Rote drills are stifling your child

Updated on: Thursday, December 29, 2011

Thinking on ones feet, thinking out of the box, analysing and questioningexperts say hold the secret to success in any endeavour. They are also skills that lead to breakthroughs in science and art, pushing the frontiers of knowledge. Are Mumbais schools in tune with this vision? Or has the system annual exams, objective type question papers, et althrottled their imagination?

The answers are complex, said Jyotsana Roberts, principal, Oxford Public School, Kandivli. What is for sure, educationists feel, is that schools often straitjacket students, killing their natural instincts, killing their potential to become good abstract thinkers. Cramming is easily done by them. What they need to stretch their minds with are application-based challenges. In the absence of this, such students find no need for the hard work required to inculcate the habit of real thinking.

It does not help that most instructional methods schools follow are frozen in time. But given the system, no other method could be adopted. Breaking out of the mould is not easy, said Carl Laurie, principal, Christ Church School, Mazgaon.

Also, even if schools institute changes, not all students are able to adapt to them. We explain to students that an understanding of subjects is necessary. But they still cram unthinkingly because it is easy. It doesnt tax the brain, said Rekha Shahani, principal, Kamla High School, Khar.

But there is hope on the horizon. Schools as well as education boards have taken small steps towards inquiry-based and exploratory learning. Maharashtra is among the few states that have implemented the Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) process under the Right to Education Act in state board schools. Principals say CCE ensures that teachers cannot take students for granted. No more can a teacher walk into the class and just dictate notes. (Because of the internet) students are so full of information that (the bright ones among them) question what is being taught in class. They challenge teachers, who need to remain updated too, said Fr Francis Swamy, principal, Holy Family High School, Andheri (East).

CBSE and ICSE schools, too, are putting emphasis on the practical aspect of subjects, including class assignments and presentations. Providing students with model answers has now become outdated, said Norina Fernandes, principal, Lilavatibai Podar School, Santa Cruz.

Rote learning is not without supporters. There has to be a balance between rote learning and application-based learning. The emphasis on memorising should remain, but schools must be careful to not enforce it in a way that stunts thinking, said Basanti Roy, a former member of the state education board. In maths, for example, formulae must be learnt by rote. But unless students understand a topic, they would not be able to solve problems. To encourage understanding, question papers should test application more than fact retention.

Neurologist Dr Girish Nair, a consultant with Fortis Hospital, Mulund, said rote learning stretches the brains memory capacity and so is important. Blind memorisation is helpful to children with learning disabilities or autism, for example. But in normal children, this function can compromise other aspects of the brain. Students should be made to memorise facts with the aim to form concepts. Again, this should not be done in a rigid format, which will only stress out young minds. The approach should never be formulaic. The ideal method is one where students are trained in application-based memory.

Courtesy: Myeducationtimes.com

Times of India

Rote drills are stifling your child

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