Contributions of Indian thinkers towards education

1. KNOWLEDGE AND CURRICULUM :
PHILOSOPHICAL AND SOCIOLOGIGAL
PERSPECTIVES
SEMINAR
Presented by
NICI R S
ROLL NO : 19
MATHEMATICS

2. INDIAN THINKER-
RABINDRANATH TAGORE

3. Viswakavi (World Poet) Rabindranath Tagore was born on 7
may 1861 in Bengal in a prosperous family.
At primary level his father provided him education in
Sanskrit, Indian Philosophy and Astronomy.
For higher education he was sent to Bengal Academy and then
was sent to England from where he started writing magazines.
Eventually he turned into a poet, dramatist, philosopher,
essayist, teacher and painter.
He was then awarded the title of Gurudev.
INTRODUCTION

4. RabindranathTagore, c. 1925
He was awarded the Nobel prize in 1913 as he translated Geetanjali
in English, becoming the Asia’s first Nobel Laureate.
The Indian govt. awarded him the degree of doctorate in 1915
which he eventually gave away after Jallianwala Bagh incident.
He created Vishva Bharti in 23 December, 1921.
He was a genius in a number of fields. He was a novelist, dramatist,
actor, painter, prophet, musician, sculptor and an educationalist.
He died in 1941.

5. PHILOSOPHICAL IDEA

6. (1) Idealist
Tagore believes that man should realize the "ultimate truth"
which will liberate him from the worldly bondage.
In Tagore's view man is born with enormous surplus force
which is excess of his physical need.
This surplus is the limitless potentiality of human personality
and creativity.
As an idealist he was an ardent supporter of truth, virtues and
values.

7. (2) Humanist
Tagore said nature and man are created by supreme
power.
There is a strong link between man and nature.
Love fellowmen in a natural way.
Realization of self is the essence to realize the Godhood.

8. (3) Naturalist:
Tagore said nature is the great teacher which is not hostile
to man.
Nature is kind, generous and benevolent like mother.
In his view, "Education diverted from nature has brought
untold harm to young children."
Man should develop his relation with the nature as his
fellowmen.

9. (4) Patriotism: Tagore was a great poet and patriot.
His writings were filled with patriotic values.
He had joined in freedom movement to make the country
free from foreign yoke.
Sense of national service, patriotic feeling, dedication etc.
was fostered through his writings.

10. (5) Internationalist:
Rabindranath Tagore was in favour of one world creation of unit
amidst cultural, colour and religious diversities.
Cosmopolitan feelings are explicit in his writings and paintings.
Tagore's internationalist thought and attempt for making united
world is appreciated all over the world.

11. (6) Vedantist:
Tagore's philosophy reveals that he was a vedantist in true
sense of terms.
He finds unity in diversities in the world and a spiritual unity
between man and man, man and nature.
The relationship between god and man must be like the
relationship between love and joy.

12. EDUCATIONAL IDEA

13. 1. Unity of West and East:
Tagore's education marked a novel blending of the ideas of the East
and West.
This educational philosophy was distinct in comparison to other
educationists of India.
The spiritualism of Indian philosophy and progressive outlook of the
western people were blended together.

14. 2. Natural growth in natural circumstance:
Tagore envisaged that nature is the best teacher to the pupil.
No pressure should be exerted upon the student to learn
anything.
Nature will provide the student with necessary situation to earn
knowledge.

15. 3. Goodbye to book-centered education:
Tagore rejected book-centered education for students.
To him it is not just to confine the mind of boys and girls to text-
books only, it will kill the natural instincts of a student and make
him bookish.
It will kill his creative skill.
Students should be freed from the-book-centered education and
should be given a broader avenue for learning.

16. 4. Freedom to learner:
Tagore implement freedom to learner in the field of education.
With that object he had opened Shantiniketan, Sri Niketan and
Brahmachari Ashram.
Accordingly, he gave free choice to students to develop their
interest in any field they like.

17. 5. Teaching - practical and real:
According to Tagore, teaching should be practical and real but not
artificial and theoretical.
As a naturalist, Tagore laid emphasis on the practicality of
education.
That will increase the creative skill within a learner.
That creativity will bring perfection in the learning process and the
student will be a master in his own field but not a slave to mere
theoretical knowledge.

18. 6. Palace of fine arts (dance, drama, music, poetry etc.):
Tagore attached great importance to the fine arts in his educational
curriculum.
To him, game, dance, music, drama, painting etc. should form a
part of educational process.
Students should take active part in these finer aspects of human life
for these are very essential to enrich soul.

19. 7. Education for rural reconstruction:
Tagore wanted to eradicate the rural poverty of our country through
education.
The practical training imparted in different crafts to the students will make
them skilled artisans in their field.
They can remove the poverty of the rural bulk by applying their education.

20. AIMS OF EDUCATION

21. (1) Self Realization:
Spiritualism is the essence of humanism; this concept has been
reflected in Tagore's educational philosophy.
Self-realization is an important aim of education.
Manifestation of personality depends upon the self-realization and
spiritual knowledge of individual.

22. (2) Intellectual Development:
Tagore also greatly emphasized the intellectual development of the child.
Child should be free to adopt his own way learning which will lead to all
round development.
By intellectual development he means development of imagination,
creative free thinking, constant curiosity and alertness of the mind.

23. (3) Physical Development :
Tagore's educational philosophy also aims at the physical development of
the child.
Yoga, games & sports was prescribed in Santhiniketan as an integral
part of the education system.
He gave much importance to sound and healthy physique.

24. (4) Love for humanity:
Education for international understanding and universal brotherhood.
Education can teach people to realize oneness of the globe.
Tagore held that the entire universe is one family.

25. (5) Establishment of relationship between man & God:
Man bears the diverse qualities and potentialities offered by God.
However the dedication to spiritualism and sacredness will lead to the
harmonious relationship with man, nature and God.
The relationship between man and God is strong and permanent.

26. (6) Freedom:
Freedom is considered as an integral aspect of human development.
Education is not an imposition rather a liberal process their provides
utmost freedom to the individual for his all-round development.
He says, “ Education has leaning only when it is imparted through the
path of freedom".

27. (7) Co-relation of Objects:
A peaceful world is only possible when correlation between man and
nature will be established.
Co-relation exists with God, man and nature.

28. (8) Mother tongue as the medium of Instruction:
Language is the true vehicle of self-expression.
Tagore has emphasized mother tongue as the medium of instruction
for the child's education.
Man can freely express his thought in his mother-tongue.

29. (9) Moral and Spiritual Development:
Tagore emphasized moral and spiritual training in his educational
thought.
Moral and spiritual education is more important than bookish knowledge
for an integral development of human personality.
Adequate provision for the development of selfless activities, co-
operation and love fellow feeling and sharing among the students in
educational institutions.

30. (10) Social Development:
Education also develops social characters which enables him to live
as a worthy being.
All should develop social relationship and fellow-feeling from the
beginnings of one's life.
Education aims at developing the individual personality.

31. METHOD OF EDUCATION

32. (1) Teaching through Tours and Trips:
Tagore believed that the subjects like history, geography,
economics and other social sciences can be effectively
taught through excursions and tours to important spots.
By this students will get an opportunity to observe
numerous facts and gain first-hand knowledge through
direct experience.

33. (2) Learning by activities:
Rabindranath Tagore said that for the development of
child's body and mind, learning through activity is
essential.
Therefore he included activities like climbing tree, drama,
jumping, plucking fruits, dancing etc. in his educational
programs.

34. (3) Narration-cum-discussion and debate method:
Narration-cum-discussion and debating activities were
organized in Tagore's education center to develop oratory
abilities of the students.
Students were encouraged to solve problems of various
areas through rational debate and thorough discussion.

35. (4) Heuristic Method
Rabindranath Tagore introduced heuristic method as an
important method of teaching in his educational institution.
In this method first, the students, are asked questions to
clarify their doubts on topics and teachers try to satisfy them
by their correct answers.
Then the teacher asks the questions to students to evaluate
how far the students are able to comprehend the topic
discussed in the class.

36. CONCLUSION
Rabindranath Tagore, a true philosopher developed an ideal experimental
education institution in Santiniketan.
Tagore was a great advocate of spiritual education and also stressed on
harmonious development of the child with equal emphasis on mental,
social and emotional growth.
Tagore was the greatest prophet of modern Indian renaissance who
sought to bring change through education.

37. THANK
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