INDEPENDENCE DAY

How many freedom fighters can you name other than Gandhi and Subash Chandra Bose? It isn’t our fault but rather a reflection of how mainstream education corrals history into the memorisation of dates and a few freedom fighters, erasing the identities of many unsung heroes.

Reminiscing about how the very first Independence Day was celebrated, Mr Shanmugam and Ms Shanthibhai named many freedom fighters thanks to whom we sit today and scroll on our phones at leisure. They shared nostalgic memories of 1947 when everyone was glued to the radio, which played national songs on a loop. Our Chief Guest, Mr. MGK Gopikannan, spoke about reimagining education. Real learning isn’t about recalling every date in history, it’s about understanding why those dates mattered in the first place and how not to repeat the same blunders. He spoke of the events organised by the students, which showcased multiculturalism where the students became the characters themselves rather than just memorising dialogues and narrating them on stage. That’s where real learning takes place.