Education is considered as the most important facet of basic infrastructure. Apart from food, clothing and shelter, it is education which finds its desired place in the order of priority. In a welfare nation like India, the Government is putting increased interest on it after the implementation of Right to Education Act.
To get education, that too proper and qualitative education, is the birthright of every child. It is the lookout of all concerned including the Government to provide the dues to each child. It is no wonder that people still calculate the instant benefit of sending their children to schools. Non-fulfilment of first three basic needs play spoilspot in their ambitions.
Schools should not only be considered as the place of learning, imparting lessons with the help of latest gadgets, conducting various modes of examinations, evaluating answer scripts in foolproof manner, distributing certificates in pompous award-giving ceremonies or even giving equal weightage to co-curricular and extracurricular activities round the year. These are considered as the bare structure of education, not the adorable polished one. The role of school is much higher and bigger than the commoners’ perception. Schools should be seen as an ideal centre of socialisation, an amalgamation of all the virtues. It is a preparatory ground for greater social values and finer adaptability.
School is reasonably termed as a temple of learning. Simultaneously, it is viewed as a citadel of life and living. The child comes across veracity of situations apart from facing multiplex mentality. A particular student’s attitude towards peers, juniors, seniors, teachers, Principal, other employees, visitors ought not to be the same.
The child learns how to deal with them and how to be dealt by them. The pupil discovers to distinguish between courteous and discourteous talks, desirable and undesirable manner, receiving and deceiving reactions in the school. Every passing day, the child gains the experience gained in the subconscious level that would help to grow as an individual. The situations in the family setup and in the school are quite different. Parents or family members can never fulfil all the needs of a child. School alone also can never do it. The family and the school are complementary to each other in this respect. Thus, mutual reciprocation is solicited.
Philosopher Plato intended to impart the ideals of socialisation in his dream institution ‘Academy’. He was of the view that if a child is intellectually fit, he must be socially acceptable; if a child is a flower then the entire society is mesmerised with its fragrance. To sum up, school should rise up to the layer of expectations of all.
(Dr Pati is a senior faculty of DAV Public School, Chandrasekharpur, Bhubaneswar-21, which celebrates its 27th Foundation Day today)