India needs a new freedom movement to change the education system, the great grandson of Mahatma Gandhi and author Tushar Gandhi said here on Monday at a talk on “Mahatma Gandhi and Eduction Today”, organised by publishing house Ratna Sagar.
Textbooks were evil, had corrupted the education system and burdened students. Even university students did not read beyond textbooks and to change the education system teachers should take the initiative, he said.
Even launching a satyagraha to change the system would not be out of place, he added.
Teachers too presented information only from textbooks and therefore students found classes boring. There was hardly anything in classrooms to encourage thinking, Mr. Gandhi said and this was against the idea of education that Mahatma Gandhi had envisioned.
The education that the Father of the Nation had visualised was one that appealed to the heart, enlightened the mind and empowered the hands.
But what the country had followed since Independence was what the British had left behind – one that was designed to create clerks for the then government.
The very fact that education was mark-oriented and not enlightening was evident in students rushing to coaching centres after school. Gone were the days of hobby centres where students could pursue various hobbies.
For the change to happen, teachers should spend more time with students. The role of primary teachers was very important as they can help students develop a mind for learning at a very early stage.
City historian Rajesh Govindarajulu narrated incidents relating to Mahatma Gandhi’s visits to the city and his interactions with the then prominent citizens.
