Systemic Shift

Education is a lifelong journey that never ends. Whether we are in a classroom or the real world, education is always present and always relevant. It helps a child develop critical thinking skills to analyze information, solve problems, and make informed decisions. And different as that is in every situation, it can't be led by rote.

The session, “Education: Transforming the World,” with Nancy Silberkleit, CoCEO, Archie Comic, Charlie Jeffery ViceChancellor and President, University of York, Priyank Narayan, Founding Director of the Centre for Entrepreneurship, Ashoka University and Sital Kalantry Professor of Law and Associate Dean Seattle University School of Law in conversation with Sanjoy K. Roy was an engrossing one.

“But why is it that every educational institution spends all its time trying to tell a kid what not to think and only what to study?” said Sanjoy introducing the panel in his opening remarks while appreciating Ashoka University for the commendable work they have done in the sphere of education in a very short period.

“When we inherited the colonial system of education it was designed not to let the child think, or question. The purpose of the system was to create people who would follow instructions. And we have continued with that for way too long. A systemic shift is required in our education system to bring in that curiosity. And it has to happen more at the teacher level than the students. That is where the challenge lies as the teachers are not trained to teach in that flexibility,” emphasized Priyank.

But shifting focus in the panel discussion from formal education, and experiential learning to graphic literacy took the audience back to their yesteryears when the story of an archetypal American teenager, redheaded freckled Archie Andrews, and his friends, was a part of growing up.

“Graphic literacy is a language. The actions of the characters and their expressions all spark critical thinking in a reader. And that is serious reading. every kind of literature must be explored but when you engage in graphic literacy you get to dream high. We have readers from 7 up to 80 years old subscribing to Archies comics,” said Nancy CoCEO, Archie Comics.

Speaking about Zoya Akhtar’s ‘The Archies’ movie, an adaptation of the American comic book series she said, “They have given another dimension to Archie. I would love to visit Ooty soon,” she said.