After close to two decades of being a student, it is definitely a challenge to shift out of the ‘student mindset’. And in the context of the Indian education system, this becomes all the more difficult.
The key element in our education system which creates this challenge, is the importance given to rote learning and evaluation of memory instead of comprehension. This tends to show up even in post-graduate levels, leading to a vast majority of business school students getting qualified on the basis of mugging up, instead of understanding concepts.
There are a few behavioural aspects and mindsets that get established over the years as a student and ironically, these are detrimental in the professional sphere. One needs to shift gears and ease out of the student mindset, if they want to survive and succeed in their chosen career path. Some of the required mindset changes are:
Continuous learning and evaluation
In any professional sphere, especially where technology is a dominant force, learning is a continuous, daily process. One might have to learn new systems, processes, procedures, technology, et al . This is very different from being a student, where one needs to prepare only to score well in tests and exams.
Therefore, students can get complacent when it comes to the learning process and become memory machines for a short while right before a test or exam. The flip side to this is that most of them will soon forget such memorised content.
This will not work in a professional sphere. Although there might be evaluation-linked modules and tests in a workplace too, these will be far more result-oriented. A student starting off his career needs to make continuous learning a part of his/her daily routine.
Comprehension and application vs. memory and recall
Our education system largely rewards memory and recall. Since the focus is on remembering concepts and theories, the testing and evaluation parameters too are built around this ability to memorise. In very few cases are application of concepts evaluated, in the form of case study analysis.
Largely, however, the student’s capability to recall is rewarded and this establishes a pattern — a pattern that is further strengthened when students are given notes or bullet points as shortcuts to manage their examinations. This creates a mindset of having a set of answers that needs to be remembered solely for tests and exams.
Workplace requirements are different in many ways, starting with the fact that no one hands out notes or bullet points. More importantly, the training given to any person is useful only when applied in practice.
Last and definitely not the least, the evaluation is not based on the ability to remember and recall but on the ability to deliver tangible results. Although the former have a role to play, the bigger focus is on the application.
The second important mindset shift is to start focusing on application instead of mere recall, which we will look at in the next column.