Education connecting multi-cultures

Nirmala Convent Senior Secondary School, Ratlam (NCSSR) in Madhya Pradesh is situated in the locality where families hail from different religious background such as Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Jains, etc having multiple Tribal and Non-Tribal cultural backgrounds, speaking different languages and dialects such as Hindi and Urdu, Malvi and Bhili respectively. Education plays a central and definitive role in transporting and in  the transmission of culture. Culture, on the other hand, has a colossal impact on education as well as on social change. Culture paves the way for education, while education is responsible for flavouring the cultural values in life.

The contemporary multicultural society imposes a threat not only to prepare the new generations to welcome the fast changing society but also to assist them to adapt and to adjust to the changes that are likely to occur in the future, and so it became the main aim of NCSSSR, to transmit the cultural heritage to the upcoming generations, through preservation, promotion and transmission, which equips the students to adapt to changing cultural patterns by moulding their personality and by erasing cultural lag.

Festivals and celebrations are a great way to understand one’s culture. In most of the schools in India  Independence day, republic day, Children’s day, Teacher’s day, Gandhi Jayanti, etc are celebrated, apart from this in our school, we celebrate beside National and religious festivals, local and cultural festivals too, such as Adivasi Divas, Dusserah, Holi, Janmashtami, Raksha Bandhan, Diwali, Christmas,  etc. The highlight of the academic year June 2022-to May 2023 was  Matru Pitru Divas (Mother’s and Father’s day). When children from different religions, backgrounds and cultures came together to honour their parents. Such celebrations enhance and glorify our Indian culture, heritage and traditions. Festivals teach us to share the joy with  each other.  They become bridges to establish communal unity and harmony. A child can be taught more about culture and country on such occasions. 

Jesus said “New wine cannot be kept in old wineskins” so new methods are being explored  to engage students in self-reflection, to discover true value system and to make them personally responsible in imbibing values. Post Pandemic academic year, a project “Wall Painting” (Compound wall of the NCSSSR) was given to students. They were to depict the culture and tradition of the States of Madhya Pradesh, Manipur and Nagaland. Their creativity had no bounds, and through it, they revived their knowledge regarding our culture.

The Pandemic changed the lifestyle of the students, we were to explore new ways, methods to change the entire teaching-learning process in to an experiential based learning, giving exposure to the practical knowledge. Henceforth, we distributed to them a plot of land to cultivate the crops of India. They cultivated wheat, pulses, sugarcane, etc. through which they identified their skills and abilities. The students from farming background realised the hard work of their parents.

These are educational strategies, that we use at NCSSSR, to develop and provide students’ knowledge about the histories, cultures, and contributions of diverse festivals and celebrations, that can enrich their well-being. What makes teachers great is the ability to go beyond curriculum, to make it creative and self-learning.

Sr. Aruna Mallavarapu, NCSSSR Delhi Delegation