Chapter 1
The chapter sets the foundation to the book. The chapter introduces the book and its purposes including envisioning a different kind of education; to encourage debate, dialogue and reflection around the purposes and praxis of education; and to share case studies of practices from alternative classroom. Through the chapter I also explore my own intersectional positionality. And finally, I provide a detailed outline of the book’s parts and chapters.
Chapter 2
The chapter explores the limitations of the modern and mass education systems and the consequent calls for alternative purposes of education. The modern education system is marred by reductionism, objectification, fragmentation, materialism, segregation, self-centrism, and anthropocentrism. These inevitably lead to the reproduction and propagation of inequality, arbitrary separations of me and them, fragmented societies, loss of reverence, awe and wonder for the world, and a limited understanding of an interconnected world. Instead, I explore alternative visions of education that prioritise an ecological and spiritual perspective regarding integral and holistic education that will eventually lead to harmony within oneself and wider society. I draw on my own personal reflections and experiences, data from practitioners in alternative schools, and the works of various Indian and international thinkers.
Chapter 3
The chapter involves a deeper investigation into the work of various Indian educationists and thinkers, exploring their visions, recommendations, and direct and indirect impact on practice and policy. Notably, they call for an education for both an inner renewal and social change, both through the process of education and as a result of it. This brings about an education that is intrinsically harmonious and also leads to an education for harmony. The chapter also introduces some of the alternative schools that the book draws upon, not only providing context to the schools, but also, striving to create an immersive experience for the reader.
Chapter 4
The chapter explores various calls for alternative visions for education, especially those calling more specifically for equivalents of education of the heart. While education of the heart has been one of the primary goals within various educational systems, especially within the global south, there have been several synergetic concepts like learning to live together, social emotional learning, global citizenship education, emotional intelligence and peace education that have emerged across the world. Drawing on practitioners’ vision, the chapter emphasises the role of education for harmony (within oneself and in the wider world) for building a commitment to the wellbeing of oneself, others, and the world at large, with the hope that this will inevitably shape an intrinsically and naturally just, peaceful, and harmonious society.
Chapter 5
The chapter unpacks the nuances and limitations of developing a conceptual framework and then, proposes an interconnected framework with three domains (discovery of the self, other and world) and six dimensions (awareness, empathetic and caring relations, sense of purpose, change in perspective, compassionate action, and meaningful engagement). The framework embodies a non-anthropocentric perspective, with the domains including other living and non-living things beyond human society. The domains are related through one’s responsibility and commitment to each other and their wellbeing, whilst similarly, the dimensions are interconnected, as the development of one leads to the development of others.
Chapter 6
The chapter explores various nuances of the framework and moves beyond a simplistic 2-dimensional model to a deeply interconnected framework of education for harmony. The framework is suggested as being intrinsically linked and an indivisible whole. Education for harmony relies on the integration of education of the head, heart, hands, and the spirit; these cannot be developed directly through piecemeal efforts, but rather, must be developed holistically. Teachers advocated a pluralistic approach to pursue education for harmony as a purpose of education, rather than a predetermined goal following a singular path. Notably, education for harmony is seen as a way of living, being, knowing and seeing the world around one, rather than a mere acquisition of knowledge, skills and/or habits.
Chapter 7
The chapter explores classroom practices for education for harmony. It emphasises the role of pedagogy (how to teach) over curricula (what to teach). It explores a range of pedagogical practices, including dialogic teaching, peer- and project-based learning, meditation, reflection, and social action. Thereafter, the chapter highlights the importance of a lived-experience based pedagogy as a means of bringing about an intrinsic form of education for harmony. Such pedagogy relies on embodied education, recognition that everything and everyone is a potential educator as well as awareness that education is a continuous process that extends beyond textbooks, curricula, and schools’ four walls.
Chapter 8
The chapter problematises notions of pedagogy as being limited to teaching learning practices within the classroom and explores what pedagogy could be like when education goes beyond transfer of content knowledge or development of skills and competencies. The chapter emphasises that education for harmony is brought about by a continuum of shared lived experiences and that these are not just engendered through classroom practices, but also, by the culture and people within the school. It emphasises the importance of classroom and schoolwide ethos, Teacher Student Relations and autonomous behaviour regulation as underpinning the continuum of lived experiences.
Chapter 9
The chapter emphasizes the importance of teachers consciously trying to live together harmoniously for themselves as opposed to merely modelling behaviours. It highlights the teachers’ intrinsic commitment to pursuing Learning To Live Together Harmoniously both for themselves and their students. It encourages questioning if schools need to be just learning centres for children or if they can be restructured as learning spaces for everyone, spaces for community living, and spaces for experimenting with different ways of living and being. It exemplifies some of these alternatives and finds that the schools had several supportive systems for teachers: including those for autonomy, dialogue, collaboration, reflection, meditation, action on issues of social justice, and ethos of harmony.
Chapter 10
The chapter concludes the book by summarising the key findings and epistemological underpinnings for education for harmony. The chapter is primarily a call to action that encourages the reader to adapt, rather than adopt the conceptual frameworks, classroom teaching learning practices and schoolwide processes and systems as per the local micro-contexts. It also invites the reader to share their own understandings, reflections and experiments with other readers and practitioners.