Essay on Culture and Psychology
It is known that educational systems of different cultural groups or societies have their own characteristics. The quality of education depends largely on how well it satisfies the standards of excellence that include moral, epistemic and aesthetic domains. These domains are closely connected with culture. In addition, educational systems can reflect the culture of societies, their political and social changes. According to David Matsumoto and Linda Juang (2008), “culture results from the interaction between universal biological needs and functions, universal social problems created to address these needs and the context in which people live” (p. 15). Education and culture are interrelated.
The educational system of India has its specific features. In accordance with the Constitutional amendment bill of 2002, in India, education is free and compulsory. Education is provided by public and private sectors and controlled by the states and the Union Government. Today the government of India pays special attention to elementary education. Although poverty rate has declined from 37.2% in 2005 to 29.8 % in 2010, more than 1/3 of all citizens in India are still illiterate (The World bank, 2012, para.3). In accordance with the information represented by the World Bank (2012), “with more children entering elementary school, the need for universalizing secondary education has emerged” (para.4). In addition, it is known that India has improved its education system due to certain improvements in the economic sector of the country. Much of the progress can be found in Higher education.
Moreover, educational system of India is focused on Indian culture. In India, social behavior of children and adults is controlled by such beliefs and values as dharma, harmony, social hierarchy, Karma, tolerance, and individuality, according to Shukla (2004, p. 148). The main characteristic features of Indian culture include humanism and universality. As a rule, Indian children are brought up to respect life in all its forms and never use violence towards others. The concept of dharma is focused on the values of devotion to duty, honor and discipline which are considered to be crucial for today’s society. I have found that the doctrine of Karma (or the so called self-less action) is closely connected with purushartha and leads to the concept of happiness of all mankind. These facts prove that in India, religion is an essential part of educational system. Shukla (2004) states that “Indian culture is diverse and multicultural with multidimensional characteristics of religion, language, customs and ideologies” (p. 150). That is why, in India, education is reoriented towards the development of certain values and beliefs. For example, in Indian schools, children learn two languages: Hindi and English. All children have to wear a school uniform in order to maintain adequate standards and avoid discrimination. In addition, morning assemblies at schools include such activities as “singing and understanding of national songs, symbols and taking the oath of allegiance to the country” (Shukla, 2004, p. 154). Many educational activities are focused on cultural values, including participation in festivals, visiting to exhibitions, museums, religion studies, etc.
I have found that in education, culture deems important such values and beliefs as duty, discipline, respect for other people, national unity, etc. Education should develop a strong sense of confidence in the nation, justice, democracy, liberty and equality, religious and spiritual traditions. In India, the above mentioned values and beliefs are honored and developed in children and adolescents.
