Why the Indian Education System is Backward and Needs Urgent Change

India is rising. But what about Indian education system. We say that all the time. Economy booming.

Startups, space missions, tech exports or AI dreams.

But one thing is holding us back.

Education.

Not just slow. Not just broken but Backward. And it needs to change. Urgently.

Because no matter how many satellites we launch or unicorns we create, if our children can’t read a sentence at 10, or think critically by 15—
we’re building a nation on sand.

How we can improve Indian education system

Quantity Over Quality

We built schools. Thousands of them. Every village. Every district.

We opened engineering colleges everywhere. Medical seats increased. But. We forgot one thing.

Quality.

Teachers weren’t trained. Curriculum was outdated. Labs? Non-existent. Libraries? Locked or empty. We pushed children in. But didn’t care what came out.

Rote Learning Still Rules

We’ve built a system where memorizing matters more than understanding. From Class 1 to UPSC, success = who remembers more. Not who questions. Not who thinks.

Just who repeats. You ask a Class 6 student—What is evaporation?

They’ll recite the definition. Word for word. But ask them—Why does your wet shirt dry in the sun? They freeze.

Because they were never taught to think. Only to write.

Exams Are Everything. Learning Is Nothing.

We worship exams in India. Board exams, Competitive exams, Pre-boards, Unit tests or Monthly tests.

Marks = identity. And if you fail?
You’re nobody. So we teach kids how to pass. Not how to live. They cram all night. Write in fear. Forget by next week.

This is not education. It’s trauma.

No Room for Creativity

When was the last time a school rewarded a child for asking a difficult question?

Not giving the right answer. But asking something original. Almost never. Because creativity doesn’t fit in a 3-hour exam paper.
It’s not easy to grade. So we crush it. We punish mistakes. We kill imagination. No wonder our brightest minds leave. Or struggle to fit in.

We don’t raise inventors. We raise obedient clerks.

English Obsession, Vernacular Neglect

We’ve created a system where English is survival.

Parents who can’t afford food still send their kids to English-medium schools. Even if teachers don’t know English themselves.

Kids don’t understand. Teachers barely explain. But everyone pretends.

Because speaking English is “smart”. Even if it’s broken. Meanwhile, regional languages die in classrooms.
And children never truly learn. In any language. We confuse language with intelligence. And everyone suffers.

Infrastructure Horror Stories

Have you been to a government school lately? No roof, One fan, Three benches, Eighty kids, Sometimes no toilet, No drinkable water, No skills in teachers.

But we still talk about becoming a superpower? Fix your schools first. Then talk about Silicon Valley.

Teachers Treated Like Servants

We expect teachers to do everything. Teach. Discipline, Keep attendance. Cook midday meals, Conduct surveys, Manage election duty.

And we don’t care about the main skill they should have that is Teaching.  No wonder the best minds don’t want to teach. Those who stay—many lose hope. Or take shortcuts.
Or leave. We can’t build strong students, If our teachers are weak, unskilled and invisible.

One Syllabus For All? Really?

India has 28 states. Thousands of dialects, Dozens of cultures and Different economies of respected states.

But we teach the same syllabus to everyone. A tribal child in Chhattisgarh gets the same textbook as a kid in Gurgaon.

They have different world but same exam.

And we expect both to succeed equally? That’s not equality. That’s blindness.

The System Fails the Poor, First and Worst

If you’re rich in India— You get the best schools. Cambridge curriculum. Foreign trips. Coding at 8.

If you’re poor— You sit on the floor. Drink from a broken tap. Copy from the board.
Hope.

This gap isn’t just sad. It’s criminal.

You talk about inclusive growth?
Start here.

Because right now, the system’s working for maybe 5% of India. And failing the rest.

No Focus on Mental Health

We ask 16-year-olds to decide their career. Judge them on two exam days. Push them into coaching at 12.
Compare them with cousins. And when they break down? We tell them “toughen up”.

No counselors, No support,  No space.

Suicide is still one of the top causes of death among Indian students. And we’re still pretending everything is fine?

Skills? What Skills?

We say education should prepare kids for life. Then we don’t teach them and how to write a CV. How to pay taxes. How to communicate well. How to think logically and How to learn a trade.

A graduate can memorize Mughal history but can’t do a basic interview. Something’s wrong. Very wrong.

Vocational Education is Ignored

Not everyone will become a doctor. Not everyone wants to. We need mechanics, Designers, Technicians and Photographers.

But where are the schools for them? We still treat vocational training like a backup plan. Like failure.

When in reality— it could be the backbone of our economy.

Outdated Curriculum = Outdated Thinking

Some of the stuff in our textbooks? It was written decades ago.

Still teaching from the same chapters, same examples and same theory.

No mention of AI. No financial literacy. No climate change action.

The world is changing every year. But our books change once a decade. No wonder we’re always playing catch-up.

Technology is a Band-Aid, Not a Solution

We throw tablets and apps at the problem. “Digital India” we say. But the kid in Ladakh has no network. No laptop and no tech support.

And the teacher? Still figuring out how to use PowerPoint. Technology can help but only if the foundation is strong.

Right now? We’re putting WiFi in classrooms that don’t even have walls.

Exams Kill Passion

Some kids love music. Some love painting. Some want to be chefs and some want to be writers or dancers.

But the system doesn’t care. It wants 90% or nothing. So we force every child into the same pipe.

And blame them when they don’t fit.

Education Is Not a Priority for Politicians

Elections come. They promise free laptops. New buildings. Smart classes.

But where’s the long-term plan?

Where’s the increase in education budget?

Where’s the teacher reform?
Where’s accountability?

Education is not glamorous.

Not headline-friendly.

So it’s ignored. And we pay the price.

Learning Stops at the Exam Hall

After school? Nothing. 

No reading habit.
No research.
No learning for learning’s sake.

We build kids to pass exams. Not to keep growing. Once marks are done, learning is done.

That’s not education. That’s a race. And it’s pointless.

Change is Possible. But Not If We Stay in Denial.

This system doesn’t need tweaks.
It needs a rebuild. From scratch. New ways to teach. New ways to test and new ways to think.

We need teachers who care not just “complete the syllabus”.

We need classrooms that spark not suffocate. We need courage. That should be Political, Social, Personal.

Because without bold action, We will lose a generation.

Final Thought

India doesn’t lack talent. Our children are smart.
Curious. Capable. But the system?

It chains them. Silences them. Shrinks them.

And it’s time—past time—to change it.

Not tomorrow.
Not 2047.
Now.

Also read: 18 Powerful Reasons Why Universal Education Can Skyrocket India’s Future