Page 54 - February EW 2024 PDF

Cover Story

ing schools in India is huge.
In Finland, the lowest-performance
school is only 5 percent ‘weaker’ than
the best. For parents, that means the
school closest to them is among the
country’s best. This is a truly remark-
able national achievement that even
other top countries haven’t managed
to attain.
O NE MAY BE TEMPTED TO

dismiss this example of
quality standardisation
by contending that Fin-
land is rich and small (pop.5.5 mil-
lion). But, there are many other rich
and small countries that don’t come
close to Finland in this respect. Also,
Finland was colonised by the Swedes
and the Russians for almost 700 years School in Finland: good education can enable a country to become rich
before attaining independence in 1917.
Only 10 percent of children finished There seem to be two approaches (CUET) exams were consistently pub-
high school in Finland in the 1950s in schools and society. The first is the licised as “easy tests as difficult ones
(lower than India’s percentage today), belief that since weaker children may lead to coaching and stress”. However,
with huge gaps between the learning not be able to achieve average stan- the CUET experience has shown that
outcomes of rural and urban children dards, the bar should be set lower for lower-than-appropriate difficulty
well into the 1960s. However Finland them. The other approach — some- tests stimulate marks/grades infla-
took a number of deliberate steps to what counter-intuitive and hence less tion and popularity of test prep and
revamp its education system — focus- common — is to believe that with ap- coaching classes, making college ad-
sing on a common, high expectations propriate support, every child can at- mission processes more stressful and
system for all children, making teach- tain good learning outcomes. In this less egalitarian and equitable.
er education more prestigious and dif- approach, all students are expected to The impact of dilution of test stan-
ficult to pass. Therefore, while being achieve high standards, with differen- dards is reduction in the level of skills
rich may help create a good education tial needs-based support. in society. When mathematics is made
system, a good education system may In Indian society — perhaps due to optional in class X, it may be with the
well enable a country to become rich. the inherited caste system — there is intention of allowing more students –
While Finland is at one extreme, widespread belief that children from who fear the subject — to pass class
India may well be at the other when it disadvantaged households are inca- X. But what this achieves is label-
comes to education quality variations pable of learning adequately. Whether ling, something students discern very
in our schools. Why is there so much it is because the government school quickly. When they get a message that
difference between our schools? How teacher witnesses her students’ il- they are regarded incapable of learn-
can we reduce the gap? literate parents’ inability to provide ing maths, they internalise it and this
Belief in and commitment to ev- home support as an unsurmountable has a significant negative impact. Stu-
ery child. One powerful indicator hurdle, or societal belief that science, dents don’t just drop maths in class X,
seems to be how society — includ- commerce and arts streams require they stop studying the subject much
ing teachers, parents and the general differential levels of ability; or the re- earlier believing either that they aren’t
populace — treats disadvantaged stu- cent decision of some states to make capable of learning it or arguing that
dents, especially children from low- mathematics optional in class X so it serves little purpose as it won’t be
income households with lower social more students can pass board exams. tested in the board exam. The net re-
status confronted with challenging Our society doesn’t believe that “every sult is a large number of students lack-
socio-economic situations, possibly child can”. ing critical maths capability when they
from migrant households, or with What is the impact of this wide- complete school.
physical and learning difficulties. spread belief? One is the dilution of We need to challenge this wide-
How does our society view and sup- test papers. For example, the recent spread belief and shift the societal
port such students? Common University Entrance Test mindset to believing ‘every child can’.

54 EDUCATIONWORLD FEBRUARY 2024