Students from across the country were debating on the topic 'India's education system does not foster innovation and is outdated' at The New Indian Express' virtual inter-school debate
The largest inter-school virtual debate competition in India, it was held in association with Hindustan Institute of Technology and Science, MEIL and Linc Pens. The judges for the debate were Dr R W Alexander Jesudasan, Pro-Vice Chancellor of Hindustan Institute of Technology and Rama Ramanan, Associate Editor, The New Indian Express
Speaking for the motion, Manish M, a Class IX student of Montfort School said, "Education exists to bring forth one's potential and enhance them. But students today are suffocated with information dumped on them. Students are not asked to think, the thinking has already been done by people like Newton and Galileo. Anyone who claims that the Indian education system fosters innovation should ask themselves when was the last time we were asked to close our textbooks and think. When were we asked to innovate? When was the last time our teachers asked us what we would have done in place of Louis XVI or Gandhi? The dreams of students are crushed."
In a very convincing argument against the motion, Snehal Jalan, a Class IX student of The Heritage School raised some very thought-provoking questions, She said, "There exists an unfortunate trend of blaming the education system when anything goes wrong. I acknowledge the flaws in the education system, but has it not stood the test of time? Has it not produced top-level doctors, engineers and businessmen? Is it really that outdated if it still stands wrong in serving its purpose? We cannot say something is outdated when change is just around the corner and the New Education Policy 2020 is testament to that. It aims for an inclusive environment, ending the digital divide, providing more teachers to rural areas and introducing new languages and choices of subjects."
The winners were Gundeti Aishita, class IX, Suchitra Academy, Navaneeth V Shankar, Loyola for making the Finest Point, Arush Sharma, Class IX, Sai International School for Counter Strike and Snehal Jalan, class IX, The Heritage School for winning the Lighter Side award.
