EXCELLENCE IN HIGHER EDUCATION IN INDIA

SEIZING THE OPPORTUNITIES

By Mr Nazeem Hussain Misrikoti Network Development Manager Rumi Education India (P) Ltd

ABSTRACT
Excellence is a process that comes from within. It is a state of passionate enjoyment that right effort and involvement produces within one To put it in a common mans term Excellence is a term that an individual achieves over a period of time by involving himself in continuous learning I do not subscribe to the generally held views on excellence which have to do with competition, where someone will win and others lose, and where the only goal is to find a career in the all pervasive market economy. In this approach excellence is motored by the fear of the other; fear that the other will beat you. I believe that true excellence must come from within. It is a state, or rather a process, of passionate fulfillment that right effort and involvement produces within oneself lead an individual to success. The quest for excellence has to do with acquiring knowledge and skills in the most creative way possible. But we often disconnect excellence from relevance and look at it only from the point of view of knowledge for the sake of knowledge or knowledge for success. Relevance has to do with students larger priorities about themselves and the world we live in. To put it in a common mans term Excellence is a term that an individual achieves over a period of time by involving himself in continuous learning Have the hunger for excellence Benchmark against the best Believe that you can do it Build concrete strategy & plans Learn from the best Do not limit yourself Be adaptable never give up Excellence is the result of hard work over a period of time through continuous and dedicated approach from within oneself.

EXCELLENCE IN HIGHER EDUCATION IN INDIA

SEIZING THE OPPORTUNITIES
This day, I am going to discuss my thoughts and ideas to reflect on what excellence means in higher education. Let me at the outset state where I stand in this discussion while simultaneously being respectfully critical of the mainstream views. I will later argue that the mainstream views are seriously inadequate to lead us out of the serious social and economical crises our country is facing or most likely to face in future. I may not subscribe to the generally held views on excellence which have to do with competition, where someone will win and others lose, and where the only goal is to find a career in the pervasive market economy. In this approach excellence is motored by the fear of the other; fear that other will beat you. I believe that true excellence must come from within. It is a state, or rather a process, of passionate fulfillment that right effort and involvement produces within oneself lead an individual to success. If asked how do I see education? To me education is not an uncreative and mechanical process of gathering and storing information that we pass of as knowledge. Computers can do this better and even more accurate than us without even complaining. I am sure that XY&Z colleges are more aware of this. Real education implies transformation and not just a mere transmission of facts and ideas. The old fashioned clerk, for example, transmits what his predecessor did. He cannot be creative and make his own decision after duly studying the circumstances. Unlike the experience of the clerk education must transform us all the time and we should be incapable of repeating the same things. Authentic education is a flow of reflection and action, even if action for a student, it must largely take the form of intellectual challenges related to issues around us. There should never be a static or dull moment in a genuine educational process. We are alive and alert all the time. This is an aliveness that is quickened with imagination and compassion. It is also an aliveness that knows that it must be equal to the task of solving the complex social and ecological problems that confront us. It is within this perspective that the call for excellence in higher education must be approached, conceptualized and practiced.

The quest for excellence has to do with acquiring knowledge and skills in the most creative way possible. But we often disconnect excellence from relevance and look at it only from the point of view of knowledge for the sake of knowledge or knowledge for success. Relevance has to do with students larger priorities about themselves and the world we live in. Of course personal effort is very important to this pursuit. As Gautham Buddha said: "Your work is to discover your work and then with all your heart to give yourself to it" The goal of higher education is not merely one of helping a student to identify her abilities but to see how it can be creatively developed further. How can the abilities of students are developed in a manner that is real and comprehensible. How can the mind, the imaginations and the emotions get involved? A Chinese proverb says, Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand. This is where the VAK approach of Modern Digital Education which is making buzz around all the schools to transform them into a modern schools of excellence teaching, using innovative digitalized content comes into picture where a child learns in school by looking at the smart boards digital content which is beautifully animated into 3D and 2D graphics and rich multimedia content to cater quality education, through which a child Listens to the subject topics, Looks at the content and understands and tries to do it simultaneously which involve in better learning outcome of a student and understand the concepts with much ease & acquisition of knowledge and skills that are linked to both personal transformation and the transformation of the world around us, this is where an individual begin to understand what excellence in higher education may lead to. By looking at all these developments and changes in our education system, to me this process should not end here in an individuals life (i.e.) we should strive our best to give back to the society our understandings from where we have taken the best lessons of our life through primary experience which have led us towards these successful glorious moments and contribute these ideas in the growth of the Economy and be the change rather than waiting for the change which we are looking out from years to happen.

How to Achieve Excellence

Excellence is a process that comes from within. It is a state of passionate enjoyment that right effort and involvement produces within one To put it in a common mans term Excellence is a term that an individual achieves over a period of time by involving himself in continuous learning Have the hunger for excellence Benchmark against the best Believe that you can do it Build concrete strategy & plans Learn from the best Do not limit yourself
Be adaptable never give up

But the major point to be discussed is after achieving a state of excellence are we giving it back to the society, is our Education system focusing on Promoting entrepreneurship, are there any reforms where a new startup entrepreneur is provided with ready infrastructure, question to yourself and provide solution to the society. This is the time where we need to take step ahead and start questioning to our self, that have I done any justice for myself and then think about the society rather than only thinking about others in the society. We are in a country where pizza reaches at your door step before ambulance, you get housing loans at lesser Interest rate than loans for education, rich is becoming richer and poor has no bright future except the exceptions. When I Stretch my seat and silently think over the future of Indias Education system which is being reformed, revitalized, and being given a new shape by Mr Kapil Sibbal who is in charge central Human Resource Development and Minister of Communications and Information Technology, says it will enable a student to strive for excellence in all the aspects of the career rather than only scorecard, As rightly said by Mr Azim Premji who recently won the award for the category of Risk Management, We must think of excellence not only with our mind but also with our heart and soul. Let us look outside, at the global standards of excellence in quality, cost and delivery and let us not rest till we surpass them. We must create processes that enable excellence. Today, there are a number of global methods and processes

available whether it is Six Sigma, ISO, CMM, 5S, TQM, CAD, CAM etc. and use them because they are based on distilled wisdom collected from the best companies in the world. Also, we must build a strong foundation of information technology, because in this complex, dynamic world, it is of the essence that we use the most modern tools to keep processes updated. If these things are not focused and improved then we will never be able to build up a constructive society for future and which in turn will result in Brain Drain from our country and we our self will be responsible for the growth in economies of other developed nations. It is said quality in education cannot be manufactured or transplanted across nations and continents. It is rooted in the environment and the tradition in which it grows. It is linked up with time and environment, with the project of nation-building. It evolves itself gradually over a period of time. Mr. Kapil Sibal, the Union Minister for Human Resource Development says the short-cut of manufacturing quality in higher education is through foreign universities. Mr Sibbal says through this new knowledge is created through a dynamic process of research. Many Scholars point out that the essence of modern research is interdisciplinary, which is enriched through integration of knowledge from diverse sources, but degenerates through transplantation or imitation of external models. Conclusion:I am going to end this discussion by restating what I had begun with Excellence is a process that comes from within. It is a state of passionate enjoyment that right effort and involvement produces within one. And I will further add to it that excellence in each one of us can be beautiful only when it meets excellence in others. Bibliography:1. Inspired by Shiv Kheras You Can Win 2. Greatest secret of success 3. Human Resource development website 4. Google