Alternative Education: A Need…

Alternative education, also known as non-traditional education or educational alternative, includes a number of approaches to teaching and learning other than mainstream or traditional education. Educational alternatives are often rooted in various philosophies that are fundamentally different from those of mainstream or traditional education. While some have strong political, scholarly, or philosophical orientations, others are more informal associations of teachers and students dissatisfied with some aspect of mainstream or traditional education.

Educational alternatives, which include charter schools, alternative schools, independent schools, and home-based learning vary widely, but often emphasize the value of small class size, close relationships between students and teachers, and a sense of community.

While understanding the system of conventional education which has only taught children to merely read and write, it is rather sad that the process of schooling does not empahsise on creating human being. In the words of our first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru; “Man has learnt to swim like a fish and fly like a bird, but has not yet learnt to become a human being”. This statement largely points out at the shortcomings in our society, schooling and education being the building blocks of a humane society.

Hence, there is an ardent need to explore possibilities to provide the much needed exposure to kids so as to enable them to open their eyes to the world outside. Not just physically, but mentally and psychologically as well.