Why history matters so much

Why history matters so much

Article:

1. Krishna Kumar, former director of the NCERT, discussed the importance of history as a school subject.

Important facts:

2. The subject was also discussed at the recently held conference in Kolkata.

3. The  author provides  reasons for importance of studying history in schools:

• It moulds the outlook of young generation.
• Create public ethos and influence culture.
• It shapes the perceptions of young because children are impressionable .
• Textbooks are viewed as officially approved documents.
• Publicly shared past imparts a collective memory and identity.
• It is important is shaping the larger political ethos of the country remains undiminished.
• Children depend on adults to learn about the past, that is what makes history the most challenging schools subject.

4. The author also discussed the reasons, why history does not receive much importance it deserves:

• The History cannot compete with Science subjects that shapes and control education today.
• The History syllabus and textbooks have political controversy in India.

5. The author also said that no country in the world is immune to debates about the past and the way it is presented to school children. For example:

• America’s discomfort with Hiroshima and Britain’s discomfort with Gandhi continued to be reflected in their school syllabi.

6. The new history textbooks brought out by the NCERT from 2006 onwards, survived the change of government.

7. They represent the spirit of the National Curriculum Framework, 2005.

8. In most States, the use of history to build collective memory and identity continues.