Hawking commodified education : Adulterated institutions
- Sangai Express Editorial :: August 06, 2013 -

Soldiers of fortune, hawking education.

A warning bell for parents, guardians and students, looking for greener pastures to pursue higher studies.

The notification issued by the Education Department, dated 21st June, 2013, detailing the guidelines of the University Grants Commission is not only a warning bell sounded for the parents, guardians and students to be wary about the numerous educational institutions which come down here to peddle their wares, but is also indicative of how dubious players have entered the portals of education.

Not a healthy sign, but a reality, an indication of how education has been commodified as some sort of a commercial product.

Situation has not come to such a pass that education has been packaged, a la ‘Only Vimal’ or the Lux advertisement, but if the present trend is not checked, do not be surprised if peddling education also goes along this line.

The very fact that the Education Department has deemed it fit to exhaustively spell out some of the salient points of the guidelines issued by the UGC should be enough indication that there are indeed dubious institutions which routinely come down to Imphal, set up shop and hook as many students as they can.

In the face of lack of adequate institutions for higher learning, especially those offering professional courses, Manipur would obviously be an inviting place to these merchants of education.

All the more reason for everyone concerned to keep themselves updated and well informed.

Other than the lack of institutions of higher learning, the present culture or understanding of educating the youngsters in Manipur is another reason for some of these dubious institutions to milk the situation.

When educating the youngsters or children comes to be centred around private tuitions, more and more, when educating youngsters come to be identified only with parroting what is taught in the tuition class, then the situation would just be conducive for such the hawkers of education to set up shop here and lure the students with high promises.

The Education Department has done its bit in issuing the official notification on June 21, but this should not be the be all and end all.

Why not launch awareness programmes in the schools, colleges and even Manipur University for students and parents, with assistance from the experts in this field ?

As things stand today, there is nothing to indicate that career counselling figures high on the priority lists of the schools and colleges of Manipur.

Time to give a rethink on this aspect. Career counselling should not only be about helping the children pick their choice of discipline for higher learning, but also about the standings of the numerous institutions across the country, especially those which come down to Imphal every season.

This is one way in which parents, guardians and students can be sensitised and kept updated.

Choosing an institution should not only be about moving to the next step, but about taking a career move, especially at the higher level and it is here that keeping oneself updated and well informed becomes necessary.

There are agencies, voluntary agencies working in tandem with the Government to keep the people informed and contacting them would go a long way in keeping oneself well informed and aware of the situation.

The season for 2013-14 seems to be over now, but come the next academic session and be sure that the hawkers of education will be in town, sparing no expenses to publicise and reach out to as many students and people as possible.

A simple fact that can be ascertained by the numerous advertisements that flood the pages of the Imphal based newspapers.

Per se there should be nothing wrong in going for a publicity drive, but when education is packaged as a commercial product, then this should be the first warning signs for the parents, guardians and students.

Adulterated educational institutions, that is what some of these institutions are. Take note.