Bridging the Gap

“There is a disconnect between information and life.”
- A man of few words, but an intellectual of the highest standards. Meet the chairman of NABARD, Dr. YSP Thorat.
He said this with reference to the structure followed by our educational system.

We all at FLAME have an inkling about the powerful individuals associated with the development and progress of our alma mater. But each time we meet someone from the esteemed circle, the urge to strive ahead becomes ever stronger.

His words struck me to ponder upon an incident just the day before in our cinema class. We were expected by our professor to analyze a film and some students insisted that he provide a structure, a basic frame of reference for the assignment.

He tried explaining that this was an experience that would help us stretch our imagination and if he were to give us boundaries, we would perhaps not give our creative best.

Dr. Thorat simply reiterated those words. Students today, are so attuned to a set pattern, style of functioning, that if we were surprised with a different form of work – we would simply not survive. This process needs to be tackled at the grass root level – in the class room – where in teachers instruct students about the A – Z of a particular problem and its solution. That would be fine in the short run, but in the long run, it would make the student dependent on some one for the solution in every walk of his life.

He gave us the example of a carpenter, when given a block of wood would shape it the way he wants. But a student as a human being, alone has the right to shape his life and his destiny. Thus, sticking to a structure, an old redundant pattern would only stagnate our evolution.

I hope FLAME as a heaven for Liberal Education, will break this pattern and facilitate the flow of creative energies in the hearts and minds of all its students.