Growing Irrelevance of Higher Education

 

Growing Irrelevance of Higher Education  

On the Teachers’ Day – birthday of the Philosopher-King Radhakrishnan - this piece is written with a deep sense of concern about the deplorable condition of higher education in India. To say the higher education is growing irrelevant may sound far-fetched. Of course, Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) in the country have grown manifold and have been churning out thousands of graduates year-after-year, who take up various professions and render service to society in different ways. Nevertheless, the education system, in general and higher education in particular, has become increasingly irrelevant to a vast majority of people, in that it failed to observe the norms of equity and justice and, hence, unable to meet the aspirations of the youth representing the cross sections of society. On the day when the nation is celebrating the Teachers Day, it is important to understand the state of higher education.

The reasons for the growing irrelevance of higher education in India:

Reason 1: Denial of the right to express freely

The HEIs have lost academic autonomy. They are made to control minds and thought process of students by denying them the right to express contrary opinions, nor are the students permitted to have healthy academic debates and discussions. The teachers are told to take prior permission for organizing academic seminars and conferences and to invite guest speakers. This is happening because the persons having leaning towards the ideology of the ruling party or toeing its line are appointed as heads of the HEIs, not based on open merit. Appointing persons toeing the line of the ruling dispensation as Vice Chancellors of Universities and Heads of HEIs and regulating bodies, such as JNU, Delhi, IITs, IIMs, UGC, ICSSR, NTA etc., has destroyed the academic freedom, eroding credibility. It is saffronisation of higher education. The loss of reputation and credibility of the JNU, a premier national public university, is painful. The JNU is now trying to sell its properties to corporates, to fund the university, rather than demanding and obtaining adequate funds from the government.  The idea of an Institution of higher learning without the freedom of speech and expression is inconceivable. And higher learning is empty, nay rather dangerous, without the right to express freely.

According to Rowan Atkinson, English actor and writer, the second most precious thing in life is the right to express freely (the first being “food in mouth” and the third “roof over head”). There is growing intolerance to gag the uncomfortable voices of dissent, and restrict free speech as a tool to silence critics. John Stuart Mill, 19^th century political philosopher, known for his seminal work On Liberty, believed that there must be complete freedom of thought and expression. He argued: “If all mankind minus one were of the one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had power, would be justified in silencing mankind. The peculiar evil of silencing the expression of an opinion is that it is robbing the human race; posterity, as well as the existing generation; those who dissent from the opinion, still more than those who hold it. If the opinion is right, they are deprived of the opportunity of exchanging error for truth.”

It is only when our beliefs are constantly challenged that they are strengthened. If we disregard an opinion which is actually true, then we would be deprived of knowing the truth and correcting our false views.  That is why, all opinions must be allowed to flourish, as free discussions will correct our errors and benefit humanity. The ability to engage in critical thinking is more essential today than ever. The World Economic Forum has highlighted critical thinking as one of the paramount skills for the 21^st century, since the quality of our personal and professional lives is deeply intertwined with the quality of our thinking, particularly in the face of phenomenon of fake news.

The Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), once an ionic Institute that produced intellectuals and highly public-spirited men and women, is in the news these days for wrong reasons. It asked the students to sign a pledge, considered part of an ‘honour code’. The pledge, as reported in The Times of India, September 4, 2024, reads: “I would not indulge in any political anti-establishment, unpatriotic discussions, demonstrations, dharnas or any form of activities that disturb the academic environment of the Institute. I understand that any infringement would attract strict action against me.” This is ‘bondage’, and a death-warrant for the right to free expression. Earlier the Institute banned the Progressive Students’ Forum; its former general secretary K.S. Ramdas was suspended for participating in alleged ‘unlawful’ and ’anti-national’ activities

The Centre has brought all 54 central universities that receive more than 50% grant under its direct control, with the Union Education Minister as the chairman of the Governing Bodies.  That is how these elite universities have lost the academic and even administrative autonomy.  And we are witnessing growing intolerance of any dissent in these temples of higher learning.  Whither Higher Education!

Reason 2: Dismantling Public Higher Education

On August 29, Yogendra Yadav, an eminent educationist and social activist, addressing the students and the faculty, under a banyan tree, outside the Ambedkar University Campus in Delhi, as he was denied entry into the University, has made very pertinent observations: This University was born as one of the most experimental universalities in higher education.  A public university devoted to social sciences and humanities. Today public universities are closed in a multiple ways.  What happened in last ten years is absolutely unprecedented. It is first time that large number of first-generation children are entering the university. This should have been the time to strengthen the public universities, to give more funds to universities, to appoint more teachers, to improve the infrastructure, and address the issues of inequality and discrimination. It is an historical opportunity. Higher education is the most important pipe line for transforming the inter-gender inequalities. Public Higher Education is being dismantled to perpetuate social inequalities in society. It is complete destruction of quality of higher education. It is bureaucratic authoritarianism in universities. Starving of public universities at a time when there is mushrooming of private coaching institutions. Public universities are reduced to the level of district government offices. A multiple assault that must be resisted; a part of larger assault on democracy, the very idea of public university, the idea of social justice. Ambedkar University teachers are forced to take to streets to fight for equality and social justice. 

It is a question of saving higher education. The Center is imposing GST on universities. Recently, the IIT Delhi, among other Institutions, is asked to pay tax of more than Rs.100 crore, being the GST arrears. It is astonishing that at a time when the universities are starved of funds, the government, instead of providing them financial relief, is bent on collecting taxes from them, while dubious Ramdev’s Patanjali products, 14 of which are banned on the directive of the Supreme Court, are exempted from the tax. The government is shirking its social responsibility of providing quality education to all citizens, particularly the under privileged. It is inexplicable.

 Reason 3: Privatisation of education

The massive privatisation of education, right from primary to higher, has a devastating effect. The privatisation is the result of the government withdrawing funding the HEIs. Consequently, education has become too costly due to exorbitant fees charged by private institutions. Poor students can no longer afford quality education, with education increasingly becoming inaccessible and unaffordable to marginalised sections and ordinary people. The HEIs are asked to restructure their courses to meet the requirement of industries, to make students market ready for employment; curriculum cannot be designed solely on the basis of market demand.  The objective of higher education to promote upward social mobility of the people at the bottom of social pyramid; and transform students into better human beings and empowered and responsible citizens is defeated. 

The industries are unable to generate jobs for the army of unemployed youth. And yet, what we see is industry-oriented education, making students market ready for so called employment. This is deceptive since the industries have failed to generate jobs. as evident from the fact that around 83% of the educated youth are unemployed. During the past four weeks, more than 46,000 graduates and postgraduates in Haryana applied for contractual sanitation worker positions, so desperate to find any job. In their article Why The India Placement Story Has Turned Soar in The Times of India, September 5,2024, S. S.Mantha and Ashok Thakur say that "the hallowed IIT Bombay has managed to place just 75% of its students through the campus recruitment process this year...the lowest package to be offered went down to Rs.4 lakh, from Rs.6 lakh earlier...Consider this against the rupee's devaluation...This is the scenario at one of India's premier institutions. It gets worse when one considers the new IITs, NITs, universities and innumerable other institutions that have mushroomed across the country... only about 30% of students at most such institutions are found employable."  So much hype and hullabaloo about these institutions where students spend lakhs of rupees, raising loans, dreaming to get suitable stable jobs after completion of their studies. And "not a single industry body, be it CII, FICCI or ASSOCHAM has raised this issue of demand side metrics before education planners."   

Reason 4: Mushrooming of coaching centres 

It is the failure of educational institutions that explains the mushrooming of coaching centres. Though it is an irresistible fashion among parents to enroll their wards in coaching classes, one reason for this unbridled growth of private coaching institutions is poor teaching in government and government aided schools. The education system fosters spoon-feeding and rote learning and discourages lateral thinking. The pattern of education, based on performance at examinations has lost its relevance.  All India competitive examinations like NEET, JEE, CAT etc. are cracked by rich kids depending on coaching classes, leaving the poor students from rural and semi-urban background behind in the race. Marks are not the lifeline.  Einstein, Edison, Tagore didn’t complete their education. Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, college dropouts, founded the Apple Computer. Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard to found Microsoft. The parallel system of education weighs heavily in favour of monied people. It doesn’t ensure level playing field for the weak and deprived so far as accessibility and affordability of quality education is concerned.

The annual revenue of the coaching industry comes to whopping Rs.58,000 crore, 3 times the annual budget of all IITs and AIIMS put together. This dramatic rise in the fortunes of the coaching industry is linked to government policies. The government has stepped back from its duty to provide affordable quality education to the people. Besides, centralizing all admissions through centralised entrance tests has forced students into the arms of the coaching industry.

Reason 5: Failure to conduct fair examinations

Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition, said on the floor of Lok Sabha, that there were more than 70 question papers leaks of various examinations, meant to recruit into various government services, during the past 10 years of the present regime. There is nexus between the corrupt and incompetent official functionaries and the agencies conducting the examinations and the mafia that bribes and leaks the questions papers to benefit the monied class, resulting in cancellation of the examinations last minute. This has been a very frustrating experience for the millions of students who aspire to crack the examinations like the NEET, JEE, CAT, CEUT etc. leading to waste of money, resources and years of hard work. Recently, the students were on streets all over the country protesting against the leaking of the NEET question paper and declaration of results. There is no transparency and accountability. The whole examination system is reduced to a farce.  And students have lost faith in the system, due to loss of credibility. This is the same story in almost all the states, particularly so in the states of UP, Bihar, MP, Haryana etc. where leaking of question papers and cancellation of examinations is a regular feature. 

Education transforms an individual, enabling him to grow to his full potential. A vast majority of people is denied quality education in India, and unable to derive any substantial benefit from the education system to make their future bright and promising. Education for what! And to what end!  It is the education of the rich, by the rich and for the rich.