Back to school: How the memories of my school have shaped me?

As a human being, a large part of my life goes into building memories. Feelings and instincts are built into these memories. Oftentimes, these memories simply fade into the past. But on certain occasions, they come flashing back and you see them in a new light, and you re-experience them.

Memory 1

Like I remember when I changed my school in the 8th class. I moved into an ICSE school (The Sanskaar Valley School) from a CBSE one (Campion School) and for the first time, there was no subject like science. In class 8th itself, we had physics, chemistry and biology. I remember my first unit tests. My class teacher, who was also the physics teacher, distributed the answer sheets from our test. I got a 20 on 20. I was like ok, that’s good. Then she announced that I was the only one to get that score. I could feel the glares of my classmates. Then after the end of that class, my classmates circled me and said we never thought you were the studious type. The next period was history & civics, again not social studies, and I got the answer sheet and I had 11 on 20 which was like lowest in the class or something. The same people thought what was going on. It was strange to them and to me. I was always scoring average before this. How did I do so well and poor at the same time?

I knew one thing I didn’t study for both my tests and somehow physics had seeped into me. I only listened well in the class. That’s when I realised I am not an average student. I am a great student of physics, chemistry and maths and a poor student when it comes to biology, history and civics. That's why I feel very strongly about the education system and its effectiveness and how a better system helps people realise what they are good at.

Memory 2

Another key memory is of a time when my school conducted a 'cleanliness walk' around the school, where we stared at the grounds, footpaths and columns of plants in search of waste that had been thrown around. The person getting the maximum number of waste would get a prize. When I started I wanted to find the maximum pieces of the waste but soon realised I did not like this at all. Why was there waste thrown around like that? Why was there waste below the dustbin itself? I did not want the prize anymore, I wished for no waste to be found at all.

From that day onwards, I don’t throw waste anywhere inappropriate. I have a pocket in the bag that holds my waste till I find a dustbin to dump it.

This is an important one as it somehow shaped my concern for waste management. The system needs to be fixed. The mentality of everyone in the society needs to shift. Maybe I’ll be able to make it happen someday. This is a major reason why I do what I do in my start-up.

Around 2 and a half years back, I made another important memory with my school.

Memory 3

It was around 10:45 in the morning. I had crossed over to a road that was too familiar to me. The road that leads to my school. I really loved driving on that road. I stopped my car and put on Coldplay’s yellow, live in Paris on the stereo. I started driving again. It’s a narrow meandering road with lush green grass and trees on both sides. It was just perfect. I started going down memory lane, thinking about all the bus rides, the cute girl that I liked on my bus, and that annoying friend who teased me about it every chance he got. Happier simpler times.

Right then I took a turn to the best part of the road, it was the back side of a water dam, it looked like a valley with water in it with a few patches of land here and there. Such a scene. I had been waiting for it. The song had also reached the bridge, “It's true, look how they shine for you” and I just teared up. It was a lot of nostalgia, but it was not over. I had been called to my school to give a talk on career counselling to the high schoolers. I started with the two memories I mentioned above and then talked about my startup, but I was not able to grasp them. I was not able to make it very interesting for school-going kids.

I understand how the kids of 9th and 10th classes are. When I was one, and if someone like that would have come to talk, I’d be more interested in friendly banter and jokes and discussing Samurai Jack. But this is an excuse. I realised if I wanted to really change the way things are around me, I really needed to be more articulate and captivating for the audience (even school kids). It wasn't all bad as five students came to me later for my contact information, in case of doubts about their futures and for help with their environmental projects.

My take on the Education System

The thing that fascinates me about this is that almost all of my personality can be rooted in a key memory of mine and most of these are in my school (having spent the majority of my life there). This makes me wonder how important it was. Having the right school can completely change a person. I did not realise at that time how good my mother’s decision to change schools was for me.

It was a great school but obviously, it wasn’t a perfect school. It had a few problems. I found out what I was good at and what I liked but I am sure that wasn’t the case for everyone. We need an even more flexible education system that can be tailored to every student and also ensures good bonding with peers. I think the homeschooling option is also a viable option for some. The focus can be on the one thing that has been identified. The child will probably be not as intelligent as the person learning maths perhaps but can be the best singer or musician or artist of some kind.

I am not sure if I believe in board exams and degrees. All the exams actually. A practical project would be the way to go. Making something a product, a song or a theory. It can be anything promising. Anything that pushes humanity forward.