Cultural Dimension of Education

Traditional education strives to expand the spheres of existence through social awareness (forming kinship with the entire world), cosmological awareness (expansion of the being by self-transformation), and technological awareness (relating creativity to the ritual enforcement of life). In contrast, modern education teaches a way of life, which is limited by self-centred consumerism, which allows man’s ego to establish itself as the conqueror of nature, which fragments people through competitive vocations and specialized technical professions. How do we resolve this deep dilemma between the traditional and modern systems of education? Or, alternatively, how can a sensibly worked-out system of education afford a symbiosis between ‘modernity’ and ‘wisdom-tradition’? Addressing this vital question, the authors here look afresh at the relevance of art in the age of science/technocentrism, the role of education in promoting peace and concord, Gandhian system of ‘basic education’ and, finally, how far India’s national concerns are reflected in its national policy on education. An assemblage of 16 education-related essays, this volume is essentially the outcome of a Conference on the “Cultural Dimension of Education and Ecology”, held in New Delhi on 13-16 October 1995 — as a part of the Unesco Chair activities (in the field of cultural development) at the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts. It presents insightful perspectives on primary education, focussing specially on its current status, trends and problems in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia and Thailand. The volume will interest all those involved with education: whether as scholars, professionals, planners, or as reformers.