Alternative Education in India - An overview

This article has been written to give a bird’s eye view of current scenario of Alternative education and alternative schooling in India. The content is coming primarily from the experiences and perspectives of the author and thus may not be considered totally objective. 

Definition of Key terms:
For sake of clarity and discussions pertaining to this article, we will try to define the terms before we go any further.

Any educational method, philosophy or pedagogy that differs significantly from the mainstream's way of education may be termed as Alternative Education, a school that claims to follow any alternative ways of education may be considered as an Alternative School.

Mainstream Education is the system of education followed by majority primarily based on Industrial revolution. While each school in mainstream might differ in their operations the central focus and overall philosophy remains uniform. Mainstream education is strictly based on pre-defined curriculum, a subjective grading and marking system and is mostly lecture based. Mainstream education considers competition and comparisons as important part of education while not collaboration. Lastly, mainstream education has a singular view of students and expects them to fit into certain expected patterns. (One size fit all solution)

History of Alternative Education in India
India has been a land of Alternative Education. It was only during and after British rule that the mainstream education was accepted in India. As clearly explained in the book “The beautiful tree” by Dharampal, India had a much richer education system prior to colonial rule.

Even after advent of British, Alternative education has been discussed fervently across the nation. Mahatma Gandhi’s Nai Taleem or Gijubhai Badeka’s adaptation of Montessori methods for India are two of many such examples. 

Agnostic's approach to Life and Education

As one journeys through life, one realizes that there are no final answers ! Even the most scientific answers are only partially true. What was considered objectively correct few decades back is no longer valid. For instance, what we knew about Matter or universe and believed to be true in times of Rutherford does not hold true today.

Life is perhaps, by its very nature unknowable in its wholeness. We can only find partial and temporary truths. Hence, the approach that might be best suited for life is that of "agnostic". Literally, "agnostic" means - one who does not know and believes that many things can't even be known,  although over time it has taken many other connotations.  But what we are referring here by agnosticism is an approach that realizes the limitation of knowledge and acknowledges the temporariness and partial nature of truths.

This is as true in case of "education" system as in case of anything else. Education, yet remains to be demystified. We still know very little about how human beings learn, how schooling affects us and society and how can one intervene in the learning process of human mind. There are millions of such unanswered questions but many of educationalist claim themselves as the "know all" and offer solutions to our problems in schooling system. While the fact is - all the wisdom combined, all the researches put together - we cannot even answer one simple question in education - "How do we learn ?"  Hence an agnostic approach in education is not only more realistic but can also be more effective.

We need to understand that we do not really understand the process of education and what actually goes on in the classrooms !

Once we have this as our foundation of our belief system, our approach to life and its problem will change. From the "all knowing experts",  we become "seekers of truth".

In agnostic approach, school must become ground of experiments, collective learning and a field of millions of questions. It must stop being a repository of ready made answers, its people pretending to know everything about children, about how and what to teach them.

The first implication of agnostic approach in education will be to question everything because we have mistaken half truths for facts. We must start from what should be the role of schools, what must be taught, how can it be taught, why it must be taught and so on.

The central question of agnostic approach is "What do we do, when we are not sure of what to do ? " 

Entire school will act more like a learning community. A place where all including students, teachers, parents are exploring. "Conversations"  form the blood of such a learning community.

Agnostic approach does not and cannot offer a pedagogy or a "to do" manual for schools. Neither it is a panacea for all our problems. It is just one step closer to reality. It takes away the burden from us and our schools of "knowing everything" when we really don't know much and provides an opportunity to have a closer look at issues and find more realistic solutions.

What makes us what we are ? - Schooling or Family ?

If you go to a new school/place and be with kids for couple of days and then meet their families or just know the personality traits of each one's parents. I am sure you can map the parents to their kids with a very high rate of accuracy.

Most of the kids are photocopies of their parents. Parents have maximum influence on the kid's thinking process, behavior and personality. This is sin on parts of parents, committed mostly unknowingly.

It seems to me that under most cases - schooling and education is almost insignificant in terms of defining who the child becomes. Schools might add certain skills or habbits but the major trends in the child's personality are dictated by family , primarily parents.

Perhaps, on the surface the child might look different but if we go deeper we will start finding strong influence of parents. This is irrespective of what school he/she went to, Summerhill free school or St. Mary's factory model school. This is also true of most of the adults especially till their mid age. When we begin to discover that schooling is more or less insignificant in shaping who we are, we need to really rethink our reality and purpose of education. What impacts today's children most are parents, media, internet.

I am reminded of a couple I met in Auroville, Pondicherry who said that the first thing we need to understand about our children is that "They are individuals themselves".

We assume kids to be like clay to be moulded to our wish instead of human beings with their own intristic nature. This fundamental shift needs to happen both in schools and at homes. Parents concerned with real education of their kid will take every possible care not to transfer their own baggage onto their kid. The baggages of beliefs, religion, opinions and habits.

Each child should be seen as an individual, as a seed who knows its destination, its true nature. Parents, home,schools and teachers can at best act like soil to provide certain favorable conditions like love, care, protection to assist the growth. They should not try to control the growth and take in their preferred directions. Only then we will have real individuals. Only then we can have a world that's not like ours where we have more or less 6 billion carbon copies. Only then we will have schools making human beings not labor for industry or researchers for army.

R.I.P Education Anthem - A song about schooling

I've been trying to compose a song and make a movie on education for long. Music and Movies are a great way of communication and change. While I continue to work on it, here is an amateur attempt of composing a song about schooling. Excuse me for my singing abilities and some mistakes in strumming but I hope you can see the message I want to convey.

 

Foundation of True Education : Total Acceptance and Right Questioning

One of the Zen master once told me – what does he mean by love and it stayed with me ever since. I’ve not received a better definition of love. He said, to love is to accept the others totally – as they are without expecting, wanting any changes in them. To love is to say Yes to who or what other is. When we wish to be loved, all we are seeking is acceptance of who we are without judgements.

Our schooling system is full of judgements and rejections of what one is. From the day 1 in schools, we teach kids to see themselves as “imperfect minds” that needs perfection. They are constantly reminded about it. They are not accepted as they are and the entire school community along with parents tries hard to change them. This in short is called “Educating them”. Do’s , Don’ts, Shoulds, Shouldn’t, rules, behaviour corrections, moral conducts are some of the weapons of rejections.

[caption id="attachment_378" align="alignright" width="300"] Total Acceptance is what we all seek[/caption]

No real education can take place unless, in first place we accept the kids as they are and help them accept themselves as they are. Only then there is a possibility of understanding and transforming  (one that’s natural not enforced) . Total acceptance of both children and teachers in the school will create an environment of love and respect for each other and hence create a conducive land for learning and growth. Total acceptance does not means to be complacent, it means to look at things as they are without any judgement or guilt.

Second important thing that should be coupled with acceptance is what we can call “Right Questioning”. By “Right” here I do not mean moral or ethical right but more in terms of what Gautam Buddha spoke of. “Right Questioning” , implies asking questions intelligently and pursuing them diligently to reach to clarity. It is not cynicism but a constructive force. It is something related to what some people these days call “Appreciative Enquiry”.  However, we do not allow students to ask questions in classroom especially the difficult one whose answer is not in the books.

The children should be encouraged to ask questions about everything and anything and should be supported in the process of pursuing its exploration. (and not offer ready made answers)

When a child is accepted he gains positive self image and self esteem which empower his mental and emotional faculty. When a child is allowed and encouraged to question, she sharpens her intelligence and gets closer to reality. Both of these together will lay foundation for a life of meaning to grow in our students.

Alternative Education : A futile Hullabaloo ?

What good is any alternative education if the student eventually has no choice but to fit into the traditional system ? Today alternative schools from Montessori, Krisnamurti, Gandhian, Steiner to De Bono are appearing in decent number across India. A lot of traditional schools are claiming to offer alternative methods of education. However, what happens to these so called "alternatively schools" kids after they are out of school ? What is the whole point of taking the pain and creating the Hullabaloo of alternative education if eventually these alternatively schooled kid just succumb to the pressure of conventional way of living and learning ?

Precisely, that's what it seems to be happening these days. Infact in some cases, the alternatively schooled children are worse off.

If we need to really change education, we need to alter the entire ecosystem- social, economical, political. Educational Revolution is actually a revolution that encompasses all facets of life. Education alone CANNOT change !

If we are teaching kids to live and learn alternatively - we must also strive to provide avenues that allow them to take their search and ambitions forward. There is no point if they had to come back to the thorny path after a short stint on the rosy roads. We must unable them to believe that alternative schooling is not limited to schools but extended to life and its possible to live happily and comfortably without becoming part of the "conventional system".

Initiatives like "Gap Year College", "Swaraj University", "Jaaga" are some rays of hope in this direction. However, we must persist to broaden our range of offering.  Only then there will be true culmination of the alternative schooling. Only schools which provide alternatives to schooling will not be able to change much. We need alternative colleges, universities, learning centres, parks, communities, travels, groups, companies. Most importantly - an alternative world view and life style.

The subtlest form of violence - Teaching

Is not "teaching" unless their is clear will and freedom, an act of violence ? What is the meaning of teaching or the process of it ? (I am referring specifically to "teaching" as understood in limited sense of our schools)

It is to adapt or mold the young - innocent, vulnerable minds to the rotten and failed philosophies and beliefs of the civilization. We can call it culturing them or nurturing them but if a mind is not allowed the freedom to think freely, to be what one is - it is a violent act.

[caption id="attachment_349" align="alignright" width="300"] Teaching is a form of Violence[/caption]

What happens in a school or home? A young innocent child is born with immense possibilities and the parents and more strongly the teachers start converting him, indoctrinating him into the vision, philosophy, way of life of others. He is not even allowed a chance to be himself/herself, to differ, to be what s/he really is.

Imagine a child with no interest in Mathematics whatsoever. We force him to sit through mathematics classes, almost everyday for twelve years. If he is not learning it well, we label him as "dumb" or "student with learning disability." Henceforth, even more focus with all new and modern strategies is given to make him learn Mathematics.  The argument that we all need some maths in life, doesn't fit here because what mathematics we need in life can be taught in less than a year. How many of us use anything beyond basic arithmetic operations and few other mathematical operations in our daily life ? How can we justify 12 years of learning mathematics forcefully ? Is it not a violent act ?

Another argument that is use to disguise violence as necessary and beneficial is that - it develops brain.  By teaching mathematics, we are actually increasing his intellectual and logical capacity. But at cost of what ? Destroying his freedom. Perhaps, the student was an artist and forcing him to do maths will also make him feel bad about himself and might even not do well in arts.  I am not against mathematics but anything taught inspite of the wish and will of the children.

This perhaps still doesn't look that serious but teaching is far more violent than it may appear. When we teach someone something we also transfer all our baggage, problems, biases and issues. For e.g. in schools we are converting kids to accept consumerism, unsustainable life style.

Teaching is violence because it does severe damage to the will, intellect, talent and individuality of the child. Just observe what goes on in a classroom, kids are held hostages for a long time in a small room constantly bombarded with all sort of unessential information.

A truly alternative school will not focus on teaching at all but on learning. It'll not harm the spirit of children but nourish them. It'll not impose any dogmas and processes on students - so that their mind and thinking is free.  For this, teachers must disappear from schools otherwise it's just a war field where we are killing millions of kids everyday and the murderer are the teachers - which they themselves might not realize. A school can just be a place with opportunity for learning -with resources and people which the kids can approach if they need to learn anything.