STUDY...ALL DAY??

Remembering School Life!

I studied in Germany for two years. And when I came back I was struck by the harsh differences in the education imparted by these two countries. I remember my first day there, when my teacher took us out in pairs and taught us how to cross a road. We then went on to a nearby forest where we picked acorns as part of our nature class. I returned home amazed to find that a school day could be so enjoyable. The days flew by in a jiffy while I visited the municipal corporation, went to church to listen to the choir and went to a nearby ground on a sunny day to collect wild flowers! For Maths homework, the teacher used to say that we had to spend only ten minutes with our books and do as many sums as we could in that time. Some could do two, others five. But the teachers got to know each child's individual ability. We would listen to audio tapes of nature sounds where we were supposed to identify the different seasons! Even though those two years were the happiest school days of my life, some teachers were of the opinion that Indian and other foreign students were much more hard working than the students there, probably because they were used to it. The German children became so used to the easy lifestyle that when the time came for serious study they could not adapt to the workload. Here the students are assessed according to the number of hours they put in cramming facts while there the assessment is according to what they put into those hours. Thankfully our education system is changing for the better as the Continuous Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) being introduced in schools is a good mix of Indian and European techniques involving hard work and fun. This system will hopefully make school life for students what it should be - enjoyable years of fruitful learning!
-By Ankita Srivastava