What the row over history syllabus is all about?
CHANDIGARH: A row has erupted over the new history textbooks of the Punjab School Education Board (PSEB) for students of Classes 11 and 12 in the state. The opposition Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) accused the Congress government of “expunging” chapters on Sikh gurus. The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) was also quick to seek an apology from chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh. Amarinder, while denying dilution of Sikh history, said the two parties were playing politics over an issue involving religious sentiments and sensitivities. HT dissects the contradictory claims regarding history curriculum that have given an academic exercise political overtones.
WHAT IS THE CONTROVERSY?
PSEB has come out with a new syllabus of history for Classes 11 and 12. While the new Class-12 history textbook is out, the final draft of textbook for Class 11 has been more or less finalised and will be printed within two weeks. Before these books could reach the students, SAD kicked up a storm by accusing the board of diluting the content on Sikh history by deleting most of the 23 chapters pertaining to the Sikh gurus and their teachings from the Class 12 history book. The AAP also quickly followed suit. Both parties want a probe and action against those responsible for this change. The chief minister, who has firmly stood by syllabus revision and denied any dilution of content, has charged the opposition with misleading the people without verifying facts.
WHAT IS DIFFERENT THIS TIME?
History is an elective subject in Classes 11 and 12. About 2 lakh students of these two classes opt for the subject each year. Despite such a high number of students, PSEB was only prescribing the syllabus till now. Private publishers were printing books – several of which were essentially ‘guides’ with standard questions and answers. The board used to recommend some of these after evaluation by a group of three to four subject experts. “This is the first time PSEB has published history textbooks for senior secondary classes. The students were dependent on books or ‘guides’ published by private publishers,” said school education secretary Krishan Kumar. Also, the course has been aligned with the NCERT syllabus as is done in the case of physics, chemistry and maths.
WHAT CHANGES HAVE BEEN MADE?
The board restructured and realigned the history syllabus for the two classes, taking a thematic approach and merging chapters accordingly. A look at the new syllabus made available by PSEB shows that nine chapters related to history and socio-economic conditions of Punjab, Sikh gurus and their teachings, origin and growth of Sikh Misls and Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s conquests, which were part of Class-12 course, have been included in Class 11 textbook under themes of foundation, evolution and transformation of the Sikh religion. Similarly, chapters dealing with the rise of Dal Khalsa, socio-economic conditions of Punjab under the Mughals, denigration of the Mughal rule in Punjab and Anglo-sikh relations and wars are included in Class-10 books or are part of a chapter titled “Towards a Sikh State” in the Class-12 history textbook. “Gurus and their teachings are also being taught to students in Classes 9 and 10 to strengthen their roots. No deletion or pruning of content related to Sikh history has been done. Content has been restructured and merged in a more cohesive format in a chronological order as per themes for ease of learning,” said an expert who was associated with the process, but did not want to be named. While Class-9 book has already been revised, revision of Class-10 book will be carried out this year.
WHY DID PSEB GO IN FOR NEW TEXTBOOKS OF HISTORY?
Curriculum has been aligned with the National Curriculum Framework (NCF) to give the students a “better perspective” and enable them to compete with those from other states when they go for higher education. New textbooks are also activity-based and have a child-centric approach as against books brought out by private publishers that provide routine questions and answers at the end of each chapter, thereby promoting rote learning, said another academic expert associated with the textbook development process. Also, the board has priced its Class-12 history textbook at ₹91 and the one for Class 11 will also not cost more. Private publishers have been selling their subject books at four to five times more price.
WHAT WAS THE PROCESS THAT PSEB FOLLOWED?
Like other subjects such as maths, physics and chemistry, PSEB decided to amend the syllabus of history in Classes 11 and 12 in 2014 during the Akali government. A group of experts from Panjab University, colleges, government schools and the board was set up and an expert from SGPC was also taken on board. Though there were several hiccups initially due to lack of consensus, the syllabus was finalised on the basis of their recommendations, said a board official.
WHAT NEXT?
SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal, who is just not convinced with the government’s claim, wants the chief minister to produce a copy of the Class-11 textbook to which several chapters on Sikh history have been shifted from the older Class-12 book. The SAD, quick to latch on to any issue that suits its Panthic agenda, has convened a meeting of the party’s core committee on Thursday to formulate an action plan to “force the government to “re-include” all 23 chapters back into the Class-12 book. With the Shahkot assembly bypoll scheduled this month, the slugfest appears set to intensify further. A textbook example of politics over history!