Kapil’s Khichadi
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It is said that history and how it is written belongs to those who win. To quote Dan Brown of ‘The Da Vinci Code’, “History is always written by the winners. When two cultures clash, the loser is obliterated, and the winner writes the history books-books which glorify their own cause and disparage the conquered foe. As Napoleon once said, 'What is history, but a fable agreed upon?”.Of course, in recent times our own Winston Churchill said, ‘History is written by the victors’.
The National Curriculum for England was first introduced by the Education Reform Act of 1988. I remember it very well since at that time I was an aspiring teacher in Inner London – the days of the ILEA (you can google to see what it stands for!). The concept of a curriculum for the nation is interesting as it is important. It set out a vision and aspirations for pupils and their path through statutory education.
Statutory education was to offer a curriculum thatwas broad and balanced, and which promoted the spiritual, moral, social, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils and preparing them for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life. I am sure most fair-minded people would accept this aslaudable. However, as we witness all too often, what begins with high hopes may not necessarily translate into action that merit commendation.
Black Lives Matter has created a toxic environment for the nation. I reject the systematic anarchist methodology that they use to undermine the fabric of the nation. What is incredibly important, i.e. the true history of oppression and the resultant inequalities, has been compromised for political ideology. However, for us let us take the opportunity that presents itself to the nation, to present history not through the eyes of the winner only, but also through the eyes of the oppressed.
Shashi Tharoor's Oxford Union speech on 28 May 2015 became an international talking point. It was in favour of the motion, "This house believes Britain owes reparations to her former colonies". He proved, for those who had open minds, that there indeed was a great injustice that had hitherto been hidden away from the British National Curriculum.
Maybe we have now reached a time in history when some of the grotesque wrongs of the past should be rightedby telling the truth. The question that arises immediately is whose truth will it be? How much of that truth? How far back do we go? And what if this truth shows that certain faiths, e.g. Christianity and Islam, were in fact responsible for the genocide of millions across the world. That they inspired the brutality of dictators, Kings and Queens to be exercised on millions, cultures undermined if not vanquished, languages distorted if not destroyed, land looted and left barren, and the subjugation of whole nations for hundreds of years that has left scars that may never be healed?
I am in favour of every nation doing the needful. For the UK, it is an impossible task to tell the whole truth within the time we have in formal education. However, it is possible to do enough so that when pupils leave school,they know and understand the world in which they live in.
There is no short cut and all political parties will have to own it. It might take years before an agreed curriculum is rolled out, but today we can take the first step. It’s time to correct the ‘curriculum of deceit’.
