Rote learning versus meaningful learning
I am really fascinated by the trend of learning apps. And top of the pick is Byjus app. It’s like a scholastic version of Discovery channel. The first time I attended a live class on Byjus app, I realized how I waded thru school with a painful mugging up of notes & then vomiting the same on question papers for ultimate glory of being a topper in class, a 90th percentile. This was way back in 2000 when the race for the perfect hundred score was still a long way off.
When subjects like Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology hold the wondrous possibility of uninhibited adventure then why was learning such a pain in ass. Why no one explained the tangent in terms of a unit circle back then. And it took one app Byjus to stem the rot in rote learning (pun intended). Till date, I recalled division by zero as infinity. To my rude shock, it’s not infinity, millennials know this, it’s not defined.
Learning is an addiction & those who missed this opportunity only rue the privilege of a school going kid whose only job is to learn & earn a chocolate while parents slog out in the big bad world. Imagine not being responsible for anything in the world except to learn, to experience the pure joy of finding out the science behind magic of a rainbow.
When channels like National Geographic run on an innate human desire to find out the deep hidden secrets of the nature & universe then why our focus is so limited to scoring a perfect hundred out of hundred in school. There have been some changes in our academic sphere so as to bring down the pressure of performance although the fact remains that my curiosity alone won’t put the bread & butter on table once we walk out of the golden gates of school.
That’s exactly the reason why we hear Newton or Edison & are proud of an exceptional Ramanujan. Don’t get me wrong. I am fully aware of the great indian scientists but the fact remains, we never expect to hear a vernacular name associated with an invention or discovery. That’s relatively rare.
So what stops us, is it that we are content being average? Or is it the proverbial “Abba nhi manenge”! Why can’t the big business houses provide a financial security cover to atleast a few, so that they can think freely & not worry about their daily existence. Is that what we need, is that the day to day struggles of a typical indian is not akin to ‘critical thinking’ that science requires.
Even those that take up a long haul in pure sciences as their career, they end up in a different kind of rut. So to find or even guess a ubiquitous solution is not an aim. Tiding over a culture that expects you to copy paste the popular life choices is not easy. After all, a B Tech from IIT & MBA from IIM is what gets the money in bank account. So who am I to question the learning gone waste when a high IQ person ultimately gets hired by Facebook for a crore+ package or for that matter, placed in a FMCG. He ends up selling soaps for all the stuff he must have learnt while in IIT.
No one has straight answers. Are we averse to critical thinking, scared of a long uncertain path in pure sciences or simply bogged down by it’s financial & emotional baggage.
Life is cruel. Sushant Singh Rajput was an owner of one of the advanced telescopes, Meade 14″ LX600. He could finally afford to buy an expensive telescope for his love of astronomy although the world around him burst the bubble before the fantasy flight to the stars could conclude:
Do let us know in comments section.
What happened to those perfect scorers later in life, did we hear about them after the media had printed them with their prized score.
If the whole purpose of life is to only survive then we need to reassess the world we live in. Industrial Revolution brought with itself the demand for workers who can diligently do the same work again & again & nothing has changed with advent of modern age. And there is nothing wrong with this whole set up. Except that it sucks up those who were never meant to be in the rat race. Those who if given a choice, will gladly sing “Yahan alag andaz hai Jaise chhidta koi saaz hai Har kaam ko tala karte hain Yeh sapne pala karte hain Yeh hardam socha karte hain Yeh khud se poocha karte hain….” Haha although let’s not forget that the path breaking work in science is done by those who have personality for the grind. A high IQ alone won’t do the trick.
So till we figure out the jigsaw puzzle of why our love for science is restricted to getting marks on a report card or watching the lion on Discovery, we can thank the Byjus app for their stupendous work. This one app has led to a democratization of education with learning. Something that’s only possible in countries like Germany where public universities are almost free.
Do check out this article:
Why won’t the philanthropy & good governance seen as a function of making education & learning free along with living expenses. That’s surely possible if we pool in all the money from sundry scams in India LOL.
Before I sign off, there’s an appeal to list out second hand books, either free or at a nominal price on our website. Following link will help you register & get started if you have a lot of books to hand out:
https://shopaholic-secondhand.com/catalog-for-insta-thrift%f0%9f%9b%8d%ef%b8%8f/
or you can send an email at shopaholic.thesecondhandstore@gmail.com & we can list the book on your behalf. Our immediate requirement is Modern ABC Of Biology Class–11 (Part 1&2) (Paperback, Dr. B.B. Arora & A.K. Sabharwal).
And to answer a query we received on Instagram, following is the link for NCERT:
https://byjus.com/ncert-books-class-11-biology/
Till then, try saying bye bye to rote learning & yes to meaningful learning. And do check out the hindi videos on khan academy, absolutely awesome, what better than the concepts explained in one’s mother tongue.
