Education should instill spirit of inquiry: Kalam

BANGALORE: The education system should instill in students' minds the capacities of inquiry, creativity, technology, entrepreneurial and moral leadership, former president APJ Abdul Kalam has said.

Addressing 4,000 children from over 100 schools during `Rennaissance 2007-The New Generation Conference', organized by the Rotary organisation, he said the 'development of these capacities would produce the autonomous learner, a self directed, self controlled lifelong learner, who will have the capacity to both respect authority and question it'.

"These are the leaders who would work together as a self organising network and transform India into a developed nation in a time bound manner", he said at the conference, which aims at inspiring students to shape the future of India.

Setting a mission for students to participate in the environmental ecological upgradation, he said they could undertake 'mapping of the neighbourhood'. Through mapping, the students could provide vital civic services information to the municipal and urban development authorities.

Spelling out the integrated action to transform India into a developed nation, he said there are five core competence areas for integrated action, agriculture and food processing, reliable and quality electric power, surface transport and infrastructure, education and healthcare, information and communication technology and self reliance in critical technologies.

"These five areas, if developed, can lead to food, economic and national security," he said.