Folklore as the means of Critical Pedagogy Understanding the culture of disadvantaged in India

Dr.Mahendra K Mishra mkmfolk@gmail.com

Part I
There is no human activity from which every form of intellectual participation can be excluded Antonio Gramsci

TRIBAL SCENARIO IN ORISSA

Population: Nearly 40 Million ST Population: 23% SC Population: 15% Literacy Rate: 63%

However, there is a great variation among the districts of Orissa in literacy rates & other social parameters. 7 out of 30 districts have female literacy less than 30 % Example: Female Literacy Rate of Nawarangpur: 21% Female Literacy Rate of Khurda: 71% A difference of over

50 percentage points!!!

Similar is the diversity and variation in other social parameters like health status, IMR, MMR, Elementary enrolment rate, Elementary completion rate etc.

Status of Orissa from tribal lens

23 % tribal of state population 62 scheduled tribes in the state Three language groups( Austro Asiatic, Dravidian, Indo Aryan) 13 endangered tribes with vulnerable situation

Literacy of tribal in Orissa

Total literacy 63.08 Literacy) 75.35 Female literacy 50.51 Tribal literacy 37.37 Tribal male 51.48 Tribal female 23.37

Gap : 41.25% male Gap: 54% female Over all gap 38 %

Orissa scenario
Population of Orissa about 4 crores About 84 lakh tribal 83 percent people live in rural areas 5 Percent in urban areas ( 6 percent non literate ) 6 Percent forest areas Barring eastern Orissa south , north and western Orissa form the co existence of tribal and rural artisan and agricultural caste groupthus they live together

Tribal Folklore
Mostly oral in nature Functional in domestic and community domain Expressed in their own language Two context of oral tradition
Sacred ( mythic/ritualistic) Entertainment ( songs/tales/proverbs / epics etc)

Priests/Singers/ Story tellers

Each of the community member irrespective of age and sex are the owner of oral tradition Priests : sacred narratives/ myths/mantras/ chanting Professional epic singers (caste bardparghania) Ameture singers/storytellers among the community( demo)

Genres of folklore
Children's song Lullabies, play song, labour song, forest songs Ritual songs , love songs, songs in social and religious ceremony Prose and Poetry Narratives : Tales, legends and myths Epics/caste genealogies Proverbs and sayings Semi Literary Narratives Dhan Malika, Briksha Malika, Pakshi Malika

Tribal Religion
An integrated worldview where man, nature and spirit are inseparable They form the epistemic world associating the visible with the invisibles Life and plant are interchangeable( reflected in folktales and myths) Belief on life after death(Duma) underworld and rebirth of ancestor( past connected to the present )

Tribal Life
Dance and music Art and craft Weaving clothes, beads and making ornaments
Play and group dance

Tribal Technology
Caging the tiger/ fishing / Catching the animals/birds and hunting Processing the forest products Melting the iron/ preparation of liquor Using herbal medicine

Social organization
Village as a large family Village headman as the organizer Village priest as the protector of the subjects Village shaman ( Disari) as the mediator of the Goddess and the human being Customary law ( Saura tale-Gamanga)

Written Literature in Tribal Orissa Santali ( ol-chiki script) Munda(script) Kui (script) Saura (script) Ho ,Kol Bathudi

Folklore is Experiential Education

Folklore has the roots of social justice Therefore it is created by those who are marginalized. It believes in humanization( reflected in folk tales ethics and morals)

Consider, out of 600 crores of world population, half of them are literates half of them are non literates. Is it not true that the literates are unknown about the complete truth of human knowledge. Our knowledge is incomplete with out them!!!

Role of Folklore in Post Colonial Indian Education

Current education represents the colonial western model. Those who are educated in this system are also the victim of Swadeshi Colonialism Silence is to be broken, folklore has the same power (tui munusa) You are a human ,I am a human why do you threaten me ?( Kirpi Melaka a nonliterate girl from Kondh tribe)

Six Noticeable Demand for Education (UNESCO 2000) ( From South East Asian Perspective)
1.The world is swiftly changing towards globalization 2. Three is a need to counteract the deepening social inequalities and increasing marginalization and violence. 3. Need to recognize that diversities between individual and communities is a valuable resources that is different from social inequality

Six..
Need to educate individuals for a better citizen Addressing increasing broader spectrum of issues Co existence of advantages and disadvantages resulting from the impact of technical progress on the environment and the quality of life of individuals and communities

Indian Higher Education

For us Village is college Society is university A farmer is a professor of agriculture An old woman is a store house of knowledge But the gap is that

Our college could not represent the villages Our University could not meet the social needs of the society.

Postcolonial education
Dream Basic Education Vocational skill Spiritual and moral education Self sufficient Head, hand and heart Village self rule Reality Much emphasis on Higher education Reading and writing skill No vocational skill Head only, no hand, no heart state authority

Post Colonial Education

Focus on the relationship among culture ,power and domination Culture has to be viewed as a domain of struggle where the production and transmission of knowledge is always a contested process ( Joe Kincheloe)

All education is inherently political and all pedagogy must be aware of this condition A social and educational vision of justice and equality should ground all education Issues of race, class, gender, sexuality, religion, and physical ability are all important domains of oppression and critical anti-hegemonic action. The alleviation of oppression and human suffering is a key dimension of educational purpose

 For Paulo Freire Education means A critical understanding of reality Making a commitment to Utopia and changing reality Training those who will make change Dialogue

Village verses school/College

Village A composition of many languages, ethnicity, religion do coexists What is the secret that perpetuates the co existence of these diversities in the villages School Though physical access is not denied, students cultural values and experience is not captured What's the secret that denies the diversities of language, ethnicity and gender

Space of marginalized in the village

Marginalized are secluded from the sacred centers They live in a secluded place Visible social barrier ( well, tank, temple) Traditional culture has perpetuated this in the society

Do these social inequalities Influence the school ? Curriculum and content ? Teachers attitude ? School management ? Classroom behaviors ? Learning of children ?

Power relation
Who are the marginalized Lower castes/class Powerless Poor Illiterate Working class Unprivileged Who are not Upper Caste/class powerful Rich Literate Ruling class privileged

Who are the marginalized ?

Dalits Adivasi Muslims Artisan castes Women Migrants Urban deprived Nomadic

What type of classroom do our schools contain

Children from Different languages Different religion Different ethnic groups different cultural background Teachers as authority (on the chair ) and children in culture of silence (sitting on the ground) Is the school replicate our inherited colonial mind set ?

NCF 2005
The formal approach, of equality of treatment in terms of equal access or equal representation for girls, is inadequate. Today, there is a need to adopt a substantive approach, towards equality of outcome, where diversity, difference and disadvantage are taken into account.(p.6)

A classroom with equality

To make it an inclusive and meaningful experience for children To move away from a textbook culture to connect with childrens life Child centered pedagogy: Gives primacy to childrens experiences gives primacy to their voices gives primacy to their active participation

Physical access only ?

Marginalized children have physical access to the school But they are intellectually neglected Rich human values of Adivasi is not discussed Dignity of labour of workers are not respected Contribution of Muslims are ignored Tolerance of women and girls are ignored Service of Christians are misunderstood

How Tribal Folklore matter

Ensures ethnic identity Explores local knowledge that is unwritten Unravel the secrets of the universe Maintain bio diversities for a sustainable development Create a world of shared understanding of life by mutual respect and togetherness Higher human values like gender equity, community living, customary law, integrated worldview,manitain natural law, respect individual freedom

Our role
NFSC as an agency of action Connects the village with college Society with university Individual with the community Provide a complete human knowledge for a better understanding of a diverse communities of the country which is unexplored