All wars before they begin, start in the minds of the people. The negativity that sows the seeds of discord can only be eliminated by the right education
Democracies promise equality, equity, and human dignity to all. The promise to move towards a world of peace and tranquility is a compulsory clause in most of the Constitutions and other allied documentations. Human nature, however, invariably tilts towards creating hierarchical order in every human endeavor and activity. After WWII, it was the common global aspiration to banish the horrors of war and violence from the face of the planet earth. It was considered necessary to launch pragmatic initiatives at various levels that would save the planet earth and humanity from further destruction and devastation of human lives and precious life-sustaining resources.
How to move ahead was so thoughtfully subsumed in the Preamble of UNESCO’s Constitution: Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defenses of peace must be constructed. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights Charter –UNDHR - of the UN which stands endorsed by all member countries, asserts in its Article 26: “Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.” The primacy accorded to education, science, and culture in achieving an attitudinal transformation became evident in the very nomenclature of UNESCO.
The emphasis on all three areas included education, science, and culture – has now assumed contemporary dimensions; the focus in education is on good quality and skill acquisition, and science extends its horizons from coding in the initial stages to information and communication technology and artificial intelligence; ICT, and AI! The cultural context now deserves far more intense attention as achieving cultural cohesion and harmony is now getting more and more complex by the day, consequent upon demographic changes that have taken place at a much higher pace due to various reasons, violence being a prominent factor responsible for it.
The relevance of UNESCO's doctrine built on the need of constructing the defense of peace by impacting the human mind has; over the last seven decades; achieved universal endorsement. Alert and dynamic systems of learning are now transforming their curricula and pedagogy to prominently focus on nurturing the values of truth, peace, nonviolence, right conduct, love, and brotherhood. The effort is to erase the negativity that clouds his mind, resulting in a lack of in-depth comprehension of the social and emotional consequences of ignoring the necessity of human connection with other human beings and nature. Children have to be made familiar with the basics of social, cultural, moral, ethical, and humanistic values.
Parents need to remain ever conscious that if the near and dear ones are short on compassion and empathy in their general behavior, it would not make a positive impact on the growing up of a child in the household. All three -parents, school, and the child need to develop a sensitive bond that permits the free exchange of ideas, emotions, and aspirations. Interests of the child deserve full respect but at the same time, no laxity need be permitted in his growing up as a social and cultural person, as a human being who connects himself with others; extending from near and dear ones to the adage of the universal unity of all human beings.
Even isolated-looking cases of aberrations in teacher conduct just could not be ignored. Recently, a report appeared in the media indicating that Delhi Municipal Corporation teachers do not receive their salary regularly; the delay often being a couple of months! Another shocking incident was reported just the next day; a primary school child was attacked by the lady teacher and thrown out of the first-floor room. To me, the link between the two must be examined very carefully. If the teachers are being put under avoidable stress by the system, they would never be at peace with themselves. And if the teacher is not at peace with himself, it would be futile to expect him to sow the seeds of human values and a keen desire to contribute to efforts intended to create a world of peace!
On a broader horizon, the global literacy rate has crossed the 84% mark, but it would be perfect to infer that the internalization of basic essential human values has not grown in the right proportion to the growth and coverage of education. It now stands confirmed that education that neglects social and emotional growth considerations would remain largely bereft of its potential to transform humanity into a force capable of creating a world of human cooperation, collaboration, and peace, without which the vision of vanishing wars and violence forever would never be achieved.
The way-out was delineated by the great Indian thinker, historian, and political philosopher Dharampal in the context of a discussion on the third five-year plan: in Parliament: “….Soul has to awaken before we proceed for dams and steel plants to the flowering of the human being, of Indian we deemed to be ignorant, of the people of India whom we describe as ‘teeming millions’!” Now we need soul-awakening education. When properly and adequately comprehended and contextualized, it would pave the way for the survival of humanity and the planet earth.
(Professor Rajput works in education, social cohesion, and religious amity. The views expressed are personal)
