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A lesson plan for grade 12 (British Columbia curriculum), 20th century history, students:
Hindu-Muslim
Violence Upon Partition Despite Gandhi’s Otherwise Successful Advocacy of Non-Violence
Lesson Title: Why Despite the Considerable Success Vis-à-vis the British of Gandhi’s Advocacy of Non-violence was There Extensive Hindu-Muslim Violence Upon Partition?
Rationale:
An important topic in
twentieth-century world history, which is on the provincial curriculum for grade
twelve history, is India’s gaining independence from British rule and
Gandhi’s non-violent conduct for independence.
India was the jewel in the British crown and was the most populous
of imperial possessions. And Gandhi’s
non-violent resistance influenced other independence movements and the
African-American civil rights movement led by Martin Luther King Jr..
But
it is important for students to understand that despite the considerable success
vis-à-vis the British of Gandhi’s advocacy of non-violence there was
extensive Hindu-Muslim violence upon Partition, and it is important for them to
reflect on why this violence ensued. (They
might also be told that Gandhi had opposed Partition partly on the pragmatic
grounds of the massive displacement and violence that might
result from the breaking up of the country.) Objectives:
Students will demonstrate an
understanding of Gandhi’s advocacy of non-violence and its sources.
And they will demonstrate critical thoughtfulness on why extensive Hindu-Muslim
violence ensued despite Gandhi’s otherwise successful advocacy of non-violence.
Body
of Lesson, Lecture (20 minutes):
Students will be lectured
briefly on Gandhi’s ahimsa and satyagraha and on his having been
influenced by these ancient Indian ideals, by Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, by a
religious egalitarianism, and by Emerson, Thoreau, and Tolstoy.
And students will be lectured briefly on Gandhi’s non-violent conduct
for Indian independence. 1st
Activity (55 minutes):
Students will visit websites
on Gandhi and discern on them the coverage of Hindu-Muslim violence and of
Gandhi’s fasting to work on the consciences of the violent to have them cease
their violence. And students will
exercise their critical thoughtfulness on why despite the considerable success vis-à-vis
the British of Gandhi’s advocacy of non-violence there was extensive
Hindu-Muslim violence upon Partition. 2nd
Activity (next class, 30 minutes): Students
will get into four groups and discuss this question. 3rd
Activity (30 minutes): Each
group will share the results of their discussions with the class.
(Answers one might look for are the lack of understanding on the parts of
the masses of the principled discipline of non-violence and the perception by
the Hindus of the grand taking from India of Pakistan by the Muslims and both
sides’ perception of each other as dividing and displacing their respective
communities. Other answers are the
lack of alternative, modern, peaceful accommodating values and the breakdown,
with some modernity, of traditional village harmonious values of the common
ownership of land and of the jajmani system of reciprocal exchange of
services. Yet other answers are the
deepening through the divide and rule practices of the British of the now
politicized schism between Hindus and Muslims and the ease of committing
violence against unarmed people as opposed to against, say, British soldiers.
One might look for students' understanding that the answers operate combinedly.) After each group’s sharing of their results, the students
will be encouraged to engage in a class-wide posing of questions and comments
and in discussion. Extension
(in class, if activities are completed early):
Students will be asked
about, and will have a class-wide discussion on, why India's leaders abandoned Gandhianism
after Independence and the relevance or lack of
relevance of Gandhi for post-Independence India. Closure
(10 minutes): Content
and reflective gaps in the students’ discussions will be filled in summation. And students will be asked what they thought of the
exercise. Assessment
(5 minutes): For
individual assessment another critical,
homework, activity will be explained to the students: they will write a short,
two to four paragraph, essay on Gandhi’s relevance or lack of relevance for
the world at large in the twentieth century and/or today.
The students will be told that this essay will be assessed on their
independent research and thoughtfulness as excellent, good, satisfactory, or
unsatisfactory. Brief comments will
be given to the students on why they achieved their respective standings. |
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