Some thoughts on the single national curriculum. Growing up in Isb in the 80’s, I was sent to Beaconhouse right when it opened in 82. I loved my school but as I grew older, some things would bother me and no one would give a straight answer about them. Why did I speak English
Better than I could speak Urdu? Why did we loathe the kids whose English was beneath our British accents? Why did we look down upon people wearing shalwar kameez? Why were we being taught European in the guise of world history? Why did the history of knowledge seem to start and
End with Greece and The enlightenment? What the heck were the dark ages? Was the whole world in darkness during that period? Why were kids from Public schools destined to go to local colleges if any, and couldn’t even dream about going abroad? Don’t get me wrong, I benefited
From this system as much as the next rich kid, graduating from medical school and making my way to the US where my mentors though me the perfect immigrant with my ease in English and being able to understand their jokes with all the cultural context. I remember being asked as to
How I could integrate so easily and my response was that the British made sure they left a class of people behind who would learn to be like them and carry on the colonial project. Since the US is the new imperial power, it was natural to learn the lingo and blend in. Now, I am
Trying to rectify this by learning Urdu at a deeper level, and making arrangements to move back to contribute something back to the country which subsidized my success. I see friends lambasting the #SNC saying things like this is regressive, our kids will be forced to learn
Stuff from the dark ages and so on. As a psychiatrist, I feel there is a deep rooted fear in the minds of such people about the ‘natives’ rising up to their level, so to speak. The class difference has benefited a certain section for decades and they want to maintain the power
Structure. It may take a generation or two to get this disease out of our collective system. It is our duty to back the curriculum and be advocates for this change. Whatever I can do to help in this regard, I will do. Godspeed @ImranKhanPTI
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