/ground-report/media/post_banners/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/photo-1581092160562-40aa08e78837.jpeg)
Ground Report | Opinion| Khazran Khan| Co curricular activities play a vital role in the lives of students. But when it comes to engineering undergraduates , it stands no where in their busy schedule. Focusing 24×7 on their studies , pressurising their brain to be swot and achieve excellence , burning midnight oil for better CGPA has secretly engulfed many golden opportunities in their career oriented life. A question to ponder is why our educational institutions lack the notions of co curricular activities? Is it because they are in a hurry to complete syllabus or they are chasing the minors and majors?
“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy”
Co curricular activities fuel our learning by stimulating innovative thoughts, improving our social skills, helping us to enhance our leadership and teamwork qualities and developing better social relations with each other. Nevertheless to mention that present day generation is showing least interest to other activities as equally shown by those in authority. There are many extracurricular activities for aspiring engineers and what matters is not the number of activities but the participation of Students in them. Honestly, from the day students opt for science stream to the day when they step in colleges ; rarely anyone among them has shown keen interest in extracurricular activities. And the very few who have shown interest , are still waiting for the opportunity from the other side. Old saying goes : “ All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” Sardonically, our educational system is so occupied with exams and syllabus pressure that they hardly have a time to revise these very important things. And on the other hand Students are so mugged up with academics that most often they forget that during interviews its not just their grades but their oral communication skills, attitude, maturity level and other qualities which prove beneficial in their placement and jobs.
The question here arises is what fruit will it yield if you nourish a plant properly but don’t provide it with an environment necessary for it’s survival? We all are like those plants , nourished by good hands of our teachers , yet when it comes to our existence on our own ; we lack the basic skills which might have got inculcated in us during curricular activities. There are many extra curricular activities that management should focus on , keeping in consideration the necessity of interacting more with outside world and facing the real challenges in the long run. Volunteering in NGO’s , internships , debates and discussions , managing events and seminars , setting clubs like for reading, writing , music and painting ,competitions and quizzes , learning a new language, and tournaments can prove very fruitful in future for engineering students. It will not only upgrade their morale but will teach them the skills of sportsmanship, hard work , friendship , teamwork , leadership and boost their knowledge in one way or the other.
“ The quality of life is determined by its activities”
The irony lies within the educational system in Kashmir where the primary concern just revolves around academics and grades. Many students despite being extraordinary in studies don’t get selected in reputed companies because they lack the fundamental skills of co curricular activities. The present day youth shows keen interest in social media and regardless to say, that it’s just a wastage of time and nothing else. Getting involved in co curricular activities would not only help them in becoming better versions of themselves but will definitely help in dragging them out from the world of social media and gadgets. Surely the ongoing pandemic has put a pause in these kind of activities but there is certainly many alternatives to keep these things moving on track. Like conducting online debates, quiz , and other adventurous things will surely make them fall in love with learning. In this way engineering Students will relax their minds and experience many things from this, which ultimately will result in better education. In the words of Aristotle : “ The quality of life is determined by its activities.” Co curricular activities are instrumental for drawing out the best potentialities of Students. All the institution’s particularly those dealing with aspiring engineers should try their level best to implement certain co curricular activities in their schedule. While drafting the best for their Students, their is an urgency to give a thought to extra curricular activities. That’s what Albert Einstein quoted: “ Education is not the learning of facts. It’s rather the training of the mind to think.” The more we think , The more we are able to replace our empty minds with open ones.
Written By Khazran Khan she is an engineering student and she can be reached at [email protected]
You can connect with Ground Report on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Whatsapp. For suggestions and writeups mail us at GReport2018@aakritiv1111
Also Read
