Sushmitha Ramakrishnan By Express News Service CHENNAI: Last week, a purported question paper, which asked students, “What do you mean by Dalit?” went viral on social media. Many, including members of mainstream political parties, expressed outrage at the manner in which the question paper appeared to portray Dalits and Muslims. A related debate on social media had erupted at close to the same time among alumni of a well-known chain of schools in Chennai. Some former students claimed to have experienced caste and other forms of discrimination —subtly — while they were at the school. Others said such experiences were not possible as they had felt the school environment was inclusive. Both conversations brought to the fore the question of whether school children should be exposed to the inequities of society and discrimination some may face on the basis of identity. While some private schools have started engaging students on gender sensitivity, is it time they understand religious and caste discrimination as well? Experts argue that the education system does not function in isolation from the society of which it is a part. Therefore, if schools fail to facilitate a dialogue on what is happening in society, the student may well experience a gap between school, home and the community he or she lives in.As former students of the Chennai chain of schools pointed out on social media: the gap can be seen in how many students at elite city schools are oblivious of issues pervading society, even when it affects those close to them. Sadly, teachers are not exempt either. A social science teacher from a private matriculation school in Chennai told Express that while students were more interested in learning about social issues than colonial history, many of them have not personally experienced discrimination. Interestingly, she herself thought discrimination only happened in the past or only in small pockets of the country. “Some people still face discrimination in remote rural parts of India, but in cities and towns these evil practices do not exist,” she claimed. Bullying threat As many know, this is not the case. In Chennai, where several private schools have a “no non-veg rule”, children from communities accustomed to eating meat may experience bullying for their food habits which are seen as going against the grain, despite data showing that well over 90 per cent of people in Tamil Nadu are meat-eaters. “All kinds of discrimination, including gender-, caste- or religion-based, are practised within schools and colleges,” said D Ravikumar, Villupuram MP and general secretary of Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi - a political party that advocates for Dalit rights in Tamil Nadu. Bridging the gap between social reality and academics was one of the primary reasons, the National Council for Education Research and Training (NCERT) renamed the subject “Civics” as “Social and Political Life”. Civics studies the way government works and deals with the rights and duties of a citizen in a particular society. In India, it grew out of certain aspects of our colonial past. Renaming the subject expanded the scope of topics that could be discussed in social science classes. The foreword of the Class VI NCERT textbook for “Social and Political Life”, on which the viral question paper was based, reinforces the same idea. “Keeping in mind that the child is already deeply enmeshed within familial and social networks, we have tried to balance the ideal with the real in our discussion of topics,” it reads. So from what age should discussions on society be held at schools? Children start developing a social identity with the onset of adolescence, says psychiatrist Dr Vivian Kapil. “Children start understanding their background and origins only when they are about 12. However, one should keep in mind that the learning depends on the values inculcated since childhood,” he said, adding that it takes even longer for adolescents to develop a sense of morality and judgment about society. “The development of the frontal lobe is closely associated with human’s decision and judgement-making ability. So a sense of morality starts forming only when they approach late-teens,” he said. Children also start observing the implication of society on their personal lives around that time frame. The National Curriculum Framework 2005, set-up by the NCERT elaborates on this: “Hierarchies of caste, economic status and gender relations, cultural diversity as well as the uneven economic development that characterise Indian society also deeply influence access to education and participation of children in school.” So whether a student realises or not, these inequities affect who their classmates are and where they come from. Sensitivity to the subject Discussions on such delicate subjects should go beyond the textbook and should be sensitive to children in the class who may face such forms of discrimination, said Ravikumar. Further, Sukhadeo Thorat, an economist and the former chairman of the University Grants Commission said that caste should only be discussed in curriculum based on available scientific studies. However, C Lakshmanan of the Madras Institute of Development Studies (MIDS) said there was a long way to go. “The NCF 2005 had said that NCERT will discuss caste-related issues in a very nuanced manner. While it was promising to hear, it has not been implemented very successfully,” he said. The National Advisory Council in its Recommendations ‘Towards Ending Discrimination in Schools’ in 2013 addressed important methods in which effective education on discrimination can be made possible. It said that stakeholders should prioritise and facilitate an environment that openly acknowledges discrimination within the school system at all levels and added that they should, “initiate steps towards a process of dialogue and discussion on discrimination within schools and in the education system”. It further emphasised the role of teachers and elaborated, “Teachers are the frontline of the education system, and specific measures towards reform of teacher education must be undertaken to prepare teachers to understand discrimination, to prevent discriminatory behavior on their part; and to enable them to become partners in the movement to eliminate discriminatory behavior on part of any other actor in the education system, including by other children, parents, education officers, and others”. D Vasanthidevi, an educationalist and the former Vice Chancellor of Manonmanaian Sundaranar University said that the government and teachers should actively engage in mingling students from different social backgrounds and not restrict discussions on society to the curriculum alone. “Schools should ask students to spend a weekend at the home of say a Muslim friend, or a friend who speaks a different language at home and maybe ask children to write comprehension verses about the experience,” she said emphasising that the most effective way of learning inclusion is by making children practice it. “Teachers too must be taught to imbibe these values. This subject cannot be taught in a preachy way,” she said. Teaching change... Excerpts from the National Advisory Council report titled ‘Towards Ending Discrimination in Schools’...

Stay updated with all the Chennai Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.