One thing that I still don't understand is why, out of the 10 years of school, only 10th is important.

Because only 10th is important, a lot of students don't study at all the 9 years before. You can say that what they teach in 10th is more important than what they teach in 2nd. But, no, it's not.

You can know any formula of AP or how to solve any quadratic equation but if you're going to use your fingers to add or subtract because you never paid attention when the teacher showed you tricks for doing it, you're going to look dumb.

Whatever they teach in the 10 years is important.

Uh, let me rephrase that. It SHOULD be important. It's not. Over 50% of the syllabus makes no sense but, still, if you want to design the syllabus like that, make every part of it important. Let the parrots work for 10 years straight, not just one year.

I've said it before, when I asked one of my friends (who gets over 85% in the exams) what 2 raised to 0 is, she said 0. If 5th grade's marks counted, she would've made sure to remember that.

A lot of times I'm asked why my mental math is good,

IT'S BECAUSE I PAID ATTENTION IN 1ST, 2ND AND 3RD WHEN WE LEARNED HOW TO ADD AND SUBTRACT!

not because the marks counted anywhere but because it's a skill I'm going to need for the rest of my life.

AND IF YOU DON'T THINK BASIC ADDITION AND SUBTRACTION IS IMPORTANT FOR A 15 YEAR OLD, THEN ARITHMETIC PROGRESSION, TRIGONOMETRY, RESISTANCE, METALS AND NON-METALS, WORLD WARS, LETTER WRITING, अव्यय, समास, AND THE FUCKING GANGA PLAIN ARE NOWHERE NEAR IMPORTANT.

Either make all 10 years count, or make none of it count and just have 12th as the main like every other country. (Yeah yeah, this makes India unique, all the patriotism. It doesn't make us unique, it makes us stupid because we know all about Hitler and yet we get confused while writing "occasionally")

When I pitched this idea to a person I know who is in the education sector, he asked me "If this change was made, would you be willing to go through all these 10 years again?"

"Well, if I agree to go through all 10 years again, would the person who decided our syllabus show me just how much he himself knows by telling me every answer I have ever learned in my life?"

"If I agree to waste another 10 years in this stupid system, will every teacher who ever corrected my exams and said "He needs to take academics seriously." write the exams I will have to write again?"

"If I agree to waste another 10 years, will the system agree to change the way I want it to or at least in a way it makes sense?"

If at least two of those conditions are met, I would go through 10 years of schooling again. But, I'll never have to, because the idiot who decided the syllabus doesn't know what a 15 year old today does. And I'm sure the teachers don't learn the answers that we have to, why should they?