“Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”

-Albert Einstein

If this quote does not aptly describe the major flaw of our education system, nothing ever will. 

As a child, we’re all told to showcase our creativity. The want is for the kids to be great artists, singers, dancers, good at their chores and also active when playing. While it is amazing how every side of theirs is tested and the extracurricular activities tell the parents which they can shine in, as they grow up schools suppress or even ruin their desires to go on with it. 

Schools are to blame because the educational system is to blame for this. The pressure that students face in school where they are expected to excel at 10 different type of subjects is a huge deal. After having to keep up with studies, where does one get the time to practice their passion for extracurricular things?

Let alone time, that can be managed in a way (if possible!). It is not just about students chasing their other interests but also the fact that they barely get any time to breathe after the unrealistic pressure is set on their shoulders from parents, teachers and even the society about how scoring high marks is the only measure of their intellect. 

We’ve all come across a lot of people in life who were not good at one subject but were amazing at another. Yet they were forced to continue with the one they couldn’t do well at and the educational requirements gave them no options to even opt out of it. This decreased their grades, worried everyone and that goes on. But, why does it matter so much? If I were to ultimately take up Science and be a doctor, does what grade I get in class 10 in History matter at all? If I were to be an English professor, does it matter if algebra confused me a great deal in school? So, why are students made to study all the subjects forcefully up to class 10, even when they do not wish to do so?

Basic knowledge for all subjects up to a certain point in your life is necessary - that certain point is not up to class 10 (since in higher secondary at least some stream-wise options are given), it should be somewhere around class 6 or 7. Give the students an idea about all the basics of the subjects and then let them choose which they want to continue with. 

Give the students an option to study 6 subjects diligently instead of 10 and ensure that they all shine in those subjects according to their capabilities. Introducing one compulsory creative or sports or some such course from a variety of options would also interest students a greater deal. All this would decrease the crazy study pressure they face, it would give them time to breathe and play, it would give them time to go on and pursue their vocational subjects as well. Most importantly, the students would not feel unworthy because they are not ‘good’ at something, they will be able to love being educated beyond the shackles of a standardized way of judging ‘fishes’ and ‘monkeys’ (from Einstein’s quote) alike.