Need to address the gaps in our education system to equip youth with practical skills and combat societal issues
Education is one of the fundamental tools to make or shake society. The quality of education determines the standard of living of any nation. Education should always be research-based to cater to the needs and challenges of present times and to improve and address the difficulties faced by people. The nations that prioritized education have achieved what others could not.
There are many challenges at every stage, but the most vulnerable group is today’s youth, who form the future of the nation. While our education system builds the youth from the cradle to adulthood, it unfortunately fails to address the problems they face. Drug abuse, self-harm, family conflicts, social unrest, unemployment, cybercrimes, and suicides are among the various issues plaguing the youth. These issues are often born either due to the deficits in our education system or the competitive global economic scenario that we fail to adapt to.
The present system demands practical and skill-based education to equip youth with job-oriented knowledge without wasting time or human resources. It has been observed that youth with technical degrees from colleges and universities are often unable to do justice to their qualifications because of the lack of a robust skill-based system. This results in unemployment, which erodes their self-confidence. Ultimately, unemployment gives birth to numerous social and personal evils in their lives and in society at large.
However, there is immense potential in youth who can achieve wonders if provided with self-sufficient, skill-based, and job-oriented education. The first and foremost essential is to prioritize education. The education system, whether at the elementary or higher level, academic or professional, should be goal-oriented with proper direction, skills, confidence, and a clear time frame.
Infrastructure development in schools, colleges, and universities should aim to instill the proper skills and confidence among learners to combat the challenges of the modern world. While some changes have been observed in the current education scenario, much more remains to be addressed, and the government should make this a top priority.
Mentorship must be equipped with freedom, support, skills, and dedication, as it plays a pivotal role in improving the system. We need both quantity and quality in education. On the one hand, we demand quality from mentors, but on the other hand, we fail to provide an environment conducive to achieving this quality.
Our education system is overburdened with non-academic workloads, which distract it from its core mission. Teachers and professionals, as empowering agents, are often criticized by society and administration. Instead, they need to be encouraged, empowered, and uplifted through skill and capacity building.
The teaching faculty should have access to the world of modern science and technology so that they, in turn, can prepare students skillfully to revolutionize the nation.
By Kuchay Yousuf
yo*******@***il.com