PEDAGOGY OF PEACE FOR QUALITY PRIMARY EDUCATION
Dr.Indrani S.Bhaduri
There are a number of definitions of peace but it basically deals with a situation which is devoid of conflict. This conflict may be with surroundings i.e. the environment or it may reside inside our very mind. It is said that wars begin in the minds of men and hence, the path to peace must also start there. But is it only wars that cause conflict? Isn’t it often the mundane day to day occurrences which are more disruptive and damaging to an individual’s calm?
Conflicts are ‘disagreements’ through which the ‘parties involved’ ‘perceive’ a sense of threat to their own ‘needs, interests or concern’. This disagreement evolves because of the rigid stand that we take on issues from various walks of life; and also our inability to see a different point of view. This process of ‘rigid perception’ starts very early in life and concretizes by the time one reaches adulthood. So, it is imperative to intervene at that stage of life i.e. early & late childhood to train the minds in the fundamentals of peace.
Elementary education is not merely the educative process imparted between six and fourteen years of life or between standards I & VIII (lower and upper primary). It is also the foundation on which each & every future academic edifice is erected; all subsequent scholastic interactions are made. This is the age when fundamental concepts of all abstract ideas are formed… Peace, truth, beauty, purity are concepts which start taking root…
As educationist we must appreciate that this is the most fertile soil for the tree of peace to be planted so that by the time the child reaches maturity the concepts of peace are well rooted, the flowers of peace bloom and bear fruits. This is the stage for laying the foundation of a ‘peace oriented’ personality. The advantages of this stage are apparent:
a) Less academic burden
b) More number of students available (i.e. not yet lost to dropout-ism or system- rejection)
c) Child is more receptive as the mind is almost non-polluted by dogmas and ideas.
It is easier to build a child than repair an adult.
The areas of ‘peace integrations’ in primary education are many. It should teach care of self, understanding the self, respect for environment, recognition of dignity of labour, harvesting in honesty, understanding love, learning the rudiments of sharing and cooperation, recognizing the need for tolerance and acceptance of another, appreciating the need of responsibility etc.
The child is naturally good and it is the educators who can help in scaffolding and fortifying this natural goodness. The overall aim of education for peace is to lay the foundation of peace which will permanently equip the future adult to deal with conflict situations and evolve a non-violent solution when confronted with one. The child needs to be trained to appreciate, enjoy and celebrate life in all its positive dimensions, its diversities, its beauty and its harmony.
If we analyse the areas where a primary student is likely to face conflict we see that it evolves right from the act of leaving the home into a situation and join a school. All of a sudden he is catapult from a zone of comfort and familiarity into a situation to which he is alien. He is confronted with new faces and newer demands of social interactions. A peaceful resolution is needed which can only be provided by the teacher.
Early childhood is also the time when there is a chance of the birth of the sibling in the family. Suddenly there is a change in the equation in the household when he ceases to be the point of attention and this gives rise to turmoil. This too needs resolution. At times some children may have siblings with not much age difference and this may give rise to sib- rivalry. If not resolved effectively this may also cause a lot of trauma.
The curricular and co-curricular load that the child has to encounter may also lead to a situation of conflict. His inability to understand the lesson and keep abreast with rest of the class may also be a reason for arousing conflict. A rigid time-table which doesn’t allow independence of thought, an exacting examination and an evaluation system which has a tendency to classify the students into degrees of success or failures and mark them as good, mediocre etc, peer pressure, parental expectations, so on and so forth, all contribute to the child’s conflict.
An important ingredient in the schools environment is the multi-cultural diversity which, if not dealt sensitively ,may cause fracture in the school’s social fabric. It is responsible at times to create the ‘us & them’ phenomenon. The society in the school is necessarily a reflection of the society outside. The differences due to race, religion, caste, creed, class, region and language in the society at large are bound to be mirrored in the school as well. Resolution of these potential “conflict zones” therefore becomes imperative.
Another area of grave concern is the gender inequality that exists in our society. Even today the number of non-schoolers or dropouts amongst girls is far more than in boys. A child growing up in such a social environ is bound to imbibe the negativity associated with the process.
Having delineated the problem areas that exist in today’s primary education related to presence of conflict it is necessary to formulate a pedagogy imbibed with education for peace.
Teachers are an important member in the educational organization. They are the ‘peace builders’. For students, teachers are the role models. But the sort of news one gets regarding teacher student interaction are horrifying. Even today classroom violence seem to exist. A teacher’s responsibility is to help in character building. He must be a disciplinarian but not by force or intimidation. He needs to use love and care, as well as personal example, to garner this attribute. A forced discipline may bring a temporary compliance but fails in a permanent conformity. Children usually are amicable to examples and adverse to advices. This needs to be emphasised.
Syllabus and examination has always been the mainstay of pedagogy principles. Usually in schools, primary emphasis is on the transmission of information rather than knowledge, retention of concepts than understanding and memorization of text rather than comprehension. Evaluation is aimed at testing short time memory rather than judging the quanta of learning.
The syllabus is often blamed for its quantitative excesses and never appreciated for the qualitative excellence. Each topic/ lesson has hidden or explicit peace content which needs to be transacted with a positive and humanistic perspective.
The creativity in teaching must be concentrated at. The child-centred and participatory negotiation of contents is a must. Though difficult but at least an attempt should be made to individualise the learning. This is the only way to ensure universal success.
The present method of directing teaching to the mediocre student leaves both the talented and gifted as well as the slow learner far behind. Instead of a didactic podium based transmission of knowledge a teaching learning experience based on discussion, debates, presentations, group activities, cooperative projects etc. are more appropriate. This not only ensures active participation but also generates interest amongst the students and trains them in social dynamics which help them to appreciate the virtues of cooperation and collaborations.
This generation and the generations before us have existed in the most violent of environments. We have invaded the lives of our fellow men as well as devastated nature simply to carve out a luxurious existence for ourselves. The effect of these ills is self evident all around us. We need to give the “generation next” a better chance and the best place to start is at the very beginning………..
Dr.Indrani S.Bhaduri
There are a number of definitions of peace but it basically deals with a situation which is devoid of conflict. This conflict may be with surroundings i.e. the environment or it may reside inside our very mind. It is said that wars begin in the minds of men and hence, the path to peace must also start there. But is it only wars that cause conflict? Isn’t it often the mundane day to day occurrences which are more disruptive and damaging to an individual’s calm?
Conflicts are ‘disagreements’ through which the ‘parties involved’ ‘perceive’ a sense of threat to their own ‘needs, interests or concern’. This disagreement evolves because of the rigid stand that we take on issues from various walks of life; and also our inability to see a different point of view. This process of ‘rigid perception’ starts very early in life and concretizes by the time one reaches adulthood. So, it is imperative to intervene at that stage of life i.e. early & late childhood to train the minds in the fundamentals of peace.
Elementary education is not merely the educative process imparted between six and fourteen years of life or between standards I & VIII (lower and upper primary). It is also the foundation on which each & every future academic edifice is erected; all subsequent scholastic interactions are made. This is the age when fundamental concepts of all abstract ideas are formed… Peace, truth, beauty, purity are concepts which start taking root…
As educationist we must appreciate that this is the most fertile soil for the tree of peace to be planted so that by the time the child reaches maturity the concepts of peace are well rooted, the flowers of peace bloom and bear fruits. This is the stage for laying the foundation of a ‘peace oriented’ personality. The advantages of this stage are apparent:
a) Less academic burden
b) More number of students available (i.e. not yet lost to dropout-ism or system- rejection)
c) Child is more receptive as the mind is almost non-polluted by dogmas and ideas.
It is easier to build a child than repair an adult.
The areas of ‘peace integrations’ in primary education are many. It should teach care of self, understanding the self, respect for environment, recognition of dignity of labour, harvesting in honesty, understanding love, learning the rudiments of sharing and cooperation, recognizing the need for tolerance and acceptance of another, appreciating the need of responsibility etc.
The child is naturally good and it is the educators who can help in scaffolding and fortifying this natural goodness. The overall aim of education for peace is to lay the foundation of peace which will permanently equip the future adult to deal with conflict situations and evolve a non-violent solution when confronted with one. The child needs to be trained to appreciate, enjoy and celebrate life in all its positive dimensions, its diversities, its beauty and its harmony.
If we analyse the areas where a primary student is likely to face conflict we see that it evolves right from the act of leaving the home into a situation and join a school. All of a sudden he is catapult from a zone of comfort and familiarity into a situation to which he is alien. He is confronted with new faces and newer demands of social interactions. A peaceful resolution is needed which can only be provided by the teacher.
Early childhood is also the time when there is a chance of the birth of the sibling in the family. Suddenly there is a change in the equation in the household when he ceases to be the point of attention and this gives rise to turmoil. This too needs resolution. At times some children may have siblings with not much age difference and this may give rise to sib- rivalry. If not resolved effectively this may also cause a lot of trauma.
The curricular and co-curricular load that the child has to encounter may also lead to a situation of conflict. His inability to understand the lesson and keep abreast with rest of the class may also be a reason for arousing conflict. A rigid time-table which doesn’t allow independence of thought, an exacting examination and an evaluation system which has a tendency to classify the students into degrees of success or failures and mark them as good, mediocre etc, peer pressure, parental expectations, so on and so forth, all contribute to the child’s conflict.
An important ingredient in the schools environment is the multi-cultural diversity which, if not dealt sensitively ,may cause fracture in the school’s social fabric. It is responsible at times to create the ‘us & them’ phenomenon. The society in the school is necessarily a reflection of the society outside. The differences due to race, religion, caste, creed, class, region and language in the society at large are bound to be mirrored in the school as well. Resolution of these potential “conflict zones” therefore becomes imperative.
Another area of grave concern is the gender inequality that exists in our society. Even today the number of non-schoolers or dropouts amongst girls is far more than in boys. A child growing up in such a social environ is bound to imbibe the negativity associated with the process.
Having delineated the problem areas that exist in today’s primary education related to presence of conflict it is necessary to formulate a pedagogy imbibed with education for peace.
Teachers are an important member in the educational organization. They are the ‘peace builders’. For students, teachers are the role models. But the sort of news one gets regarding teacher student interaction are horrifying. Even today classroom violence seem to exist. A teacher’s responsibility is to help in character building. He must be a disciplinarian but not by force or intimidation. He needs to use love and care, as well as personal example, to garner this attribute. A forced discipline may bring a temporary compliance but fails in a permanent conformity. Children usually are amicable to examples and adverse to advices. This needs to be emphasised.
Syllabus and examination has always been the mainstay of pedagogy principles. Usually in schools, primary emphasis is on the transmission of information rather than knowledge, retention of concepts than understanding and memorization of text rather than comprehension. Evaluation is aimed at testing short time memory rather than judging the quanta of learning.
The syllabus is often blamed for its quantitative excesses and never appreciated for the qualitative excellence. Each topic/ lesson has hidden or explicit peace content which needs to be transacted with a positive and humanistic perspective.
The creativity in teaching must be concentrated at. The child-centred and participatory negotiation of contents is a must. Though difficult but at least an attempt should be made to individualise the learning. This is the only way to ensure universal success.
The present method of directing teaching to the mediocre student leaves both the talented and gifted as well as the slow learner far behind. Instead of a didactic podium based transmission of knowledge a teaching learning experience based on discussion, debates, presentations, group activities, cooperative projects etc. are more appropriate. This not only ensures active participation but also generates interest amongst the students and trains them in social dynamics which help them to appreciate the virtues of cooperation and collaborations.
This generation and the generations before us have existed in the most violent of environments. We have invaded the lives of our fellow men as well as devastated nature simply to carve out a luxurious existence for ourselves. The effect of these ills is self evident all around us. We need to give the “generation next” a better chance and the best place to start is at the very beginning………..
1 comment:
Thought provoking.....will rivet people interested in the field of education.
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