Column

Philosopher and iconoclast Bertrand Rusell would not hide his contempt for formal education. “We are faced with the paradoxical fact that education has become one of the chief obstacles to intelligence and freedom of thought,” he wrote somewhere. But I wouldn’t be so dismissive about the need for getting a good education -- except that in the current Indian context, I wonder how that is possible for the majority.

Several anxious parents have called the newsroom over the past few weeks seeking advice, or better still some influence, in enabling their wards to get admission into a “decent college’”. This is not unusual for those who have been working in the media for some length of time even if their ability for fulfilling either need is actually very restricted.But what was astonishing was that almost all the potential collegians I was introduced to had won first class marks.

I don’t know how it is understood today, but in the early ‘70s when I passed out, first class meant a heck of a lot: it set you apart from the flock, gave occasion for your proud folks to strut in the neighbourhood, and guaranteed you admission into the best colleges in the country. Have educationstandards slumped drastically since, I wonder. More likely, it is the pressure of too many students for too few colleges that is seems to be the problem.

But it must be distressing for students and parents that oftentimes even 90 per cent marks is not good enough to get into a college of their choice. And here, one is not even referring to premium institutes like the IITs and IIMs which have benchmarked themselves differently over a period of time.

A competitive environment is desirable, but not when it becomes absurd. There is no hard evidence to suggest that students who score 90 per cent are necessarily cleverer than those who get 80, or indeed go on to do better things in life. Percentages are at best an index to the competence for a particular examination, though it cannot be denied that continued such success can lead to a high level of academic and vocational excellence.

The purpose of education, however, is not just to pass examinations; rather to broaden the horizons of human understanding and improve the quality of our existence. For this, the benefits of decent education must accrue to the maximum number for which the state and private enterprise both must play significant roles.

India has been hampered by a lackadaisical education policy. While there are indeed excellent universities and colleges, these are all too few to meet the demand from a billion-strong country. For the most, state-sponsored primary and secondary education has been feeble in intent and content. Also, all too many `private’ colleges that mushroomed in the preceding four decades belong to politicians who are more interested in profiteering rather than enabling the student community to profit from them. But that’s an old story. What the new one will be depends on how Kapil Sibal, himself the beneficiary of quality high education, handles his ministry.********

That sport is life’s great leveller will not be lost on MS Dhoni. For almost two years, he could do no wrong, and everything he touched turned to triumph. He is probably still not doing too much wrong even now, apart perhaps from being a tad too conscious of the expectations from him. This is the shift from being an underdog to a demigod.

This could explain why his batting lately has been shorn of the old bravado, or what also made him make a melodramatic gesture about team spirit last week. With India teetering on the brink of being ousted from the World Twenty20, Dhoni will hope that the same spirit and resilience in his team is still alive to beat England today and keep the flame of hope burning.

But win or lose Dhoni will come back stronger as player and person after this tour. I wish him well.