The Future of Education

The Developmental Approach to Teaching (DAT) is founded on sound pedagogic principles based on the rich Indian educational tradition that focused on value education and gave teacher the status of a role model, who was often a proactive selfless individual committed to common good [1]. On the other hand, DAT seeks to take full advantage of trends in modern education, and of the modern technological innovations thus combining the best of the East and the West. The world is moving to a new rhythm. To be at the forefront of this new world, teachers and principals need to become more responsive to the challenges of the 21st century and tune the education processes to make the learners adapt to the changes occurring at a speed never before in the history of humankind. The educational system as it operates now is predominantly focussed on ‘bookish knowledge’ and the use of concepts that mostly lie outside the teachers’ and students’ direct personal experience and social environment. The Developmental Approach to Teaching has been field tested in the Panjab University and is an attempt to foster new paradigms being suggested and created throughout the world, including all at their suitable places and rejecting none. The aim is to develop empowered administrators, teachers and learners, who would be both good and smart. In other words, they would have the right attitudes, values and conduct and further be highly capable to use all the inventions of science, especially the media, the internet and other modern means of communication not only to facilitate learning but later serve as useful global citizens.