Sunday Times 2

In a short span of 3½ years the Government has just presented its fifth budget. The cuts in expenditure or as I would argue, the cuts in investment in education, continues. Sri Lanka now invests one of the lowest percentages in education, as a percentage of its GDP. There are many attempts to statistically prove otherwise by including the private investments made by individuals and households. But even by South Asian standards Sri Lanka is at the bottom of the table in investment in education (see table).

Children on their way to school: A quality education must foster critical thinking, questioning, criticism and imagination

An important question to ask oneself is ‘what is the purpose of education’? We often hear that ‘university graduates are not suitable for employment’. Is the primary goal of education, profit and economic gain?

All over the world there is a push for the goal of education to be narrowly defined and measured in terms of economic benefit. Politicians are measured by their success in delivering employment in the short term. So politicians define education by its utility value. The celebrated philosopher Martha Nussbaum argues that education must prepare the individual for citizenship, employment and a meaningful life.

In a democratic society we value the freedom of thought, expression, worship and association. The meaningful practice of these freedoms requires a citizen to be educated. But what kind of education?

An education for employment is often the acquiring of skills. The dominant development model measures a country’s progress based on its GDP growth and per-capita income growth. The impartation of skills, the emphasis on literacy, numeracy, use of computers and technology are paramount in reaching these economic targets. But an education limited to the above does not encourage critical thinking. What is needed most on the factory floor is the ability to precisely and routinely carry out a set of instructions — a highly prized value for economic prosperity in the short term. But long-term sustainability is dependent on invention and innovation. A quality education must foster critical thinking, questioning, criticism and imagination. It must provide the skill and courage to raise a dissenting voice.

Such an education is not willingly promoted by the ruling class. Social control of people is under- mined by such an education. Unfortunately policy-making is largely in the hands of a relatively uneducated political class which does not appreciate the value of critical thinking, question, dissent and imagination. Building a road or laying a sidewalk requires skill, but educating a population for inclusive citizenship is taking education beyond its narrow economic definition into the humanities. The value of the academic in policy making has been underestimated at our own peril.

Sri Lanka has been under Colonial rule for 450 years, a period which was dominated by a Master-Servant mentality. The post-industrial revolution was biased towards profit rather than educating to think critically. While the State education system is in decline it is worrying that private universities may also educate for profit compounding the problem. If private education is a doorway to a quality education then we must ensure distribution and access based on merit rather than on one’s ability to pay. Creative funding could be provided by the State to broaden the access to quality private education. However, it must be noted that Sri Lanka has not been able to attract higher education institutions of the highest quality, while Singapore and Malaysia have succeeded.
If the democratic way of life is to survive, critical thinking needs to be nurtured. Those who can think must show the way. The FUTA led agitation a year ago to protect the public education system was gathering momentum when it suddenly lost its way. It now appears that the leaders caved into pressure that was brought upon them. We have not seen any results that justify the dropping of the FUTA demands.

Today the project to re-write history from an official sanctioned perspective — no different from the LTTE sanctioned history dictated to schools in the North sometime ago — will destroy critical thinking. History at best is the explanation of events and facts based on perspectives of the researchers. Would not society benefit from the wisdom of many perspectives than from the narrow perspective of a ruling elite?

Cultural triumphalism is propagated at the expense of diversity. Cultural triumphalism lacks self-criticism almost always blaming troubles on outsiders and foreigners. We do not face up to the inequalities, injustices, ethic, caste and creed differentiation amongst us. Rabindranath Tagore said that aggressive nationalism blunts the moral conscience and does not recognise the individual. It only allows for group identity and group-speak. What is required is the ability to think and debate on political, social and economic issues without referring to either tradition or authority. To debate as equals despite differences — this is the education I want for my daughter and the students of this country. Democracies are undervaluing the promotion of critical thinking in education that is needed to keep democracies alive.

A holistic vision

The political leadership of our country has a limited vision for the creation of jobs and incomes. It is driving our people to accept poorly paid jobs in harsh working conditions in the Middle East. We need sustainable employment and income. The secret lies in obtaining a quality education which is broader than the immediate economic gain. The United States has continuously grown economically decade after decade. Its temporary economic setback is not to be confused with the increasing advancement of the Asian economy. The U.S Economy will not easily be rivaled in our life time because of its emphasis on freedom, particularly academic freedom. It absorbs the best of human talent and ability from around the world. It permits the American born son of a Kenyan student to become its President within a generation. The United State’s short history and traditions, though often considered a weakness is also its strength. It allows change and reinvents itself creating continuous opportunity.

With the notable exception of a few, we do not even permit Sri Lankan expatriates with their education, skills, technology and capital to freely contribute to this country. What a loss of human capital! We need an education that encourages change: An education for inclusive citizenship, employment and to lead meaningful lives. My daughter needs employment. But more importantly, she needs meaning and purpose in life.

(The writer is a United National Party Parliamentarian and former banker)

Table :  Selected countries in terms of expenditure on Education as % on GDP