How Indian 'education' system harms the mental health of students

Image source- OurEducation

India is one of the most depressed countries in the world. And some of the credit goes to the Indian 'education' system (to be honest, it just a system to give out certificates and degrees). There are many ways how Indian 'education' system harms the mental health of students (and students who have completed their studies too).

Here are the few ways (there are so many that can't even name every way of harming mental health to students snd former students)-

1. Why were we never taught about mental health? :- Mental health is as important as physical health. We were taught about physical health issues, first aid but why were we never taught about mental health, its importance, mental health issues and how to cope with them? I think the system during formulating syllabus be like - "chuck it! Why do we need to teach them about mental health when we have to make them robots in future anyways? Robots need not worry about mental health. They are only designed to do work as per the orders. So chill". So people are still trying to find out how to overcome various mental health issues or wait, they might not even recognize they are having any mental health issue! 

2. Killing the individuality of students:- The system has killed, and still killing the individuality of students in many ways. CarryMinati had said right "we are sold in a large group" (Though it was for former TikTokers, it applies here as well. And I just modified the statement). We Indians are mostly found in groups, going by the trends, not confident enough to stand for ourselves, to be able to stand for yourself alone if need be. This is why the majority of Indians are referred to as 'common people' and selected people make it big in their lives and get fame (in moral ways, not wrong ways). Also while there are 10 ways of learning discovered, students having any one or a few, the way of teaching is same for all.

3 ."Kitne marks aaye?" (how much marks did you get?) :- Can someone tell me why are we so obsessed with grades? From a small classroom test to annual exam result to board results and entrance exam results, all are obsessed with grades. Why are grades so much important than the smart work and efforts one put in those exams? As the dialogue in movie Chhichore "tumhara result decide nahi karta hai ki tum loser ho ki nahi...tumhari koshish decide karti hai" (Your result doesn't decide if you are a loser or not...Your hard work decides that). Why are marks used as a determiner of one's intelligence? Students with excellent marks are looked upon as intelligent students while those with low marks are regarded as stupid or worthless students. Schools, tuition classes and parents are so obsessed with marks as they can show it off among other schools, tuition classes and get more admissions and better rank, and parents use it to show off among other parents. Why? All this creates mental pressure on the students, which can harm their mental health. And if unfortunately, they score low marks or even fail, they are mocked, criticized, bullied, made fun of, made feel worthless which can cause them mental health issues. Majority of students just mug up the syllabus, vomit it out on the exam papers and then forget the things. To be honest, it took me a long time to come out of these marks obsessed system, but it is worth it for the mental health and peace. Here's a bonus tip- Reduce your study time by 50-60%, cover the important 20% part of the syllabus and subject in your study time, and invest the rest of time in developing your personality and career skills which will help you in your career (job or business) and also your life.

4. Urgh, these boring uniforms! :- Though uniforms were made to reduce the discrimination based on clothing, it still doesn't guarantee safety from bullies and shaming. Even if we keep uniform, which are needed to some extent, we need to have same uniform for all the genders (we had shirt and trousers for both boys and girls from 5th to 10th except a few differences) and teach students how problematic shaming and bullying is and how it affects someone's mental health and self-esteem.

5. We are not taught to deal with criticism, trolls, mocking, bully etc:- Indian schools don't teach us to deal with criticism, trolls etc. Let's be realistic. No matter how good you are, there will always be someone who would hate you, troll you, criticize you etc. You will always be a villain in someone's story. We aren't taught how problematic shaming and bullying is. Why are we not taught to deal with bully, criticism etc? And in this digital era, why not taught to deal with cyberbullying, which is getting so common now-a-days? What precautions to take? What steps to take to deal with bullies offline and online? Why this is not made a part of our syllabus? Bullies tend to negatively affect any person's mind, be it a student or any grown-up. 

6. Subject teachers take over the game period:- First of all, the games period always are of less duration than the subject lecture durations. And then, our games period goes off from our hands. It is suffocating to be surrounded by walls all the time. Also, maybe the majority of Indian schools keep games and extracurricular activities period 1-3 days a week, depending upon the school. Games and extracurricular activities freshen up the mind, relieves the stress and if these are taken away, it will lead to mental stress and boredom from studies.

7. "You are from arts stream? Hawww (judgemental mode turns on)":- We have a different kind of obsession with science and maybe even commerce field. Medical, Engineering, IIT, and maybe even CA. If you don't get into these career fields, the school fee amount spent on you by your parents/ guardian was all a waste. Why do people consider the arts stream as something lower? That only person with low IQ goes into arts stream? "Yeah yeah, knowing about life, society, psychology etc needs no efforts and no intelligence."  Why do we force students to enroll in science and commerce stream? These are not the only career options. Not everyone is made for science or commerce. Some are meant for philosophies, arts, literature, bringing a change in society, etc. Let student decide what career they wanna take up, giving them some guidance and reality checks where needed. Forcing them might lead them to develop depression, anxiety, or any mental health issue and may even lead them to commit suicide. For parents, here is a question- is showing off about your child being in science or commerce more important than your child's mental health, mental peace and happiness? Is "log kya kahenge" (what would people say) more important than your child?

8. No counsellors in schools, colleges and universities:- In western countries (maybe in Eastern developed countries too, I have no idea), often, there is at least 1 therapist or counsellor in schools, colleges and universities. Why is there is no such system in Indian 'education' system, even after India being one of the most depressed countries in the world? And looking at the population in each school (if in thousands), there should be 4-5 salaried (with a good salary obviously) psychotherapists and counsellors. And the students going to the therapists or counsellors must not be judged by anyone. If students have access to therapists and counsellors, it can reduce mental stress and can help them to deal with any mental health issues. Absence of counsellors and psychotherapists and students not having access to these people can lead into their existing mental health issue becoming worse (Well, even the educational institution staff can have access to therapists and counsellors in that way).

9. Comparing the students with others:- This is one of the major contributing factors towards mental health issues in students. I don't know what parents, teachers, and any other person enjoy in comparing one student with another person, alive or dead. Stop comparing students with another students. Every person is unique and special in their own way (there will never be any person in future, present and past just like them). No one is perfect. Every person, every student hates to be compared to someone else, may not be out of jealousy, but because you are making them feel wortless, insufficient, and you are being mentally and emotionally toxic for them. Correcting them with maturity on their mistakes is okay, comparison or making them feel any less is not. Stop the comparison on any basis (marks, sports, helping in household chores or whatever!) or enjoy that young champ's hatred later! 

These are some common ways how the Indian 'education' system harms the mental health of the student. There are a number of ways, I could think of these common ways. If you know any more ways, do mention in the comment section. I would love to know.