A #NewEducation paradigm for a #NewIndia

 

No one could have a difference of opinion regarding the fact that education results in, or at least should result in, learning. The differences arise, though, over what this ‘learning’ is or should be. A simple click on the thesaurus shows that to learn means to discover, ascertain, understand, to become trained in or skilled at or to gain knowledge of.  The question is: does our attempt to educate our children through institutionalized systems of schooling result in such learning? It seems to me that the institutions meant to educate have been reduced to measurement systems that cater to the need to quantify learning so as to grade the churned out products on a universally acceptable, recognizable scale.

Whereas education should free the mind, open it to new discoveries, help each individual child find their unique voice, cultivate a thinking mind and an independent personality, it is reducing children to a mass of regurgitators and nervous wrecks. Schools have become factories that churn out products that are expected to conform to set standards, the norm.  It’s a race against time, against copious competition, and there’s little space for imagination, innovation and such esoteric metaphysical irrationalities.

Knowledge, if institutionalized education assessments are to be believed, is in the textbooks and there are plenty of them to rush through in an academic year; learning is what you produce on paper or spout without a second thought, or a second’s thought for that matter.

To stem this mindless acquisition of what is considered an ‘education’ we have to stop trying to teach our children everything that can conceivably be taught so that they are not ‘deprived’ of the opportunity to know everything that there is to be known.

By all means, familiarise children with various disciplines but let not the learning be tied down to textbooks straitjacketed in terms of ‘subjects’: geography…history…statistics… economics… mathematics; Sanskrit…English…Tamil…Kannada…economics… life science, et al. Introduce young students, instead, to the notion of inter-disciplinarity which is the way of life in the real world, and expose them to readings from the best of literature in the original. From classics to modern works of fiction and non-fiction, build a curriculum with stories, poems and plays, essays, book extracts and published works of reputed researchers, drawing on all genres and disciplines, both nationally inspiring and globally renowned.

Reading is more likely to become pleasurable activity and result in meaningful learning as well as a zeal to learn more through self-discovery when the texts being read are those that have been authored by masters of language or experts in their fields, texts that have stood the test of time and scholarship. Besides, learning is a generative process that happens through exploration and discovery, discussion and conversation, listening and reading. No one has learnt every word that is in their vocabulary from their textbooks and their teachers!

As for Mathematics, rather than making it formidable by bringing in topics that have few applications in most people’s lives, relate it to real life commerce and statistics.

Logic and moral science, sports and home science were all part of the school syllabus once. There is no gainsaying their practical application. The first two equip us with skills of reasoning and analysis as well as values and virtues that are necessary for intellectually aware and equitably sound  decision-making. The latter two make for physically fit and capable and useful citizens.

Teach children to read and understand first, and then to communicate and to express their thoughts and ideas, and then to count and calculate, evaluate and analyse: A gradually evolving teaching mechanism that gives time for contemplation and absorption would alone result in wholesome learning.  And, perform tests of assessment through various mediums: written, oral, graphic, and/ or action.  Comprehension can be better evaluated if the opportunity is given to a student to express themselves in the spoken or written word, through pictures , models, and/ or mime , for, not everyone has the same comfort level with each of these modes of expression.

Maybe it’s a dream, perhaps a hope, but I wonder if India, which is supposed to be re-inventing or re-discovering itself, or both, can also spare some mind-space to re-conceptualise education and re-orient it towards its true purpose. Education is meant to result in learning; it should open the mind and help it grow in awareness about the self and the society. As of now, these functions are being poorly performed because of mistaken notions of what learning is meant to be, and what it is meant to do.

#ThreeLanguageFormula: Sanskrit/ indigenous Indian language+ Foreign/ imported language + Language of Instruction

 

Sanskrit has been around at least since before the grammarian Panini codified it and he has been historically dated to the 4^th century BCE.  While many Adivasi or tribal languages can, perhaps, lay greater claim to the tag ‘indigenous Indian language’  Sanskrit has a unique place in the country’s cultural history. Literature that originated in Sanskrit is the fountainhead of a flood of stories and songs that are the pride of towns and temples, villages, artistes and artisans in every nook and corner of the country.  Sanskrit also has an every-day, ubiquitous aspect: many of our rivers and mountains, places and people draw their names from the language.  So much so it would be irrational to imagine we can divorce Sanskrit from the country’s life-world and disingenuous to argue that any other Indian language, however hoary its tradition, enjoys a pan-Indian presence or an equal status.  Sanskrit, therefore, would be the natural choice for classical language of India.  That said it would be folly to deny what is due to other ancient languages of our land. So let our three language formula include one indigenous language – which can be Sanskrit or a tribal language.

Languages that became part of our cultural mosaic when they came into our country along with invaders – be they European or West Asian – can be considered under the rubric of foreign languages as they were imported into the country initially. So another of the three languages would be a foreign language, which could be English, German, Persian, Arabic or any other language such as Latin American languages or East Asian languages – just about any language that finds a resonance among the public, in fact.

The primary language or the language of instruction can be English – which is the link language for the nation, Hindi which is the official language of the nation, or a sectarian language which could be the language of a community or a region.

There could be overlaps between the three.  The choice of indigenous language (say Soliga) could be the same as the primary language of instruction.  Or the foreign language and the choice of language of instruction (say English) could be the same.  This issue can be addressed easily by adopting a creative approach with regard to the curriculum and evaluation mechanism for languages apart from the language of instruction.

While the economic consideration of the language of instruction has a place in an education system, it engenders a functional approach to the study of language, and completely loses sight of the finer aspects of the applications of language. After all, most Indians are multi-lingual – especially those who are considered educationally ‘backward’.  They are able to converse effectively, critically appreciate, enjoy, and understand the various word forms: from idiomatic expressions to figures of speech to song and literature.  It is this potential of language learning that should be sought to be furthered by the second and third languages, which are not the language of instruction. To comprehend, to converse, to critically appraise, and to communicate should all be part of the thought-process that goes into creation of syllabus and evaluation criteria for these subjects.