Baldev Singh Chib
Everyone whose age is sixty years or more would say that, though there has been considerable progress in Science and Technology, there is retrogression or degeneration in the moral sphere during the last sixty years or so. More and more people have become less and less moral. India, as an ancient country, has a great spiritual heritage and an inexhaustible source of values and rich culture. These values are time tested, are a product of our own soil and have roots in our culture and lifestyle. Everybody wishes to become good by having values and virtues in his life, implying that everybody has the potential to become good. And, if so, then the parents and teachers must prepare the ground for sowing the seeds of good qualities and virtues. Value based education has reformed even the dreaded Chambal Valley dacoits after they laid down their arms and surrendered to Late Shri Jai Parkash Narayan. The government of Madhya Pradesh had kept them at Mungarli open air jail and invited some spiritual persons there to impart them value based education for a number of weeks. The results were that most of them reformed themselves and are leading normal life. Among these dacoits were Madho Singh, Pancham Singh, Mohar Singh, Pratap Singh, Jagdish Prasad, Ramhet Thakur, Sarnam Singh, Kali Charan etc. Pacham Singh is now leading a Spiritual life. Therefore, the introduction of the subject ” Education in Values ” in Schools, Colleges and Universities is necessary for inculcation of human values and virtues for building a value-based, peaceful and prosperous society.
Now the question is: what are the values, which we should cultivate or promote ? These are (1) Honesty (2) Truthfulness (3 ) Self respect (4) Respect for others (5) Patience (6) Tolerance (7) Sweetness of language and Manners (8) Integrity (9)Humility (10) Humane (11) Patience (12) Sympathy (13) Co-operation (14) Cleanliness of body (15) Self control (16) Positive thinking (17) Inner calmness (18) Fearlessness and Worrylessness (19) Enthusiasm and Happy outlook (20) Detachment (21) Forgiveness (22) Contentment (23) Sattvic habits (24) Respect for women (25) Belief and the dignity of the human individuals etc. All these values must be fully developed. If a person has one or two values and is without others, it would be of no mean. For example, let us suppose that a person speaks sweetly but is dishonest and corrupt; will it be correct to say that he is morally educated. No, his sweetness may be a cloak or a mask and he may actually be a hypocrite. So, in truth, all values are essential to make humans as humane.
When we look at institutions of learning, we find there an atmosphere of grave indiscipline. The relationship between the teachers and the students is uninspiring. One major problem is the indiscipline and rowdyism. During the examinations, one notices the malpractice of mass-copying. Even the parents and the invigilators help in this evil. There is also the evil of tampering with the result, either by the examiner or in the office where the results are compiled. There is the ugly practice of ragging and there is also absenteeism. Eve-teasing and the drug-addiction are on the increase. The students are giving up the traditional values and following the new TV and film culture. They disturb the atmosphere in the campus, in the buses, on the road and in college.
The students, on the other hand, say that their teachers themselves also are not inspiring personalities because they too do not have such values in their own life. They say that the teachers do not perform their job with dedication, devotion and responsibility. Instead, they want to earn extra money by giving tuition to their students outside the school or college, the students, therefore, emphasize that if their teachers, syllabus and the atmosphere lack in the essential ingredients, how can they be blamed for lacking human values?
They also say that their parents themselves lack values and too often tell lies, indulge in acts of anger, hatred, vengeance, enmity and even violence in their day to day reactions. They (the parents), therefore, cannot say to their children to shed evil tendencies and bad habits. How can the kettle call the pot black? They therefore, complain that the atmosphere at home and at the place of study is so uninspiring, ugly and detestable that they are kept bereft from learning human values and virtues. While the teachers blame the parents, the parents blame the teachers. The first school a child attends is his home and parents, particularly the mother is the first teacher and preceptor of a child. It is she who imparts first lesson in culture and traditional values to the child. She plays a major role in maintaining and transferring the cultural and spiritual heritage to the succeeding generation.
In fact, what each one of them says is true to a great extent. The parents, the teacher, the planner, the student and the society cannot be segregated. They inter-act with each other. The parents cannot forget their responsibility and put all burden and blame on the teacher or the school or college, nor, for the same reason , can the teacher shirk his responsibility, claim freedom from all responsibilities and put it on the shoulders of the parents or the family. The society too cannot say that it can hardly do anything in the matter.
It is a fact that the current generation of parents and that of teachers themselves lack values. If the teachers and parents themselves lose the strength of character, then who will build the character of the succeeding generations? If the salt loses its saltiest savor, then wherewith will the things be salted ? Researchers into the human personality have given adequate evidence that the hard core of human conduct and character is formed during the first eight to eighteen years of life and what one acquires after this period is mostly in keeping with the beliefs, vision , attitude and outlook one has acquired during the aforementioned formative period of life. If therefore, values are not cultivated during this formative period through education, the most valuable opportunity for human resource development is almost lost. No doubt, environment, education and certain events and examples can bring about transformation in later period of life also but that does not happen easily or with large number of people. The dye is cast in the earlier period and the crucial and important role of formal and informal education by the teacher and the parents must, therefore, be understood properly.
So everyone needs to be convinced that moral education is neither an option nor it a matter of choice. It is neither a luxury nor a burden. By introducing the subject “Education in Values”, we will not be putting extra burden on the students or on the teachers or the public exchequer.
If no steps are taken now, the time is not far off when the whole civilized society will live under the law of jungle. If politics is criminalized, bureaucracy goes corrupt, environment gets more polluted by poisonous wastes, more and more students become drug addicts and all people go amuck with inflated ego, ultra-violent tendencies, then who will save whom? Would the life be qualitatively and emotionally worth living if the society has not any cherished values, noble traditions and worthy customs? Would we be happy with politics without principle, business without honesty, science without scruples, money without morals and family without love and cooperation? Values are the main thing, all else is symbolic. Therefore, education in values is essential. Education has to play the role of human resources development. It develops positive attitudes, creative abilities and moral and human values in individuals. Values develop happy balance, such as of ‘love and law’ of ‘humility and self respect’, of ‘being busy and easy’ ‘careful and cheerful’ ‘flexible and firm’, etc. etc.
All Education Commissions have strongly recommended the introduction of moral education in schools and colleges. The members of those Commissions and other thoughtful people have always expressed that they feel highly disturbed by erosion or loss of values and the resultant corruption, violence and crime in the society. Some educationists and policy makers object to the introduction of moral education a subject on the ground that it will be nothing different from religious education and, so, it may give rise to controversies. This apprehension is ill founded as every religion does have some core values, which have much in common with other major religions. What is meant by ‘Moral Education’ or ‘Education in values’ is the education in these core values or basic virtues.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
