‘S Asia’ may replace ‘India’ in US lessons

WASHINGTON: Should “South Asia” replace “India” as more representative of the geographical spread of early civilisations on the subcontinent? Was religion a key

WASHINGTON: Should “South Asia” replace “India” as more representative of the geographical spread of early civilisations on the subcontinent? Was religion a key aspect of the “caste” system?

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These and many questions regarding the teaching of Indian history in California schools as part of a general overhaul, which have been debated fiercely over the past months, will get a final hearing and a decision on Thursday. Scores of activists, parents, experts and students have testified in multiple hearings held by the Instructional Quality Commission of California’s department of education over several months.

One of the most contentious changes being proposed is that of replacing references to “India” as a geographical entity with “South Asia” in the History-Social Science Framework, a teaching guide.

In a November 2015 note, the South Asia Faculty Group suggested changes to a section entitled “The Early Civilisations of India” in the Grade 6 curriculum. “We recommend changing the Title of this Section to ‘The Early Civilisations of South Asia’. At several other places in the text, we also recommend substituting South Asia for‘ Ancient India’ or ‘India’,” the group said.

It argued the Ind us Valley Civilisation‘s major urban centres, Harappa and Mohenjodaro, were both in Pakistan. Theother groups pushed back, arguing the word India was being erased from California’s textbooks. A petition was signed by more than 22,000 people. And the department decided to retain “India” in many instances, which was claimed as a victory.