You are not alone if the above does not make sense to you! I am still trying to understand why I spent 2+ years reading and understanding calculus. I am still scratching my head to find the answer. At the same time, I am pretty adept at sewing a button on my shirt with the skill learned in one lowly ranked optional subject during my school days – S.U.P.W., which stands for Socially Useful Productive Work! (I just googled it?)
I would like to start with the idea of education according to Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the great Indian philosopher, academic, and statesman, and the second President of India – “The meaning of education is to emancipate the individual, and we need the education of the wholeness- mental, physical, intellectual and spiritual.”
Growing up, I learned new skills that helped me do my job – primarily technical/engineering. Over the last several years, I have been intrigued by my lack of awareness of many critical knowledge areas that need reading from scratch. While this blog was in the offing for some time, the government of India recently published the new National Education Policy(NEP) – 2020. This is neither an attempt to deliberate on the policy nor provide thoughts on the adoption or execution of the same. I will try to pick a couple of policy elements to corroborate my thoughts.
Missing elements in the education – the list is huge for me and it’s difficult to catch up. I am not giving up yet!
Awareness of Religion:
“The quest for universal truth, and a tradition to sustain it, is not merely a spiritual quest, but the essence of all knowledge.” - What is Hinduism - A Guide for the Global Mind by David Frawley
Exposure to these elements should be mandatory starting at a very early age. Unfortunately, our entire generation failed to know and understand their religion, thereby missing the spiritual meaning of life. Unlike Christianity, Islam, and many other religions, the essence of Hinduism is not captured in a book or taught in temples. Barring some rituals and mythological readings(Ramayana & Mahabharat), no real education existed. Until a few years back, I struggled to explain “What is Hinduism?”.
History of India:
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, delved deep in his book, The Discovery of India, on this - “What is this India, apart from her physical and geographical aspects? What did she represent in the past? ……“..but surely India could not have been what she undoubtedly was, and could not have continued a cultured existence for thousands of years if she had not possessed something very vital and enduring, something that was worthwhile. What was this something?”.
The history of India started with the Moghul Empire and ended with British colonialism. We read about Roman, Greek, and world history more than the rich 5000+ years of history of India. History is essential to build national pride and confidence to advance further.
Vocational / Self-sustenance Training:
Most of my generation earned some degree(s) after a long, arduous education journey. It’s highly debatable how many have used those learnings to get a living out of the same. I firmly believe the training on basic survival skills like farming would have been an excellent addition to the curriculum?
Sports:
Sports or extra-curricular activities were always an afterthought and not in serious consideration as a profession. Thankfully, things are changing now.
Learning Self / Spiritualism:
The growing challenges of the profession and society need a strong mind and body balance, which can be improved with meditation, yoga, and other self-consciousness training. This will go a long way to building a strong person and a positive society. As Vivekananda, the great Hindu philosopher, noted – “The philosophy of spiritualism and Self-Knowledge, which can free humans from the bondage of worldly existence and at the same time bring material prosperity.”
The picture below depicts my observations on the specific areas addressed by the new National Education Policy. I am keenly observing the dialog on NEP-2020 and sincerely hope the vision is translated through a credible execution. The policy is definitely in the right direction!
References:
Vivekananda on “The Education That India Needs” in the book “Reflections”
No comments:
Post a Comment