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Integration of Education and Culture

Culture may be defined as progressive cultivation of the higher faculties of rationality, morality, aesthetics and spirituality, their multi-sided expression in suitable and varied forms, and their increasing influence on lower levels of thought, feeling and activity so as to uplift them by sublimation, conversion or transformation and embody in them the higher reaches of consciousness, power, expression and action.

The highest ends of culture include increasing knowledge of man and the universe so as to arrive at their progressive harmony by means of science, technology, fine arts, crafts and humanistic studies and engineering. Culture is a larger set of which education is a sub-set, and education supports and is supported by culture.

Because of rapidly developing knowledge of the universe, of the biosphere, and of man as also because of rapidly developing speed of transportation and communication, the world has shrunk, and human race as a whole is being obliged to create new psychological and environmental climates and to restructure its political, social and economic institutions in the light of global concerns and pressures.

It is for this reason that the world is preparing for a big change, and every country is called upon to prepare itself to meet the demands of this change.

In this context, promotion of world-culture that recognises and supports cultural identity of nations has come to be acknowledged as an over-arching issue confronting various cultural and educational systems.

It is significant that UNO has declared the World Decade for Cultural Development (1988-1997) with the aim "to arouse awareness of the fundamental importance of culture in the lives of human beings and societies and the fruitful interactions that bind culture to development".

Four main objectives have been laid down as points of focus for action, namely:

1. acknowledging the cultural dimension of development;
2. affirming and enriching cultural identities;
3. broadening participation in culture; and
4. promoting international cultural cooperation.

Keeping these objectives in view, as also the imperative need to bring together in our country various factors of education, science, technology and culture so as to promote national integration and national renaissance, a number of actions need to be initiated or strengthened. These will include the following:

(a) Exploratory studies in :

1. Emerging World-culture;
2. Identity of Indian culture;
3. Progressive Development of Indian culture;
4. Real Dangers to Indian culture and ways to meet them.

(b) Promotion of Dialogues among different philosophical and spiritual movements by stressing the common values of peace, understanding, integration and unity.

(c) Promotion through education and culture, the theme of national and international integration, and for that purpose,

1. Promotion of Indian languages and literature, and promotion of Indian literature, study of foreign languages and literatures;
2. Preparation, publication and diffusion of anthologies of art, music, architecture, crafts, calligraphy and anthologies of relevant biographies, events, stories;
3. Promotion of the study of history and geography of cultural sites and of various forms of artistic expression;
4. Creation of cultural environment suitable to national and international integration in schools, colleges, universities and public places;
5. Promotion of Education for Fundamental Duties laid down in the Constitution;
6. Promotion of local, regional and national programmes of poetry, music, art, etc.
7. Promotion of right attitudes and their proper expression in manners, behaviour and conduct;
8. Promotion of love for Nature, environment and universal life of balance and harmony.

(d) Review of curriculum at various levels of education so as to introduce, by proper pruning and prudent innovations, the following:

1. Promotion of general and specialised artistic studies from early stages;
2. Emphasis on sense of wonder, accuracy in observation, development of imagination, subtlety of thought, scientific temper, philosophic conceptualisation, inward concentration, contemplation and silence, neatness and simplicity and beauty of manners, conduct, character, action, health, strength, agility, grace, heroism, purity, self-discipline, and, above all, sincerity.
3. Study of folk art and craft, folklore, tribal culture, etc.
4. Training courses for artists and other teachers in Indian culture, world-culture and appreciation of aesthetic, moral and spiritual beauty of art;
5. Identification, publication and diffusion of best stories, novels, plays, poems, pieces of art, music ‒ and promotion of these among teachers and students by deliberate strategies and designs of action;
6. Promotion of children's Theatre, Bal Bhawans, Children's Film Society.
7. Commissioning of specialists' groups for editing, designing, publication and diffusion of books on:
   • Frontiers of Science (for the general student and lay person)
   • Indian Classics;
   • Indian Philosophy, Science & Culture;
   • Indian History read through Indian eyes;
   • Supplementary Readers on themes relevant to Education, Science, Sports, Culture.
8. Production on above themes of films, slides, video discs, video cassettes, gramophone records, sound cassettes and audio-visual programmes.
9. Promotion of inter-disciplinary cooperation between artists, scientists, technicians and manufacturers.
10. Promotion of role of books and reading.
11. Promotion of future-oriented studies relating to education, science, technology, culture and methods of educational and cultural communication.

For the effective execution of the above and similar initiatives, there will be a need to have sustained cooperation and coordination among various agencies such as NCERT, CCRT, UGC, Zonal Cultural Centres, Scouting Movement, N.C.C., N.S.S., N.Y.Ks, Museums, Archaeological Surveys, Sahitya Academy, Sangeet Natak Academy, Lalit Kala Academy, ICPR, ICHR, ICSSR, ICCR, Indira Gandhi National Centre of Art, INSA, TV, AIR, National Commission for Cooperation with UNESCO, National Book Trust, Publication Division of Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, state, national and international agencies for the promotion of education and culture, etc.

Integration of education and culture will imply an increasing impetus to inter-disciplinary studies and synthesis. In the context of Indian culture, the one theme of synthesis that presents itself as most pressing is the synthesis of science and spirituality. There are obvious difficulties in arriving at this synthesis; we have to overcome the superficial idea that science is necessarily materialistic, just as we have to affirm that spirituality does not necessarily mean rejection of dynamic action and concern for the world. But if our search is unfettered and free from dogmas, and if our search is for knowledge that is comprehensive and authentic, we shall be able to arrive at the needed synthesis in which the scientist and the mystic can embrace each other. In our educational and cultural endeavour, we shall have to work strenuously to arrive at this stage, sooner rather than later.