Yamuna Harshavardhana

Author, Educationist, and Expert in Special Education. Writes in Tamil and English

Authority, Autonomy and Accountability: Being a Guru

The term ‘Guru’ is used in ways that its meaning has become fudged over the past few decades. Someone who happens to sell a certain "philosophy" or a method to the others (albeit in a commercial sense) is called a Guru. They are considered to be experts in

Itihāsas: How are they the same as Dharma?

Part -1 can be read by clicking HERE. In response to the NCERT coming up with the recommendation to include Rāmāyaṇa and Mahābhārata as part of history lessons, I had shown in the previous post why itihāsas are not the same as history and why they must not be included

Itihāsas: Classical Period History or Dharma?

Recently, a high level NCERT panel recommended that Rāmāyaṇa and Mahābhārata must be taught as part of history curriculum as ‘Bhārata’s Classical Period’. The idea is to place the itihāsas as a separate period which will be followed by Medieval period, British era and Modern India. When the NEP

We plan for Smart Cities, What about Vibrant Villages?

India lives in her villages is an oft repeated quote attributed to M. K. Gandhi. This was stated by him prior to 1948 which is three-quarters of a century ago. Today, this statement feels strange as the reality is that our country lives neither in her cities nor in her

‘My Squirrel Bit’ versus ‘My Vānara Might’

It is the quality of nature to throw problems on our paths. Whether we are a bee, a bird, a bear or a human being, all of us face difficulties in our lives. However, the kinds of difficulties and the degree of hardships that they cause vary. The variations may

Towards Society Empowered Education: A Very Brief Introduction to Sona Jobarteh’s Work

Recently I came across an acceptance speech made by Sona Jobarteh of Gambia, the first female exponent of the kora, an ancient and highly refined stringed instrument of Western Africa, as she received the Honorary PhD from Berklee College of Music, Boston, Massachusetts. This itself is significant as she had

72nd Shankaracharya ascends the throne of Kudali Sringeri Maha-samsthan

Kudali Sringeri Samsthan is an important institution of the Bharatiya civilization, established by Adi Shankaracharya around 2500 years ago at Kudali (confluence of Tunga and Bhadra rivers) in Karnataka state. Therefore, it is called Sri ‘Jagadguru Shankaracharya Samsthan’ or ‘Dakshinamnaya Sharada Peetha’ and is commonly referred to as Kudali Sringeri

DISCRIMINATION: GOOD OR BAD?

Discrimination was not so bad a word during our growing-up years. In fact, there were questions that asked us to ‘discriminate between…’ and it was primarily about telling the differences between two or more kind of things. But now, there is so much woke-ism that the very word ‘discrimination’ means

Looking at Our Festivals through the Pañcāṅgam Lens

The desire to enjoy life beyond the mundane is built into the nature of man. Thus, we find that man takes pleasure in expressing joyful emotions and performing joyful actions to connect with others and with nature. When the expression becomes collective and includes all members in a community, then

Need for Policy Level Intervention to Arrest the Internet Addiction Pandemic

Most scientific technologies can be double edged swords. They can be used, misused and even abused. Two easily understandable examples follow. The ability to synthesise chemicals not only helps making medical drugs to treat symptoms but also to make intoxicants and hallucinogens that are detrimental to the well-being of the

உலகத் தரம் வாய்ந்த கல்விக்கு பாரதம் தயாரா?

கல்வி ஒவ்வொரு நபர் மீதும் தாக்கத்தை ஏற்படுத்துகிறது.  நாம் அனைவரும் உலகத்தரம் வாய்ந்த கல்வியை விரும்புகிறோம். உலகத்தரம் வாய்ந்த கல்வி என்பதன்

Is Bharata Prepared to Lead the World in Education?

Education is something that impacts each individual, whether as a student, as a parent, as a teacher or as someone in society who looks for education to fulfil their requirements and problems. All of us wish to have high quality education; we wish for world class education. When we say

வீணாய் போன பள்ளி ஆண்டுகள்!

எழுபதுகளிலும் எண்பதுகளிலும் பள்ளியில் படித்தப்போது, நான் மிகவும் மகிழ்ச்சியான ஆரம்பக் கல்வியைப் பயின்றேன் - விஷயங்கள் பெரிய அளவில் அர்

Wasted School Years!

Having done my schooling in the seventies through the nineties, I went through a fairly joyous primary education – when things seemed meaningful to a great extent – a very confused middle school and a totally disconnected high school education. After this I had to select a ‘group’ based on my performance

NEP 2020: Great Jubilation all over Tamil Nadu (Part -2)

There are several reference leads via hyperlinks provided within. Readers are requested to use them to get the complete picture of the contents.

NEP 2020: தமிழகம் எங்கும் மக்கள் வரவேற்ப்பு (பகுதி-2)

NEP 2020: தமிழகம் எங்கும் மக்கள் வரவேற்ப்பு (பகுதி-2) இந்த 2-பகுதி கட்டுரை, புதிய கல்விக் கொள்கை, அதைச் சுற்றி உருவாக்கப்பட்ட சர்ச்சைகள், இந்த சர்

மூன்று மொழி அளிப்பதன் ஜனநாயக அடிப்படை: NEP 2020

மூன்று மொழிகள் கற்பதன் முக்கியத்துவம் எந்த கலாச்சாரத்திற்கும் வரவேற்பு சாளரம் மொழியே ஆகும். ஒரு மொழியைக் கற்றுக்கொள்வது என்பது புதிய

Fulfilling Student Expectations in a Democratic Manner: NEP 2020

The Importance of Learning Three Languages Language is the welcoming window to any culture. To learn a language is to be introduced to a new culture, a new set of traditions, a new network of people. To preserve a language is to preserve this culture, this tradition and this network

NEP 2020: Great Jubilation across Tamil Nadu (Part – 1)

In this 2-part article, we shall have an overview of the New Education Policy, the controversies that have been created around it, an assessment of these controversies, as well as the missing aspects in the Policy. There are several reference leads via hyperlinks provided within. Readers are requested to use

NEP 2020: தமிழகம் எங்கும் மக்கள் வரவேற்ப்பு (பகுதி-1)

இந்த 2-பகுதி கட்டுரை, புதிய கல்விக் கொள்கை, அதைச் சுற்றி உருவாக்கப்பட்ட சர்ச்சைகள், இந்த சர்ச்சைகள் பற்றிய மதிப்பீடு மற்றும் கொள்கை

பாரதீய கல்வி (பகுதி - 5)

பாரம்பரிய பாரதீய உயர் கல்வி முறை கிராமத்தில் உள்ள அனைத்து குழந்தைகளுக்கும் தொடக்கக் கல்வி பெற சாத்தியமாக இருந்தது என்பதே 4-ம் பகுதியி

Bhāratīya Education (Part – 5)

The Bhāratīya  Higher Education System Elementary education was open to all the children in the village. The teacher would decide if the student had satisfactorily progressed or not. At the end of elementary education students underwent training in one field or another. What were the options available to train for

பாரதீய கல்வி (பகுதி - 4)

பாரம்பரிய பாரதீய தொடக்கக் கல்வி முறை இந்தத் தொடரின் 2-ம் பகுதியில், பிரிட்டிஷ் கல்வி அமைப்புக்கு முன் இந்தியாவில் வழங்கப்பட்ட கல்வியை

Bhāratīya Education (Part – 4)

The Bhāratīya Elementary Education System In Part-2 of this series was a brief sketch of the education that was imparted in India prior to the British system. From available records made by the British and also by other foreign travellers, we gather more details to get a clearer picture. Education

Bhāratīya Education (Part – 3)

The agenda of the British was to proclaim superiority of language, culture, sciences and, most importantly, religion. Hence, Thomas Babing