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Understanding India (Indian Ethos & Knowledge Systems) - II

Home/ Understanding India (Indian Ethos & Knowledge Systems) - II
Course Type Course Code No. Of Credits
Discipline Elective SES101405 2

Course Coordinator and Team:                  SES Faculty

Email of course coordinator:                       pcbabed@aud.ac.in 

Pre-requisites:                                                No

Course Description:

The course provides an overview of India’s knowledge traditions across domains of culture, ethics, science and technology, and philosophy. It places special emphasis on the application of these knowledge traditions, helping students to not only know and appreciate India’s heritage and knowledge traditions but also to independently evaluate them through a multidisciplinary lens. This evaluation, it is expected, would produce valuable lessons for obtaining transferable and 21st-century skills. The course builds on semester 1 course that focused on Indian ethos. It is designed to enable student teachers to outline and interpret the processes and events of the formation and evolution of knowledge systems of India through a multidisciplinary lens; to evaluate the diverse traditions of India to distinguish its achievements and limitations, and to develop and articulate an ethics-based education rooted in Indian thought to their students in the classroom context. 

Course Objectives:

  • To introduce students to tradition of Indian philosophy and enable reflection on issues of ethics, morality and society in contemporary context
  • To introduce students, enable an appreciation for, and acquire a multidisciplinary lens for evaluation of distinct knowledge traditions in the field of science-technology, culture, linguistic traditions in Indian context

Course Outcomes:

  • Recognize the corpus of knowledge traditions of India, while developing an appreciation for it, 
  • Evaluate and critically review historical context of evolution of knowledge systems in India
  • Summarize and communicate the key learnings of the course of different Indian traditions in a coherent manner to their students. 

Brief description of the modules:

Module 1: Philosophy, Ethics and Values: Schools of Philosophy

This module aims to familiarise students with different traditions within Indian philosophy and enable reflection on issues of ethics, morality, spirituality and society in contemporary context.

Module 2: Culture-Lifestyle 

This module will engage with the diversity, distinct traditions within Indian cultural heritage. Students will be encouraged to explore diverse themes related to food, clothing, sports and yoga through group-projects

Module 3: Science & Technology

Students will be introduced to the historical context of development of natural science in ancient India. An attempt will be made to introduce students to some seminal aspects of scientific and mathematical thinking in the ancient Indian knowledge traditions, in particular the empirical-rationalist tradition.

Module 4: Linguistic Traditions 

This unit will focus on the history of linguistics in India in conceptualising ancient Indian linguistics, oral traditions.  The contours of language studies in the Indian context highlight the contributions of the Indian grammatical tradition from a historical perspective. The changing linguistic and cultural fabric also are ways by which linguistic identities are formed. 

Assessment Plan

  • In-Class group presentation: 20 percent
  • In class Quizzes: 30 percent
  • Project on any one theme of the course: 50 percent

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