Of Indore, G20, and Learning

I am writing this en route from Indore, India back home to Oakville. I was in India for the annual meeting of the heads of “the G20” – a group of leading schools from around the world. This G20, which is actually made up of about 30 schools and whose name was apparently coined before the somewhat better-known governmental namesake, provides a stimulating opportunity for heads of schools to compare notes, questions, and their own challenges in an open and safe forum.

This year’s session was hosted by Mr. Sumer Singh, the Principal of The Daly College. Mr. Singh, an Indian Aldus Dumbledore-like character from an old princely family, has been a good friend of Appleby, and Daly has been one of our close partners for many years through Round Square. Daly is a highly regarded, beautiful and iconic force in Indian education, in large part because Mr. Singh is such a wise and charming soul.

Sumer arranged a whirlwind week-long program that introduced us to aspects of India past and present, architecturally, culturally, educationally, and economically. I arrived fully expecting an experience that would be very different from what I have seen elsewhere, but I didn’t anticipate the extent of the gulf. My head is still spinning from the societal complexities, the rich history, the pervasive energy, and the striking poverty. As someone told us, "For any truth about India, the opposite also applies." In addition to seeing many of the great historic sites of India, and spending time with some of the most prominent members of Indian society, we were treated to a series of superb speakers from maharajas to senior civil servants, to cabinet ministers, to educators.

One of the best speakers was the 81-year-old member of Parliament, former cabinet minister, Ambassador and Governor, and the titular Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir, His Highness Dr. Karan Singh. On our first night, Dr. Singh spoke eloquently, without a note, about what he sees as the key questions we have to face in education. Harkening back to service on the UNESCO International Commission on Education for the 21^st Century, he discussed the challenges in balancing the four kinds of knowing (or learning):

·         Learning to know – Knowledge is the traditional wheelhouse of educational institutions. The major shift in recent decades is the understanding that learning to know is now a lifelong pursuit and the necessary route to wisdom.

·         Learning to do – Vocationally focused education is the driver to economic well-being of both individuals and communities. Creativity and critical thinking are becoming increasingly intertwined in what we see as preparation for many successful career pursuits.

 

·         Learning to live together – There are two views of humans and their differences. The first, the pessimistic version, is that humans possess a genetic defect that will lead us to self-destruct. The opposite is that we can all live together harmoniously. The key is in understanding each other’s values. So, learning to live together is values-based, and education must be focused on enhancing understanding of differences, be they between individuals or between communities.

 

·         Learning to be – Developing a sense of purpose, a moral code and an understanding of the treasure within is about looking inside ourselves. While it is the most difficult form of learning, the degree of challenge mirrors its potential for personal fulfillment.

The balance and tension between these four modes of learning is the central question for education policy for countries as it is for each school. Dr. Singh talked about the need for India to address its massive demographic hurdle (it is one of the youngest populations and one sixth of the population of the world) by having the right blend of the four, especially about the need to excel at learning to do.

This theme – about understanding the right blend of the four – was very much at the core of the conversations that took place at the G20, and it is certainly the question that we should continue to ask ourselves at Appleby.