An update on Teachers' Day and Dr S Radhakrishnan
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- The story: On 05th of September, 2021, India's President Ram Nath Kovind conferred the prestigious National Teachers’ Awards on 44 teachers from across the country, including Haryana, Punjab, J&K and Ladakh, in recognition of their contributions to the field of education, including developing innovative methods of teaching.
- Who all: The awardees included Mamta Paliwal (GGSSS, Bhiwani, Haryana), Kamal Kishore Sharma (Government Senior Secondary School, Kandaghat, HP), Jagtar Singh (Government Primary School, Khamano, Fatehgarh Sahib, Punjab), Sanjeev Kumar Sharma, (Government Primary School, Reasi, J&K) and Muhammad Ali (Government Middle School, Kargil, Ladakh).
- A documentary featuring each of the 44 awardees lauding their innovative and unique ways to help children learn better was also shown during the virtual function.
- While Bhiwani’s Paliwal used her skills to teach mathematics in a creative and simple way, Kandaghat’s Kamal Kishor Sharma used old furniture and infrastructure to create a midday meals’ area/room in his school.
- Jagtar Singh of Fatehgarh Sahib used community funding to makeover his school and Reasi’s Sanjeev Kumar Sharma helped his school located in a far-fledged area join the mainstream. Kargil’s Muhammad Ali with the help of a new experiment “learning by doing” started language classes in his school.
- What he said: President Kovind said giving the awards to such accomplished teachers made him confident about the country’s future. “Such teachers strengthen my belief that the future generation is safe in the hands of well-qualified teachers. Teachers have a very important place in everyone’s life. People remember their teachers lifelong,” he said.
- The President said that teachers should pay special attention to the fact that each student has different ability, talent, psychology, social background and environment. Emphasis should be laid on the all-round development of each child according to their special needs, interests and abilities.
- Education based on love, not fear is more effective and useful and sensitive teachers can shape the future of students by their behaviour, conduct and teaching.
- Remembering the giant: Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan remembered the contributions of former President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the renowned philosopher and academician on whose birthday the day is celebrated.
- A girl on a boat: On the same day, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi hailed a girl from Uttar Pradesh’s Gorakhpur who reportedly travelled to school by rowing a boat when her house was inundated in floods. He also shared a screenshot of a media report about the girl.
- Knowledge centre:
- S Radhakrishnan - As an academic, philosopher, and statesman, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1888-1975) was one of the most recognized and influential Indian thinkers in academic circles in the 20th century. He sought to define, defend, and promulgate his religion, a religion he variously identified as Hinduism, Vedanta, and the religion of the Spirit. Radhakrishnan’s concern for experience and his extensive knowledge of the Western philosophical and literary traditions earned him the reputation of being a bridge-builder between India and the West. He drew from both Western and Indian sources throughout his writing. He was held up in academic circles as a representative of Hinduism to the West. Radhakrishnan was knighted in 1931, the same year he took up his administrative post as Vice Chancellor at the newly founded Andhra University at Waltair. He served there for five years as Vice Chancellor, when, in 1936, not only did the university in Calcutta affirm his position in perpetuity but Oxford University appointed him to the H.N. Spalding Chair of Eastern Religions and Ethics. The years following Indian independence mark Radhakrishnan’s increasing involvement in Indian political as well as in international affairs. The closing years of the 1940s saw Radhakrishnan actively involved in the newly incorporated UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization), serving on its Executive Board as well as leading the Indian delegation from 1946-1951. Radhakrishnan also served for the two years immediately following India’s independence as a member of the Indian Constituent Assembly.
- Radhakrishnan as President - With the Report of the Universities Commission complete in 1949, Radhakrishnan was appointed by then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru as Indian Ambassador to Moscow, a post he held until 1952. The opportunity for Radhakrishnan to put into practice his own philosophical-political ideals came with his election to the Raja Sabha, in which he served as India’s Vice-President (1952-1962) and later as President (1962-1967). He saw during his terms in office an increasing need for world unity and universal fellowship. The urgency of this need was pressed home to Radhakrishnan by what he saw as the unfolding crises throughout the world. At the time of his taking up the office of Vice-President, the Korean war was already in full swing. Political tensions with China in the early 1960s followed by the hostilities between India and Pakistan dominated Radhakrishnan’s presidency. Moreover, the Cold War divided East and West leaving each side suspicious of the other and on the defensive. He retired from public life in 1967. He spent the last eight years of his life at the home he built in Mylapore, Madras. Radhakrishnan died on April 17, 1975.
- EXAM QUESTIONS: (1) Comment on the life and times of S Radhakrishnan, and why is his contribution considered immortal for Hinduism. (2) What role can a philosopher play in the position of the President of India? Explain.
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