On thinking of the current education scenario in India, I have increasingly come to believe that the education system is lacking perspectives - teachers teach just to cover the syllabus,not help appreciate the beauty and the usefulness of what is being taught/studied. I am not making this claim blindly, but after interaction with a few teachers and with a few students. A recent article in dinamalar wherein Dr. Kalam shares his idea on what the purpose of education has to be is a worthwhile read. A succinct, english version of his points are from the book: Five Minds for the Future by Howard Gardner. In the book, Gardner identifies five different types of minds that education today has to inculcate in the younger generation. They are as follows:
1. The Disciplinary Mind: the mastery of major schools of thought,including science, mathematics, and history, and of at least one rofessional craft.
2. The Synthesizing Mind: the ability to integrate ideas from different disciplines or spheres into a coherent whole and to communicate that integration to others.
3. The Creating Mind: the capacity to uncover and clarify new problems, questions and phenomena.
4. The Respectful Mind: awareness of and appreciation for differences among human beings and human groups.
5. The Ethical Mind: fulfillment of one's responsibilities as a worker and as a citizen.

Having realised what needs to be done, it is time we act to do what needs to be done! But how?