Importance of education

by Don Asoka Wijewardena

Parents and elders treat education of children with utmost importance and priority.

The objective of education as seen by intellectuals, philosophers and educationists in the past was "Man making" or "Character building". But over the last century there has been a dramatic change from these noble objectives to that of "Job seeking" and "Money making". The consequences of this change are seen in the world today as crisis at various levels physical, intellectual and emotional. Modern educationists, after in depth research, have recognised that the philosophy and techniques of education introduced by Sri Sathya Sai Baba is capable of producing citizens who could confidently meet the challenges of the 21st century and bring about a positive and desirable change for a happy and meaningful life. This education program is known as the "Sathya Sai Education in Human Values".

Ms Angela Loraine Burrows, Executive Director of the Sathya Sai Foundation and Senior Faculty Member of the Institute of Sathya Sai Education in Human Values in Thailand told the "Sunday Observer" the real value of education.

Excerpts of the interview

Q: I understand that you have been instrumental in propagating Sathya Sai Education in Human Values all over the world. What are the main objectives of this educational program?

A: The Sri Sathya Sai Education in Human Values (SSEHV) is a comprehensive and result-oriented one which enables the "Blossoming of Human Eccellence" by moulding the personality and character of the children. It is a unique program both universal and secular in character, and has its impact on all men of faiths. It also contributes to the turning out of students of good character committed to the upholding of human values in their life and it uses the fundamentals of child psychology and develops the child spiritually.

Q: Are students interested in following SSEHV and how far has it spread?

A: I am delighted to say that countries such as Thailand, Cambodia, China, India, Spain and Italy have incorparated SSEHV in their national education curriculum and in Thailand around 30 to 40 thousand students from grade 5 to 10 are following the subject with great enthusiasm. Around 115 countries have expressed their willingness to introduce SSEHV to educational curriculums soon. The Minister of Education in Sri Lanka Dr Karunasena Kodithuwakku has also expressed his interest to introduce SSEHV to Sri Lanka education curriculum after discussion with the Prime Minister.

Q: What has gone wrong in the present education system and is it capable of meeting the demands of the world?

A: The education system today leaves much to be desired, because it is stuffing the minds of students with facts and figures and the ultimate goal is to obtain a degree of diploma certificate. The entire system is not up to the requirements of the international job market. It is a fact that the importance of the human values and practising them have disappeared from students who launch strikes aganist authorities. Vocational programs and on-the-job training programs should be introduced to meet the demands of the job market,because sound education based on human values always supplies required trained manpower to run a country's professions, services and the economy in right manner.

Q: What is the definition of the value education?

A: Value education mainly deals with character development and filling the mind of students with human values because the modern educational systems lay too much emphasis on academic achievements and it does not include moral principles in students' mind. Value education is also concerned with identifying strenghts and weaknesses of different educational systems and creating an educational system which is designed to promote spiritual enhancement. In short the basic aim of value education is to humanise a human being.

Q: Have SSEHV centres adopted specific methodology in teaching SSEHV to students ?

A: Yes. Silent sittings, prayer or quotations, story telling, group singing and group activities techniques are used in some schools in the world today. These techniques are based on developing the physical, mental and spiritual life of students. The most important principle of SSEHV is that we are not teaching subjects like language, maths or science. The subjects are merely vehicles, which help the child to acquire knowledge and develop character,the goal of human excellence.

Q: What are the special characteristics of SSEHV?

A: SSEHV is of educational significance and is complementary to the existing syllabi the world over. It doesn't demand any change in the existing curriculum or course. It demands no extra time and on the contrary it helps the teacher to deal with the existing syllabus in a more efficient manner. SSEHV also promotes human values according to the needs of the world with power of intuition, power of concentration and feeling of self-control. The SSEHV has been extensively tried in India and over 115 countries, and has proved extremely successful beyond all expectations. The experience of all who have implemented SSEHV throughout the world is exhilarating and the teacher and the students have both experienced an elevation in their consciousness and a change in their very perspective of life from a "Vision without" to a "Vision with". The three letters in the word Sai stand for Spiritual change, Association change and Individual change. People from all walks of life visit Sri Sathya Sai Baba in Prasanthi Nilayam (Andra Pradesh, India). He has set up schools, universities and colleges where finest quality man-making education is imparted to all at no cost.