Mahatma Gandhi on Education

Value based education and morality are important to mould our children.
Education is a process of teaching and learning -Education for right livelihood and integrated human development should promoter harmonious relationship between individuals and family and between man and nation. Education should build character of students. Without good character of people we cannot build a good society and good nation. Though India become politically independent in 1947. Indian education system continues to be a prisoner of the colonial legacy left by the British.

The separation between spirit and matter continues. Planning for industrial prosperity and technological superiority our country is in a rat race with other nations for being in the forefront of market economy. In this situation the central concern for human values and human rights is declining alienating men from larger human society. Mon's tragedy is alienation. The danger of the past was slavery. The danger of the future is men become robots.'

At the same time most of our educational institutions have become in practice centres for transmission of data and theories in specific fields. Mathematics, Science, Engineering, Medicine and not real centres of knowledge. Because of this divorce between things of spirit and things of matter, education has moved degrees away from the path of value oriented pursuit of being and becoming. While galloping on the road to material' prosperity, the human society has lost its way in perceiving inner harmony so essential for is upuard evolution. It is this divorce between matter and spirit that has led to many of our difficulties.

Value based education and morality are important to mould our children. Literacy alone cannot meet needs of self development. We have achieved enormous progress in science' and technology but hardly much progress in conduct of social affairs. Synthesis is of the main stream scientific method with intuitive wisdom of spiritualist is required.

The challenge of our world are not ficticious Education will have to organize the power and will of younger generation to face the challenges. Until all human value are blended harmoniously into 'the process of education there cannot be emergence of good citizens to develop and defend our country. The time has come to redefine what education is and in doing this it is important to know what was Gandhi's concept and philosophy of education.

Education in Gandhi's view encompassed physical, spiritual and intellectual growth of students. It should give not mearely the three R'S and some skills to students to earn their livelihood but also help them to become healthy and happy individuals who understand their place and roles in the society, country, nation and the world and contribute to its growth. Gandhi said education is an all round drawing of the best in the child and man in body, mind and spirit. Literacy is not the end of education not even its beginning. It is only one of the means whereby man and woman come to be educated.

Education is preparation for life. It includes all training that is useful for the survival of mankind. It is not literacy which makes man but, education for real life. Direct observation, enquiry and reasoning, persistant questioning and inquisition is the method to acquire real education. Concept of education is to learn through action. Gandhi's thoughts on what is real education reflect the ideas of great educationists Pestalapozzi who lived in the early nineteenth century a d John Dewey his contemporary.

Goal of Education is character building. Gandhi stated categorically that if we succeed in building character of individuals society will take care of itself. There are several values, spiritual, religious, moral, ethical, humanitarian, Economic, Personal. But the focus should be on certain fundamental values which are of universal significance which form to care of value system. These are love, truth, non violence, peace, dignity of labour, self reliance, self control, sacrifices and equality of religion and sarvodaya.

The destiny our nation is being shaped in our schools. Children should be educated to be self dependant - value oriented and concerned for good of their family, society and nation. It is easier to shape boys when they are young than when they are aged, you can bend twig not the tree. All boys and girls should grow up as citizens of a new social order based on work with an understanding of their responsibilities and obligations in a harmonious and peaceful manner. Each student' should have full opportunity for balanced and harmonious development of all' faculties and should acquire responsibility for self reliance for clean healthy and cultural life together with moral and social amplifications.

The concept of education that Gandhi visaualised soon after the Sabaramathy ashram': was established was that complete' all prevailing training for the emacipation of body, mind and spirit of man from every aspect of slavery. His motto was SA VIDYA VIMOCHNA -Education is that liberates.

A child that joins school at the seventh year would have a scientifically. Each day of the week the students were required to do some social service, like keeping school premises clean, helping the sick and disabled, participating in adult education and keeping the environment clean planned curriculum for the next eight years. While the three R's (Reading, writing and Mathematics) would be taught the emphasis would be on learning by doing, experiment and experience. Gandhi said that literacy itself is not education not even its beginning.

It is craft centred. Childs education would begin by teaching it useful handicraft and enabling it to produces from the moment it begins training by placing of tools in his hand. He opined that what child needed was not book but art of living, craft, behaviour towards parents, teachers and neighbours. It should study local crafts which would be life supporting and work with crafts in villages: The work was not confined to the class room. But entered the life of village and its people. Everyone would work with his hands and become self reliance and become a good cook, become agriculturist, make khadi cloth and acquire knowledge of material for house building. Nai Talim education tried to build and develop in students right attitudes and, skills necessary for healthy living. It provided training in personal health community cleanliness and citizenship by involving them in village and community work.

Gandhi believed that the boys should be spared from psychological pressures of rat race for ranks and recognition. The scheme should provide enough time for play and facilities for recreation doing away with home work upto the lower primary school. He said that learning less with mastery is better than learning more superficially. Teaching should be child oriented than syllabus oriented.

In secondary education art, craft and health education was integrated in one scheme. Instead of regarding craft different from education Gandhi 'regarded the former as the medium of the latter. Nai Talim is the blend of all the four and covers the whole education of the individual from the time of "conception to the death".

They would be taught language, Literature, History, Geography, Social Studies, Science, Mathematics' and art. Sound knowledge and understanding of the subject is useful to life and responsible citizenship. Gandhi said besides literacy education for life is more Important. More importance to cultural aspect than literacy. All intellect that is developed through the medium of socially useful labour will be aninstrument for service and will not easily lead astray or devious path.

Each day of the week the students were required to do some social service, like keeping school premises clean, helping the sick and disabled, participating in adult education and keeping the environment clean. He considered service to society and nation in any form as matter of pride. To stimulate and develop an awareness in the mind of students that they are a part and parcel of the community which maintains them and they owe it a duty in the form of service-Gandhi conceived Nai Talim as a self supporting venture not dependent on outside sources for money. The running expenses was to come from educational process. Education was to be self supporting. Teachers would earn what they take. In the realm of popular education Gandhi initiated a scheme, in which all education would come to people through some handicrafts and knowledge related to it. It was a basic objective of his Nai Talim programme.

In the economic sence the scheme was highly promising. Not only wouId it enable students to earn their tuition fees but also help them to get work experience in the chosen craft. It would also make education available to masses with minimum of state aid and make education relevant to life." Gandhi said that true education should be easily available to all and should be of use to every villager. In his daily life, such education is not derived from books. It is learnt from the book of life.?

University education should be coordinated and brought into line with basic education. Besides providing higher knowledge to students and promoting research its aim should be to turn out true servants of the nation who live and work for the welfare of the country."

The system of education was to enhance students capabilities in physical, intellectual moral spheres and to make every man and woman' free and integrated individual with confidence and moral righteousness.

The cause of elementary education for all was persued through Basic Education as proposed by Mahatma Gandhi from 1938-1939. After India became independent in 1947 the importance of universal, free compulsory education gained momentum and Indian Constitution made special provision for it in Article 41. Under the Directive Principle "The state should endeavour to promote within ten years from the commission of the constitution free and compulsory, education and it is tragic that even after the lapse of sixty years the nation is no where near the goal. Though most states have achieved a high level of enrollment the percentage of children completing even four years schooling is hardly 45%. More than 52% of students dropped from the school by the end of IV grade and 60% before the end of VI grade. The most common cause for this drop out are poverty and in-difference of parents, need of child labour for domestic work and child labor to supplement family income, uninteresting and not very rational education want of books lack of genuine interest on the part of parents, teachers and school administrators."

The non implementation of Gandhian system of Education in our schools throughout our country is not helping the inculcation of values in our students. This has led to crisis of values, in schools colleges, universities among students as well as teachers and also in other walks of life also. This is highly donaevous. It is therefore being urged that the education system should be reformed. 10

In our culturally plural society education should foster universal and eternal values at achieving unity and The non implementation of Gandhian system of Education in our schools throughout our country is not helping the inculcation of values in our students. integration of our people. Such value education should eliminate, obscurantism, religious fanaticism and violence. As Gandhi stated Indian heritage should be blended with scientific temper of the time to build, our students into good citizens of the country: Education and training is for living and culture is for life." As Dr. Radhakrishnan says Gandhi was not a philosopher in a conventional sense. His views were mostly based on his profound understanding of human nature and the in sights he developed from the numerous experiments he conducted with scientific precision. If we aim at making our country great, snperior education as Gandhi Propounded be provided to our boys and girls throughout the country. Gandhian methods and ideas are pest practical as well as economical to achieve this goal. "Gandhi in the Globalised Context"Gandhi Peace Foundation Bangalore.

As Dr. Radhakrishnan says Gandhi was not a philosopher in a conventional sense. His views were mostly based on his profound understanding of human nature and the in sights he developed from the numerous experiments he conducted with scientific precision."

If we aim at making our country great, superior education as Gandhi propounded, should be provided to our boys and girls throughout the country. Gandhian methods and ideas are best practical as well as economical to achieve this goal.
"Gandhi in the Globalised Context" Gandhi Peace Foundation Bangalore.
28-12-2002

1. I.S.R. Rohidekar. Wither Indian Education Chitra Prakashana Bangalore - 1977
2. Erick Forum - The Sane Society.
3. Narayanaswamy, Mahatma Mohandasa Karmachand Gandhi, Dharmasthala - 1996. P.70.
4. Mahatma Gandi Atmakathe Athava Sathyanvesane, Translated by, Gorur Ramaswamy Iyenger, Navajeevana Prakashana, Ahmedabada.
5. Rohidekar. op.cit.
6. Dr. S.Radhakrishnan, Gandhi Essays and Reflections Jaico Publications, New Delhi, 1998. Richard Gregg, "Gandhi as a Social Scientist and Social Innovator.
7. B.K. Prabhu and V.R. Rao, The Mind of Gandhi Navajivan Publication, 1998.
8. Narayanaswarny. Education For life, Bangalore 1986. P.70-79
9. Rohdekar, Qp.Cit: The Times of India.
10. National Regeneration through power and value education. Proposal Implementation Committee, Hyderabad, 1999.
11. Narayana Swamy, Op.cit.
12. Prof N. Radhakrishnan.

 
Dr.K.V. Ram 
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