India's Education Crisis or Revolution? What We Must Preserve & Reform

Are We Losing Our Humanity to Screens in the Classroom?

The landscape of Indian education is undergoing a seismic shift. In a world increasingly dominated by Artificial Intelligence, digital credentials, and screen time, are we forgetting the foundational values that built generations of thinkers, leaders, and responsible citizens? What must we desperately hold onto, and what must we ruthlessly reform?

In this compelling essay, veteran educator V. Rajesh Mohan Rao dissects the realities of modern Indian classrooms. From the ambitious implementations of NEP 2020 and PM SHRI to the unseen psychological toll of digital dependence, this article offers a vital blueprint for the future of India's youth.

India’s Changing Education Landscape: What We Must Preserve, What We Must Reform

By V. Rajesh Mohan Rao
Higher Secondary Commerce Teacher
Dharmadam, Thalassery, Kerala, India

The future of Indian education lies at the intersection of traditional wisdom and modern digital reforms.

India’s education system is passing through an important period of transition. The country is trying to preserve the strengths of its educational and cultural traditions while preparing young people for a rapidly changing world shaped by technology, artificial intelligence, global competition and new forms of employment.

As a Higher Secondary teacher, I have had the opportunity to observe several generations of students. The changes are visible not only in classrooms but also in families and society. Students today have access to information on a scale that earlier generations could hardly imagine. At the same time, information alone does not guarantee wisdom, discipline, compassion or responsible citizenship. Education must therefore remain concerned with the development of the whole person.

One of the significant developments in recent years has been the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. The policy attempts to move education beyond a narrowly examination-oriented approach and gives importance to foundational literacy and numeracy, multidisciplinary learning, vocational exposure, Indian languages, critical thinking and the development of broader skills.

The emphasis on foundational learning is particularly important. The NIPUN Bharat initiative focuses on ensuring that children acquire basic reading, writing and numeracy skills at the foundational stage. The Government of India has also promoted teacher-training initiatives and digital educational resources as part of the wider transformation of school education.

The PM SHRI Initiative & Digital Frontiers

Another noteworthy development is the PM SHRI school initiative. The programme seeks to develop more than 14,500 exemplar schools with improved infrastructure, innovative pedagogy, ICT facilities, sports and arts opportunities, inclusive practices and exposure to twenty-first-century skills. The intention is not simply to improve individual schools but also to create institutions that can demonstrate new approaches to other schools in their neighbourhoods.

Digital education has also changed the relationship between the classroom and the learner. Platforms such as DIKSHA and PM e-VIDYA have attempted to make learning resources available through multiple modes. This is particularly important for students who live far from major educational centres. Digital resources can supplement the work of teachers and can help learners continue their studies when physical access to classrooms is disrupted.

From a teacher’s perspective, this digital transformation is both an opportunity and a responsibility. Technology can make teaching more flexible and interactive, but it cannot replace the human relationship between a teacher and a student. A screen can deliver information; a teacher can understand hesitation, encourage confidence, correct behaviour and recognise a student’s potential.

Preserving Traditional Strengths

This is where some of the traditional strengths of Indian education remain relevant.

Respect for teachers, concern for elders, family responsibility, discipline, cooperation and compassion are not outdated ideas. They can coexist with modern science and technology. The challenge is not to choose between tradition and modernity, but to understand what is worth preserving from the past and what must change for the future.

The present Central Government’s education initiatives deserve attention in this context. NEP 2020, PM SHRI, NIPUN Bharat, digital learning platforms, teacher-training programmes and technology-enabled educational infrastructure represent an attempt to address different levels of the education system. These initiatives do not remove every problem, and their success ultimately depends upon implementation by schools, teachers, states, local institutions and families. But the direction towards foundational learning, digital access, skill development and institutional improvement is significant.

Bridging the gap between cultural heritage and 21st-century technological innovation in education.

Flexibility: The New Philosophy of Education

A particularly interesting aspect of the current reforms is the attempt to make education more flexible. The Academic Bank of Credits and the National Credit Framework are designed to make it easier to accumulate and transfer academic credits. APAAR, described by the Ministry of Education as a lifelong academic identity, is intended to bring academic achievements and credentials together in a digital framework. Such systems could become especially useful for students who change institutions, pursue different combinations of subjects or move between academic and skill-based learning.

This represents an important change in the philosophy of education. Traditionally, educational progress was often viewed as a straight line: school, college, degree and employment. The emerging framework recognises that learning can be more flexible. A student may need to pause education, acquire skills, return to formal learning or combine different areas of study. Academic credits and digital records can potentially make such movement easier. The Ministry of Education's recent annual report records substantial use of APAAR and Academic Bank of Credits, indicating that these are becoming part of the developing education infrastructure rather than remaining merely policy concepts.

The Growing Connection Between Education and Skills

Another important area is the growing connection between education and skills. India cannot depend entirely on conventional degree-based education to prepare its young population for a changing labour market. Skill development, vocational education, entrepreneurship and industry-oriented learning need to become stronger components of the educational journey. Recent developments under the Skill India programme have included flexible digital learning, industry-relevant courses, regional-language learning materials and Skill Hubs connected with educational institutions.

For a Commerce teacher, this connection is particularly meaningful. Students should understand not only accounting, business studies and economics but also entrepreneurship, digital finance, financial literacy, e-commerce, artificial intelligence and the changing nature of work. A student who understands how an enterprise operates, how digital payments function and how technology changes markets may be better prepared for an economy that is increasingly interconnected.

India’s larger digital transformation is also influencing education. Digital payments, online public services, digital identity systems and expanding internet access have changed the everyday environment in which young people learn and work. Students are growing up in an India where a mobile phone can become a classroom, a payment instrument, a library, a communication device and a gateway to employment opportunities.

The Double-Edged Sword of Technology

But technology also creates new questions.

Young people need to learn how to distinguish knowledge from misinformation, convenience from dependence and freedom from irresponsibility. Artificial intelligence will increasingly influence education and employment. Students therefore need more than the ability to use technology. They need judgement.

The role of the teacher is consequently changing. The teacher is no longer the only source of information. Instead, the teacher increasingly becomes a guide who helps students interpret information, ask meaningful questions and develop independent judgement.

There is another aspect of educational reform that deserves attention: equality of opportunity. India has enormous differences between regions, communities and economic backgrounds. A good educational policy must therefore look beyond the best-equipped urban institutions and consider the student studying in a village school, a tribal area or a financially constrained family. Digital platforms, improved school infrastructure and multilingual resources can help narrow some of these gaps, although access, connectivity and quality of implementation remain important practical questions. The official vision of NEP 2020 places access, equity, quality, affordability and accountability among its foundational principles.

Language, Identity, and Global Opportunity

The promotion of Indian languages is also significant. India does not have a single cultural or linguistic experience. A student may learn in Malayalam, Konkani, Kannada, Hindi, Tamil, Bengali or another Indian language while also acquiring English for wider communication. Modernisation should not mean cultural or linguistic uniformity. The ability to participate in the global knowledge economy and the ability to remain connected to one's mother tongue can and should coexist.

This is especially relevant in a country whose cultural strength has always been connected with linguistic diversity. Education can become a bridge between local identity and global opportunity rather than forcing students to choose one over the other. (To understand the deep roots of linguistic resilience, one only needs to look at the remarkable cultural journey of the Konkani language in Kerala).

• ✦ India also needs to give greater attention to vocational education and practical skills. A degree remains valuable, but employability increasingly depends upon what a person can actually do.
• ✦ Communication, problem-solving, teamwork, digital literacy, financial awareness and entrepreneurial thinking should become natural parts of education.

At the same time, education must not become entirely market-driven. A good educational system should produce capable workers, but it should also produce responsible citizens.

The future Indian citizen must understand both rights and responsibilities.

The Role of Parents and Society

Parents also have an important role. Modern parents understandably want their children to succeed. However, success cannot be measured only through marks, salary or professional status. Children also need time for reading, conversation, family interaction, physical activity, cultural experiences and community life.

The older generation has much to teach the younger generation, but the younger generation also has much to teach the older generation. Young people understand new technology and new forms of communication more naturally. Older people often possess patience, experience and a deeper understanding of social relationships. Education can become stronger when these generations learn from one another.

India is a country of extraordinary linguistic and cultural diversity. Education should therefore recognise the value of Indian languages and local cultures while ensuring access to English and global knowledge. A child should not have to abandon his or her mother tongue in order to become modern.

Our diversity can become an educational strength.

The real test of educational reform will ultimately be the ordinary classroom. Policies and programmes are important, but their success will be visible when a child who once struggled begins to read confidently, when a teacher receives better support, when a rural student gains access to quality learning resources, when a girl receives greater opportunities, and when a student learns not merely how to pass an examination but how to face life.

India has made significant efforts to modernise its education system. The Central Government’s recent initiatives provide several important building blocks for this transformation. Yet no government, institution or policy can complete this task alone. Education is a shared national responsibility involving the Union and State Governments, teachers, parents, communities and students themselves.

We should therefore avoid both blind praise and automatic criticism.

A mature education debate asks three simple questions:
What is working?
What is not working well enough?
And what should we do next?

India’s educational future will depend on our ability to answer these questions honestly.

We must preserve the values that have given Indian society its strength, reform the practices that no longer serve learners, and embrace technology without allowing technology to replace humanity.

The India of tomorrow will be shaped in today’s classrooms.

And the quality of those classrooms will depend not only on buildings, devices or policies, but on the quality of the relationship between knowledge, teacher, student, family and society.

That is the education India must build.

V. Rajesh Mohan Rao.
Dharmadam, Thalassery.

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BIO-DATA

V. RAJESH MOHAN RAO

Higher Secondary Commerce Teacher | Writer | Cultural Organiser | Konkani Language & Cultural Activist

Address:
Dharmadam, Thalassery,
Kannur District, Kerala, India.

PROFESSIONAL PROFILE

I am a Higher Secondary Commerce teacher with extensive experience in teaching, writing, cultural activities and community-oriented initiatives. I have been associated with the field of Higher Secondary education for many years and have a particular interest in commerce education, language, literature, culture, history and the social dimensions of India's linguistic diversity.

I am also actively involved in the promotion and preservation of Konkani language and cultural heritage, particularly in Kerala. Through my writing and cultural activities, I seek to document and present the history, traditions, food, migration, literature and contemporary relevance of the Konkani-speaking communities of India.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Higher Secondary Commerce Teacher
Kerala Aided Higher Secondary School Sector
Joined service in 2001.

• Teaching Commerce-related subjects at the Higher Secondary level.
• Interested in developing student-friendly teaching materials and contemporary approaches to Commerce education.
• Experience in explaining business, digital commerce, e-commerce and emerging business practices in an accessible manner.

CULTURAL & SOCIAL ACTIVITIES

President
Dharmadam Chandrakala Mohan Rao Cultural Forum

• Involved in cultural and community-oriented activities.
• Promotes awareness of Konkani heritage, language and traditions.
• Supports initiatives connected with literature, cultural identity and regional heritage.

Kerala Konkani Executive Committee Member

• Associated with activities concerning Konkani language and culture in Kerala.
• Interested in documenting the historical and cultural journey of Konkani-speaking communities.
• Engages with themes relating to migration, language preservation, literature, food traditions and cultural continuity.

WRITING & LITERARY INTERESTS

I am an organiser and writer with a particular interest in:

• Konkani language and literature
• Konkani heritage in Kerala
• Goa–Kerala cultural connections
• History and migration of Konkani-speaking communities
• Goud Saraswat Brahmin cultural traditions
• Indian languages and linguistic diversity
• Food, traditions and cultural heritage
• Temples, places and regional history
• Travel and cultural writing
• Education and contemporary society

My articles explore the relationship between language, migration, memory, food, faith, literature and cultural identity across different parts of India.

AREAS OF WRITING

• Language & Culture: Konkani language, Indian linguistic diversity, minority languages, language preservation and cultural heritage.
• History & Heritage: Migration, community history, regional traditions and the cultural connections between Goa, Kerala, Karnataka and other parts of India.
• Food & Culture: Traditional Konkani cuisine, Kerala cuisine and the relationship between food, family traditions and cultural memory.
• Travel & Places: Cultural destinations, temples, heritage locations and regional journeys.
• Education: Commerce education, teaching-learning resources and contemporary developments in business and commerce.

PUBLICATION & OUTREACH

My writings have focused particularly on bringing the story of Konkani language and culture to a wider readership through English, Malayalam and other Indian-language platforms.

I am interested in contributing articles to newspapers, magazines, cultural publications, regional portals, travel platforms and literary forums across India.

AUTHOR PROFILE

V. Rajesh Mohan Rao
Dharmadam, Thalassery, Kannur District, Kerala, India
Profession: Higher Secondary Commerce Teacher
Writer: Articles on language, culture, history, food, travel and society
Cultural Role: President, Dharmadam Chandrakala Mohan Rao Cultural Forum
Community Role: Executive Committee Member, Kerala Konkani
Interests: Konkani language, Indian culture, literature, history, education and heritage

PERSONAL DETAILS

Name: V. Rajesh Mohan Rao
Profession: Higher Secondary Commerce Teacher
Place: Dharmadam, Thalassery, Kerala, India
Nationality: Indian
Date of Birth: 27/10/1974
Educational Qualifications: M.Com, Higher Diploma in Cooperation, B.Ed, SET
Languages Known: Konkani, English, Hindi, Malayalam
Mobile: 9895496435
Email: rajeshmohanvrao@gmail.com

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is the impact of NEP 2020 on India's education landscape?

NEP 2020 actively moves India's education system away from rote learning and examination-heavy models toward foundational literacy, multidisciplinary learning, vocational exposure, and the strategic integration of Indian languages.

2. What is the PM SHRI school initiative?

The PM SHRI initiative aims to develop over 14,500 exemplar schools across India. These schools are equipped with improved infrastructure, innovative pedagogy, ICT facilities, and inclusive practices to serve as gold-standard models for neighboring institutions.

3. How does digital education change the traditional classroom in India?

Digital platforms like DIKSHA, PM e-VIDYA, and APAAR make learning highly flexible and accessible, especially for remote students. However, while technology rapidly delivers information, it cannot replace the crucial human judgement and confidence-building provided by a teacher.