In the IAASAA listserve I found an interesting thought on the family background and the intended education. The context was the Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science Alumni Association (IAASAA)'s forthcoming conference going to be held in Rampur, Chitwan Nepal. By reading those two emails in this thread I would also like to take part in the discussion. However, I am not going to give another SAD story because I don't think that it is the matter of family background. It is rather, I think, due to an individual's interest, if not due to the flaws in curriculum. Very good overview of students' family background as well as the urban rural divide. However, I would like to make some comments in these thoughts;
1. I don't think that it is necessary to have a family background in farming to study agriculture because if that happens is it possible to have admission in MBBS only from the doctors' families? What about engineers and so on? Who is going to study forestry? Who is going to study the molecular genetics and space engineering? Or whatever, you see!! Don't you think that it is going to be a big mess if we think like this. I rather think that it is the matter of interest of an individual (student) and his person goal in life, which sector s/he would like to follow in life. That counts rather than his background because that is where the education comes. If one has not seen a potato plant before the curriculum has to be so developed that s/he would able to understand what it is.
2. Another important thing is a kind of targeting failure. Trying to pose as if a person of the similar background would help to enhance the sector after study. Alright! Very commendable! That is fine if happened so but can we be honest? How many of us from farming background are working back on our own community? I can bet if 5% does so.
I would like to raise some points for discussion in the IAASAA convention/conference:
1. How to make IAAS free (at least minimize the effect) from politics?
2. Coordinated actions among the government apparatus on education, research and extension. Nothing an alone brihaspati can do; networking and coordinated action. Nothing for junga ko ladain but needs a collective action if to change in this sector.
3. How do we handle the issues of climate change and food security in a situation of growing food demand?
4. How to regain the labor force back in agriculture from a situation of rapidly increasing labor out-migration. Can we ever think of becoming a labor importing country? Exporting labor is doing something for others but not for us.
I wish a pleasant, joyful and fruitful conference.
Thanks.
Hom
