Education

The below is the excerpt of the book Youth power and the Power of Ideas, Sessions of Leaders Academy, Super Kids Bangalore program, Sadhguru's videos and personal experience. The article is a bit lengthy. Would recommend the stay with it throughout. Any opinion otherwise, critic, suggestions are highly appreciated.

Learning Cycle
Knowledge --- New Information --- Interpretation --- Knowledge (Higher knowledge)

For any learning, we either start with our current knowledge or no knowledge. Using our sensory organs (read, listen etc.), we gather New Information and we give certain Interpretation to the learning. The Interpretation is what takes us to the higher Knowledge. Knowledge applied in different situations in life and tested through experience become Wisdom and Intellect.

Question now will be - How do we figure if the Interpretation is right or wrong? A music, a blog, a video, a book etc. that can inspire someone can be totally unacceptable for someone else. One of the goal of Education should be to enable proper Interpretation. To understand this better, lets understand the problems with the current education system

Problems with current education system

• The system test more of the Memory than Intelligence/Intellect.
• Success is seen in terms of what a person has - Money, Property, Buildings, Cars etc. 
• Vast majority of the students pursue education with the sole aim of passing examinations and to secure good job. Careerist attitude towards education
• Lack of quality education: Extent to which the student is able to understand the fundamentals. To explain this further, we would have read about the country history in our schools, how many of us can tell the country history, if not in depth, at least on a very high level? How many of us know the meaning of our National Anthem? How many of us know why Swami Vivekananda is called as Youth icon? How many of us know why the English alphabets are grouped as Vowels and Consonant? We find, the fundamentals we learnt, very hard  to explain others' with reasoning.
• Lack of understanding the true purpose of the education and its capacity to generalize the understanding to a meaningful pattern.
• Lacks to ingest human Values. As an example; IAS, IPS examination requires invigilator and squad during examination. The people who will be part of administration and service and are part of upholding the human ethics, rights and laws, do they need someone else to make sure examination is ethical?
• Knowledge currently taught in school will not help students to deal with real life. The stats of Suicides, Depression, Ethics, Social behavior, Habit of giving back to the society etc can tell us where we are heading. Knowledge is much more that what is taught in the school. 

Let us understand a little more on Knowledge

Knowledge
Knowledge can be categorized as: Objective Knowledge, Social Knowledge and Subjective Knowledge.

Objective Knowledge: So far what we have discussed and taught in the school falls under this category. There is always a knowledge explosion and constant upgrade is always necessary. A generation always have more and more in the curriculum than the previous generation. And it is exponential. Objective knowledge though helps in identifying the current problems and instead of heading towards a solution for it, these days it is heading towards getting degree, success in terms of what a person has monetarily. This often leads to ego centric success in life. Ego centric often leads to Frustration, Dis-content, Anxiety, Competition against others, lack of peace and fulfillment. Knowledge acquired in this fashion improve the economic condition, but doesn't help to deal with challenges of life. Check for yourself: The end of day is always tired. The start of the week is unhappy.

Social Knowledge: Knowledge to deal with the social world. Adjust ourselves to the society or group. These days groups are disappearing. Family is shrinking, get together is shrinking. Check for yourself: Our group usually match our thoughts. In other words the group has become comfort zone. Remember the person growth is always in the discomfort zone. It is also the knowledge of giving back to the society, need not be monetary always. Donating blood, Taking care of mother earth, Charity activities, Education to the needy etc. Anything that we give back to the society that has come to us. Attitude of Gratitude. Check for yourself: What have you given back to the society?

Subjective Knowledge: To function effectively Subjective Knowledge is required. Knowledge of mind - thoughts, desires, impulses, will power, anger, lust. Knowledge of this will help to lead a pure life and utilize the mind power to a greater success. It is the knowledge of true nature. This knowledge cannot be acquired from outside. This is already within and has to be unfold. India is the place where Subjective Knowledge can be effectively learnt. The tools like Yoga, Meditation helps in acquiring Subjective Knowledge. Check for yourself: Close your eyes for 10 minutes. See how many thoughts cross your mind. Majority of that is unnecessary. And this is one of the reason for Anxiety and cluttered mind. Realizing the thoughts and reducing the thoughts helps to have a clear mind and see any situation the way it is without exaggerating or overreacting. Is also helps one to analyze the interpretation is right or wrong - it is also termed as aligning with nature. Interpretation that is right for one need not be right for other. But aligning with nature/divine/consciousness there is always right or wrong for an interpretation. Clear mind - anything and everything is possible. Don't believe? Have you heard of Law of attraction? Watch this video.

Summary
Purpose of education should be around all knowledge area. Going back to the learning cycle of Knowledge --- New Information --- Interpretation --- Knowledge (Higher knowledge). Education system in schools and colleges provide only the information with less or no time to get a meaningful interpretation out of it. Without interpretation Intellectual awakening cannot happen. Without Intellectual awakening education will not be effective. Goal of education should be to enable proper Interpretation. As an analogy, seed has the inherent knowledge of becoming the tree, it requires a suitable environment (water, air, space, a support) to grow to its fullest. Similarly, student has the inherent ability to learn; the teacher/parent only has to awaken the inherent capacities, provide suitable environment and guide for proper interpretation. "Enable to student to learn by themselves" - be it curriculum or life challenges. With Subjective Knowledge, comes the clear mind; free of anxiety. And with this anything and everything is possible. Education should be of all aspects of life

• Personal: Knowledge that can improve us personally. For Ex: Taking care of our health, shoulder individual responsibilities.
• Professional: Knowledge that can improve professionally. For students it is the curriculum.
• Social: Knowledge of giving back to the society. How to work as a team, as one family. Not just the immediate family but on the global level - To live as one family. Nature of inclusiveness. Involve students/children in a team game. They learn to deal with different opinions, resolve conflicts, team objective. Involve them in the charity activities - could be as simple as celebrating birthday in orphanage. Teach them to treat the mother earth with love and care - Reduce water, electricity usage, gardening, love nature. Attitude of Gratitude. The more and more you give the more and more you get, could be in a different form. 
• Intellectual: Knowledge that can help us in choosing right over wrong, ability to take decisions. Allow students/children to take their decisions (let them pick vegetables in the grocery list), let them make mistakes. Be the guide to improve the intellectual knowledge.
• Financial: Knowledge of finance is also necessary in the current world. Start at the very young age with piggy bank, students/children need to understand that everything has to be earned and nothing comes for free.
• Spiritual: Knowledge to effective functioning. This is a common knowledge required across all other knowledge areas. To live Haaapilly, Peacefully, Legally, Ethically in all situations.

It is the responsibility of both the school and home to help the students/children in all the above knowledge areas. Making sure the student/children learn something in all the area constantly. It should be also read as YOU do and your child will follow, they need not be taught. They learn by following the role model. Be a role model. It should be competition with self than competition with others. Day-on-Day, Month-on-Month, Year-on-Year is there an improvement in all the knowledge area should be the goal.

References
Swamy Vivekananda view on the purpose of education: Link here.
UNESCO, Delors Report, view on the purpose of education: Link here.