If international mindedness and intercultural awareness is the need of the hour, playing a vital role in not only learning to coexist harmoniously but celebrating diversity then it’s time to see its relevance in the Kolkata context. International mindedness dates back when a young thirty year old monk with a magnetic personality embarked on the shores of America and captured the attention of the audience in the great Hall of Columbus Art Institute, Michigan Avenue, Chicago with his words- “Sisters and Brothers of America, ... I am proud to belong to a religion which has taught the world both tolerance and universal acceptance; we believe not only in universal toleration, but we accept all religions as true.”This attitude of openness dates back to 1893.It is time for education in India to take forward Swami Vivekananda’s optimism.
Why is international mindedness important? Will it help us in conflict resolution? We can seek answers to these queries in Tagore’s world views.
Internationalism in India dates back long before the peacekeeping organizations like the League of Nations or the United Nations spoke about it. It was strongly voiced by Rabindranath Tagore in the following words:
“Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high.Where knowledge is free.Where the world has not been broken up into fragmentsBy narrow domestic walls....................................................Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its wayInto the dreary desert sand of dead habit......”
When formulating his ideas on education Tagore wrote “To accept the truth of our own age it will be necessary to establish a new education on the basis, not of nationalism, but of a wider relationship of humanity”. He envisaged an education that would not only achieve technological and scientific advancements but also be founded on universal values.
Interestingly the “I” in the International Baccalaureate aspires to achieve all that Swami Vivekananda and Tagore stood for.
The IB Learner Profile recognises the connection between affective and cognitive domain. It reinforces the enrichment of values equipping the Learner with skills for conflict resolution and even fighting corruption.
The beauty of the IB education is its strong international approach. The intercultural and cross- cultural perspective is found in Language studies and Humanities. The learners develop an intercultural competency that enables them to mediate between diverse cultures and people. The learner develops a deeper understanding of human nature and their role in a local, national and a global context. This understanding finds an aesthetic expression through the Arts. The Sciences and Mathematics focus on addressing issues that concern humanity at large arising above the consideration of race, religion or politics of nations.
Metacognition and the “Experiential Learning” component placing concepts into context and context into the real world finds expression in the Theory of Knowledge and the Extended Essay. The Creativity Action and Service brings the learner closer to his community, helps him understand the ‘why’ of the multiple perspectives. He develops a sense of responsibility and belongingness towards the Community and prepares himself to contribute towards it and improve it.
In an age when education speaks of an interconnectedness of Multiple Intelligence and Multiple Nature the IB education equips the learner with critical thinking skills.In a world of uncertainty and change it is these skills that nable the child to keep learning and fill in spaces of things he did not learn. The child becomes an entrepreneur of ideas.
Astronaut Sunita Williams, recently spoke on the 50th year of the world's first human space flight by Yuri Gagarin. She said that Gagarin's mission led to international cooperation in the space sector. When we fly to space we ought to go as people from earth and not from a country. She was certainly speaking in the universal language of Science.
Why is international mindedness important? Will it help us in conflict resolution? We can seek answers to these queries in Tagore’s world views.
Internationalism in India dates back long before the peacekeeping organizations like the League of Nations or the United Nations spoke about it. It was strongly voiced by Rabindranath Tagore in the following words:
“Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high.Where knowledge is free.Where the world has not been broken up into fragmentsBy narrow domestic walls....................................................Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its wayInto the dreary desert sand of dead habit......”
When formulating his ideas on education Tagore wrote “To accept the truth of our own age it will be necessary to establish a new education on the basis, not of nationalism, but of a wider relationship of humanity”. He envisaged an education that would not only achieve technological and scientific advancements but also be founded on universal values.
Interestingly the “I” in the International Baccalaureate aspires to achieve all that Swami Vivekananda and Tagore stood for.
The IB Learner Profile recognises the connection between affective and cognitive domain. It reinforces the enrichment of values equipping the Learner with skills for conflict resolution and even fighting corruption.
The beauty of the IB education is its strong international approach. The intercultural and cross- cultural perspective is found in Language studies and Humanities. The learners develop an intercultural competency that enables them to mediate between diverse cultures and people. The learner develops a deeper understanding of human nature and their role in a local, national and a global context. This understanding finds an aesthetic expression through the Arts. The Sciences and Mathematics focus on addressing issues that concern humanity at large arising above the consideration of race, religion or politics of nations.
Metacognition and the “Experiential Learning” component placing concepts into context and context into the real world finds expression in the Theory of Knowledge and the Extended Essay. The Creativity Action and Service brings the learner closer to his community, helps him understand the ‘why’ of the multiple perspectives. He develops a sense of responsibility and belongingness towards the Community and prepares himself to contribute towards it and improve it.
In an age when education speaks of an interconnectedness of Multiple Intelligence and Multiple Nature the IB education equips the learner with critical thinking skills.In a world of uncertainty and change it is these skills that nable the child to keep learning and fill in spaces of things he did not learn. The child becomes an entrepreneur of ideas.
Astronaut Sunita Williams, recently spoke on the 50th year of the world's first human space flight by Yuri Gagarin. She said that Gagarin's mission led to international cooperation in the space sector. When we fly to space we ought to go as people from earth and not from a country. She was certainly speaking in the universal language of Science.
