Tulsi-worship, rote-learning, Hanuman’s food habits: What Karnataka’s NEP 2020 position papers say
NEW DELHI: The health paper advocates discrimination against meat consumers, claims that eating eggs causes “hormonal imbalance,” and advises appointing yoga masters to supervise midday meals.
The pedagogy essay makes the case that memorisation has a different meaning in India and shouldn’t be discouraged. Chanting while washing and worshipping tulsi plants is suggested in the paper on environmental education. It means teaching Manusmriti, discussing “Hindu genocide,” and excluding material on Pythagoras, Heron, and other figures since, in its opinion, the “Pythagoras theorem” is “false news.”
26 “position papers” on the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 were recently made available to the public by Karnataka’s department of state educational research and training. These were created by several focus groups on the ministry of education’s direction and are intended to influence the state’s execution of the NEP 2020. They instantly sparked controversy, leading the All India Save Education Committee to urge the document on Knowledge of India to be retracted in a statement. The statement reads, “The BJP’s twisted history belittles the contributions of foreign civilisations and attaches spurious claims to our forefathers.”
The BJP wants to instil “Hindu pride” and “build a Hindu religious jingoistic psyche” through the false glorification of ancient India. Along the same religiopolitical grounds as these articles, the most recent textbook change in Karnataka garnered a lot of criticism.
Curriculum, pedagogy: ‘Memorisation practices’, ‘English-knowing arrogance’
In contrast to “western lines” of thought and education, the paper asserts that its graduates “will think in a specific British style.” “Bharath needs to be understood through Indian eyes,” it urges. The study cites the caste system as an illustration of cultural oddities and disparities. India has its own way of life, despite these oddities. But the west discovered and equated numerous phrases that it could understand in its own way. Hinduism is a term used to describe Indian behaviours when there is no religion in this nation. In its part on free expression, the discontent with the English-speaking, urban Indians is clearly evident.
According to the publication, others’ “urban arrogance, English knowing arrogance, and other attitudes” prevent pupils from speaking freely. It is suggested that schools provide a designated area where students can communicate freely.
It opposes the NEP’s stance on rote learning in an effort to reestablish the “Indian” perspective on everything. According to the study, “Memorization in India has a different connotation.” “Indian scholars Shruthi and Sthuthi Samskrithi created one of the greatest knowledge systems. Rote learning is not like memorization. All of the Vedas, Upanishads, and Puranas were memorised using methods that did not impair brain cell formation. India must be understood from an Indian perspective. However, Western cultures still view memorization and rote learning as the same thing and always discourage them. Even NEP 2020 and NCF 2005 feel like they are moving away from memorization.
According to the article, “Karnataka must take a firm stance to adopt the traditional memorisation procedures without impeding the growth of brain cells.” Although tangentially, the recent debate in Karnataka over Muslim students wearing hijabs to school has been mentioned. According to the publication, the implementation of various clothing standards by schools has led to “unequal feelings among students.” The text parenthetically adds: “The notion like Uniformity itself is opposed to Indian culture, however, it is required with local characteristics,” further confusing the frame.
The position paper on “knowledge of India,” which was written by a team under the direction of an IIT-BHU professor, is intended to direct instruction on “how India was able to reach stellar wealth and become the knowledge lighthouse for the world till the recent past.” It starts off by essentially rejecting the definition of India provided by the Constitution in favour of the Visnu-Purana “Bharata.” On the premise that “our youthful pupils are not even aware of what our forefathers have done over several millennia in diverse disciplines of knowledge,” the paper builds its recommendations.
It asserts that “Bharata’s culture and its civilization’s significant accomplishments are not highlighted” and that “Christianity and Islam are presented in distinct chapters.” It suggests chapters on “Hindu genocide,” including “events like the massacre of Malabar Hindus (also known as the Moplah riots), the massacre of Maharashtrian brahmins, and the massacre and expulsion of Kashmiri Hindus.” Although it urges revisions to history textbooks, it asserts that “the goal is neither to inflame communal feelings nor fuel the rancour.”
The majority of ‘Greek’ science claims, according to the report, are supported by “scanty, and frequently fudged evidence.” While there isn’t much proof that an apple truly fell on Newton’s head or that Archimedes discovered buoyancy while bathing, the article notes that these legends are well-known and frequently repeated. It implies that the depictions of Greek mathematicians like Pythagoras and Heron need to be scaled back. According to the paper, students should get into the habit of “questioning and not merely accepting whatever the textbooks (or print/ electronic/ social media) say as infallible truth, with a clear foundation of how knowledge is generated and how fake news stories like Pythagoras theorem, an apple falling on Newton’s head, etc. are created and spread,”
The study recommends including Manusmriti, ancient number systems like Bhuta-Sankhya and Katyayani-Sankhya paddhati, and other ideas from old Indian literature in the curriculum as well as teaching Sanskrit to schoolchildren as a third language. Even though Manusmti encompasses lofty ideas of public and communal good, the paper claims that it has grown so divisive that just the mention of it causes undue complaints from a segment of our society.
The position statement on science advises using national and state-level aptitude tests to find the most gifted kids who are interested in science and provide them scholarships. To prevent overburdening children, the study advises that schools retain cumulative records of each student based on assessments conducted every three months (trimesters). It reads, “The major basis for promoting students from one grade to another should not be the achieved marks.” The article advises teaching kids about the contributions of Indian philosophers and scientists, both ancient and modern, not as “pieces of history” but rather as illustrations of the “circumstances which led to the creation of these fields.”
“The scientific underpinnings of our cultural practices and how our society appreciates science should be included with the content,” says Misconceptions regarding scientific phenomena and erroneous views must be clarified by experimentation or exploration, the report continues.
The NEP 2020 position paper encourages teaching Kannada, the “local language,” or the maternal tongue until Class 5. From class 6 on, instruction and textbooks will be bilingual. The report claims that by doing this, “the children will be able to be culturally and linguistically rich, with strong local roots and global reach.” In all of the state’s schools, three languages will be taught to students in grades 1 through 12 and get equal exam weight. According to the document, Karnataka needs a language strategy that is also acceptable to non-Kannada speakers.
According to the position document, social sciences “more often depict European cultural experiences of other civilizations.” To correct this, it advises teaching social sciences to Indian students in a way that is “exciting and encourages reflection on both Indian traditions and the local social and environmental surroundings, without losing sight of global concerns.” The report asserts that teachers’ feedback indicated that history books include “some erroneous content.” The lack of food during the Vedic era because of sacrifices, or the societal ill of murti puja, are examples of “mistakes” that haven’t been fixed. “History does not inspire a sense of national pride. Instead, it fosters hostility toward us, according to the report.
Further, according to instructors’ comments, Class 6 and 7 pupils are “repeatedly presented” with issues related to Christianity and Islam but are not given “even a brief introduction” to Hinduism, according to the paper. However, Bhakti is described in textbooks as a reform movement that “repeatedly appears.” The report claims that “it generates the appearance that textbook authors are against Hinduism.”
The report suggests differentiating specific categories, like religion, tradition, caste, sampradaya, jati, and mata, from Western notions for students in classes 9 and 10. The position paper also includes a section on how to steer clear of “public controversies in social science teaching,” which can be avoided by using suitable facts and observation to support logical arguments.
Textbooks for Class 1 and 2 should include “good things” from epics like Ramayana, Mahabharata and Shlokas and religious books like Quran, and Bible, the paper proposed.
The Vedas, Puranas, and Upanishads, as well as the epics Mahabharata and Ramayana, are cited as sources in the study on environmental education. Most of the references are to conventional Hindu practises even though it discusses fusing tradition and modern understanding for the sustainable approach to resource conservation. The report provides examples of how environmental education must cover practises like repeating a mantra while taking a bath to instil a sense of duty, worshipping tulsi plants, and using Ashoka and mango tree leaves in religious rites. It also mentions teaching pupils about other traditional Hindu rituals including giving water to the Pipal tree, worshipping the Sun as a deity, allowing animals to reproduce in temples, and protecting tigers and cobras because of their sacred significance.
According to the report, “the pupils should be made aware that cultural practices were intimately related with the natural environment and correspond to each other in their own unique ways, which produces a sense of pride among youngsters.”
A “well-prepared meal” is recommended in the position statement on health and wellbeing to address “over-nutrition.” This is accomplished, according to the publication, by organising “cholesterol-free, additives-free” mid-day meals in which “eggs, flavour-enhanced milk, and biscuits should be outlawed to prevent obesity and hormonal imbalance.” Dr KJohn Vijay Sagar, professor and head of the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, NIMHANS, Bengaluru, presided over the panel. According to the report, “considering the small physical structure of Indians, any additional energy delivered through cholesterol by routine egg and meat diet contributes to lifestyle diseases.”
Without naming the study, it asserts that “studies conducted across the countries reveal that animal-based meals interfere with human hormonal systems.” The report states that “animal-based food” is “not good,” and that “gene-diet interactions indicate what is best for Indian ethnicity and the natural choice of the race needs to be considered” after claiming that “animal-based food” is “not good”. The article continues by stating that, unlike Westerners, Indians “naturally choose plant-based foods.” The article also claims that diets based on plants are more “man-friendly.”
Additionally, it advises kids between the ages of 11 and 14 to “assist in preparing the midday meal, make traditional kashayams, and assess the nutritional value of self-cooked dishes”. Children should “participate in the preparation of the mid-day meal and prepare healthful drinks like Kashayam and buttermilk from leftover milk,” it was stated. The article also suggested that “Athmanirbharatha” be encouraged in kids by getting them to stop looking up nutritious foods online. It proposes that instead of encouraging children to choose American cuisine like “pizza, burgers, and such foods,” they should “encourage them to choose Indian foods like amla, raw mango, and chaat masala.”
In contrast to “a storyline where all vegetables feel inferior,” the paper contends that “Indian-centric stories leading clearcut messages are needed” in the curriculum structure for children aged three to five. Children will learn to associate eating the “right” food with “valour, courage, and success” by hearing stories about “Bheema and Hanuman’s eating habits,” it was claimed. Students will “develop trust in Indian medicine and Indian culinary culture” if they are informed about how “Ayurveda, Panchakarma, and Indian Ghee-based diet cure hyperacidity,” according to the statement.
It said that health and wellbeing require an “expert team” of “dieticians and yoga gurus” to monitor each child’s midday meals and health records from Classes 1 to 12.
The case for an “in-depth awareness” of issues relating to gender gaps and insensitivities that still exist has been stated in the position paper on gender education. It raises further concerns about the gender binary and encourages acceptance of people from all genders. “Gender education must recognise and accommodate those who self-identify across the gender spectrum with the knowledge that “gender” is not a binary concept and is a socially constructed idea. If we wish to engage in gender education fairly and respectfully, we must be aware of specific terms and concepts, the report claims.
The report contends that the LGBTQ+ community should be included in its entirety rather than only the transgender people who are featured in the 2017 Karnataka State Transgender Policy, which was prepared by a committee led by gender specialists and women’s rights advocates Vani Period. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and other individuals make up the LGBTQI+ community. The community has opposed the use of the terms “transgender” or “third gender” in NEP 2020 due to their narrow meanings. The word LGBTQIA+ is suggested as being the most inclusive and widely used across the range of identities and sexualities.
The gendered roles that reinforce gender binary thinking are also criticised in the research. “Ideas of masculinity and femininity are intimately linked to this misperception and, in a negative way, widen the gender gap. Men are typically portrayed as farmers and traders, while women are typically seen as kid carers, according to the study.
One suggestion in the position paper is to eliminate “gender bias” in textbooks that “reproduce what is wrongly called gender norms” but are founded on preconceptions. ‘Sommanna earns,’ ‘Shyamanna and Ramanna’s shop,’ ‘farmer Mallappa,’ ‘Rama’s Garden,’ ‘Basavaraju grows potato in his garden,’ ‘Rangappa’s Garden,’ and other passages in a third-grade mathematics textbook illustrate the roles of men in the workforce. The textbook’s narrative and illustrations both depict masculine people working in both business and physical labour, sending students the subliminal message that only men are capable of working, the report noted.
In order to boost Indian pride, the position paper on “mathematics education and computational thinking” advises “highlighting the historical history of origami in mathematics.” It also stated that astronomy subjects should be expanded in scientific curricula to relate them to mathematics content and that “Siddhanta Texts – Astronomical Texts” contain 90% of the “great achievements of Indian mathematicians.”
Teachers “should work as an instrument in the fulfilment of national goals and people’s aspirations and should reflect the Indian heritage,” according to the position paper on teacher education. Teachers are also referred to as “guiding stars and lighthouses” who must be honoured as “Gurus and Acharyas” in the passage. Additionally, it states that teachers “should develop to a position where they command respect from all facets of society.”
Additionally, the study recommends that the curriculum “include training modules on toy/game concepts based on Indian civilization, heritage, culture, mythology, history, ethos, technology, ethnicity, and significant events” to Instill good morals and ethical behaviour (‘Sanskaar’).
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