‘Technology is an aid, not the teacher’

Raja McGee, Principal & Secretary, Calcutta Boys’ School is concerned about the potential impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on human creativity. According to him, AI is a serious compromise of human potential. Placing his trust in teachers, he said they help students discover and enhance their inbuilt potential, ultimately shaping them into well-rounded individuals. Millennium Post speaks to the educationist on NEP 2020, evolving landscape of AI, and much more. Excerpts:

How has the landscape of education evolved over the years and what are the challenges and opportunities?

Education is all about bringing out the best in the child. Today, the entire perception of education has changed. Now, education is more of survival. This is against the policies of Calcutta Boys’ School. We still believe that education is not only about making the students’ bread earners of the family. Education means developing the personality of a child. You need to let the child realise what is right and wrong and that’s education to us at CBS. When it comes to teaching, if you just teach them their school subjects then you are not equipping the child. You are just putting information into the child. That is where Artificial Intelligence (AI) takes over. Earlier, you had to approach the library and in the age of AI, the library has come home in the forms of mobiles and gadgets. So far, it’s good because it is easier to access the information. But then when the information tries to hijack the role of teachers, it is wrong. A teacher is the one who ensures that the inbuilt potential of the child is raised. That is where the creativity of the child is developed.

While AI can be a game-changer, there’s also the risk of overreliance on technology.

Creativity is getting lost because of Artificial Intelligence. It’s a serious compromise of human potential and human creativity. Every child thinks differently. But then, if things are going to be available at the click of a button, then where do you let the child think? I am not saying anything against any government or statutory norms. This is my concern as an educationist. In the garb of advancement and giving the child the best, we are actually stealing away the human potential… the capability to think, the capability to react to the situation, and especially the creativity which is individual and extremely personal will go. So, you will not have variety.

According to a new report by McKinsey Global Institute, there will be a potential impact of AI on the job market in the US. In this time and age, how do you prepare the students for their future?

It’s not that we won’t be creating jobs, but then it’s true that the majority of the people will be unemployed. During the start of the interview, you said you wanted to record instead of writing it down. There used to be a post in every office called the stenographer. Stenography was an art. There were institutes, which imparted training. Today, you don’t hear about them. It’s a lost art. So, if you have a passion to continue, then you try to learn it. But now, it’s more of a hobby and not a profession. Similarly, any such jobs will be replaced and new jobs will be created.

There’s also a prevalent fear that teachers might lose their jobs.

It’s true. We don’t have to go far back. Just review the 2-3 years of the Covid-19 pandemic. There are a fair number of dropouts from regular schools. Instead, people are going in for online education. We think online education is convenient because then the ward can study wherever they want. But then, are we not in some way or the other upsetting the system of ‘early to bed, early to rise’. It hampers the concept of a regimented life. The child should know the value of time and organised life. But online education hampers the entire discipline of the child. I always believe that a classroom is a miniature society where you have children from all walks of life. They develop camaraderie and realise that society is for everybody. If there’s no school, they become a recluse. That’s exactly what happened during the pandemic. When the lockdown was lifted and children came to school, every institution had a herculean task of making them adapt to the ambience again.

Technology has also impacted our reading habits and going to libraries is a passe.

Reading habits need to be developed. You start with bold prints, books with more pictures and less writing and then move forward. A conventional school like CBS is still following that. We have a library period. Every week, it is mandatory for children to go to the library, issue a book and read that book. The librarian throws questions at them based on the book they have issued. Then, in the school diary, the children are asked to write about the books they have read. So, gradually they develop the habit of reading. But then, a school like ours is also changing and adapting to modern technology. We are maintaining the practice of reading books, but if a child is comfortable reading a book on Kindle even that is acceptable too. The reading is important to us.

Established in 1877, it’s a 146-year-old school. How do you ensure a balance between traditional teaching methods and modern educational approach?

Today, all our classrooms have smart boards. Gone are the days when the teachers had to carry a duster and pack of white chalks. Teaching and learning have become easier with technology. But again, I am repeating technology is an aid. It cannot be the teacher. Earlier, teachers would make notes and take them to class. Now, they are allowed to carry their laptops or tabs and share them with the class.

NEP 2020 proposed the 10+2 structure in school education be modified with a new pedagogical restructuring of 5+3+3+4.

Initially, we were concerned that there would be a major change. But when we worked out the details of NEP 2020 and compared it with the prevalent practices, we found out it’s all the same. We were doing what the NEP is asking us. The only major change would be in the question paper pattern. Also, earlier we had examinations from class V onwards. Now, it’s from class VI above. Class V has been included with class IV.

So, is NEP good for India’s education system?

NEP is good because it monitors. Earlier, monitoring was there but some schools were following it and some didn’t. Now, the emphasis is on teaching methodology and pedagogy. CBS had already been doing it. ICSE council has also been advocating this kind of continuous assessment wherein the emphasis is on the content and the learning ability of the child.

How is the school taking care of the mental health of the students?

The school doesn’t have to take care of the mental health of the child if the school is taking care of the child. Why would the child go into depression? If will happen when a child begins to feel overwhelmed by extra pressure and perceives that neither their parents nor school has time for them. If an individual is happy, i.e. he can achieve according to his satisfaction, then there’s no question of depression. We being Christian schools consider education to be one of the ministries of Jesus Christ. Christ never started a religion and this is something everybody should know. All he said was, “Know the truth and the truth will set you free.” So, it was liberation from your malpractices. That is what Jesus Christ wanted people to know. Today, schools like ours are successful because we are only liberating them from their malpractices. The child should be able to master the art of discerning right from wrong.