From Chores to Scores
Middle-Class Millennials and Manual Labour
This week, kiddo had practical exams in Physics and Chemistry — Grade 12 (High School Boards). He and I were worried because he wasn’t adequately prepared for the practicals, consequences of not paying attention during classes!
Essentially, a practical exam entails conducting experiments independently, without assistance from laboratory aides or the professor. Kiddo typically performs well in theoretical exams, but practical assessments induces anxiety.
Personal Reflection:
This situation reminded me of my own experiences about three decades ago during my engineering days, where I also struggled during practicals. Our college was good — all equipment & facilities were available but we didn’t actively participate in practicals, preferring to copy results from the class topper.
Therefore, I couldn’t reprimand kiddo much, sympathising with his plight. But I wanted to understand the root cause.
Root Cause Analysis:
My hypothesis is that most middle-class Indian students fear practical exams because we’ve been raised with the notion that manual work is undesirable and should be left to household help.
Over the years, I’ve observed this phenomenon grow.
In childhood, our parents compelled us to undertake a few routine household tasks like washing vehicles and verandas on weekends, fetching grocery from shop, ironing clothes, walking the dog, etc.
But today, almost all of these household activities have been outsourced by the middle class to domestic helpers. So much so — that I recently witnessed a specialized trainer teaching a child how to cycle while her parents watched (and shout instructions to the trainer). In contrast, we fell from the cycle a few times & learnt how to cycle by trial and error method.
The educated Indian middle class tends to disdain manual labour of any kind. While we may exert ourselves in gyms, we avoid physical exertion in public settings. We strive to park our cars as close to shops as feasible to minimize walking.
In the Indian context, our children may feel comfortable working in shops while studying in countries like Canada, Australia, or Singapore, yet they perceive working in India as beneath their dignity.
The upcoming generation appears to be increasingly less accustomed to hardship — of any kind.
Societal Implications:
This outsourcing of manual work culture by educated Indian Middle Class has broader implications. A reason we don’t have, and may not ever have, figures like Elon Musk is a culture that doesn’t embrace hands-on tinkering with machines.
Most of the us seek white-collar desk jobs because we are not comfortable with jobs that may require manual work. Gradually, we have become a country of glorified clerks.
Other factors
Definitely, there are several additional factors to consider. India’s dense population results in inexpensive labour. Furthermore, as the economy expands, there is a corresponding growth in the tertiary sector, where intellectual prowess often supersedes physical labour. Competitive exams of India, such as IIT JEE / UPSC , place heavy emphasis on theoretical knowledge, while practical knowledge holds minimal relevance.
Conclusion
It’s crucial for us to parents to instil a culture of practical skill development from a young age. As parents and educators we should encourage children to actively engage in hands-on activities and chores at home. And ensure that the responsibility for household chores is not solely delegated to the helper.
To close the loop
Finally, coming back to kiddo.
YouTube came to our rescue and we could save his practicals, watching instructional videos and understanding concepts.
By and by — I’m amazed at the resources available to students today!
📚 Hope this was of value.
