{"id":229801,"date":"2022-11-04T05:03:39","date_gmt":"2022-11-03T23:33:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?p=229801"},"modified":"2022-11-13T14:19:42","modified_gmt":"2022-11-13T08:49:42","slug":"system-change-education-should-be-priority-number-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/system-change-education-should-be-priority-number-one\/","title":{"rendered":"System Change: Education Should Be Priority Number One"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Vishwamithra<\/a> –<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMen of lofty genius sometimes accomplish the most when they work least, for their minds are occupied with their ideas and the perfection of their conceptions, to which they afterwards give form.\u201d\u00a0<\/i>~ Leonardo da Vinci<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>When one thinks of a system change, item number one that occupies one\u2019s mind is the obvious one: system change in the political arena. The disgust and abhorrence one holds the current political milieu and its players in cannot be discounted. We have spent enough time and online space in critiques and analyses with regard to the status of the existing political platform and the mindless expressions by many a political player on it. Change in the constitutional amendments and even a whole new constitution, purely focused on the number of Cabinet Ministers, number of parliamentarians, dropping the inclusion of an amendment to qualify a dual citizen to be elected, lifetime of parliament itself and that of Presidency and so forth are the crucial elements of one\u2019s mind and intellect when they talk about a system change. But we are a way too behind or way too ahead in the race towards a more perfect system than the one that is prevailing today.<\/p>\n

One cannot produce a system change from within a vacuum; nor can one change the political status quo by introducing various constitutional amendments and expect the voters to sit back and accept such superficial changes to the wheels of societal machinery. It\u2019s utterly absurd and preposterous even to dream about such changes. Such changes and such societal dynamics need deeper attention and more scrupulous analysis. A total system change that obviously is the prime goal of the Aragalakaruwos <\/i>consists of a total change in the cultural, social and political systems. As I had enunciated in some of my previous columns, we need to break the egg before starting to make the omelet. If the egg is still intact there is no way can one make the omelet, period.<\/p>\n

In such a confusing context of political uncertainty and sociocultural ambiguity, one is all but ready to break the egg. No single person, no single party or no single civil entity or organization can attain this almost impossible target. Society as a whole, led ably by a single charismatic leader who could galvanize the critical segments of society, the youth, students, working class, at the forefront of this movement, would respond to such a leader. A movement cannot achieve its desired goals just by sloganeering and calling the masses to two or three demonstrations every now and then. In the absence of a well-defined strategy, movement of important cogs of the wheels of management of the crusade to crucial junctures, placing them at decisive points of operation, equipping each and every member of the movement with rich thought and intellect so that the soldiers of the movement take as much as they can take without resorting to violence may well be secondary goals but they are even more significant than the primary one if the primary goal remains prime: System Change.<\/p>\n

Such an exacting recipe is not an easy one to follow and nor could it be executed by imposters who thunder from atop political platforms in incomprehensible lingo but with very understandable ambition. One might ponder as to how to launch a system change and may come to the inescapable conclusion that superficial alterations such as shortening of the length of the sleeve and adjusting the waist could provide a well-fitting change. It is as futile as wishing for a lasting life of the morning mist when the sun rises above the distant horizon.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Then how can we produce a system change? What are the prerequisites and what more has to be done in order to generate the conditions, both objective and subjective, for a successful outcome of such an enormous undertaking? These questions have to be answered and after obtaining workable responses can only we even think of a system change. Amateurs simply cannot give leadership to a successful movement whose ultimate objective is a system change. It\u2019s up to the professionals who are proficient enough to lead such a movement from alpha to omega.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Where can we start? What is the first requirement and what qualifies to be a prior condition and context? It is education and only education is the beginning point. Without executing a well-thought out system and easily understandable step by step structure of thinking, planning and execution process can one achieve the beginning steps towards a total change in the education system. When these original steps are taken and followed to the nth degree, can one begin to absorb the niceties and cruelties of a total system change.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s examine our current system of education, especially the secondary and the journey thereafter of our students. Those graduates who pass out from the Universities; are they properly equipped to secure satisfactory livelihoods after obtaining a first degree?<\/p>\n

In one of the most illuminating articles, written to the Sri Lankan Journal of Human Resource Management, under the heading of Employability of Graduates of Sri Lankan Universities<\/i>\u00a0<\/span>R. G. Ariyawansa Department of Estate Management and Valuation, Sri Jayewardenepura University wrote thus: \u201cEven though graduates are highly valuable human resource of a country, most of them have to wait for a long time for suitable jobs. The mismatch between the degree and the demands of the job market as the main reason of this issue seems to be a conventional belief and seems as an invalid measure. Issues in the development of macro-economy of the\u00a0 <\/span>country\u00a0 <\/span>appear\u00a0<\/span>as\u00a0<\/span>a\u00a0<\/span>greater\u00a0<\/span>drawback\u00a0<\/span>in\u00a0<\/span>case\u00a0<\/span>of\u00a0<\/span>graduates\u2019\u00a0<\/span>employability.\u00a0<\/span>The unemployment problem is especially critical among some areas in humanities and social science and some management graduates as a large number of students are\u00a0 <\/span>graduated annually. It can be noticed that there are booming job opportunities for graduates in the private sector mainly\u00a0 <\/span>for Science, Engineering, Management and\u00a0<\/span>Commerce graduates but lesser opportunities for Social Sciences and Humanities graduates. Training\/experience\u00a0<\/span>is a\u00a0<\/span>highly\u00a0<\/span>demanded\u00a0 <\/span>factor in\u00a0<\/span>the\u00a0 <\/span>job market\u00a0 <\/span>especially, in\u00a0<\/span>the private sector. Proficiency of\u00a0<\/span>English language\u00a0<\/span>is a\u00a0<\/span>decisive factor. Further, there is a high demand for additional competencies such as IT skills, leadership qualities, analytical ability, team work and interpersonal relations along with a degree. Development of basic IT skills and English proficiency should not be the responsibility of Universities.\u00a0<\/span>Such skills\u00a0<\/span>should be developed\u00a0 <\/span>before entering\u00a0 <\/span>the university.\u00a0<\/span>Since universities have adopted some strategies to improve these skills within the students, the major objectives of university\u00a0 <\/span>education may not be fulfilled. If students\u00a0<\/span>are qualified\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Sri Lankan Journal of Human Resource Management Employability of Graduates\u2026..\u00a0 <\/span>103 with such basic\u00a0 <\/span>skills when entering to the\u00a0<\/span>university, then it will be\u00a0 <\/span>possible to train students providing necessary guidelines for the expected capacity development\u201d.<\/i><\/p>\n

Government after government, with whatever objective in mind, never paid sufficient attention to this most elementary feature of a man\u2019s development from child to a fully grown man: education at all levels. From the kindergarten up to University level, they have failed our children, they failed our secondary school kids, they immensely failed our graduates and they failed the country. In order to sustain a nation with realistic and achievable expectations and with no room for failure at all levels, not just failure in one or two recognizable elements, but perfect at all and every\u00a0<\/span>identifiable process, leadership must be personally aware and wise enough to engage in the actual operation of a process that he wishes to launch.<\/p>\n

Singapore is one of the finest examples of countries that identified her priorities at the very birth of their nations. Lee Kuan Yew implemented a remarkable education program that made his country proud and today Singaporean Universities produce graduates who are in great demand in the global marketplace. Most of those Singaporean graduates have opted to live in their own country and contribute their mite to the native State rather than being driven by the prolific brain drain that is prevalent in other underdeveloped world. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Because their education is almost flawless, their lawmakers, Parliamentarians, are wise and intelligent and skilled. Their leaders do not embarrass their motherland at global conferences. Ignorance, lack of intelligence, lack of education and lack of wisdom is at the core of corruption. As a result, politics, instead of becoming a path to serving the masses, is a tool in the hands of uneducated and unskilled politicians. Mindsets, psyches and attitudes do not change in vacuums; they change when objective conditions change.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Therefore, this appeal is to those Aragalakaruwos<\/i> who displayed remarkable resilience and wisdom in matters of ethnic divisions and religious discrimination. As frontlines of the future, as precursors of the nation\u2019s character and quality, you have an enormous responsibility and an unmatched task. Elect yourselves a leader, agree on a common program, craft a workable strategy and execute it to perfection. Then we might have, not only a past that has to be discarded, but a future to be embraced by many a generation yet unborn.<\/p>\n

*The writer can be contacted at vishwamithra1984@gmail.com<\/a> \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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