By Divya Goyal, Read the original article here.
To Keep the Tibetan children born in India connected to their roots, the education begins in their own language- right from day one.
Chik (one), nyi (two), sum (three), zhi (four), nga (five), druk (six)…
Ka, kha, ga, nga, ca, cha, ja, nya….
Playing the traditional musical instrument ‘danyan’ in sync, the grade 2 students sing and repeat Tibetan tunes with their teacher. It is a Wednesday and hence they are dressed in the traditional costume ‘chupa’. Every corner of the school filled with colorful learning aids, one notices that there are no benches in classrooms. The students sit on a soft cushion placed on ground, small wooden tables in front of them. In some classrooms, wooden tables are arranged in circular shape, to encourage group discussions. In another room, some children are dancing to foot-tapping Tibetan numbers. A portrait of The Dalai Lama hangs in the background.
Dalai Lama recently said that “Tibet issue is no longer a struggle for political independence” but “there is a need to focus on preservation of Tibet’s cultural, religious and linguistic identity”. He also said that “as long as the Tibetan people can preserve their cultural heritage, religion and identity, it will bring them inner peace and happiness”.
For these young Tibetans, born and brought up in a foreign land, a lesson in their own culture and heritage, begins at Montessori level. A seed of hope, that one day they will return to their own country, is sown in their hearts.
Though it was in 1959, nearly 60 years ago that Dalai Lama had moved to India with 80,000 followers after Chinese invasion of Tibet, it was only in 2005 that the Basic Education Policy for Tibetans in Exile was formulated. It was implemented from 2006 across Tibetan schools run by Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), headquartered at Dharamshala (unofficially known as Tibetan Government In-Exile), to help children stay connected with their roots. Currently, there are at least 80,000 Tibetans settled in India.
Nearly 13 years after Tibetan language was made compulsory medium of instruction from Montessori till class 3 (with no other language to be taught till then), the teachers say it changed things and children are now more connected to their own language.
‘Students now more connected to Tibetan language and culture’
As the debate continues in India over National Education Policy (NEP) and three-language policy, the Tibetan education policy also calls for a three-language policy but the second language (necessarily English for time being as per policy) and third language (of the region where school is located and mostly Hindi currently) is introduced in class 4 and 6, respectively. A fourth language (foreign language) can be opted from class 9. Earlier, Tibetan schools also followed Indian pattern and taught English from kindergarten and Hindi from class 1.
Chime Dolma, principal, Sambhota Tibetan School, Bir, with over three decades of teaching experience, says that since the policy has been implemented in 2006, students are now more connected with the Tibetan language. “Earlier, they never took interest in Tibetan as English was also taught to them right from kindergarten. Even class 10 students felt uncomfortable and could not write an application in Tibetan. We were teaching them English from pre-primary and Hindi from class 1. It was creating confusion. Now they are more proficient in all three languages,” says Dolma.
Even though Tibetan students take board exams [Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE)] in their ‘host’ country, they have to study Tibetan till class 12 as a compulsory subject. The policy also presents a unique amalgamation of Tibetan and Indian values as it picks several concepts like ahimsa (non-violence), yoga, views of Indian educationists etc from Indian culture.
Other concepts — such as SEE learning (social, emotional & ethical), DEAR day on Saturdays (Drop Everything and Read), no benches, sitting close to teacher for motherly affection, no tuition fee (parents only pay nominal fee for stationary and lunch) — are also unique practices in Tibetan education system.
“According to the policy, Montessori system has replaced kindergarten. At Montessori level-1, we teach children only practicals of life. At level 2, we start with sensory learning of Tibetan alphabets and numbers by touch and at level 3, social science is added along with Tibetan alphabets and numbers. Till class 3, everything from poems, music, dance, stories, folktales, festivals is in Tibetan. We also have Tibetan language lab,” adds Dolma.
“Keeping children close to their country when you are not living there is a challenge but we try to balance Tibetan and modern education,” she adds.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Tenzin Pema, joint secretary, education department, Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), says that basic education policy implemented in 2006 has brought a massive change when it comes to students’ connect with Tibetan values and culture.
“Since their foundation in Tibetan is very strong now, they find it easier to learn English and Hindi too. They are now confident in their own language and doesn’t consider it inferior to speak and write Tibetan. We do not force them to speak English. Our policy derives many points from Indian culture and educationists. We do not encourage exams and competition. There are 68 Tibetan schools from primary to higher secondary,” she says.
What makes Tibetan Basic Education Policy different
The Basic Education Policy for Tibetans in Exile, 2005, says: Tibetan Education system is divided into two parts: Traditional Tibetan Education and Modern Education. (Sources of traditional education include Yungdrung Bon (earliest native religion of Tibet) and Buddhism; four Tibetan sciences of language, Valid cognition (traditional science of logical reasoning originated from India), art, medicine and Tibetan language which is in fact the only standard base of all Tibetan studies).
1. Efforts shall be made to gradually convert the medium of instruction in all Tibetan institutions from pre-primary level upto the highest research study level, into Tibetan language.
2. Of the two systems of education: formal and non-formal; primary importance shall be given to the latter.
3. Tibetan language, grammar and literature shall be the main subject of study from pre-primary level to Class XII.
4. Science of Valid Cognition: The ability to penetrate deeply into subjects and into the nature of phenomena through independent investigation and search, without blindly following words of others, can be developed from the study of valid cognition. The teaching of this subject upto class 12 is mandatory.
5. Three language policy shall be adopted. From pre-primary level and up to class 3, no other language besides Tibetan shall be taught. Even the teaching of terms in, and songs of, other languages should be avoided. The teaching of second and third languages shall be started from class 4 and 6, respectively.
6. Modern mathematics and an elementary introduction to traditional Tibetan mathematics shall be included in school curriculum.
7. The study of principles of non-violence and democracy shall be suitably included within study curricula of all three levels.
8. Moral conduct: Excerpts from religious sources on morality, stories and tales on spiritual themes; traditional writings and biographies of ancient and contemporary great personalities should be included.
9. Training in various forms of Tibetan traditional physical exercise, physical training of yoga, breathing exercise of pranayama etc, traditional Tibetan games and sports along with training in contemporary games and sports.
10. Class 10 and 12 examination system of host country (like India) but even after division of subjects, Tibetan language and Science of Valid Cognition must be continued as compulsory subjects for all classes.
India connect and why need for separate policy was felt
“Ever since writing and grammar developed in Tibet, the word Siksha in Sanskrit has been translated as bslab pa in Tibetan which means education, siksarthi as slob ma meaning student etc. In 1959, when Tibetans first arrived in exile, a variety of terms evolved that were translations from English into Tibetan such asshes rig for education and now it is popularly used,” says the policy.
“If we look at the number and quality of Tibetan scholars and literary works, it would seem that there existed a system of education widely available for all Tibetan citizens but in reality there were no schools, nor was education provided for young people by government or any other organization. We cannot find any document that clearly indicates that there was a Tibetan policy or system of education,” it says.
It was after upheaval of 1959 that several residential and day schools were established to impart standard modern and traditional education to young Tibetans. “Under the circumstances at that time there was no alternative but to model an education system on the structure that existed in our host country (India),” it says.
“We became accustomed to the system that we had adopted from elsewhere in our initial emergency. Due to several internal and external obstacles we still remain in the hapless condition of having to employ a foreign language as the medium of teaching for class 6 and above. The freedom of Tibetan language is almost lost- through Chinese repression in Tibet and through our personal free will in exile,” says the policy.
“In addition, a new problem, unknown in history of Tibetan people, which we refer to as ‘unemployed youth’ has been created by the system of education pursued so far. Ten thousand students have graduated from secondary schools but hardly any were able to achieve outstanding level of scholarships and prestige,” says the policy.
