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We need to reinvent education, says Yashpal

By Shujaat Bukhari

SRINAGAR, APRIL 13. The former chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC), Prof. Yashpal, today called for revitalising the efforts to reinvent education so that it could become compatible with the modern-day requirements.

Delivering the UGC's golden jubilee lecture at Kashmir University here, Prof. Yashpal said the revolution of Information Technology was welcome but "we cannot abolish teachers with the advent of it." It was not possible to break the relation between the teacher and the student. "We interface with each other at different levels," he said adding "but we lack good delivery." He regretted that teachers stood downgraded.

He said students were made hostage to choosing one subject or another. "Creativity comes only when you step out of your discipline." The field should be left open. "Education means to make a human being and not to give examination," he said.

Calling for collective efforts to give a new direction to education, Prof. Yashpal hoped that social scientists and thinkers would work together towards achieving this goal. "Please do not divide students and teachers. Everywhere they can create knowledge together." Educational institutions had to be research-based.

On the IT revolution, he said: "my belief is that internet should be used to increase the dimensionality of our education and not just its information content. This would demand that we begin treasuring the diversity of learning and move away from standardised, industrial production of graduates tested on machines we call common examination."

The Jammu and Kashmir Governor, Lt. Gen. (retd.) S.K. Sinha, said that Prof. Yashpal's profound words of wisdom could give a new direction to changing the conventional approach and thinking. The Kashmir University Vice-Chancellor, J.A.K. Tareen, lauded Prof. Yashpal's contribution to society.

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