EDUCATIONAL THOUGHT S OF MAHATMA PHULE ABOUT INDIAN PERSPECTIVE

 EDUCATIONAL THOUGHT S OF MAHATMA PHULE ABOUT INDIAN PERSPECTIVE

  

 

 

India is the land of many great social thinkers, who started social reform movement.

encouraging by western education in the nineteenth century under the leadership of

Mahatma Jotiba Phule with the objectives of education and equality. Raja Ram Mohan

Roy, Jotiba Phule , Dr. Ambedkar succeeded in eradicating some of the social evils like

child marriage, sati system, women’s illiteracy. Rabindranath Tagore, Swami Vivekanand

and Mahatma Gandhi also encouraged women to participate in the freedom struggle with

the sense of solidarity. This era is aptly called as the Renaissance of India. The present

paper highlights Mahatma Phule’s thought and contribution in general education and

specially for women’s education. Mathatma Phule’s thoughts are relating to society, religion,

life, human rights and women are significant not for his age but for all the ages. His

writings is vast including

Gulamgiri,

Shetkaryacha Asud

reason. Dr. Ambedkar in one of his speech remarked about the imp of Mahatma Phule’s

thoughts & quotes,

“Let others go where they will

we will follow the path of Jotiba Phule

we may or may not take Marx with us but

we will certainly not abandon Jotiba’s Philosophy”.1

According to Jotiba Phule education like all other fundamental needs, is essential

to all. Lack of education leads farmers, women and lower caste people Shudra and

Atishudra towards poverty. Poverty leads to illiteracy, illiteracy leads to poverty, such is

bad wheel of farmers, women and shudras. India at the time of Phule raigned many major

problems like illiteracy, superstition, and untouchability. Women and untouchables were

the most oppressed of the lot, worst sufferers in society of that time. In those days,

women had no self esteem due to lack of education. Therefore, women’s education and

abolition of untouchability became Mahatma Phule’s mission in life. He realized that

education was the only means to transform the status of women in the society. According

to him ‘education of one women ensured the education of future generations’. He began

his mission with educating his own wife Savitribai Phule. He established India’s first ‘girls’

school’ in Pune in 1848. Later on in spite of severe opposition from the society, he

started many more girls schools with the help of his wife in 1850, 1852 and in the years

to come.

According to Jotiba Phule, eudcation like all other fundamental needs, is essential

to all. Lack of education leads farmers, women, Shudra and Atishudra towords poverty.

His lines are famous about loss of education.,

is indicative of Mahatma Phule’s keen observation and understanding of the social milieu.

In the era of Mahatma Phule education is reserved to the higher classes. Therefore,

he observed society where a large number of people who are neglected, and suppressed

and created slave due to lack of education. Mahatma Phule for the upliftment of these

classes, started a crusade against higher classes in society. He also attacked on British

Government, their educational policy, scholarship system, insisted on vocational education,

practical knowledge and development of business skill in school and college curriculum.

British Government appointed Hunter commission in 1882 under the leadership of Sir

William Hunter to study problems in Education system of India. Commission took

interviews of eminent persons in India, among them Mahatma Phule was one of them

who gave written document to Hunter commission, which have following suggestion about

education to all :

1)

Primary education is compulsory and free to all including Shudra and Atishudra.

2)

Government should bestow them scholarship’s and rewards to encourage about

education.

3)

Independent schools should be opened to them.

4)

Primary teachers should be trained and their qualification should be medium and

minimum.

5)

Teachers must come from farmer’s class who should know the problems of

these classes.

6)

Their payments should be increased, then and then only worthy men will come in

teaching field.

7)

Curriculum must be students centered and it must be different from city to rural

area because rural students can only grasp syllabus which is easy to understand

and based on life activities.

8)

Inspection of school shouldn’t take place only once in year but it should be taken

after the gap of three months.

9)

Primary education is compulsory hence school’s must be increased in number

and half of taxes must be given to school to run it properly otherwise central or

state government will do it’s provision.

10)

In each and every village schools for Shudras and Atishudras must be specially

opened by government only.

11)

Education systems must have under government control which is essential for

developing primary and higher education.

12)

Mumbai university gave permission for private degree education like B.A. and

M.A. Mahatma Phule welcomed this fact for propagation of knowledge

13)

Lastly he gave stress to technical and practical education because all learned

people won’t get jobs hence it is important.

Mahatma Phule’s thoughts about women, Shudra and Atishudra , and their

emancipation indicates keen observation and understanding of social milieu. His

contribution to society and humanity is praiseworthy with his timeless message, “The

religion of the creator is truth ; why then so many disputes ?