Co-education.

 Q. With changing trends in education like all other aspects, co-education is becoming increasingly common. What do you think are the positive and negative aspects of this development?

Change is inevitable. Life goes through a continuous process of change and education is no exception. In ancient times, women were not allowed to receive education and men were sent to schools called Gurukuls. With the passage of time, education became common and males amd females were sent to different institutions. However, nowadays, co-education is gaining popularity, this refers to the boys and girls studying in common schools and classrooms. In the paragraphs further, I will discuss the positive and negative aspects of this trend.

To begin with, co-education is necessary today and there are numerous reasons for the necessity of co-education. Boys and girls think differently, generally boys are logical and girls are emotional, with regular interaction, a better understanding can be formed between them. Also, it generates a healthy competition between them and there will always be appreciation of perspectives, strengths and weaknesses. Moreover, co-education gives confidence to girls as they are treated as equals. This is of great significance in a patriarchal society like ours and it emphasizes the role of education for women. Another great benefit is that friendship, teamwork and mutual respect develops between both the genders as they are involved in multiple activities together and this makes way for open-minded individuals who can easily adapt to the highly globalised society.

However, there are some demerits of co-education. Attraction towards the opposite gender can hamper concentration of students in studies and they may get involved in unethical activities with each other. Besides this, unnecessary arguments may take place due to difference of opinion and it may create an unhealthy atmosphere resulting in negative feelings for each other.

To sum up, I would like to say that like most other things, co-education has both merits and demerits but merits outnumber the demerits and co-education is very beneficial for the betterment of society.

POINTS TO REMEMBER:

Co-education is studying of girls and boys together // In ancient times, only boys were sent to schools // Later, separate schools were there for boys and girls // Nowadays, Co-education prevails // It has several positives and drawbacks // should be promoted keeping in mind its merits.

VOCABULARY:

Co-education: studying of both genders together // patriarchal: male-dominated // benefit: merit, advantages // drawback: demerit, disadvantage

RELATED QUESTION:

What are the benefits and disadvantages of mixed sex education? Do you think this system is suitable for the kind of culture you live in?

Work from home.

Q. Due to advancement in technology, it is possible to work from home. Some people say that this benefits the employees more than the employers. To what extent do you agree or disagree ?

The development in science and technology has made things possible which were once unimaginable. Working from home is called telecommuting or teleworking. People no longer need to go to the traditional workplace to do their work and this, in the opinion of some people, benefits the workers more than the companies they work for. I will discuss my views in the succeeding paragraphs.

To commence with, the privilege of working from home serves several advantages to its employees. The first benefit is that it helps workers to save time and money as they do not need to spend on travelling to work. Another is that working at home provides a relaxing and comfortable atmosphere and people can spend more time with their families without any compromise on their work. People normally spend most of their time in offices. Thus, the household chores and time with children can be managed along with work leading to better family bonding. Furthermore, employees also have the merit that they can decide when to start or stop work or take a break because the efficiency of every individual is different like some people can work efficiently in the morning while others are more efficient when they work in the evening.

Moving further, the stress added to the lives of the individuals due to traffic woes can also be avoided. This keeps the individual stress-free and active for longer periods of time. However, I think the only possible advantage that it offers to the employees is they save space, electricity and infrastructure costs. 

To summarize, I would like to say that working from home is a blessing of technology and it definitely has greater advantages for employees than for employers.

POINTS TO REMEMBER:

Working from home is called telecommuting or teleworking // One of the blessings of advancing technology // Saves commuting expenses, frustration of traffic jams, provides calm atmosphere, flexible working hours to the employees // Less advantageous for the bosses, only saves resources like water, electricity.

VOCABULARY:

Advantage: merit, benefit // telecommuting: teleworking // blessing: boon // greater: more // employers: bosses // employees: workers

RELATED QUESTIONS:

Telecommuting has become the new trend in the working arena. What are the some of the advantages and disadvantages of this? // The possibility of working from home is further making people lazy and dependent. This is another move in the direction of making man a slave of technology. How far do you agree/disagree to this statement?

Studying history is a waste of time.

Q. Some people think that studying history is a waste of time, whereas others think it is essential to learn history. Discuss both sides and your opinion. 

The word History is derived from combining his and story. It is the study of the story of mankind and refers to the study of past events, particularly human affairs. History mostly includes events, places or people and their relation to one another at a given time period. It is one of the many important subjects taught and studied at all levels of education. Some people view the study of history as an important dimension of education, on the contrary, others consider it as an unnecessary subject. I will cast light on both views and also my opinion in the writing that follows. 

In the opinion of some people, history is a waste of time because first and foremost, it is tedious to learn dates, names of people and places which are not even useful in everyday life. Also, if one could learn past mistakes, even then history would not have comprised of repeated mistakes like the world wars. Another concern is that very old curriculum are taught in most schools which which includes contemporary history in very small amounts. This is not relevant to the world in which people live today. Moreover, modern epoch is that of science and technology, so laying emphasis on such subjects is of more use rather than learning something which is done and dusted. 

On the other hand, some think teaching of history is vital for education due to plethora of factors. The major reason is that it helps the generation of today to understand its culture and traditions which are being followed since ancient times. It also creates a sense of belonging to our roots. In addition to this, important events like the Holocaust, teach people about the horrific tragedies which occurred in the past, to remember those who were killed and to ensure that a tragedy of such colossal magnitude does not repeat. Last but not the least, it also shows the patterns of behaviour and lifestyle along with their outcome which help to avoid the negative ones and follow those which are beneficial.

To wrap up, I would say that though a few people underestimate the importance of history but in my opinion, it is one of the most important subjects ever taught at any level or in any form of learning.

POINTS TO REMEMBER:

History is the study of past events // it is a waste of time since it is a repetition of mistakes // it has very little reference to the modern world of science and technology // it is beneficial because it keeps individuals connected to their roots, teaches about culture and traditions // it makes people remember sacrifices, horrific tragedies so as to avoid such occurrences in the future.

VOCABULARY:

Tedious: boring // emphasis: stress // colossal: huge // magnitude: extent // underestimate: underrate

RELATED QUESTIONS:

History has been much a taught and learnt subject since ages. Do you think advantages of studying history outnumber its disadvantages? // According to some people, boring subjects like history have little relevance in today’s world and should therefore be replaced by modern ones which lays more stress on science and technology. Do you agree or disagree ?

To some people schools only focus on making their students fit for works, whereas others believe that the primary aim of schools is holistic development of the individual. Give your opinion and cite any relevant examples.

 Q. To some people schools only focus on making their students fit for works, whereas others believe that the primary aim of schools is holistic development of the individual. Give your opinion and cite any relevant examples. 

Schools are considered as temples of learning and play an immense role in the life and future of every individual. In the formative stage of life, every human being spends maximum time at school. Teaching of skills, manners, etiquettes along with shaping of an individual’s personality in many ways is done in school. Some people opine that the main aim of schools is to train individuals to become suitable for a profession, whereas others deem that schools are responsible for the overall development of individuals. I support the latter view which has been explained in the subsequent essay. 

To initiate with, a child at the age of four enters school for formal education and these days even 2 to 3 years old go to play school. Often parents are seen trying to secure admission for their wards in the best possible and reputed schools, this explains that schools are not aiming only at teaching skills and making one fit for work but also at making one a completely responsible and well developed citizen. First of all, there is no doubt that schools not only teach the skills to read, write and do arithmetic but people also learn about places, nature, interaction, friendship, team work, respect, cooperation, etcetera in the school. Also, a school makes individuals ready to be future caretakers of this planet. It is a privilege to study in a good school and understand the roles one has to play as a member of the society in which he lives, grows and ultimately dies. Moreover, schools teach important things which are the building blocks and necessary to do much in life like critically analyze, read, perform mathematical functions etcetera. I agree that these are important to make individuals fit for work but the same time, they make people develop attributes essential to live.

Furthermore, it is sure that schools do not impart education to produce robotic citizens but human beings who are fully grown, developed, learned and skillful. Therefore, I do not find it appropriate to call schools, centres are producing trained workers. Besides this, schools provide exposure to activities, ideas and fields of knowledge that one may never otherwise encounter. They also help learners to learn discipline, patience, preservance and hard work. To add to this, man is a social animal and cannot survive by knowing how to work only, there are several other important traits which are necessary for his existence and learning or imbibing these is to a large extent, done in a school.

To conclude, I would say that different people have different opinions but I strongly believe that schools play a role in producing asset-like individuals who are perfect workers and dutiful members of the society in which they live and grow.

POINTS TO REMEMBER:

Schools are temple of learning // Aim of schools is overall development // schools produce properly shaped individuals // They do not aim at producing machine like humans, only fit to work // All important traits like patience, cooperation, punctuality etcetera are learnt in schools // Apart from basic reading, writing, valuable exposure is provided // schools primarily aim at producing asset-like individuals in society.

VOCABULARY:

Attributes: properties, characteristics // traits: attributes // holistic: complete, overall // Perservance: persistence // privilege: fortunate right // imbibing: inculcating, assimilating 

Related Question:

To some people going to schools is a majorly important aspect of life, whereas, others think basic skills can be learnt otherwise also. What do you think is more appropriate viewpoint? Substantiate your answer with any relevant details and examples.