Q. Benefits of good quality school education accrue only when students complete and leave school after having acquired the gateway skills.
Like one learns to walk before running, similarly one picks up advanced skills only after picking the basic foundational skills. The advent of the knowledge economy poses new challenges, and one of the severe consequences of having an uneducated workforce will be our inability to keep pace with the global economy. Without a strong learning foundation at the primary level, there can be no improvement in higher education or skill development.
Q. Which one of the following statements best reflects the crux of the passage?
(a) To become a global power, India needs to invest in universal quality education.
(b) India is unable to become a global power because it is not focussing or promoting knowledge economy.
(c) Our education system should focus more on imparting skills during higher education.
(d) Parents of many school children are illiterate and are unaware of the benefits of quality education.
Question from UPSC Prelims 2023 CSAT
Model Answer:
Q1: Correct Answer – (a) To become a global power, India needs to invest in universal quality education.
Explanation –
The passage emphasizes the importance of a strong foundational education for students to acquire advanced skills and keep pace with the knowledge economy. It suggests that without a quality education system, a country will be unable to compete globally. Therefore, the statement that best reflects the crux of the passage is that to become a global power, a country (in this case, India) needs to invest in universal quality education.