National Education Policy: Students will now read Indian history in a comprehensive way

BSE has now come up with reforms in school education. The scheme for the session 2022-23 was announced recently. Many unpleasant chapters such as the chronicles of Mughal courts, the rise of Islamic empires in Afro-Asian territories, Non-Aligned Movement, the Cold War era, and the Industrial Revolution, apart from two poems of Faiz Ahmed Faiz have been obliterated from the 2022-23 syllabus of Classes 10, 11 and 12.

This is not the first time that CBSE has changed the syllabus. Every year CBSE takes a rationalisation exercise of the syllabus which is prescribed to students for reading and evaluation. CBSE annually provides curriculum from Class 9 to Class 12 containing academic content, syllabus for examinations with learning outcomes, pedagogical practices and assessment guidelines.

‘We were always told that Kashmir, Junagadh, Hyderabad were not part of India. Reading such history does not inculcate the feeling of nationalism in our children. There is a need to teach such a history, by reading which our children should feel proud of the glorious tradition of India’ — Umesh Ashok Kadam Professor at JNU (CHS)

Considering the feedback of stakeholders and other prevailing conditions, the Board is in favour of conducting the annual scheme of assessment at the end of the academic session 2022-23 and the curriculum has been designed accordingly. The CBSE Class 11 history syllabus doesn’t include the chapter ‘Central Islamic Lands’, which talks about the rise of Islamic empires in Afro-Asian territories and its impact on the economy and society. However, this is not the first time that CBSE has dropped from the syllabus certain chapters that have been part of the curriculum for decades. As part of its decision to rationalise the syllabus, the CBSE in 2020 had announced that chapters on federalism, citizenship, nationalism, and secularism in Political Science textbooks of Class 11 would not be considered while assessing students. A certain section had protested against the changes in 2020.

This exercise, too, has been carried out by the NCERT in the past. In 2012, the NCERT had agreed to drop six cartoons from the Political Science textbooks of Classes 9, 10, 11 and 12 following outrage over “anti-political class” content. In 2018, NCERT had undertaken another round of revision of political commentary, including tweaking the captions under cartoons. It is being speculated that the syllabus shared with schools for the 2022-23 academic session also hints at the board’s decision to revert to a single-board exam in a session from the two-term examination last year.

‘Islamic rulers have tortured the people of India for 1,000 years. There is a problem with our Constitution as well. Teachers are working in schools to propagate Christianity and Islam. But certain teachers objected to schools that were teaching Hinduism as a subject. As a result, our schools today have become missionaries. Anti-Hindu propaganda is being run in educational institutions’
— Professor Kapil Kumar Ex-Director, Centre for freedom Struggle and Diaspora Studies at IGNOU

While the two-term exam was announced as a one-time special measure taken given the COVID-19 pandemic, the Board officials recently said a final call will be taken in due course of timekeeping in mind the situation.

The changes made in the syllabus by CBSE are being considered by many educationists as good for the better future of the children. In this context, we have talked to many renowned educationists in the country.

Meanwhile, Professor Kapil Kumar ex-Director, Centre for freedom Struggle and Diaspora Studies at IGNOU, said that our children’s books have been taught about the rise of Islam. “Apart from Islam, there are many other religions in India. Four religions – Jainism, Sikhism, Buddhism, Hinduism – are Indian. However, not much is being taught about them. Islamic rulers have tortured the people of India for 1,000 years. There is a problem with our Constitution as well. Teachers are working in schools to propagate Christianity and Islam. But certain teachers objected to schools that were teaching Hinduism as a subject. As a result, our schools today have become missionaries. Anti-Hindu propaganda is being run in educational institutions. If History is being taught, then along with Mughal history, the rest of Indian history should also be taught. Hence the empire of the Maurya dynasty that spread to Asia, Afghanistan, Iran, and Uzbekistan must be taught. There is very little material on this subject for children to read.”

Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor at JNU (Centre for Historical Studies), disclosed that authentic Indian history is not being taught to students and historians have been portraying Bharat as Mughal India. “But there was never such an India. Those who wrote History earlier, tampered with the facts. They did not tell from where they collected those facts. In our history, India has been described as weak and its people as slaves. We were always told that Kashmir, Junagadh, Hyderabad were not part of India. Reading such history does not inculcate the feeling of nationalism in our children. There is a need to teach such a history, by reading which our children should feel proud of the glorious tradition of India.”

Academician Atul Kothari, National Secretary of Shiksha Sanskriti Utthan Nyas said that due to Coronavirus, 30 per cent of the syllabus has been decreased. “Whatever topics have been removed are not relevant in today’s time. Non-Alignment Movement has been cut, so today this movement has no relevance. The Mughal history and the rise of Islam in India have been removed. This is not Indian history. So if it is removed then there should be no objection to it. Apart from this, Indian history should include all aspects related to religion, politics and society. There will be many more positive educational changes in the coming times under the New Education Policy.