get jobs with good pay but the university standards do not progress and this holds the country’s education system down. 

The economy also plays a vital role in the improvement of the education system. When the country as a whole makes barely enough for its citizens to survive, it does not have luxury to spend the money into research and development. When the whole country puts its focus on just survival, the education system focuses on creating students with skills to survive. When the country plans and works towards becoming a global leader, the finance of the country has a place for innovation and technological advancement. The top universities of the country become famous for creating students who do not think about survival but to achieve much more. With these universities, the education system jumps higher into the best ranks and competes with the greatest. It may even stand as number 1. 

India’s education system is still hopeful. Round the world, many Tech giants have Indians working as their leaders and some working in prestigious positions. Many of these merits are the reason behind the success of organizations like ISRO. It’s not that there aren’t students who wanted to do something remarkable. But the thought process of living content with survival skills and life on weekends is what holds them back. The successful men and the universities in which they got trained and graduated makeup a very less fraction of a successful education system. The rest of them fall under the struggling part of the system. The flaws in the system behind such struggle are inequality, preferring rote learning to practical application, bad educators, bad infrastructure, and pressure from parents and society. 

Education in India is not equal to everyone on many levels. Quality education is available to those who can afford to pay for it. The free education India provides for the poor in the country is of very poor quality. From the beginning, this article tried to explain the importance of innovation and change in the education system. The current education system prefers students to score more in the tests rather than come up with innovative thought. Universities must be content with proper infrastructure for students to gain applicable knowledge. Those universities that possess them are unaffordable or with low acceptance rates. The advancement of technology requires teachers who can adapt to the changes and guide children through them. Lack of such teachers is also another flaw in the education system. Finally, the pressure on students from parents, family circle, and society is so high that many students are afraid to come up with unique career options. They are forced into choosing the most successful career in the present market and train themselves to like it and survive in it. With such pressure, many students end up as failures in life or become successful in survival but fail to possess other essential skills. 

There is potential in India and with the help the technological advancements India has a chance to achieve more than it currently does.