Just recently, at a function in Kashmir University, the question of employability came to the fore. True, the avenues for employment are shrinking in J&K. A place where the number of government employees is really significant, and the actual source of employment is still considered to be the government.
Now that the government jobs are almost disappearing, where is the space for our youth to eke out living that is worthwhile? This is where the shift from employment to employability occurs. Contrary to a government job, private sector is merciless when it comes to merit and productivity. It is unlike government sector where you pass an exam and you are eternally employed.
Earlier our education system would contribute to our youth getting degrees, making them eligible for different examinations. That was the way one would get an employment. Not any more. That is why a shift must happen in our education system. If employability is the new emphasis, we cannot retain the older ways of schooling and expect new results.
The point here is that we are housing a deep contradiction. On the one hand we need special skills that can ensure us jobs in the private sector. This private sector is not just homebound, it is majorly outside. If our students have the required skill set, India is a huge space in terms of private sector. And not just that, the world offers good jobs. But on the other hand we insist on a system of education where the emphasis is totally on completing syllabus, appearing in exams, securing good grades and ensuring a degree. The two cannot go together.
If the potential of employability is to be realised, students are to be embellished with skills. These skills, the ones that are needed in this age and are appropriate for the private sector all over the world, are well known. These skills can be developed if students are made to apply their minds, and teachers are allowed a degree of autonomy. None of the two is happening in our educational institutions. Unfortunately the concerned government departments look at it through the prism of control, and the public discourse revolves around some emotive issues. Hardly, there is any discussion on what can contribute to the development of personality, enhancing the employability. Sooner that happens, better for our future.