The Vice President of India, M. Venkaiah Naidu on Wednesday stressed on the need to completely overhaul the education system to ensure that 'institutions churn out ideal citizens'.
He made these remarks while addressing the founder's day celebrations of CHIREC International School in Hyderabad.
The Vice President said, "I feel that the overall education system from school level to higher education should be completely overhauled to ensure that our institutions churn out ideal citizens. First and foremost, the syllabus at the school level has to be drastically cut to reduce the load on students. The time spent by students in school should be divided equally between the classroom and playfield."
While talking of India's rapid growth towards becoming a global leader through the tool of education he also called on educational institutions to take an active lead in resetting education landscape to make it more relevant and contemporary.
Quoting Swami Vivekananda's thought that 'Education is the manifestation of the perfection already in man', the Vice President emphasized on inculcating strong ethical and moral values and infusing the spirit of nationalism and patriotism among the students through the education system.
Talking of India's rich heritage in the field of education the Vice President said," Schools used to be places wherein students lived with their gurus and participated in lessons in the same space. Educational institutions are the temples of learning and every student, who steps into them, must not only show respect to the Gurus, but also display complete dedication and discipline towards the entire process of learning."
Encouraging participation in sports and cultural activities, the Vice-president also criticized the culture of memorizing and reproducing in a mechanical fashion by the students and spoke in favor of fostering creativity, critical thinking, and open learning.
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Expressing concerns over the increasing instances of juveniles committing crimes, he said, "We are regularly coming across instances of juveniles committing crimes, even heinous ones at times. The time has come for us to go back to our roots. The study of Indian culture, civilization and history is essential for the students to develop a proper understanding and perspective on our glorious past. Our culture always taught us to respect women, elders, teachers, nature and animals."
Speaking of preparing students to deal with new and emerging situations in an innovative and practical manner, he suggested re-orienting curricula and teaching methods for making them relevant to the requirements of the digital age.
"It is quite essential to make children aware of India's heritage, culture, customs, traditions and the basic Indian philosophy of sharing and caring. We believe in 'Vasudaiva Kutumbakkam'-- the whole world is one family", the Vice-President added.
Also present during the event were the Home Minister of Telangana, Nayani Narasimha Reddy, the Principal, the Director and Faculty of CHIREC International School along with other attendees.