Sometimes, it does take a village to raise a child. A global village. On Saturday, when US secretary of state Hillary Clinton and actor Aamir Khan swapped stories and views about education at an event at St Xavier’s College, it was hard to tell if they were talking from different perspectives. India or the US, it looks like the problems are the same everywhere.
"I believe talent is distributed equally, but not opportunity," Clinton, resplendent in a red business suit, said. "It is important for all of us to try and narrow that gap between talent and opportunity. Every child deserves to achieve his/her potential."
Khan chimed in, on cue: "What I would really like to see is for people to give education the top priority that it deserves."
If the opening remarks seemed insipid, the rest of the discussion was livelier. Clinton talked warmly about how her husband, former US president Bill, was the first in his family to get a college education; how their daughter Chelsea has an amazing vocabulary because her parents would read to her from an early age; and how in Arkansas, Clinton organised a test for teachers and 10% failed.
Hillary's observations ranged from the banal ("research in the US shows wealthy, educated parents talk to their children all the time, while poorer families are too busy putting food on the table to talk to the kids") to the intriguing ("teachers in the US spend upto $400 from their own pocket on school expenses").
Still, it was pride and ecstasy that the 25 students of St Xavier’s College, who attended the session, felt. During the hour-long discussion, Clinton and Khan also took questions from members of the NGO, Teach for India, and St Xavier’s students. “It was a once in a lifetime opportunity. I’m proud that I could represent my department and college,” said Kshiti Gala, a first year arts student.
Komal Saxena, a final year science student, said while there were several things they had heard before, hearing it from such influential people was her takeaway. “I want to become a teacher, so what I heard today will help me,” she said. Adnan Faizullabhoy, another final year science student, liked the fact that Aamir spoke about giving more attention to promoting teachers, giving them more pay and respect.
Teach for India CEO Shaheen Mistri said the session was encouraging. “When we have such important people talking about the importance of education, and the need for young people to take it up, it inspires. In our first batch, we have 87 youngsters teaching at municipal schools, and we want to double this number for the second batch,” she said.
