How education can combat prejudice

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Synopsis: Education can combat caste and religious discrimination by critically interacting with the perceptual histories that children have internalised.

Introduction

The conviction and sentence of a police officer for the murder of George Floyd is a huge victory for the US Black Lives Matter movement. Despite a long and significant effort in the educational system to address the issue, racism continues in America. People who work in the field of education frequently respond that education has never had a true chance to succeed.

• Their reasoning is founded on the notion that in order for education to achieve its societal aims, political, economic, and cultural policies must all be in agreement. While this may seem like a lofty goal, there is some validity to the assertion that education cannot function in isolation.
• If discrimination against a certain group is rampant in the economic and political realms, schools alone will not be able to address the problem. A closer examination is required to comprehend the level of effort put out by those involved in education to reduce prejudice and to recognise the limitations within which they operate.

How is being prejudiced different from being a partisan?

The deeper implications of bias and other related mental states appear to be similar but are not. One of these candidates is partisan. At first, being a partisan appears to be just as awful as being prejudiced. Both phrases imply that they prevent impartial treatment and interfere with the administration of justice.

• Being a partisan implies being committed to a cause while remaining conscious of the fact that there are those who oppose it. In India, Ashok Vajpayee, a former administrator and famous poet, founded the Poorvagraha journal.
  • The title reflected Vajpayee’s commitment to a broader definition of literature and its significance in society. Many sectors of public action have embraced this form of partisanship. It is taking a position rather than harbouring a prejudice against something.
• In various countries, racial and religious prejudices have dominated public attention. The term “racism” is far too broad to encompass all types of prejudices. The phrase “prejudice” does not encompass the various types of dislikes someone may have for other groups.
• Several Western countries, which were thought to have outgrown impulses to resolve historical grievances in a dramatic manner, have recently seen violent statue toppling.
  • The sudden realisation that these statues constituted government acknowledgement of persons who were bigots by today’s standards appears to be the source of these stone and metal assaults.
  • This type of fulfilment has a limited amount of value. It appears to be a triumph of decisive government on the day it is completed, but the appetite for change soon switches to other things.

What role does religion play in discrimination?

Religion continues to be a major source of discrimination in all corners of the globe. Attitudes toward religious organisations other than one’s own are frequently the result of ingrained bias learned as a child.

• Firstly, the mechanism through which a child absorbs a societal prejudice is difficult to understand, partly because it occurs in extremely subtle interactions between adults and children within the family.
• Secondly, when such processes are mentioned during teacher training, pupils have a hard time believing that they are possible. The approach exemplifies the widespread belief that professors can help students overcome prejudices.
• Thirdly, negative sentiments based on caste and religion is quite different. These prejudice categories have their origins in collective identities created over extended periods of time.
  • Perceptual history is used to pass these down to each new generation. It is a condensed version of historical information that a community holds and conveys through religious activities and various forms of artistic expression.
• Fourthly, teachers do not recognise the social predispositions that youngsters develop as a result of their religious and cultural experiences. These predispositions become long-term prejudices, fostering the stereotypes that instructors are urged to counteract.

Way forward

• Teachers work would be more likely to succeed if they recognised and critically engaged with the children’s internalised perceptual histories. In a world of polarities and sensitivities, any engaged pedagogic effort causes local ripples that can become hostile.
• Schools do require some appreciative understanding from society if they are to pursue child-centred learning. There may not be a total consensus between the goals of education and those of political and other social institutions, but a certain scope for freedom is necessary for dealing with entrenched prejudices.