Focusing too much on the past risks trapping us there indefinitely: Sinha
By Farooq Shah
SRINAGAR- Lieutenant Governor, Jammu and Kashmir, Manoj Sinha, stressed the importance of setting up future-oriented education lest “focusing too much on the past could risk trapping us there indefinitely” while e-launching several programs of the school education department, recognizing meritorious students, and overseeing a science model exhibition at the Sher-e-Kashmir International Conference Centre here on Wednesday.
At the event were Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar, Advisor to Lt Governor, B K Singh, Secretary, School Education, Pandurang K. Pole, Divisional Commissioner Kashmir, Dr Shahid Iqbal Choudhary, Secretary to the Government, Tribal Affairs Department, Deep Raj Kanethia, Project Director Samagra Shiksha.
Along with the HoDs, numerous principals from various schools, senior officials, teachers and students were also present at the event. Ms. Sheetal Nanda, Commissioner/Secretary to the Government, Social Welfare Department, joined via virtual mode with representatives, educators, and students from various regions of the UT.
Some 119 civil works (School Buildings/Allied Infrastructure), two residential schools for tribal students at Rajouri and Shopian, NEILIT courses for 6th to 12th grades in about 200 schools, the Mentorship Program (STEER), the Talash App initiative for mainstreaming out-of-school children, 1935 pre-primary sections and 188 model kindergartens, 500 Atal Tinkering Labs, and sports infrastructure in 100 schools were among the many programs that LG Sinha launched.
Besides, he acknowledged the top students in class 10 and oversaw an amazing science model exhibition put on by students from both government-run and private schools.
Hailing the efforts of teachers, Sinha said the person after the father who aspires for his student to advance faster than him was the teacher.
“The teacher is given the title of ‘guru’ in the ancient Indian tradition,” he said. “Poets and writers choose a pen name that represents their temperament or has something to do with their place of birth.”
The word ‘Guru’, Sinha said, confers the utmost honour and respect to teachers, which no other definition can match.
While stressing the future-oriented education, he said the past should only be taken as a beginning for future not the destination itself.
“We need a robust strategy to prepare our children for the future,” Sinha said. “The world is changing so quickly, there is no telling what will happen next, technology is dictating our learning, and education is still focused on academic successes.”
“No gadget or tool has ever been designed to cater to the requirements of the past,” Sinha remarked.
Sinha said we were in the midst of a profound paradigm change that would have an impact on every aspect of our lives and the entire globe, forcing us to reconsider our preexisting ideas.
“The current global crisis, like the corona pandemic, has shown us that we need core life skills and a future-oriented mindset at our disposal in order to not just survive, but to thrive and build something greater,” he said.
In order to give students the best instruction possible, teachers must also stay current on all of the latest information because the world is moving toward technological advancement with each passing day, Sinha added.
Sinha praised B K Singh, the Principal Secretary of the Department of School Education, and his team for their efforts in prioritizing Education while working under difficult circumstances.
While awarding certificates to the kids who submitted their science models for the exhibition, Singh, who holds the additional charge of Director State Council of Educational Research and Trainings (SCERT), said teachers should spend their energies towards improving the scientific temperament among students, and help them to develop critical thinking.
“Even if they don’t have all the answers to kids’ inquiries, teachers should support their desire to understand “why” and “how” things work,” he said. “Students will be inspired to explore for solutions as a result, increasing their knowledge.”
The SCERT’s Central Move Office, led by Associate Professor Fayaz Ahmad Fayaz, had worked nonstop to make the event possible with the assistance of his team.
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