The education system in India has undergone significant changes in the direction of development and improvement over the past decades. The reason for this is the rapid growth of the country's economy and an increase in the need for qualified scientific and working specialists. great attention is given to all levels of education - from preschool to higher education, receiving good education and a worthy specialty among the population of the country is one of the vital tasks of life. Studying at higher educational institutions in India is becoming more and more popular among foreign students. Moreover, there are a number of traditional ways that allow you to get an education for free, and not only higher, but also postgraduate.

Stages and types of education in India

The educational system of India includes several stages:

• preschool education;
• school (secondary and complete);
• secondary vocational education;
• higher and postgraduate education with academic degrees (bachelor, master, doctor).

Accordingly, according to the types of education in India, it is divided into secondary, complete secondary, vocational, higher and additional higher education.

The non-state educational system operates under two programs. The first provides for the education of schoolchildren, the second - adults. The age range is from nine to forty years old. There is also a system open learning, within which several open universities and schools operate in the country.

Preschool education

Traditionally in India, children younger age were always under the supervision of mothers and relatives. Therefore, the system of kindergartens in this country simply never existed. The problem became acute in recent decades when often both parents began to work in the family. Therefore, additional groups have been created throughout schools, operating on the principle of preparatory classes. As a rule, preschool education begins with three years learning takes place in the form of a game. It is noteworthy that already at this age children begin to learn English. The process of preparing for school lasts one to two years.

Secondary education

School education in India is built according to a single scheme. The child starts school with four years. Education in the first ten years (secondary education) is free, compulsory and carried out according to the standard general education program. Main disciplines: history, geography, mathematics, computer science and a subject, the free translation of which is denoted by the word "science". From the 7th grade, “science” is divided into biology, chemistry, and physics familiar to Russia. "Politics" is also taught, the equivalent of our natural sciences.

If in the first step school education In India, the program is the same for everyone, then reaching the age of fourteen and moving to high school (complete secondary education), students make a choice between fundamental and vocational education. Accordingly, there is an in-depth study of the subjects of the chosen course.

Preparation for entering universities takes place in schools. Students who choose vocational training go on to colleges and receive secondary specialized education. India is also rich in a large number and variety of craft schools. There, for several years, the student also, in addition to secondary education, receives a profession that is in demand in the country.

In schools in India, in addition to the native (regional) language, it is mandatory to study an “additional official” - English. This is explained by the unusually large number of languages ​​​​of the multinational and numerous Indian people. It is no coincidence that English is the generally accepted language of the educational process; most textbooks are written in it. It is also obligatory to study a third language (German, French, Hindi or Sanskrit).

Schooling takes place six days a week. The number of lessons varies from six to eight per day. Most schools have free meals for children. There are no grades in Indian schools. But twice a year there are compulsory school-wide exams, and in the senior classes - national ones. All exams are written and taken as tests. The vast majority of teachers in Indian schools are men.

School holidays in India are relatively short. Vacation time falls in December and June. During the summer holidays, which last for a whole month, children's camps open in schools. There, in addition to recreation and entertainment with children, traditional creative educational activities are held.

The Indian secondary education system has both public and private schools. Obtaining a secondary school education in public schools usually free. For children from low-income Indian families, of which there are quite a lot in this country, there are benefits in the form of textbooks, notebooks, and scholarships. Education in private institutions is paid, but the prices for education in them are quite affordable for families, even with low incomes. Feedback on the quality of education often speaks in favor of private schools. There are also elite expensive gymnasiums that work on individual programs.

Russian schools in India

Education in India for Russian children is provided in three public schools that operate under the diplomatic services of Russia. Medium comprehensive school located in New Delhi at the Russian embassy. In Mumbai and Chennai, elementary schools operate under the Consulates General of Russia. Education for Russian children is possible in absentia. The Russian School in New Delhi implements approved programs for elementary, basic and secondary general education. The language of instruction is Russian. Of course, education for Russian children is quite possible in ordinary Indian schools, both private and public. But all subjects are taught there almost everywhere on English language.

Higher education in India

Higher education in India is prestigious, diverse and popular among young people. More than two hundred universities operate in the country, most of which are focused on European standards of education. The system of higher education is presented in the usual three-level form for Europeans. Students, depending on the period of study and the chosen profession, receive bachelor's, master's or doctoral degrees.

Among the most popular and prestigious universities are Calcutta, Mumbai, Delhi, Rajasthan, each of these universities has 130-150 thousand students. In recent decades, due to the steady development of the Indian economy, the number of engineering universities has increased. One of the most attractive and worthy here are the Indian Institute of Technology and the Institute of Management. Moreover, in the latter 50% of students are foreign students.

The proportion of humanities graduates in India is about 40%. Along with traditional universities, there are a lot of highly specialized higher educational institutions in the country, focused in particular on native culture, history, art, and languages.

Studying in India for international students

Getting higher education in India is becoming more and more popular among foreigners, including Russian students. This is explained by several factors:

• the high and increasing level of higher education in India;
• compared to European prices, studying at Indian universities is much cheaper, the overall low cost of living in the country;
• a large number of internship and student exchange programs with universities in India;
• active state stimulation of education in the form of grants and scholarships.

It is noteworthy that for admission to an Indian university, there is no need to pass the entrance exams. Testing is used only in special cases. But there are strict requirements for knowledge of English, without which the road to most Indian universities will be closed. All more or less major cities In India, there are inexpensive and qualified English language courses.

For admission to the bachelor's degree, you must provide:

• certificate of complete secondary education;
• a document containing information about the disciplines and grades passed at the school;
• documentary evidence of solvency for students on a commercial basis.

Education in Indian universities is also relevant for people who already have higher education. For admission to the magistracy, it will be necessary to provide a document on complete secondary education and a certified copy of the diploma. Upon admission to doctoral studies, a copy of the master's degree and other documents indicating the qualifications of the applicant will be required, respectively.

All documents of foreign students must be legalized: translated into English, certified by a notary.

Free education in India

Postgraduate education in India can also be free, as well as initial university education. For these purposes, institutions regularly allocate grants, which require at least a diploma and all the same knowledge of English. Free education in India, it can also be achieved with the help of ITEC - a program of technical and economic cooperation.

The education system in India is, of course, far from perfect, but considering great amount population of the country (more than 1 billion), not the worst. Of course, it happens that among people of mature age there are completely illiterate people who do not know how to write and read. This is especially true of villages in the wilderness, to which civilization has almost not reached. In this case, instead of a signature, a person simply puts a finger with a specially applied powder on paper, in short, leaves his imprint.

The government of India understands the importance of improving the education of the population and calls it paramount. The authorities are taking real steps to raise the educational level of citizens. Each adult resident pays a special tax of three percent of their income. A special fund has been created to finance the construction of new schools, the purchase of computers for classrooms, and the payment of salaries to employees educational system etc. Virtually every village has a working school. Not so hot, of course, but still better than nothing ...

Over 150 million schoolchildren study in schools (more than the entire population of Russia)

Where is the tuition fee, where is it not. In any case, free secondary education is guaranteed to everyone. In addition, children are fed in schools - no matter how poor the school may be. This is a school in our village Mirjapur

This is the school kitchen

The menu, in general, is the same everywhere - even in a rich school, even in a college, no matter where: rice, masala, water. Banana leaves are traditionally used instead of plates - cheap and environmentally friendly

Schools get better

Or richer. This school was built and maintained by a Christian church in the provincial town of Nuzwid. I’ll tell you about the church in India separately, but now I’ll just note that they don’t sell booze and tobacco there, they don’t take away children’s sanatoriums (thus returning to themselves the monasteries taken by the Bolsheviks), their patriarchs don’t drive limousines - maximum, on a scooter, but either by bike or on foot. But they build schools and hospitals and maintain them - for everyone, and not just for Christians. Really, fantasy?

In schools, children learn 3 languages: English, Hindi and the language of their state. The most revered subject is mathematics. This is a holy tradition, the science of sciences. Who, if not knows, would be correct to call Arabic numerals Indian, since they were invented by the Indians, and the Arabs adopted them during the period of their rule. Zero, by the way, was also invented by the Indians. And this is what a school class looks like in a rural school

There is no furniture - there is an explanation for that, in addition to the material one. Everyone knows about the Indian monsoons - for three months in a row it rains and floods everything around

For adults - problems

And the kids - buzz! At school - the pool was formed! So in the village it makes no sense to acquire furniture: it will disappear after the first rain. And so - the water came down, well, study further

First-graders write with crayons on slate boards, and when they go on vacation, they hang them on trees in the school yard

Every school has its own uniform. Firstly, this is in order to erase caste differences, as the great Mahatma Gandhi bequeathed

Secondly, if one of the boys in the city mischiefs - so that you can immediately see what school he is from - an educational factor, so to speak

If a child does not have a uniform (well, the family is completely poor), no one will kick him out of school, of course. Well, no, it's not. But in this case, the children try to have at least some uniform element of clothing - well, at least a tie or ribbons in their hair - so that the colors of their school

Well, the most “academic”, or something, is the white color

The standard form of college students, the so-called "Punjab"

If the school is far away, the children are transported by bus. The windows are barred so that they do not protrude

In the city, schoolchildren ride on such "skulbass":

Pedals are turned not by excellent students, and not by losers, but by rickshaw owners

In addition to ordinary schools, in India there are many cadet corps, in the summer they go to army field camps, where they live and train with soldiers

Girls in such buildings study too

At the end school year huge posters with portraits are hung out in cities best students. Parents are terribly proud if the child is on such a list.

What else surprised me was the unusual friendliness of the children and the absence of aggression. For two years I have never seen the boys fight at least once, honest pioneering! They can argue, swear, stomp, but to fight - I have never seen

And this is Hanuman, a supernumerary watchman of the Mirjapur school. The devil knows how, but he unmistakably distinguished students and teachers from all others. And if an outsider appeared, he immediately raised a wild cry!

Well, that's the whole story. The most ordinary villages, provincial towns. But then I looked at them and sadly recalled our rural schools, which, due to reforms, are closed simply in batches. Well, fuck us your Cambridges, if only our Ministry of Education officials could learn from them ...

For a long time I worked as a special correspondent in a federal newspaper, so my work was associated with frequent trips. My husband, in general, lived for two or three months in different countries, as he was organizing the filming process for UN television companies. Our son Mark began to actively travel even before he was born. We spent six of the nine months of pregnancy on the road.

Two months before my son's second birthday, we flew to live in the south of India, in the state of Kerala. I no longer worked, and my husband was offered a long business trip. The family cannot be apart for so long, we decided. And from 2012 to 2015 they lived in 2 countries: half a year - in India, half a year - in Russia. When my son was four, we took him to a regular Indian school to introduce him to educational process, because three-four-year-old Indian kids at this age begin to learn. visited traditional school 4 months, 1 month private, out of state.

We did not get into high school because of age, it starts at 6 years old, but we would go there, because we believe that learning the local dialect (each state has its own language, in addition to Hindi) is a waste of time. We worked out at home on our own. And I just want to tell you how the school education system works in India.

Indian children do not have childhood in our understanding. If parents want their child to get into a prestigious school, they start preparing for it from the age of 3. When our son of this age drove with me to the city at 10 in the morning or was at the market, many asked in surprise: “Why is he not at school?”

Classes

From 3 to 6 years old children in India attend Pre-school or Primary school, where children are taught mathematics, languages, and reading. Writing begins to be taught only in Last year, before that they focus on applications, drawing, shading. Lessons begin at 9 am with a Sanskrit prayer and last 35 minutes, the kids have only 4 lessons a day. Then lunch and games. At home, you also need to remember to study, tasks (learn a verse, count, geometric figures) are recorded in the diary. We, parents, are required to review and sign it every day. Grades are not given in elementary school, but notes are written in red ink in home notebooks.

From six to 14 years old children study at Medium school. Since that time, every day, schoolchildren have 8 lessons. During breaks, they walk around the yard, the boys play football. Already from the first, by our standards, class, that is, at the age of 7, they begin to learn biology, the basics of chemistry, physics, and geography. After 10 classes, at 14-15 years old, you can get a diploma of secondary education and go to college. If parents are aiming for their child to enter the university, then three more classes are needed. From 10 to 12 classes in High school are paid.

Despite the sharp social differences between the inhabitants in the country, all children have the opportunity to study in India. Free secondary education is guaranteed by the state. For this, the country has a special tax of 3%, which is taken from adult working citizens for the construction of new and maintenance of existing schools in villages. In addition to municipal schools, you can study without money in Christian communities.

And, of course, there are many paid schools, boarding schools and cadet corps in India.

Private schools

In a private school, education costs from 3,000 rupees per year to 10,000 rupees per month. And the children here will sit at their desks, while in the state, especially in the villages, students often sit right on the floor, on rugs or in the yard on the ground, legs folded in Turkish, and they write, leaning over notebooks. Private schools have computer classes, free chess, yoga, gymnastics classes, sometimes a swimming pool, and football is a must.

In order to enroll a European child in an Indian school, parents do not need to go to any department municipality district, but directly to the director. But even if it is a public school, you will be charged an entrance fee of 5-7 thousand rupees per year for school supplies.

If the school is private and prestigious, such as Heritage, then the entrance fee is from 50 thousand rupees, plus 5 thousand monthly. By the way, in order to get into such a school, Indians often make connections and pay bribes. On the other hand, a European child will be accepted “through pull”, bypassing the general queue, since he will then be shown to all inspection commissions.

Form, transport, food

Schoolchildren in India can be seen from afar! School uniform is required for everyone educational institution she owns. Exceptions are made, again, only for children of foreigners. White kids can go to school just in a shirt and trousers. The price for school uniforms is from 400 to 1000 rupees. Children from poor families can receive a subsidy for uniforms.

If the family lives far from the school, a special bus can pick up the student for 150 rupees per month. But more often, parents, together, hire a non-standard type of transport (as in the photo): a cart, a motorcycle or a cycle rickshaw.

In every school, regardless of whether it is public or private, they serve lunch. Rice, 3 masala seasonings for it, lentil soup, chips and sweets (semolina pudding or biscuits) are a traditional Indian school lunch set. Despite the fact that Mark lived in India for a long time, he could not even get used to chili chips. Ate a lot of rice and dessert.

Languages

All classes are held in English. Our child is not bilingual, an ordinary child, but after 2 weeks of language lessons, he began to understand what they were talking about. For adaptation, a European child is given 1-2 months.

Study in high school We didn't plan for a long time. Yes, it would not be easy. 3 languages ​​are required: English, Hindi and the local dialect of the state. In our case, it was Malayalam in Kerala. And if you can put up with the study of Hindi, then why my son needs Malayalam, I was able to justify it for myself. And from the sixth grade, everyone has a compulsory study of Sanskrit.

Different schools of philosophy were born on the basis of different points of view on the eternal questions of being. Each founder of his teaching, trying to prove the correctness of his worldviews, surrounded himself with students and followers who supported and developed the philosophy of this particular school. Sometimes the teachings of different schools literally contradicted each other, but, based on the laws of the same philosophy and logic, each point of view had the right to exist.

The Origin of Philosophy in Ancient India

The oldest studied to date are philosophical studies ancient india. Their origin is attributed to the II millennium BC. These teachings were based on the study of the surrounding world, human relations, everything that is connected with the nature of the existence of the human body and its soul. But the research did not have a solid scientific basis; rather, they related to logical conclusions from what they saw and felt. These were the first steps towards scientific teachings and explanations of various phenomena in human life.

What is the "Vedas"?

We can say that the entire world philosophy is rooted in the depths of centuries and is based on the research of ancient India. Let us consider the important features of the philosophy of Ancient India in more detail.

The preserved treasures of Indian philosophy, written in Sanskrit, have survived to our time. This work has the title "Veda", i.e. knowledge, vision. The collection includes various spells, rituals, appeals, prayers, etc., addressed to the forces of nature, and it is also an attempt to interpret the world man from a philosophical point of view. The doctrine explains the first ideas of people about their moral and moral essence in life.

The Vedas are divided into four parts, which should be discussed in more detail:

1. First part - Samhitas which means hymns, she the oldest from all parts.
2. Second part - Brahmins- ritual texts, on which religion is based or philosophy of Brahmanism, which had the main power and authority before the emergence of Buddhism.
3. The third part - Aranyaki (forest books)- this part gives recommendations and sets the rules for the life of people who have chosen hermit lifestyle.
4. Fourth part - Upanishads- what does it mean to sit at the feet of a teacher and receive sacred, secret knowledge - philosophical part of the Vedas. In it, a new character Purush appears, who appears to be omniscient and omnipotent, the soul of the world, the cosmic mind, that is, in our understanding, an omnipotent god. Further, he will receive the name Atman, from which the human student receives knowledge.

All schools of philosophy of ancient India rely on the "Vedas", hence the division of society into four varnas, or, as they are also called, Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras. Varna is the status of a certain group of people in society, to be more precise - it is a shell, color, color, cover. The right to belong to a particular caste is determined by birth. Each caste is engaged in a certain type of activity.

• Brahmins (color white)- this is the highest caste, she is engaged only in mental labor.
• Kshatriyas (color red)- their destiny is military affairs.
• Vaishya (colour yellow)- engaged only in handicrafts and agriculture.
• Sudras (color black)- this is the lowest varna, engaged in "black" work.

Only men of the first three castes had access to knowledge, the fourth caste, as well as all women, were excluded from knowledge. Their dignity was valued on a par with animals.

Major schools of philosophy in ancient India

As can be seen from the development of history, the division of society is also based on a kind of philosophy that comes from the ancient Vedas. With the development of society and its division into castes, currents appear that have formed orthodox and unorthodox direction of Indian philosophy. There are schools of these directions that adhere to the support or refutation of the Vedas. The division into these schools of philosophical knowledge occurs by the 6th century. BC. - the development of society, the formation of new economic relations, the moral improvement of man, the emergence of new knowledge led to this.

Let us briefly consider how the two schools of different philosophical beliefs differ.

Orthodox schools(astika - violent) remained true to the philosophy of the Vedas. These included Vedanta, Sanhya, Nyaya, Mimamsa, Yoga and Vaisheshika. Adherents of these currents are those who believe in the continuation of life after leaving for another world. It is interesting to consider each direction of orthodox schools in more detail.

1. Vedanta or the completion of the Vedas, the school is divided into two streams, advanta and vishishta-advanta. The philosophical meaning of the first direction is that there is nothing but God, everything else is just an illusion. The second direction - vishishta-advaita, preaches the three realities of which the world consists - this is God, soul and matter.
2. Sanhya- this school teaches the recognition of the material and spiritual principles. Material values are in constant development, the spiritual principle is eternal. The material goes away with the death of a person, while the spiritual principle continues life.
3. Nyaya- a school whose supreme spiritual mentor is the god Ishvara . The teaching of the school is a conclusion from the feeling, analogy and evidence of others.
4. Mimansa- the school is based on the principles of logic, rational explanation, it recognizes the spiritual and material existence.
5. Vaisheshika- this school bases its principles on the knowledge that everything around a person, like himself, consists of indivisible particles that have eternal existence and are controlled by the world soul, i.e. god.
6. Yoga- This is the most famous direction of all schools. It is based on the principles of dispassion, contemplation and detachment from the material. To achieve a harmonious liberation from suffering and reunion with God, meditation leads. Yoga is loyal to all existing schools and their teachings.

Unorthodox schools(nastika - atheist) who do not take the ancient "Vedas" as the basis of their philosophy. These include Buddhism, Charvaka Lokayata, Ved Jainism. Adherents of this school are considered atheists, but the Jai and Buddhist schools still profess astika, as they believe in the continuation of life after death.

1. Buddhism- The philosophy of this school is proclaimed the official religion. The founder is Siddhartha, who was called the Buddha, i.e. enlightened. The philosophy of the school is based on the path of enlightenment, the achievement of nirvana. This is a state of complete peace and equanimity, liberation from the causes of suffering and pain, from the outside world and thoughts associated with it.
2. Charvaka (Lokayata)- the school is based on the wisdom of the teachings that everything that exists consists of air, water, fire and earth, i.e. the four elements, various combinations. After death, when these elements disintegrate, they join their counterparts in nature. The school denies the existence of any other world than the material one.
3. Jainism- the name of the school was given by the nickname of its founder - Jin, who lived in the 4th century BC. The main thesis is belief in Tattva. This is the essence, the material for creating the entire structure of the world - the soul (jiva) and everything that is not it (ajiva) - the material environment of a person. The soul is eternal, and it has no creator, it has always existed and it is omnipotent. The goal of the teaching is the way of life of a person who has renounced base passions - complete asceticism and obedience to a teacher who has conquered his own passions and is able to teach this to others.

Brahmanism

Changes taking place in India with the emergence of nomadic tribes who called themselves arias destroyed the habitual way of life of society. With time the texts of the sacred "Vedas" became incomprehensible to the majority from people. There remained a small group of initiates who could interpret them - Brahmins. These changes are attributed to the middle of the 2nd millennium BC.

Arias brought to the culture of India new world philosophical teachings and ideas. They had their own gods who demanded sacrifices.

Over the centuries, Vedic philosophy acquired new knowledge and became more complicated with new rituals. The Brahmins continued to support and develop new forms of religious philosophy. They proclaimed the main god Prajapati - the Master of creatures and the Lord of creations. Sacrificing rituals have become a daily reality. Philosophy divided the world in two - the world of the gods and ordinary people. Brahmin priests put themselves on a par with the ancient gods and their teachings. But the Vedas were still considered the fundamental basis of the new philosophy.

In the process of social development, there was a rethinking of philosophical currents, the foundations of which were laid in the mists of time. Next they became the basis for the emergence of new religions, such as Hinduism(a continuation of Brahminism mixed with Vedic philosophy and local religions) and Buddhism.

As we now know Buddhism from a philosophical school grew to such heights that he became one of the three world religions and spread to the countries of the East and Southeast and Central Asia.

The human desire for knowledge, which subsequently leads to the development and progress of society, was taken from ancient philosophical treatises. Today, people are also searching for answers to the eternal questions of mankind, not suspecting that they are repeating the path of many generations trying to figure out the meaning of life.

study in Indian school very different from what we are used to in Russia. Our niece Diana goes to school in Goa and we had the opportunity to learn about schools and study in India firsthand.

Vacation Indian schoolchildren, frankly, are not spoiled. There are only three vacations, not four, as we have, and they are not very long.

Schoolyard

The academic year in India starts at the beginning of June.

• In 1914, the 1st semester began on June 4th and lasted until October 18th.
• The second semester is from November 7 to April 30 vente de cialis pas cher.
• Holidays - from October 20 to November 6
• Christmas holidays - from December 23 to January 1
• Summer holidays - from May 1 to June 3 And that's it! Stop resting!

Schools in India are different. There are state ones, where children study for free. There are international ones, you already have to pay there. Diana goes to an international school - Kids Kigdom International school. There teaching is in English.

Diana is five years old and still in prep school. In a year she will go to primary school to first class.

At the school gate

Classes in preparatory school starts at 8 and lasts until 12 noon. Children bring food and drink with them, there is no such thing as a canteen at school. There is an extension, but also some interesting and uncomfortable. After 12, the child must be picked up, and brought back by 2 pm. That is, if the parents work, they will still not be able to send the child to school in the morning and pick him up in the evening. We need to somehow negotiate and pick up the child from school in the middle of the day, feed him, and then take him back. And what is the meaning of extension?

The price for the international school that Diana goes to is 3,000 rupees per month. This price also includes educational materials. And for two sets of school uniforms you need to pay separately. Uniform is compulsory in Indian schools. In public schools, uniforms are blue and white.

In each international school own form. Diana has a very beautiful uniform - a red shirt, a checkered sundress and red socks. The boys have the same thing, only instead of a sundress - checkered shorts.

Lessons begin to be assigned already in the preparatory school. Diana does homework every day in the evenings.

I used to think that our poor schoolchildren are loaded to the very worst! And Indian schoolchildren start studying earlier - at the age of five there is already a tough schedule, plus homework, and rest much less than ours.