The Assembly Line Must End: Why Indian Schools Cannot Keep Producing Obedience and Call It Education
We build children as if they are machines, then wonder why the nation lacks imagination There is a deep falsehood sitting at the heart of Indian schooling. It has sat there so long that many now call it tradition, discipline, merit, or excellence. But if a lie is repeated for generations, it does not become truth. It merely becomes furniture. Our schools, whether government, government-aided, private, or international, still largely operate with the mind of a factory. Rows. Bells. Silence. Repetition. Compliance. Standardisation. Performance measured by memory. Success defined by examination. Worth assigned by rank. And over this old machinery stands one idol, polished daily and guarded fiercely: the IIT dream. This dream is sold as the summit of intelligence, the proof of national progress, the ladder to dignity, the answer to insecurity, the passport to respect. Families bend around it. Children break under it. Schools organise themselves around it. Coaching centres feed off it. Soci...
