“WE, THE PEOPLE OF
INDIA, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a SOVEREIGN SOCIALIST
SECULAR DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC…” thus begins the preamble of the Constitution
of India.
Last night, when I read the results of a survey (link here) recently
conducted with high school and college students from 11 cities across India, I couldn’t
figure out what exactly I felt – scared, angry, sad or guilty?
If we would want, we can always debate on the validity of
the survey, the degree of scientific nature of the method, the political and
economic will and intentions behind it and so on. However, my work with
adolescents in last couple of years somehow brings me to believe in the results
to an extent. And for once if we believe that the institution was fair and
honest in conducting this research, let’s explore the findings a bit:
“about half of them would prefer military rule over a
democracy”
“65 percent 'agree' that boys and girls from different
religions should not mingle”
“more than half of the students surveyed believed that women
'provoke' men with the way they dress, close to half of them say women have no
choice but to accept violence”
Today, when I asked my students that in face these results,
what do they think is the future our country. There was a complete silence.
Some were embarrassed as they represent this age group. And others were shocked as at SLP
we have been talking about how the youth is going to change the face of India. Well
indeed, the youth will change the face of India. But whether they are going make it
look uglier or better, the survey gives us a hint.
Now, to feel scared, angry or sad is understandable. But guilty?
Why?
Remember, the survey was conducted with high schoolers and college
students. Which means a generation just after me. It clearly speaks of the
aspirations, expectations and notions we have passed on to them as parents, teachers and society. We have given them a world of hopelessness. A world of
ghettoised and fragmented communities. A world of disillusioned and corrupt power
systems such as gender, religion, caste and class. A world where our children choose
to be ruled over and given directives with rather than being part of a critical
democratic process (I experience so many times in my class where my students
hesitate from the ‘time-taking’ democratic decision making process and want me
to decide for them). A world where we care to provide every child with a tablet
or a laptop but not an experience where she/he could engage in critical and
meaningful thinking process.
The results of this survey points at us on how well have we used
last 68 years in building a country for whose freedom we so desperately fought
for. And at that reflection I feel guilt and shame for what we have done to our
children and generations to come. We have brought them to a point where as they
celebrate their Republic Day, they have given up on appreciating what a
democratic republic could mean. Today, as I read this, I seek forgiveness, for not
doing something, not doing enough, as a teacher, a brother, an uncle or for
that matter, just an adult in a young one’s life to show him/her that it was
possible for us to create an India that the writers of our constitution envisioned.
I am sorry, children. I can only hope that some magic happens and you be able to fix your views - of self and the world - and be able to re-envision the hope for a sovereign, socialist, secular and democratic republic that India, once upon a time, set out to be.
Happy Republic Day, anyway.
Happy Republic Day, anyway.
2 comments:
I have not checked the link of the survey but an important question to ask should have been -Are you willing to change your opinion if an explanation is provided? That would have been an important question, me thinks. As highschool and college kids and having been one, I for sure had no idea about what happens outside in the real world. My priorities in life were studies, cricket, age of empires. However, over the last few years having been exposed to multiple cultures and thought processes and ideas I am no longer as narrow minded [if I may say so] as I was maybe 12-15 years back.
I think we need to expose these kids to various thoughts and why certain things are the way they are. They will have questions and we need to answer them or direct them where they may identify an answer. And then we need to have faith in their intellect to guide them to form appropriate opinions about everything in life.
I don't think the kids today are as exposed [due to their priorities in life] to express a meaningful opinion. These are my thoughts and I hold the right to be wrong.
True Sourav. The question is how did we get those priorities? How do our kids get those priorities? Don't we see the endless loop of misconstrued priorities. You were lucky that you got certain life experiences that help you open up to the world. My worry is that we are still not "systemically" thinking about how do we create new experiences for our children for a different kind of world... experiences that do not treat our own past or whatever we have become as benchmarks... but in fact rather what we couldn't become... something we should have become... and here I am not talking about individual exceptions (like you may be)... I am talking about systems... and you will agree that as a cohort, we are quite shitty... otherwise our kids would not have been responding the way they do on these surveys...
the question is not that what kids are not getting today... that we already know... the question is when we know it, why there's no urgency to change it?
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