Arunachal minister stresses values, compassion in education

Itanagar, Sep 17 (PTI) Arunachal minister PD Sona on Thursday stressed the need to go beyond academic learning and give equal importance to values and emotional development of children, saying education must help nurture compassionate and responsible individuals.

Inaugurating a three-day workshop on social, emotional and ethical (SEE) learning in Tawang district, the education and tourism minister stressed the need to go beyond academic learning and give equal importance to values and emotional development of children, saying education must help nurture compassionate and responsible individuals.

The workshop is being organised by the Department of Karmik and Adhyatmik Affairs (DoKAA) in collaboration with the Thupten Shedrupling Foundation, with a focus on integrating social, emotional and ethical values with academic learning, an official statement said.

The minister said the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) had worked for nearly one-and-a-half years to develop a curriculum centred on moral values for students of classes 3 to 5, which has been introduced from the current academic session.

He suggested that experts from DoKAA collaborate with SCERT to further enrich and fine-tune the curriculum.

Referring to the message delivered by keynote speaker Geshe Lhakdor, director of the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives (LTWA), Dharamshala, Sona said compassion should extend beyond fellow human beings to the environment and all forms of life.

He observed that environmental degradation, disasters and destruction caused by reckless human activities should not always be viewed simply as acts of nature when they are consequences of human actions.

SEE learning, he said, could play an important role in nurturing compassion, responsible behaviour and greater sensitivity towards society and the environment among young learners.

Delivering the keynote address on ‘Educating the Heart and Mind for Quality Education’, Lhakdor underlined the transformative role of education in creating a peaceful and compassionate society.

He said human beings have the unique ability to communicate through language and dialogue and should therefore seek to resolve differences and misunderstandings through meaningful communication.

Despite possessing intelligence, knowledge and advanced capabilities, humanity at times uses these strengths in destructive ways, Lhakdor observed.

Lead facilitator Reshma Piramal gave an overview of the SEE learning framework and the state roadmap, familiarising participants with its approach and objectives.

Earlier, DoKAA director Thupten Kalden highlighted the growing relevance of SEE learning in the contemporary educational environment and welcomed the dignitaries, resource persons and participants.

The workshop is aimed at helping educators deepen their understanding of SEE learning and explore practical approaches to creating compassionate, responsible, inclusive and value-based learning environments in schools.

The programme emphasised that education should focus not only on intellectual development but also on nurturing compassionate hearts, ethical awareness, responsible behaviour and sensitivity towards society and the environment. PTI UPL UPL MNB

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