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Venu Mehta is an assistant professorin the Department of Communications Skills

of the Charotar Universityof Science and Technologyin Changa, Gujarat, India.

Literature Education in Indiaand Multiculturalism

Literaturehaslongbeenconsideredan essential part of the world’s socialmachinery.Theuseofliteratureinedu-cationhasservedasatraditionalformoflearning from ancient times through tothisnewcentury.InIndia,thetransmis-sionofculturaltraditions,socialnorms,andmoralsistypicallyconveyedthroughliterature.The Ramayana and the Ma-habharata,forexample,arereferredtoas“grandmother’stales”andareemblazonedin children’s minds from generation togeneration.ThePanchatantra,acollectionoffableswrittenbyBishnuSharmasome-timeduringthethirdcenturyBCE,wasonceusedtoteachprincesthepracticesofsociologyandgovernance. Nowandinrecenttimes,theeduca-tionofchildrenremainsboundwithliter-arypedagogy.TheintentofplacingEng-lishliteratureinthecurriculumofschoolanduniversityeducationhelpstoprovideavalue-basedorientationtotheacademic,social, and aesthetic purposes of teach-ing.Literaturecourses,forexample,holdaccordancewiththelearners’immediateenvironment.Itisanenvironmentthatisphysical,social,andcultural.Eitherasapartofalanguagecourseorasaspecialliteraturecourse,thepositionofliteratureeducationhassecuredaprominentplaceinIndia.

Folktales:A Form of Literature

That Endorses Multiculturalism

Imagineachild,beforestartingschool,beingnurturedbylisteningtothefolktales,fairy-tales,andfablesoftheirculture.Thismightbethechild’sfirstinteractionwithliterature.While there are many genresof literature that have been included inclassroomteaching,studentsfindfolktalesattractivebecauseofseveralfundamentalfeaturesthathaveenduredovercenturies.

Introduction

InIndia,multiculturalexperienceisrepresentedbywhatiscalleda“unityindiversity”pattern.Thisincludesthediver-sityofreligiouscommunities,languages,ethnicities,andtheminoritypopulationsin each of the states and regions thatcomprise the nation.Thus theories ofmulticulturalaccommodationareoneofIndia’s inhered features. Parekh (2000)remarkswhendescribingIndia’sdiversityand distinct way of life that“India hasacommoncriminal [law]butnotacivillaw” (p.191).To focusontheconceptof“multiculturalism”isamatterofexigencyfortheharmoniousandprogressivefutureof India, as it is for global classroomsworldwide. The goal of fostering values of mul-ticulturalism in learners is often a partofschoolcurriculum.However,wheneverthesevalueshavebeenincorporatedintolearningmaterials,itisusuallydoneinaconventionalmannerresultinginmostlyinadequateoutcomes.Itisimportantthatthe young minds of our future citizenslearntherichvaluesofmulticulturalism. This article illustrates a promisingpracticethatseekstoteachthesevaluesthrough folktale-oriented task-basedliteraturethat focusesontheadolescentagegroup.Thepracticedescribedhereisbasedontheobservationalresultsfromafieldtrialofthismaterialthatwasapartofmydoctoralresearch.

Adolescence: The Age of Concern

The teachingofmulticulturalvaluesamongadolescentsshouldbeaconcernof

everyeducationalsystem.Learnersinthisagegrouparetransitioningtowardbecom-ingdecision-makingcitizensofsociety.Thusitisevenmoreappropriatethattheygainfamiliaritywiththefundamentalsofmulti-culturalismandlearnthevalues,attitudes,andmoralbeliefsthataredesirableforliv-ingeffectivelyinamulticulturalsociety. According to Bull (1969) in Moral Education,“lateadolescencebringsamoredeveloped ability for abstract thinking,andthesearchforidealstowhichtogiveallegianceandaroundwhich to organizeand integrate the self” (p. 166). In thisrespect, education through literature canbeameanstoreplaceignorancewithmulti-culturalvaluesofferingapositivedirectiontowardamulticulturalconsciousnessandperspective.

Literature:A Creative Way to Multiculturalism

Literature and storytelling have al-ways endowed identity to life, either bywayofcreatingitthroughstorytellingorbyinterpretingthelifestoriesthataretold.Timeandtimeagainmanifoldendeavorstofindandutilizetheroleofliteratureinhumanlifehaveprovedtohavepositiveef-fects.Literatureisamediumthatprovidesawaytobringtheuniversalandindividualpuzzlements of lifeback into order. It isaninherentroleofliteraturetobeakeyelementofeducation. Literature, with its alluring forms,has long appealed to readers for social,moral,andindividualedification.Frequentlackoftoleranceandtheriseofconflictswithin multicultural societies urgentlydemandanenduringsolution.Accordingly,literature,beingvitalinitsabilitytocon-veyvaluesthatreachacrosscommunities,assumesasignificantplaceinthefosteringofmulticulturalvaluesandofferstangiblesolutionstoreduceconflict.

Literature-Oriented Multicultural Education in India

Children’s Experiences with a Task-Based Folklore Lessonthe Academic Success of Diverse Student Populations

Venu Mehta

©CaddoGapPress2013

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The timeless qualities of folktalesinclude their universality and infinitemeaningfulness,theirabilitytorepresenta variety of different cultural aspects,thecomplexinterplayofrealism,fantasy,andsymbolism,andthebeneficiallinkingof popular culture with many academicsubjectsandskillsthatenhancethetransi-tionsfromchildhoodtoadultlife. Exposing learners to folktales is anideal way to approach the teaching ofculturalunderstandingandmulticulturalvalues.Duringadolescence,learnersfindthemselveswithavarietyofopportunitiestobelongtomanydifferentgroupswhileatschool.Withinthesegroups,eachstudentissearchingforpersonalidentitywhileatthe same time looking for guidance anddirectiontofindtherightpath. Stories such as those found in folk-talesoffertheselearnersthefreedomtousetheirimaginationstogainknowledgeandexperience thatwillhelp themdealwiththevarioussocialandmulticulturalsituationsthatwillcometheirway.Theop-portunitytolearnaboutothercultureswillhelp make these learners well-roundedindividuals,eventuallyleadingtofulfillingtheroleofbeingaresponsiblecitizen.

Folktales Uphold Valuesof Multiculturalism

As a main source of socio-culturalinformation, utilizing the multifacetedelementsoffolktalescanhelplearnerstounderstandthevaluesofmulticulturalism,asfollows:

uDevelopmentofasenseofdemocraticcitizenshipwiththeabilitytore-contex-tualizeinthecontextofamulticulturalsociety.

uDevelopmentofasenseofhumanrightswith the intention of building interna-

tional cooperation that can sustain theideaofmulticulturalism.

u Development of human values suchasliberty,freedom,justice,andequalitythatareessentialtothedevelopmentofamulticulturalperspective.

uAcceptance of cultural diversity for apeacefulco-existence.

uDevelopmentofdecision-makingskills,critical thinking, and moral reasoning,which enable citizens to make clearchoicesintheireverydaylives.

uDevelopmentofRAAA:Recognition,Ac-ceptance,Appreciation,andAccommoda-tionofcultural/ethnicdiversity.

u Reduction and removal of cultural,ethnic,andracialdiscrimination,conflict,prejudice,andbiasstereotyping.

u Management of peace, harmony, andco-operativeliving.

uDevelopmentofsympathyandempathyskills.

In support of the above mentionedvalues, folktales can provide a basis forsocial,psychological,andculturalattitudesofmulticulturalismthatallowlearnerstoengageinthefollowingareas:

1.Culturalawareness.

2.Culturalstudies.

3.The understanding and reduction ofcultureshock.

4.Interculturalcommunication/dialogue.

5. The development of interculturalcompetence.

6.Acculturation.

7.Theabolishmentofsocialdistance.

Task-Based Folktale Material

The learning material that followsseekstodevelopandenhancetheconceptofmulticulturalismbyusingvariousinter-activetasksthatareintegratedwiththeliteraryformofthefolktale.Ihaveseveralreasons to justify my use of task-basedmaterial. First, it is very important to designand develop the folktale-oriented lit-eraturematerialmethodicallyasawaytomakeitalearner-friendlylesson. Second, developing materials thatfocusontask-basedlearningissupportedby theargument that suchanapproachprovides a purpose for the learning andtheuseofthecontent,anditisthereforemoreeducationallyeffective.Materialsde-velopedusingtask-basedlearningallowforalearner-centeredclassroomsituation. Third,task-basedlearningfacilitateslearnerstoengagewithcognitiveandaf-fectiveactivitiesandprocedures. Fourth, this method encourages theattitudes,values,andskillsnecessaryformulticulturalismbyrelyingheavilyonthelearners’involvementandplacesemphasisontheexperiencesthatthelearnersbringtotheclassroom.Intask-basedlearning,thefacilitatorcanmakethemostofeachlearner’sinvolvementasawaytocontrib-ute to the teaching process.As a result,task-basedmaterialrequirestheorgani-zationoftheliterarytextaroundvariousclassroomtasks.

Categories of Task-Based Learning

Various classroom tasks can resultindifferentoutcomesbyusingarangeofstepsinthepresentationofthematerial.Iusesixcategoriesoftasksinthemate-rial development—predicting, listening,questionsandanswers,discussion,evalu-

Table 1

Categories of Task Step in the Task Function of Task Expected Outcomes from Task

Predicting Pre-task. To anticipate what is to come. Provides a lead-in towards task-preparation stage.

Listening Pre-task. Task-preparation. To receive instructions, ideas, and views. Comprehension of instruction, ideas, and views. Task-realization.

Question and Answers Pre-task. Task-realization. To create information, and Understanding of the theme of the text. Ability to write explore the theme and concepts of the text. and speak about personal opinions and decisions.

Discussion Task-realization. To narrate and to describe. Sharing of personal experiences and opinions. Exploring and explaining attitudes. The exchanges of views.

Evaluating and Analyzing Task-preparation. Task-realization. To think about the given situation and Strengthens decision making and problem solving skills. problem, analyze hypothetical situations. Encourages the development of moral reasoning.

Vocabulary Pre-task. Task-realization. To explore new words and phrases. Increased vocabulary. Broader understanding of the and Language work To work with language exercises. meaning of words and expanded use of language.

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share lion,tiger,verseofpoetryrub Godcheese athingjug worlddoor astringbus enoughchalk junctiongoal roundpass nearsuffer travel

2.Glossary:

sweetmeat—any sweet food or delicacypreparedwithsugarorhoney

tograb—totakeorsnatchsuddenly

togobble—toeatquickly

wander—tomoveorgowithoutplanorfixeddestination

tomount—toclimbuponsomething;es-peciallytogetonthebackofahorse,onabicycle,etc.forriding

procession—theactofproceeding;anum-ber of persons moving forward, as in aparade,inanorderly,formalway

lawbreaker—apersonwhobreaksthelaworgoesagainstthelaw

pile—amassofthingsbundledtogether

accompaniment—anything that accom-paniessomethingelse;thingaddedwithsomething

fallto—tobegin;start

3.Literary Text(Folktale)

One Man’s Pleasure

A man from the city of Kabul in Afghanistan once visited India. Walk-ing along an Indian street, he came to a sweetmeat shop where all sorts of sweets of different shapes and sizes were neatly displayed. He knew only one or two words of Hindustani. He went up to the vendor of sweets and pointed at one particular kind that looked especially delicious. The man thought he was asking its name and said “khaja.” The word means both “sweets” and “eat it up.” The man from Kabul knew only the second meaning and so he fell to, grab-bing handful of sweets and gobbling them up with pleasure. The vendor of sweets asked the strang-er to pay for them. But the visitor didn’t understand what he was saying and hap-pily wandered away. The angry vendor complained to the police, who came and arrested the man from Kabul. The chief officer ordered that his head should be shaved clean and covered with tar, and that

atingandanalyzing,andvocabularyandlanguagework.ThesetaskcategoriesaredescribedinTable1.

Method and Procedure

Following are the components andtasksthatcorrelatewiththematerialinthissamplelesson.

Components

1. Literature genre:A Short Story(Folktale).

2. Title of the folktale: “One Man’sPleasure.”

3.Time:180minutes.

4.Age group:Adolescent.

5.Concepts taught:

uThattherearedifferencesinlanguage,culture,customandreligion.Thatphysi-calcharacteristicsareanaturalphenom-enonofthehumanraceandareafactoftheworld.

u How to respect another’s language,culture, customs, and physical charac-teristics.

uHowtounderstandthatforeignersandimmigrants may face problems whenabroad.

uTheknowledgethatNativesareoftenexpected to understand them and helpwhenneeded.

uHowtodemonstratesympathetic,andempathetic, and moralistic behaviors toforeignersandimmigrants.

uHowtodevelopattitudes,values,andskillsnecessarytobearesponsiblecitizen,including the skill to comprehend andreacttocriticalincidents.

6. Summary of objectives: Studentswillbeableto:

uIdentifyandrecognizethedifferenceandsimilaritiesofcultures.

u Understand that every culture isunique.

u Compare and contrast different cul-tures.

uUnderstandthatanother’swayof lifeshouldalsobevaluedandrespected.

uDevelopcriticalthinkingandabstractreasoning.

u Use geographic themes of location,placeandhuman-environmentrelationstodescribethesettingsandculturesrep-resentedinfolktales.

uDescribeempatheticbehaviortowardsaforeigner.

uDevelopadeeperglobalunderstandingandappreciationforculturaldifferencesas students study stories from aroundtheworld.

uUnderstandthevalueofbeingsympa-thetic,understanding,andhelpful.

uUnderstandthespiritofcitizenship.

7. Note to the teacher: First explainwhata“folktale”isandwhatitscharacter-isticsare.Explainthatreadingfolktalescanbeforbotheducationalandentertainmentpurposes.Explain to the students that itisimportanttounderstandtheparticularpeople and environments representedwhenstudyingfolktales,yettherearealsouniversal themes about human nature,values, andmorality that relate toall ofhumankind.Helpthestudentslocatetheprimary themeof the tale—thatofbeinggenerous to the community.The learnershouldrecognizeanactof“giving” inthestory, describe how the common good isenhancedthroughthisact,andidentifythemaincharacter’smotivationforgiving. Developwiththestudentsthethemethatitisimportanttounderstandpeopleandtheirenvironmentwhenstudyingfolk-tales.Inabrainstormingsession,havethelearners describe each location of KabulandIndiabylistingrecognizableculturalfeaturesandhumancharacteristics—land-forms,culture,language,life-style,rituals,law and order, inhabitants, settlementpatterns,religions,andwaysofmakingaliving.Keepinmindthevaluesconveyedand the lessons learned in this exercisetoguidethestudents’actionsandfurtherdeveloptheircharacter.

Tasks

1. Introduction:We find people whoaredifferentfromusinoureverydaylife.Peoplearedifferentinmanyways.Someofthesebasicdifferenceswefindare:

Adifferentlanguage.Adifferentreligion.Adifferentwayoflife.Differentphysicalcharacteristics.

Let us talk about differences in thelanguages. Here are some words that,whenpronounced,soundthesameinUrduand English, yet have totally differentmeanings:

English Word Meaning in Urdu

sir headso hundredrose everyday

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he should then be mounted on a donkey and run out of town in a procession to the sound of drums, so that everyone would know how a lawbreaker is punished in that part of the world. Though it is considered brutal punishment in India, the man from Kabul thought it was fun. He even felt charmed and honored by this treatment and the at-tention he got in the streets. On his return, people asked him, “How was India?” He answered, “Terrific! It’s a charming country, and a rich country. You get every-thing for nothing there. You go to a shop and point to a pile of sweets you like, and they tell you to take all you want and eat it. Then the police come with drums and pipes, give you a shave, dye your head with hair-dye, and give you a nice donkey to ride through town to the accompaniment of lovely Indian music. And all for nothing! Lovely country, generous hosts, beautiful people!”

4.Understanding the Text:Answerthefollowingquestionsbasedonthetext:

1.Wheredidthemancomefrom?

2.Whatdoyouunderstandby the line:“HeknewonlyoneortwowordsofHin-dustani”?

3.Theword“khaja” inthetexthastwomeanings.Whicharethey?

4.Whichmeaningdidthemanknowoftheword“khaja”?

5.What did the man say to the peopleabout India when he returned back toKabul?

5. Analyze and Write:Analyze thefollowingquestions.Givereasonsforyouranswers.

1.Whatwerethereasonsforthemisun-derstanding between the man and thevendor?

2.DoyouthinkthatthemanfromKabulwasreallyalawbreaker?

3. Do you justify the punishment giventotheman?

4.Doyouthinkthatthepunishmentgiventothemanwasinsulting?

5. Do you appreciate the man’s answeraboutIndia?

6.Vocabulary:Herearesomewordsthat have similar meanings: to respect,accept, sympathy, help, and understand.Find the appropriate word for each andwriteitdownunderitinTable2.

fellowfeelingesteemacknowledgereverencestandbyhonoraccommodateperceivecompassionhumanitybefriendupholdfathomcomprehendrecognize

7. Language Work: Here are somephrases that are used in the Englishlanguagetoindicatetheattitudeofandasenseofsympathy,help,andunderstand-ing.Considereachofthemandmaketwomeaningfulsentencesforeach.

sympatheticattitude:

uliveandletlive

helpingattitude:

ulendahand

attitudeofunderstanding:

utakeone’smeaning

8.What Should You Do?Lookatthesituations and the behaviors describedbelow.Marktheappropriateanswers.Note

thattheremaybemorethanoneappropri-ateanswerforeach.

I.When people from different culturesmeet, they may find it difficult to com-prehend the characteristics of anotherone’sculture.

Thiskindofsituationis…. a.common b.problematic c.natural

II.Whenapersonisunabletounderstandourlanguage,

weshould….a.avoidthepersonb. try to make him understandpatientlyc. understand that the person isunfamiliarwithourlanguage.

II.Whenapersondoesnotknowourna-tivecustoms,

weshould….a.makefunoutofthepersonb.trytomakethepersonawareofitc. be broad-minded and understand

his/herignorance

IV.Ifapersondifferswithourthinking,

weshould….a.alsotrytounderstandtheperson’sviewpointb.fightwiththepersonc. try to talk and help the personunderstandourthoughts

V.Whenapersonisofanotherreligion,

weshould….a.trytoacceptthedifferenceb. try to create awareness about theperson’sreligionc.hatethepersonbecausethepersonisfromdifferentreligion

9.Discuss—Express Your Views:Readthefollowingstatements.Indicatewhetheryouagreeordisagreewiththem.Discussyouranswerswithyourteacherandclass-mates.

Table 2

respect accept sympathy help understand

Table 3

name of the religion name for place of prayer name of the religious festival / celebration

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a. Foreigners who go to live in a newcountryshouldgiveuptheirhabitsandadapt to the new country as soon aspossible.

b. Minority members of any populationshouldadoptthecustomsandvaluesofthemajority.

10.Activity for a Bulletin Board:Lookaround your school, you will see manystudents from different religions.Askthem about information related to theirreligion. Make a chart and fix it on thebulletinboard.SeeTable3foranexampleofachart.

11.Design a Spin Wheel—Ring Around India: Cut three large cardboard circlesin three different sizes: the first shouldbe4feet,thesecondshouldbe3feet,andthethirdshouldbe2feet.Nowcutmanyovalshapesfromcardboard.Fixtheovalsoneachcircle.FixamapofIndiaatthemiddleofthesmallestcircle.Fixallthreecirclesfromtheircenterinawaythatyoucanspinthemindividually. Now collect information about thedifferent states of India.The informa-tion can include native language, fair,festivals, dance, attire, and craft.Withthis information you can paint, paste apicture,write,ormakeacollagewithit.Addthisinformationtoeachoval.Donot

writetheinformationinsequenceontheovalsrathermake itrandom.Writethenameofthestateontheinnercircle.Forexample: Inner circle 1 = state’s name,middlecircle2=nativelanguage,middlecircle3=fair,festival,ordance,andtheoutercircle4=attireandcraft. To play the game:Mismatch all thecirclesandtellyourclassmatestospinthecirclesandmatchtheovalswiththecorrectstate.SeeFigure1forthelayout.

Discussion and Conclusion

Ithasbeenobservedduringthefieldtrialofmydoctoralresearchthat,inthepracticeoflearningthevaluesofmulticul-turalism,theuseofliteratureintheformoffolktakeshasreceivedapositiveresponsefromstudents.Lessonsofthistypehavebeen shown to inculcate the values ofmulticulturalism.Thisapproachtolearn-inghasproventobeafreshexperienceforstudents.Theinnovativemethodandthetask-basedstructureofthematerialhavehelped the students construct their owncreativeinventions. Folktalessynthesizedwithtask-basedlearningcanachievethegoaloforientingyoung learners towards the concepts ofcultural diversity and multiculturalism.Thevarioustasksengenderawarenessofdifferent cultural patterns and thus en-

able learners todeveloparecognitionofandrespect fordiverse culturesand thevalues of multiculturalism.This type oftask-basedlessonusingfolktakeliteraturecould well become a promising practicewithworldwidebenefits.

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Figure 1

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Appendix:Samples of Student Work

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