Is Education a tool in Bringing Social Harmony ?

 

‘Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world’ Nelson Mandela. 

Yes, there is no second argument in saying that education is the key to eliminate all problems. Hence it is a  fundamental right for everyone to be provided with equal opportunities for education.  

7To the best of our concern, what do we expect from an individual and a society to get from this very  education? Is it only economic return or sociological benefits? Will there be any impact on the  development of peace of mind in an individual which would eventually lead to a peaceful country and a  peaceful world at the end? We, together as a country, strive harder towards development through  education. Are we there yet? Or have we gone backward with our educational objectives? This could be a  topic for a great research.  

According to Aristotle, “Education is the creation of a sound mind in a sound body’. Hence acquiring  knowledge and using it for the happiness and goodness of the society is what expected from an educated  person. We expect an educated person to develop better values to create a better society where better  societies are based on each one’s mutual understanding. Respect towards human, attitudes that shows  goodwill towards the one who is next to you and being able to share your smile and express yourself to  your neighbor are what we anticipate to develop peace and wellbeing among us.  

I am so happy to be born in Sri Lanka, the country known for its biodiversity. I would also add to this that  according to various beliefs, this is a country with a great history of beginning of the life on earth too.  While Buddhists believe that Sri Pada- Sacred Foot at the Mountain Sri Pada is of Buddha’s, Hindus believe  it to be the foot print of Hindu Deity Shiva calling it as Shivanolipadamalai and also Muslims and Christians  believe that it is of Adam when he was first setting his foot on earth hence called as Adam’s Peak. With  this rich origin, Sri Lanka for centuries has shown a peaceful existence between all ethnicities living here.  

=Sri Lanka, known to be the pearl of the Indian Ocean, has a rich history of international relationship and  hailing the praises to be one of the peaceful countries with rich hospitality. 

As a citizen of this country I have always been able to feel the beauty of being together despite all the  differences among us. 

Accepting the differences and being able to positively interact with people is the  most important value and tradition that we have in our country. From my childhood to schooling days and  even now with my career I have enough experiences to share that tells me the blessings of this true mutual  understanding between people whatever the kind of believes they have, peace and harmony among us  on our beautiful island. 

When I was studying as a student of age 17 at the Aquinas College of higher education, there was a  beautiful incident happened. During my childhood days, I did not have much experience of being mingled  to other communities. With a fear in mind but with some courage I used to travel alone to Colombo and  used to be in a classroom where except two students including myself, all the other classmates are above  20 years of age. I Used to get late to enter the classroom since I travel from far and sit down at the place  that is left at last in the classroom. One day in this situation I happened to sit next to a Buddhist male  Monk student who was a Japanese. Without understanding the cultural inappropriateness in doing so, I  started studying. Only during the interval when one of our colleagues in the class approached me and explained me that it is not accepted to sit next to a male monk since I am a girl, I got to know that I have  done something not accepted, and I started crying hard in fear and could not control myself.  

My colleague got so upset to see me crying. That also should be her first experience with a Muslim girl. I  still could feel the kindness she expressed towards me and all the efforts she took to calm me down,  making me understand that it is okey and to avoid it in future. Another colleague offered me the place  next to her and since then they were my very good friends. That very incident built the friendship between  me, only Muslim girl in the class, and my friends. Truly Sri Lanka is a blessed country where people do not  have any differences in their minds. When people develop mutual understanding and start  communicating, accepting the differences among individuals, we could see a better society is being  developed. Ample of this kind of incidences are there experienced by each and every one of us in our  lifetime, some to be very unforgettable too.  

In today’s context, Coexistence has become a jargon that needs to be achieved through projects and  external interventions. For me, however, it is an interesting experience. It is felt in a person, through one’s  lived experience. On another occasion when I was working as an Assistant Director of science in Puttalam,  I used to travel to Kalpitiya by public bus. There, vegetable vendors, women, mostly Sinhalese and Tamils  or Sinhalese and Muslims used to sit in front seats of the bus, in front of me. I would always enjoy their  conversations throughout the journey. The Sinhalese lady used to talk in Sinhala while Tamil and Muslim  lady used to answer in Tamil. Each of them understood the other ones’ language but talk in their own  language. I do not know whether they know the language of the other. But the conversation continues till  they reach their destination without any interruption. 

This would always bring smile on my face and I truly  feel that as a stronger example for the importance of communication in building coexistence. One does  not need to implement ‘projects’ to build these interactions. If people’s everyday life is not interrupted,  if the spaces remain conducive for such interactions, these will naturally evolve and sustain. Our system  should be able to enrich us with needed maturity to accept the different spaces and avenues available for  different people. I would rather like to call this as living together with differences. Possible only through  having a broader and mature mind developed within ourselves. 

If I were to discuss the national goals of education specified by the National Education Commission Sri  Lanka, the first national goal of education itself is ‘Nation building and the establishment of a Sri Lankan  identity through the promotion of national cohesion, national integrity, national unity, harmony, and  peace, and recognizing cultural diversity in Sri Lanka’s plural society within a concept of respect for  human dignity’. What a broader vision towards the peace building process we have embedded strongly  with the present, operating system of education! Out of eight education goals prescribed on Sri Lankan  secondary education more than five speaks of either human values, social justice, responsibility,  coexistence, human rights, attitudes or mutual respect. Truly, are we there yet? Can we be happy today  to say that as educated personnel we have these qualities developed within the system, within us, which  would have led to build the mutual understanding and needed maturity to accept the differences and to  live together with differences? Have we steered ourselves towards achieving these expected goals of  social harmony and peaceful coexistence in this diverse society?

Where are we steering towards? Where have we gone wrong in developing expected personalities? We  have been starting so many interventions for peacebuilding process while having the existing system  unattended? Do we monitor the attainment of these goals through education? How? Or Do we just run  in the race of producing competitive results?  

Hidden curricular found within the national curriculum in the education system should be given the  prominence in developing the soft skills of students and eventually this would enrich values within oneself.  Better teacher capacity development is a crucial need of the time to embed the values within the minds  of teachers and to steer them to serve as social changing agents. The Minds of educational personnel should be given the exposure and enlightenment that education is not only the ladder for economic  mobility but as a whole a social mobility tool, addressing the people and their characters as a whole.  

An educated person is expected to develop better moral and ethical values as compared to an uneducated  person, thus creating a better society. It is not about whether we are right or wrong but whether are our thoughts and attitudes motivate us towards fairness, just and tolerance towards others. Education should  mold a person to have goodwill and a sense of benevolence towards the people around him or her. A  goodwill that makes the person think that my neighbor is always happy with me, the people around me  are not harmed by myself and I am a person who makes others around me happy with a contended mind.  

Sri Lanka is a place rich in its geographical diversity as well as culture, tradition and history. Still we feel  the fresh air, calm and serenity, peace and contentment within our mother Lanka. We have our people  still with the same hospitality. It is we, who should make the future brighter, guiding our younger  generation towards a better atmosphere. We still have the education as the tool in hand. The steering  wheels are in our hands 

It is the need of the time to utilize what we gained through the free education to benefit the country in  future. Let us march towards the vision of reaching excellence in a global society through competent  citizens who share the Sri Lankan identity. As I would always feel Sri Lanka is a blessed island and May it  be blessed with the peace and prosperity forever!