Forgotten Lesson to Students - Failure, Compromise, Detachment

Every part of life a learning experience and life as a student is more interesting. It is because as a student, the primary duty is to learn, but serious questions arise since the learning curves go south as age progresses. As a child we tend to learn too many things and are very free to experiment without fear of failure, but as we age the fear of failure overpowers our desire to learn, experiment and experience. Apart from this fear, we also tend not to learn from others' experiences. The student life during adolescence is a dangerous mix of harmonies and rebellious ideas.

Children are becoming independent decision makers at a very young age and parents who are too concerned about their children are encouraging this trend. We are seeing more advertisements and marketing which are focussing on children as the decision makers. The question here is, whether a child is capable of taking decisions about issues that even a adult might not have a full knowledge. The children is in a safe cocoon given by his parents and elders and are taking certain decisions whose effect is not allowed to felt by the decision maker.

It is important to make a child to be made to understand the results of a particular decision and also to shield him so that he makes better decisions. The duty of the adult is to ensure that the child who has made a decision also bears the fruits of the decision and makes a learning. This part is most difficult as nobody wants rotten fruits. There is a strange case of nuclear families that we are seeing in the present world. In the so called bad old times, with a set of parents having 5-10 children, the children were not given luxuries, but an important lesson was taught. The lesson is about patience, sharing and making compromises for the sake of our siblings. This lesson is the most important of all.

But in the nuclear families, the child being the centre of family universe more often than not, the child if pampered a bit more than might have been necessary. There is no lesson about patience, sharing and making compromises and since a set of parents have to rise 0-4 children, there is more cash and resources available at hand. If there is intolerance on the streets and all around us, it must be due to the breakup of our societies and families into nuclear families and losing our ability to learn to adjust to others around us. Whether it is good or bad only time will tell in the long run.

In this scenario, if we tend to see the education system, we are finding that the governments have destroyed the quality of education for want of quantity. Many reports suggest that class  8 students are not able to do maths problem of class 3 and we are producing idiots with certificates. The schooling systems are such that no child is failed up to 10th because of a false concept that a failed student will lose his self esteem. The marks of students are changed in grades to avoid a few suicides of students due to poor marks.

Whether a student who cannot take failures can become successful? I strictly don't think so, and there is no correlation between the monetary success and the academic performance. We see world over the best entrepreneurs are not only highly educated and persons of high academic credentials but students who have been ordinary in their academics. Making money legally is a skill and so is taking and accepting failures in life. It is most important to tell children/students that success is a very rare element of life while failure is more common element and is more easily available in life.

Everyone wants to be successful in life and people tend to glorify the successful people in order to inspire other. But how often we talk and discuss about the struggles and mammoth efforts put in by these successful people. The education that a student should be given is to accept failures as a part of learning experience and solve the problems at hand objectively. the students should me made to learn and be detached from the problem and not take the failure of solving a problem as a personal failure. It is equally important to make one understand that monetary success is not everything but a essential part of life. The morals and ethics are equally important and living harmoniously with others who might be weak or strong is the most important.

Engineering Student - Customer or Raw Material

Lets have a look at the fundamentals by listing the definitions

Student : A person who is studying at a university or other place of higher education (or) Denoting someone who is studying in order to enter a particular profession

Engineer : A person who designs, builds or maintains engines, machines or structures (or) A person who controls an engine especially on an ship or aircraft

Customer : A person who buys goods and services from a shop or business (or) A person of a specified kind with whom one has to deal

Raw material : The basic material from which the product is made

Engineering education is the activity of teaching knowledge ad principles related to the professional practice of engineering. It includes the initial education for becoming an engineer and any advanced education and specializations that follow. engineering education is typically accompanied by additional examinations and supervised training as the requirements for a professional engineering license. If a engineering student is treated as a customer in a consumer centric world where customer is the boss, then there is no control of who can get a engineering degree.

Only a few products are controlled by laws and rules as to whom they can be sold. Rolls-Royce cars are sold based on invitation from the company, who select the people who are eligible for purchase of their cars. This gives a sense of exclusivity that people crave and make them feel special. The car is just like any other used for travel, but the exclusivity is what costs the car several times more than its actual price. Other products that are controlled are high end technology goods related to weapons and other allied systems.

An engineering student who prefers exclusivity has to enter premier institutes by way of very hard work and his talents. the regular tom, dick and harry cannot enter register for an engineering course in the exclusive club of premier engineering institutes because only eligible people are customers for the institutes. When the institute selects who their customers can be, then the better analogy would be treat the engineering as a raw material who is screened based on the requirement for a particular process and then accepted or rejected.

After getting accepted, the student has to pay money for the services that the institutes offer. Here too the student is not centre of focus but the course and its contents are the focus. The student is put a certain process so that in the end, when he completes the several process pertaining to the choice he has made at the beginning. the education is and should always be content centric and should facilitate the student in understanding the contents of the course. Thus we have to treat student as a raw material who should undergo certain process and is verified for certain standards of quality and reprocessed as when necessary.

When education system starts to treat student as customer, then the requirements of the student will become prime focus. The system has to align to the needs of the majority of students. On an average, the students wants a easy time during the course and after a certain period of time wants a degree certificate. The system focus gets aligned in a such a way that education process is more oriented on giving degree to maximum number of students. Thus when the student comes out of the college after completing the course is found to be unemployable.

Each student is a raw material whose properties are to be with in a range so that he qualifies for the process. Based on the specific characteristic, the system should apply the appropriate additional processes to produce the engineer to certain standards acceptable to the next stage. The next stage may be job, business, research etc. Unless the focus of education system shifts from student centric to content centric and student being considered as a raw material rather than customer, there is no way forward. Big talks about advancement, development, innovation will be in the air alone.

EDUCATION - UNBIASED EVALUATION

The word corruption and bias are heard throughout the day be it in informal discussions among colleagues at work or in TV debates. The words are repeated over and over again and many people are of the belief that those in power are not doing the things in the right way. The real tragedy is that everyone has a notion of what constitutes the right way.

Any human being in contact with other humans, ie., being part of society has his/her own preferences and this is inevitable. Having preferences will have a spillover effect in our actions and it is here that when giving judgements or evaluations people see some bias while those delivering don't see. If the difference in the expectations and the delivered results are huge then there can a unrest.

An example of this unrest can turnout into a gigantic monster like civil wars that we are witnessing in the Arab countries. Some of this wars are genuine while many of the civil wars are spread of the developed countries to sell their products and set-up puppet governments and have a reliable markets for their high priced goods and services.

Looking at the results the bias can generate it is in the better interests of the society that where possible the bias should be eliminated. In the field of education such bias can influence the marks allotted to the students in the examinations. To minimize this bias, the main examination evaluations are done together with a teacher getting to evaluate not his students.

The secrecy of the student even though maintained, the evaluators have formed cartels to give everyone good marks and thus the true capacity of the student is getting hidden in the scheme of things. To eliminate any kind of bias, the evaluation should be done by machines and one way to do this is by having objective type questions to numerical and objective type of questions.

With only 4 answers, the students can arrive at answers by the method of eliminations of worst answers and without having good grasp of the subject, it is possible to score marks. If all the questions are marked with the same letter, then by probability theory there is a chance of getting 25% marks. To reduce this mischief and incorrect ways of getting marks there should be atleast 8 solutions and each with slight variations so as to ensure that the elimination method of answering will fail.

Apart from this, the students should be given instructions to fix the calculators to a certain fixed decimals and the same number of decimals that are rounded off by the calculators should be used in the calculations. With such a condition if for a question the correct answer is 11.49 then the student should be provided with a choice of {11.19, 11.49, 11.69, 12.19, 12.49, 12.69, 13.49, 13.69, ...}. This will ensure that the student has to calculate the answers by himself. But now the choices given to the students will be {11.49, 111.49, 0.1149, 1.149}. 

Giving many choices and making the student to really calculate accurately should be the goal. For the non numerical type of questions where possible multiple answers should be given and the student should identify both the answers to getting the marks. Negative marking should be full deduction instead of partial deductions which makes the student to not take risk and go for answering questioning when he doesnot know the answer or the topic fully.

The students will always try to overcome the exam scheme with short-cuts and thumb rules but as the valuators the scheme of the exam should be continuously upgraded and new ways and means should be created to identity the best from the group. The bubble marking sheets which the students could then be evaluated by the computer to remove the bias, or else on-line tests can be conducted where the results can obtained instantaneously and the eliminated the bias. With more choice in the solutions the student should be made to work the problems to answer.

If on-line tests are conducted each student could be provided a unique set of numbers for a given numerical problem and students could be asked to enter the results achieved by calculation which can be evaluated for correctness. The bubble sheets could be modified to look similar to having 8 shaped spaced regions to darken the appropriate digits(as in calculators) to mark the answer in the required units. 

In any system there will be rules made by those who are in power and there is always a struggle by those who are kept under the rules. One group try to bypass the rules while the other comes up with tougher rules. But in education the later group and some of them have joined the former to bypass the rules and the evaluations have become skewed and the results are not becoming indicative of the subject knowledge of the students.

There is a urgent need of changing the system of evaluations and implement unbiased evaluations.

Education - Digitalization, Rot that set in

"One size fits all". This is the manthra of the corporate style of governance or running a organization. There will a huge number of systems in place, where in ever activity is digitalized(conversion into numbers). The digits are then run through complex algorithms to detect relations between the input and the out. Bottle necks and wastages are reduced to improve the system.

In the remade movie "Tron", the Creator of the digital world says that, after he has created a image of himself for improving the efficiency and speeding the creation of digital world with high efficiency. The Creator then finds that the Iso, the original inhabitants of the digital world are destroyed to improve and confirm to the new system that has been created.

When industries strive for very high efficiencies to cut down costs and to improve the bottom lines, there will be huge layoffs. As the technology adoption takes place at a very fast rate, the need for humans reduces and there will be cycles of huge job opportunities to huge layoffs creating tension among communities. The people at the top of the food chain will always stay alive and be safe because they have made themselves safe from the turmoil.

The need for a safety is what drives many to get to the topmost position as possible and be safe from the anxiety cycles or ordinary mortals. We often hear the talks/speeches of the people at the top, who would have destroyed and cannibalized the lives of several of their colleagues to reach certain position. A Mr.Perfectly Nice Guy finds it very difficult to reach to the top, and those who are at the top are not gentle but cruel and brutal competitors whose sole aim to take the profits of the organization higher.

But when the system of education also becomes digitalized, then there should have been huge debates about the direction and the purpose of the education itself. The vicious cycle is now in full swing. The students enter a course to enrich themselves with basic knowledge and skill sets to perform tasks in real world by application. The employers would evaluate the students based on their academic credentials and conduct some simple tests to evaluate the real calibre of the students.

The less capable students don't get jobs and it shows poorly on the institute. The students donot like the institute as it couldnot provide the required skill sets. Meetings take place blaming the teacher for not imparting the skill sets. The teachers put more pressure by way of assignments/tasks to improve the skills of students. The students then complain of overload/torture to management and teachers are forced to find more innovative methods of imparting skill sets.

More marks are given to students who donot have the calibre and students get the jobs. Industry conducts simple tests to select students for jobs only to find on a later date that the students donot know basics. The employers come up with own set of tests for evaluation. Colleges train the students to clear the employer's tests so as to make the students to get jobs. The cycle branches into unknown territories and the blame game starts. The students, management blame the poor quality of teachers and teachers come with more innovative methods of teaching with each passing year.

The only sufferers are the students who donot find jobs for the degrees they possess. It is the responsibility of the teacher to have the knowledge about the subject as to impart the basic knowledge. The responsibility and ability of the student is to learn the subject and understand. When the focus shifts from understanding the subject to scoring marks the meaning of education is lost and the students are busy preparing for the test to clear the campus exams and go on to take special trainings.

The technical and managerial skills cannot be imparted to all the sutdents at an equal level and unless the education systems imparts this basic knowledge that not all students are equal. The equality of students come in the skill sets that they have and can work hard to improve upon. Some students are good in management, some may be good in art, some may be excellent communicator, etc. The job the education system is to evaluate and give the student, the path that he has to lead to achieve in the improvement of his skills.

The evaluation schemes and education system is completely rotten with more stress on innovation then inventions. The concept of patents, papers published etc are all taking the education system into a digital realm which can never match the accuracy and quality of analogue systems where there can be good manual interventions. Either you are in zero level or one level the only possibilities of digital system.

So long the digital system continues in education, the rot is only going to get worse and industries will come up with courses that will suit their demands. The meaning of the education and the method we know are going to fade faster then expected. The days of the present system of education and evaluation are numbered.

GATE

Graduate Aptitude Test for Engineering is conducted every year and is more popularly known as GATE exams. Many of the Engineering and Science students apply for this exam, because it is a gateway to the India’s Premier Institutes for learning, the IITs, IISC, etc for pursuing higher studies. The notification for the exam is usually given every year in the months of September/October, the exam for which will in February (second Sunday) and results will be announced in March.

Initially the GATE exam was used as an entrance for M.Tech admissions, but the government has done a good job by pursuing the PSU companies to accept the GATE score for selection to engineering posts. Now many of the PSUs are accepting the GATE score as a measure of the students engineering knowledge .Even for doing PhD the GATE scores are being given due credit during selection of candidates, because all that GATE does is test the student’s knowledge in the basic concepts of Engineering course.

The questions in the exam will be up to the fifth-sixth semester of the engineering syllabus and the students who are doing their third year of engineering can also apply to test their proficiency and knowledge levels. The exam does not contain numerical questions relating to engineering, but also theoretical questions and English, basic aptitude questions. Thus not only bookworms of Engineering, but also average students can do well in the GATE exams with a minimum profession.

There are many coaching centers which run courses for the GATE preparation and have become very big businesses. GATE study materials with complete syllabus and model papers are also available in the market for those who want to do self study. It is not necessary to master in the numerical problems relating to engineering, but those who can understand the theoretical concepts can also score reasonably well in the examinations.

Every year there will a new cutoff marks based on the top marks scored and the number students who have applied. All the students who have qualified in the GATE will get their marks card and is usually valid for two years. A student can attempt any number times and there is no limit of age as well. With many PSU accepting the GATE scores, in 2013 many candidates have taken up the exam and thus he cutoff marks will be definitely higher than in the previous years.

The GATE score will tell very little whether a student can get a seat, but All India Ranking (AIR) is more important. To get a seat in the IIT, IISC it is necessary to get an AIR within 250 to have any realistic chance.  The next best institutes are the NITs to do the higher learning or research. All the NITs have offering their seats though a single window system. A single application will be sufficient to enter any of the NIT spread throughout India. A ranking up to 2500 can give a chance to get a seat in the college of preference, but a ranking up to 4000can also ensure a seat in some NIT. But many students who are willing joining the PSUs are applying GATE, thus the AIRs may not give clear indication as compared to previous, but nonetheless these numbers can be taken as guidelines.

Apart from IITs, NITs there are many other private universities that provide M.Tech courses. Many of these universities give preference to students who have a valid score, and universities that conduct their own entrance exams give some additional consideration to the GATE qualified students. If a student fails to score decently in GATE all is not lost for higher learning. For doing M.Tech many states conduct their own entrance examination and students can write these exams and get the seat in the institutes.

The application for the state wise entrance exams will be provided long after the GATE results are out probably in the months of April or May. The private institutes also give notification for entrance test in about the same time. The applications for the seats for the IITs have to be applied individually. Even some of the IIITs consider GATE score as a criterion for selection.

The candidates should keep a track on the colleges/universities where they prefer to join and apply. The main advantage of joining the colleges that accept GATE scores and are approved by AICTE is the stipend. Any student who having qualified GATE and joined the M.Tech in AICTE approved college and a course certified by AICTE is eligible to avail the stipend. The amount is Rs.8000/-. The amount is usually sufficient to cover the college expenses for students.

The stipend concept is made by the government so that students become independent of their family and show interest in the learning. A little bit of financial independence is what everyone likes after completing degree and thus the stipend helps to some extent in this way.  In some colleges the stipend is given on a monthly basis and in others it disbursed yearly and the fund is given by the central government.

GATE is surely a GATEWAY for HIGHER LEARNING and JOBS IN PSUs.

Funding the education

Knowledge/skill can always in one way other will earn a person a livelihood. As the knowledge/skills improve the person can show way for others to join and furthermore he can guide a society or can do good to the society. Education is good investment by the government and hence RTE is having so much relevance in our country where so many people are still illiterate even after 65years after independence.

Now a days everyone knows the importance of education and the government must utilize this opportunity of making as many people get the education by implementing some good measures. But the truth is far from this. The government is relying heavily on the private players to do the job of shaping the nation, whcih are imparting the elitist/foreign values into the students. The government in trying to improve the education has actually degraded the quality by making B.Ed compulsory for the teachers education, which is big scam. 

The teachers 20years back have not all completed B.Ed. Course but did a tremendous work by doing good teaching whcih we are seeing in the success of the present 25years and above. Their basics are right. By making some thing compulsory people who like to do teaching are being discouraged because of another step for corruption being incorporated. The teacher should lnly know what to teach and how to teach and not necessarily the qualifications. 

If the government is really sincere in improving the quality of people first it has to concentrate on the government school and ,making students to get enrolled in it. Higher education is the stepping stone of a nation for becoming a global power. By research activities that take place in universities new technologies should emerge and industries should have confidence in researchers in the colleges. But our country at large and industries all want the people coming out with degrees do the servicing jobs and non technical jobs in India and be happy with fat salaries. Time has come for people to get interested in research activities, break their heads and innovate/solve the problems of the society indegeniously and pave a way for the growth of the nation.