WHAT ARE ALTERNATE SCHOOLINGS IN INDIA?

Have you ever heard of a school which includes an hour for its entire pupils to just sit and watch the sunset every single day?

Have you ever come across curriculum which include classes on carpentry and farming?

Did you ever hear of a school with no class tests and study hours?

Did you know that there are school curriculum which do not follow ICSE, CBSE or SSC?

If your answer for at least one of these questions is a ‘No’, then you are probably living in an igloo of ignorance, not knowing how education is evolving in the world, precisely in our country.

Yes! There are schools and school systems existing in India for quite a time now, which are not a part of the rat race of getting ranks & placements and are focusing on nurturing children as they naturally are, by teaching them to embrace themselves, but not on forcing them to be what they are not.

Education was, is and will be the most essential part of the Indian culture. Considering the quality of education and the assessment methods most of the Indian students are being put through for the last 2 decades, it is vaguely evident that an incorrect culture is influencing the country’s path towards education, which is cruelly marks/ranks oriented.

Speaking of the school systems, it is important for every one of us to have an idea about the alternate schooling systems that are working pretty good with Indians and are delivering fine youngsters to the society.

Following are a few school systems/ philosophies which are functioning successfully in many parts of the world including India and are doing great job in producing skilled youth to the planet.

Montessori Schools:

Montessori schooling is based on a philosophy rather than a system, the philosophy that allows letting the child learn and grow all by themselves with very little teacher intervention, precisely independent learning. The schooling focuses more on retaining the true nature of the child and nurturing it through continuous practical activities. This notion of the schooling system is brought down to India by Dr.Maria Montessori from Italy who studied children for several years and structured a philosophy around her experience and observations, which is pre-dominantly for pre-schoolers, where foundation is built.

Waldorf schools:

Waldorf philosophy of schooling is based on the deeper principle of beliefs in the universal essence of humanity but not the man-made separation factors. Along with the usual subjects, the curriculum include development of social and emotional skills through various activities. Other special subjects, such as art, crafts, eurythmy, foreign languages, gardening, music and physical education are taught all throughout the year. An interesting fact is that the class teacher extends his/her tenure with the same class for 5–6 years. The Waldorf educational system was created nearly a hundred years ago by Rudolf Steiner, an Austrian philosopher and scientist who believed that children are capable of handling any crisis, when lead in the right path.

Jiddu krishnamurthy schools:

Jiddu Krishnamurthy’s philosophy of schooling is more of a holistic approach which is free from various man-made human discriminations. These schools are mostly located in the heart of nature habitats which resonate his ideology of staying loyal to nature and preserve them. The prominent aspects which are inculcated in the schools’ curriculum are the skill-subjects like carpentry, pottery, farming etc., from which children pursue their interested stream. These schools also give an opportunity to the students to build a healthy relationship with the nature and the oneself through various events and activities like watching the sunset etc. Jiddu Krishnamurthy was a philosopher, educationist, speaker and writer who inspired many individuals to build learning environments based on his views.

Home schooling:

Not very often can we find someone adapting this mode of schooling for their children. Home schooling is basically equipping the child with various learning experiences at home focusing on the overall development, without opting out for any schools or tuitions. This style of schooling has started making its positive impact on the statistics of education systems in India and is being very mildly accepted by the societies.

At the end of the day, the success and the achievements of an educational system depend largely on the ideas that animate the teacher and the student but not on the grades/ranks it achieves.

These few modes of alternate schooling are examples to make us realize how important a child’s educational development is and how else can we strive to make the child ready to face the world of challenges and opportunities. After all, children are the precious little gems that make up the future of any country. We certainly don’t want them to lose their spark, do we?