On fostering curiosity: A primer in promoting scientific temperament

Abstract

Narayan Murthy, recently, set the cat among pigeon, when he said that India has not Produced any worthwhile innovation in the last 60 years eliciting a quick and angry response from the science community of the country. Reactions ranged from blaming the government for poor funding to unnecessary control on science by the bureaucracy and expressing satisfaction that our institutes were doing as well as they could do. However, more than the money it is the lack of curiosity and inability to ask questions that is more worrisome. The real factor in scientific research is imagination. Curiosity and imagination need to be fostered right from the nursery school. Learning by rote, at the bottom of the cogintive domain and a necessary evil to crack the entrance exam is the bane of our education system. Out system has produced good team members but fails to produce team leaders. Our students are discouraged to ask questions. There is a huge shortfall of curious minds to reach a critical mass before we can start having creative scientists and path-breaking innovators. Children are innately curious. However, it is our system of formal education that kills all curiosity and ability to ask questions. We do not allow our children to make mistakes. We expect them to learn by being right. With the all-pervasive internet and google, there is a shifting paradigm in learning activities that are becomingless formal, more student centric, flexivle and research based. There is desperate need to turn the learning processes on its head. We are living in very interesting times and most opportune to foster curiosity and scientific temperament. Let the teacher and parents change.