The Indian educational industry is an integral pillar of our society as well as the economy. With the COVID-19 outbreak, it did experience its fair share of struggles. However, with time, its resilient approach pushed the market to cope with uncertainties and incorporate innovations. The rising adoption of ed-tech was a prominent instance of the same.
It is the ed-tech platforms that bridged the teaching-learning gaps and ensured that the studies were not compromised. The students had access to high-end educational experiences in the remote space due to the ed-tech platforms. As a result, learning that was once mundane became pleasurable, entertaining, and engaging.
In today’s times, as the situation is resuming normalcy, schools and colleges are reopening. However, it is believed that hybrid will be the future of the educational system. In such a scenario, reimaging the learning practices is imperative. And this would require coming up with new strategies with a fresh perspective and objectives.
Need for reimagining the educational system
Knowledge forms the foundation for renewal and transformation. However, amidst the turbulent times, education is not yet able to shape calm, organized, fair, and sustainable futures. Our living standards are high but they coexist with inequalities. Our social life is active. But civil society and democracy seem to be far-fetched goals. Even technological advancements are changing our lives. However, this evolution does not support equity, inclusion, as well as democratic conversations. This is why redesigning the educational system and practices are important.
Education as a social contract
As UNSESCO rightly points out that education can be seen as a social contract, rather as an agreement amongst the members of the society so that they cooperate for shared benefits. It is indicative of norms, commitments, and principles that are formulated from both legal and cultural perspectives. Gone are the days when education was perceived as a supporting element of national leadership and development efforts. However, in the present times, the risks are high and humanity is in danger. This is why reinventing education to address these challenges is essential.
The new social contract for education must bring us together around collective endeavors. It should provide us with the requisite knowledge so that the future can be shaped with a sustainable and peaceful approach that would help deal with social, economic, and environmental injustices.
Foundation of the new social contract
This new social contract must be built on three key principles- inclusion and equity, cooperation as well as solidarity along with collective responsibility and interconnectedness. It will be governed and managed by two foundational factors. The first is assuring lifetime access to quality education. Along with this, the right to information, culture, and science, as well as the right to access and contribute to the knowledge commons, and the collective knowledge resources of humanity that have piled up over the period of time but are constantly evolving are also included. The second is improving education as a public commodity.
Education allows individuals as well as communities to grow and flourish in collaboration. A new social contract for education should aim for public funding of education. Adding to it, it should also include a society-centric commitment to include all in public discussions related to education. These principles form the very core of the new social contract and have shaped the educational landscape. They will also ensure that education empowers future generations to reimagine their futures and renew their worlds.
Building a new social contract
Building this new social contract would require courage, effective leadership, resistance, creativity, and care. It needs to be designed in a way that it surpasses discrimination, marginalization, and exclusion. It should be inclusive and innovative so that the exchange of knowledge can happen seamlessly as well as contributions can be taken in from teachers, students, academics, research centre, and even the Government. Participation of all in building the future of education is essential. There are various challenges faced by the Indian educational system. However, coming up with a new social contract for education is an important step in reimagining our future.
(Kiran Dham is CEO, Globus Infocom)
