It's only a colonial hangover

Public schools in India are hit by a new fad. They are in the race to hire firang headmasters. And it is not just metros, small-town India seems equally bitten by the foreign bug.
From Dehra Dun to Ranchi, schools across the country are seeking them out through advertisements in foreign newspapers, and are willing to pay a huge packet. The premium, of course, is on British make.
This is nothing but a colonial hangover.Fifty-nine years after Independence, if we are still looking towards England for our educators it says something about the level of our self-confidence.
There's no reason for it. It is not as if Indian principals are less qualified. Most of them are academically sound.
Rooted in the Indian reality they are better equipped to head the school than an "imported" principal. But it's our colonial past which keeps us in awe of foreign make.
Let's admit it, a foreign degree is often necessary to be recognised as a good scholar. This is true not just of education, but in other fields as well.
We prefer to deal with a foreign bank even though its service may be just as good or bad as SBI or PNB. It's sad that the 'Made in India' tag enjoys no premium.
The new fascination for firang head-masters is disconcerting. Education is not merely commerce. Institution building requires vision, planning and dedication.
A firang principal on a short-term contract can hardly be expected to view things from a long-term perspective. His interest will be to make money and exit. Even if well-intended, his ideas may not always be workable in India.
There is little an imported principal, no matter how qualified, can do if he doesn't understand his teachers and students. One is not against importing expertise.
Some amount of it is necessary in a globalised world. But education is an area where this sort of implant doesn't work and is unlikely to give the school any advantage other than snob value.