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Polarization of Social Studies in Textbooks in Pakistan
December 2010
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SAN Analysis
Polarization of Social Studies in Textbooks
in Pakistan
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Polarization of Social Studies in Textbooks in Pakistan
December 2010
SAN Analysis
Polarization of Social Studies in Textbooks in Pakistan
Syed Manzar Abbas Zaidi
Education is universally viewed as the penultimate social panacea, bridging the
information deficit gap between deferent segments of a nation state. Such ideas drive
the pervasive machine of educational reform, since educating its citizens is seen as a
cure-all for a nation's economic and moral woes. Politicians also use education as a
rallying cry, with curriculum design geared to guide a country into realms of
enlightenment. At the same time, education can also be used as a tool-kit to influence
minds and mould attitudes, sometimes in the form of a return to traditional values, or as
a pretext of 'saving the children from degenerate cultural influences'. In a polarized lens,
education policies may encourage social change or may conversely take the syllabus
'back to the basics' to recapture the past glories of bygone eras, in order to conserve
politically motivated status quos. These different rationales do not necessarily exist in
isolation, since such nuanced agendas may co exist with more banal educational
policies, driven by social, religious, and economic cross-purposes.
Unfortunately, educational reform based on narrow interpretations of dogma or the
perpetuation of unequal power relations can take many different unintended or
intended trajectories, radicalization being just one. If the presumption is accepted that
education can change a nation's ethos, then a distortion of educational policy should
logically have the ability to disrupt the thought processes of the students, especially in a
post colonial society. This is because post colonial societies and newly emergent states
usually struggle between a need to preserve a heritage which has often been a
motivating cause of their creation, and change from outside which is often seen as
imposition of a colonizer's thought processes (Saigol, 2009). This urgently felt need of
inculcating a sense of collective identity, to protect the fledgling nation state from forces
which are perceived to threaten that identity, often creates an acute insecurity. This
tension is usually acutely felt in educational discourse, curriculums, theories
and institutional practices in such states.
Social sciences are much more vulnerable to this pressure to create a particular
discourse than the so called hard sciences, which need a tangible result to prove or
discredit a hypothesis. Social sciences on the other hand can be based on a variety of
interpretive discourses, since they tend to be more subjective. At the same time they are
critical, since they are at the center of social conflicts and the expression of cultural
confrontations by competing groups and classes in society (ibid). As such, the group
whose knowledge becomes dominant has the ability to control the thought processes of
the others through an ascendant ideological state apparatus of education. Since society
is forever evolving, social knowledge is always open to flux, and can remain contested
and open to change or manipulation. Thus, depending upon the hegemony of a
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particular group, the educational tool-kit can change accordingly, and does evolve over
time to the different environmental forces 'tugging' it in particular directions.
Evolution of Pakistan's Curricula
Pakistan started out with a narrow technical base, and thus with the prevailing ideology
of development being the goal, a large number of technical institutes, for example the
Habib, Dawood and Government Polytechnic Institutes were established. These
institutions enjoyed many incentives like massive tax holidays (Saigol, 2003). This
development oriented worldview also found expression in the curriculum of the 1950s,
which tended to focus on nationalism perceived in futuristic and Modernist terms
(ibid). Rather than a tangible foe, the enemies were "ignorance, backwardness,
parochialism, corruption, black marketing, superstition and lack of industry" (The Sharif
Report on education, p.116). At the same time the focus was more outward looking as
well, since Pakistan was expected to compete on par with the comity of nations. This
was the vision of the government of the day:
"…But narrow nationalism in the modern world is not enough; and if we gave the child
only this, we would be doing him a disservice. Nations are a part of one another, and
none stands alone. Pakistan is in a particular position of having cultural, historical and
spiritual ties with the Middle East, Europe and North America. This rich heritage is
itself a national asset and provides an ideal starting point for teaching international
understanding and a realisation of our membership in a comity of nations.' (Speeches
and Statements of Field Marshall Mohd. Ayub Khan: Pakistan Publications, 1961, p. 61).
Ayub Khan was himself a proponent of such reform; this is illustrated by his comments
that 'when nationalism, in its extreme form, takes charge, human reasoning gets second
place' (Saigol, 1995, p. 243-347). This perception was conducive to producing a much
more forward looking curriculum than would appear later, emphasizing
multiculturalism ad recognizing the tempering effects of humanity on ideology.
The succeeding state of insecurity in the 1960s and the 70s, culminated in Zia ul Haq's
efforts to reform the curriculum according to a particular worldview; this radically
altered the curriculum, particularly social sciences. Zia's educational policy of 1979
states that:
"'The highest priority would be given to the revision of the curricula with a view to
reorganizing the entire content around Islamic thought and giving education an
ideological orientation so that Islamic ideology permeates the thinking of the younger
generation and helps them with the necessary conviction and ability to refashion society
according to Islamic tenets' (Saigol, 1994).
Thus, curriculum revision committees were set into motion to marginalize what would
be conceived as disruptive forces of parochialism and religious diversion. The Afghan
jihad also precipitated a mindset in which the most militarized entities were most
useful, which shifted the emphasis towards a more martial ideology of an exclusionary
Sunni state much on the model of Iran as a Shia one (Zafar, 1986, p. 4-7). For example,
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the following example from a textbook of Pakistan Studies produced in 1986 shows the
levels of historical distortion:
'During the 12th Century the shape of Pakistan was more or less the same as it is today...
Under the Khiljis, Pakistan moved further south-ward to include a greater part of
Central India and the Deccan...In retrospect it may be said that during the 16th century
'Hindustan' disappeared and was completely absorbed in Pakistan" (Hoodbhoy,
1991). This inward looking view was also projected onto the hard sciences; in an official
conference called in Zia era papers were read on the harnessing of Djinns to create
alternative energy sources, chemical compositions of Djinns, measuring the temperature
of Hell, calculating the formula for savab (blessing), measuring the Angle of God, speed
of Heaven and so on' (National education policy, 1988). Self evidently, this polarized
thinking exerted greater effects on the social sciences, since as mentioned above; they
could be molded into different discourses all ostensibly based on historiography, but
actually representing a dogmatic breed of hagiography.
In the succeeding democratic governments, hardly any comprehensive educational
policy emerged; the 1998 educational policy demonstrated the largely continued
practices: 'Educational policy and particularly its ideological aspect enjoys the most vital
place in the socio-economic milieu and moral framework of a country...We are not a
country founded on its territorial, linguistic, ethnic or racial identity. The only
justification for our existence is our total commitment to Islam as our identity. Although
the previous educational policies did dilate on Islamic education and Pakistan Ideology
but those policies did not suggest how to translate the Islamic Ideology into our moral
profile and the educational system’ (Saigol, 2003). This is the thought process which still
continues to shape the curriculum, particularly the Social Studies ones throughout
Pakistan today.
Pakistan Studies
Evolving nation-states often struggle to resolve dynamic cultural influences by
incorporating social variables in nationalist paradigms, and then wording them within
the oft changing political perimeters of their official histories. This is sheer convenience;
history by consensus is difficult to arrive at, but history by decree is easier and
conveniently written. Slanted histories manipulate some chosen genre of national
identity, which is then utilized to arrive at some pre destined collective identity story of
the state (Saigol, 2006). In order to rationalize the sometimes biased history leaning
towards politically motivated causes, images of ancestral blood ties and historical and
ideological legacies are often invoked.
It is a reality that history is often valued and reproduced in service to the social order or
state, and historical events are appropriated and imbued with often diametrical
interpretations. This is made all the more difficult by the fact many lofty concepts of the
human world, among them democracy and justice, are hard to contextualize in a
universalist paradigm, and find multiple expressions in cultures around the world. This
is more marked in states which have emerged from turbulent and oppositional
trajectories of nationalism which claim ownership of particular views of the past, but are
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many times official versions of the historical record believed 'as fact' by sub-national
groups within the state. This official nationalized narrative and history may then depart
from objectivity, which often becomes the most affected variable. Thus, tensions are
manifest between official history narratives and the historical perspectives of sub
national or regional ethnic groups. It is all the more relevant in developing countries like
Pakistan where large numbers of people are illiterate or semi-literate.
This paper examines oppositional interpretations of history which could lead to a
polarized world view in a selection of books from the Pakistan Studies curriculum, a
required course for all students in the country. These are examples of textbooks used to
illustrate the appropriation and application of historiography to create and reinforce a
national philosophy or ideology, and also to resolve issues of state building and identity
formation. Selective history distorts and disconnects historical moments from context,
and biography is transformed into hagiography by juxtaposing social sciences on
narrow nationalist interpretations and ethnically or religiously driven political
mandates. Ideology is a driver of historiography in secondary level social studies
textbooks to highest levels of education; the influence of Islamization is all pervasive, an
indoctrination strategy institutionalized during the reign of General Zia-ul Haq.
All students in Pakistan are required to not only take courses of Pakistan Studies, but
must also pass standardized tests based on that curriculum. Pakistan Studies is a
compulsory subject in all secondary schools and colleges, with numerous textbooks
published for the starting grades to the bachelor’s level. This curriculum tends to be a
composite of patriotic discourses, justification of the Two-Nation theory and
hagiographies of Muslim heroes. The rubric of these textbooks requires extensive
learning by rote to pass, leaving aside little room for objective interpretation. According
to students interviewed at local colleges, many are cynical about the quality of the
administered course, and classes were reportedly scheduled in late afternoons
(Interviews with students). Hardly any students choose to attend, utilizing their time for
studying 'important classes such as Math or Urdu or English (ibid). Also, it seems there
is hardly any additional hierarchical interpretive discourse which builds upon previous
ones grade wise, which makes the learning process boring.
Textbooks in Pakistan must first be approved by the Curriculum Wing of the Ministry of
Education in Islamabad after which they are published by the provincial textbook
boards located at Jamshoro in Sindh, Quetta in Balochistan, Lahore in Panjab, and
Peshawar in the KPK. The social studies curriculum in Pakistan, as both product and
propagator of the 'Ideology of Pakistan,' is driven by a set of directives.
It was during the time General Zia-ul Haq's reign that history and geography, which
was separate and distinct subject, were amalgamated together as Pakistan Studies,
which was made a compulsory subject for all students from the ninth grade through the
first year of college, including engineering and medical schools. Curriculum changes,
institutionalized during Zia's Islamization campaign, also made Islamiyat compulsory.
Special editing committees were set up to systematically sift existing textbooks for
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identification and removal of content deemed unsuitable. The University Grants
Commission (UGC) issued a directive in 1983 that textbook writers were:
"To demonstrate that the basis of Pakistan is not to be founded in racial, linguistic, or
geographical factors, but, rather, in the shared experience of a common religion. To get
students to know and appreciate the Ideology of Pakistan, and to popularize it with
slogans. To guide students towards the ultimate goal of Pakistan—the creation of a
completely Islamized State" (University Grants Commission directive, 1983). This
polemic historiography is apparent in many aspects in both Indian and Pakistan, which
treat common historical interactions quite differently. Since this type of history was the
political need of the day, prominent Pakistani historians were co opted to propagate this
ideologically grounded historiography. I.H. Qureshi, K.K. Aziz and A.H. Dani are
Pakistan's preeminent historians who have tended to ground their arguments in a
particular world view. Qureshi and Dani were patronized by both Ayub Khan and Ziaul Haq. They were instrumental in constructing a past for their new nation that would
set it apart from the Indus valley Civilization. The issue was not just the defense of
partition, or independence from Pakistan's vantage point, but a different reading of the
past involving, among other things, the relegation of a diverse but vibrant compositecultural and intellectual legacy to the backdoor. Pre determined goals and an impartial
study of history do not get well together, since if the study of a nation's social studies
curriculum varies according to "the creation, preservation, or merely the
"understanding' of the twentieth-century 'nation' and its culture, then . . . what each
syllabus will then encompass over time and space is. . . pre-determined by such
objectives" (Powel, 1996, p. 96). These objectives have driven curriculum building so
much that 'ideology has . . . made a myth of history in the portrayal of ... national
heroes’ (ibid, p. 219). In Pakistan "(perceived) nation-building agendas. . . take a priority
over disinterested academic study, history becomes a medium for transmitting goals for
the future” (ibid, p. 221).
The long term effects of a slanted reading of history were recognized early on. Pervez
Hoodbhoy and A.H. Nayyar prophesied a blowback at the time through an article,
'Rewriting the History of Pakistan' in 1985. They commented upon a radicalization
process "the full impact of which will probably be felt by the turn of the century, when
the present generation of school children attains maturity" (Hoodbhoy, 1985, p. 164).
Nayyar and Hoodbhoy identified the following themes prevalent in the variety of
UGC's directives emanating at the time. The dominant recurring theme was the
'Ideology of Pakistan,' as the force as well as its reason of existence, while textbooks
published in Zia's times portrayed M.A.jinnah as a religious man who sought the
creation of a theocratic state. Ulema were cited as champions of the Pakistan Movement,
and emphasis was laid on ritualistic Islam, which would rise above communal
antagonisms. Nayyar and Hoodbhoy explain, "The 'recasting' of Pakistani history [has
been] used to 'endow the nation with a historic destiny'" (ibid, p. 176).
A glaring example is treatment meted out to the conquest of Sindh in 712 by an Arab
army under the leadership of Muhammad-bin-Qasim. Pakistan Studies portray him as
the initial Islamizing agent, who brought a hitherto lawless Indian subcontinent with
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the civilizing culture of Islamic heritage. On the other hand, many Indian textbooks
consider that Arabs to have had a minimal impact on the history of the subcontinent.
For example, in Medieval India: A History Textbook for Class XI, Satish Chandra treats
the "Arab invasion of Sind (sic) as a localized affair" (Chandra, 1990).
In contrast in the Pakistani Social Studies for Class VI, published by the Sindh Textbook
Board, the Arab invasion is portrayed as the first glimpse of Pakistan, culminating with
the unfurling of the independence movement. The textbook states that "The Muslims
knew that the people of South Asia were infidels and they kept thousands of idols in
their temples." The invading Arab army is portrayed as a savior; "The non-Brahmans
who were tired of the cruelties of Raja Dahir, joined hands with Muhammad-bin-Qasim
because of his good treatment." This may very well have been the case, but the historical
narrative describes the whole event in absolutist terms:
"The conquest of Sindh opened a new chapter in the history of South Asia. Muslims had
ever lasting effects on their existence in the region. For the first time the people of Sindh
were introduced to Islam, its political system and way of the government. The people
here had seen only the atrocities of the Hindu Rajas. (....] The people of Sindh were so
much impressed by the benevolence of Muslims that they regarded Muhammad-binQasim as their savior. (…] Muhammad-bin-Qasim stayed in Sindh for over three years.
On his departure from Sindh, the local people were overwhelmed with grief." This
polemic altogether misses the point that prior to the 712 invasion, Arab armies had
attacked Sindh sixteen times without success, which does indicate the somewhat
entrenched nature of local rule in the area. It is also evident that historians in both India
and Pakistan have utilized altogether conflicting viewpoints about a historical reference
point to widen the cognitive bridge, which may have helped to gain a rational
understanding of history of South Asia.
Historiography and hagiography are frequently utilized to glorify the two early
champions of Islam, Muhammad-bin-Qasim and Sultan Mahmud of the Ghaznavi
dynasty in eastern Afghanistan, the culmination of which was the sacking of the
Somnath Temple in 1025.The chronological historical narrative in Pakistani textbooks
generally elides through the Mughal dynasty, gaining renewed vigor with the reign of
Aurangzeb in the late seventeenth century (Rosser, 2003). There is usually little
treatment meted out to the flailing Mughal dynasty, with much of the emphasis shifting
on the rebellion of 1857, referred by British historians as the Sepoy Mutiny, but glorified
by Indians and Pakistanis as the First War of Liberation.
There is generally a mention of Hindu-Muslim conflicts during Aurangzeb's era 16581707, some elaboration of the military victories against the British of Tipu Sultan 17821799, which lay the stage for the mutiny of 1857 (ibid). In most Pakistani textbooks the
Delhi Sultanate gets little treatment, as nearly five hundred years between Mahmud
Ghaznavi's multiple invasions and the establishment of Babar's Mughal dynasty in 1526
are collapsed (ibid). Muhammad-bin-Qasim is lauded as a warrior liberating the
Brahmin-weary Sindhis while Mahmud Ghaznavi is the crusader for the one true
religion. Our World, for Class IV, describes Mahmud's invasions into India:
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"There was a temple in India during those times, Somnath; the biggest idol/statue in
that temple was also called Somnath. This temple had so much treasure in it that no
royal treasure could even come near it. All the Hindu rajas used to get together in this
temple and think about ways to fight the Muslims. After covering the desert of
Rajputana, Mahmud came right in front of Somnath temple. Hindus got panicky. AH of
them tried to do their best but couldn’t succeed. The fort was conquered. The priests
begged him not to destroy the Somnath idol but he said that he wanted to be
remembered as Mahmud who destroyed the idol and not the one who sold it. He blew
the idol into pieces. This success was a source of happiness for the whole Muslim world"
(Our World, for Class TV, Directorate of Education Punjab, New Curriculum).
Another widely circulated textbook also glosses over economic motives for the
invasions in favour of ideological ones; the author mentions that Mahmud 'left the
greatest monument of all: the gift of Islam' (Hussain, 1981-83, p. 26). In contrast, as
defensive posturing, there is a tendency in Indian textbooks to treat Mahmud Ghaznavi
purely as a plunderer. Satish Chandra states that Mahmud's 'love of plunder went side
by side with the defense of Islam (Chandra, 1990, p. 205). In the following passage from
Romila Thapar, Mahmud's religious motivations are considered by coincidence:
"[Mahmud] had heard that there was much gold and jewelry kept in the big temples in
India, so he destroyed the temples and took away the gold and jewelry. . . . Destroying
temples had another advantage. He could claim, as he did, that he had obtained
religious merit by destroying images" (Thapar, 1988, p. 25-26).
The Mughal Emperor Akbar is often seen as harmful to the ultimate interests of
Muslims in the subcontinent, even though Western treatments represent Akbar's reign
as 'a high peak of cultural assimilation and religious harmony' (Powel, 1996, p.
205). Mubarak Ali has shown that Akbar has been systematically eliminated from most
textbooks in Pakistan in order to "divert attention away from his 'misplaced' policies”
(Khan, 1992). Discussions of Akbar are given short shrift, such as in Social Studies for
Class VI (Punjab Text Book Board, 1996), in which his name is simply listed, but events
of his life not elaborated. In Pakistan Studies for Class IX-X (Punjab Text Book Board,
1997), Akbar's name is not even listed among the Muslim rulers of India. In Pakistan
Studies for secondary classes (ibid), he is not mentioned in the text along with other
famous Islamic figures, a list that includes Mahmud Ghaznavi, Babur, Humayun, Shah
Jahan, and Aurangzeb. Typically, in Pakistan Studies written by Rabbani and Sayyid
(Rabbani & Monawwar, 1992), Akbar is mentioned only while discussing Shaikh
Ahmad Sirhindi, who according to Mubarak Ali, 'is projected as a hero challenging
Akbar's religious policy and restoring Islamic values in India' (Qureshi, 1978). This
perspective is typical of many Pakistani historiographies which derive their inspiration
from I. H. Qureshi's epic interpretation of Mughal history 'The Muslim Community of
the Indo-Pakistan Subcontinent' (Qureshi, 1977). In a book about Akbar he writes:
"It can be seriously contented if he possessed wisdom of the highest order. If he had, he
would not have sought to weaken Islam and the Muslim community of the
Subcontinent. At least he would have refrained from interfering with the established
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principles of Islam. Even Vincent Smith, who narrates Akbar's aberrations from Islam
with relish, concludes that 'the whole scheme was the outcome of ridiculous vanity, a
monstrous growth of unrestrained autocracy. .. 'How can it then be asserted that Akbar
possessed wisdom in the highest degree?" (Qureshi, 1978, p. 155).
Many Pakistani historians interpret Akbar as dubiously Islamic, whereas his grandson,
Aurangzeb is credited with saving Indian Islam from being swallowed up by misguided
imperatives of Akbar. According to Zafar, "[Aurangzeb] reversed the policies of Akbar
and made a genuine effort to give the State an Islamic orientation. Under Aurangzeb the
Pakistan spirit gathered in strength" (Zafar, 1986, p. 7).
J. Husain defends Aurangzeb against his critics while pointing to the sharply divergent
historical interpretations of this controversial figure:
"Because of Aurangzeb's religious fervor, historians tend to judge him according to their
own religious leanings. Hindu and Christian historians often present Aurangzeb's
religious policies as the main cause of the disintegration of the Mughal Empire, while
some Muslim historians try to completely ignore the negative effects of these policies”
(Husain, 1997, p. 105).
Standard Pakistan Studies textbooks rarely include chapters that discuss the cultures
and histories of Balochis or Pathans or Sindhis in comprehensive detail, a fact which the
sub nationalities in Pakistan have tended to resent. Balochis have affinities with and
draw their historical identities from Iran and Central Asia, not from South Asia. Both
the ancestors of Sindhis and Balochis arrived in this area in the ancient pre-Islamic
period, and are thus denied prominent places in the curricula which in many cases start
with the advent of Islam in South Asia. An irrational paradigm implemented since the
days of One Unit assumes that denial of cultural differences in the country will bridge
the gap between sub national identities. Religion has also been used as a tool to bridge
this identity gap (Ziring, 1997).
Islam was used as a leveling force to tie the Sindhis, the Pathans, the Balochis tribes, and
initially the Bengalis together with the dominant Punjabis in attempts to forge a national
identity that could overarch regional and ethnic loyalties (Alam, 20 April 2001).
However, this did not entirely succeed. "The Balouch . . . have become conscious of their
particularist identity in the face of perceived threats to national and cultural
characteristics” (Mahmud, 1993, p. 120). As Feroz Ahmed in his book 'Ethnicity and
politics in Pakistan', wrote:
"The state and its ideologues have steadfastly refused to recognize the fact that these
regions are not merely chunks of territory with different names but areas which were
historically inhabited by peoples who had different languages and cultures, and even
states of their own. This official and intellectual denial has, no doubt, contributed to the
progressive deterioration of inter-group relations, weakened societies' cohesiveness, and
undermined the state's capacity to forge security and sustain development" (Husain,
1981).
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The softening effect of centuries of mysticism which was an extremely powerful social
force in south Asia has also tended to be overlooked. "Sufi tradition has been outside the
power of kings. Sufism is extremely powerful and traditional wisdom springs from it. It
has saved this nation from extreme ideological confusion. Yet, we don't find different
Islams in our textbooks. However, the Sufi tradition is deeply embedded in the
culture—it is what designs the psyche of the people, the true intellectual and spiritual
foundations of the people. Transplants from outside and above do find some place in
the intellectual and environmental framework and they do disturb and confuse. But
deep down still it is the Sufi tradition, philosophy, and belief system which dictates their
lives. Sufis don't really actively convert, people are attracted to them—there is no fixed
set way of Sufism. The historical reality of the land is now at loggerheads with the
structural political reality created by the establishment and dictated from above. I have
no doubt who will win. History cannot be stopped—the inexorable source of history is
relentless, it can't be stopped" (ibid, p. 34).
In place of the tolerant Sufi tradition, a literalist, stricter version of religious ideology
was propagated. Dr Mohammed Sarwar states in his Pakistan Studies book: "At present
a particular segment, in the guise of modernization and progressive activity, has taken
the unholy task of damaging our cultural heritage. Certain elements aim at the
promotion of cultures with the intention to enhance regionalism and provincialism and
thereby damage national integration" (Sarwar, 1997). The Sarwar textbook further states
'It is in the interest of national solidarity that such aspects of culture should be promoted
as reflecting affinity among the people of the provinces’ (ibid). This is reductionist's
discourse which denies the existence of different cultural variations, and instead focuses
on producing a polemic essentialism. This polemic discourse is not uncommon across
the Indo-Pakistan divide. The famous Indian historian R.C. Majumdar for example,
bases the premise for his history on the argument that religion was an essential element
in the composition of India's past, and that Hindus and Muslims had always constituted
separate communities (Majumdar, 1960). Majumdar emphasizes the sharp divide that
characterized inter-religious relationships: "A fundamental and basic difference between
the two communities was apparent even to the casual observer. Religious and social
ideas and institutions counted for more in men's lives in those days than anything else;
and in these two respects the two differed as poles asunder [....] It is a strange
phenomenon that although the Muslims and Hindus had lived together in Bengal for
nearly six hundred years, the average people of each community knew so little of the
other's traditions” (ibid).
Important political milestones of Pakistan's history also tend to get sifted in Pakistan's
polemic curriculum discourse. In social studies textbooks there is generally no mention
of important court cases, such as Tamizuddin's legal challenge to the first coup, or the
mass Movement to Restore Democracy (MRD) at the end of Zia's reign. With little
discussion of civil society, Pakistani textbooks often substitute historical analyses for
polemics about an idealized Islamic nation. Since there is no consensus on the actual
form of an Islamic state, contradictions inherent in the textbooks can cause confusion
leading to hostile expressions of religious fundamentalism and can result in
radicalization of students based on a polarized world view. Zia institutionalized a kind
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of paranoia about parading Islamic symbols, which were seen as essential for the
survival of the nation-state. Unfortunately some of the strategies that Zia appropriated
and propagated were based on narrow, medieval interpretations of Islam, which
resulted in gender-biased attitudes and policies and militarized exhortations to take up
arms for the sake of jihad. This stricter adherence to external expressions of religion
were done to placate conservative forces, which started exerting social control and
influencing social norms, much of this process driven by curriculum revision. This is
notwithstanding the fact that even though the role of certain religious minorities,
especially the Hindus in East Pakistan, had not been praiseworthy, a newly emerging
tolerant and syncretic Pakistan had ensured full protection to their rights under the
Constitution. In fact, the Hindu Community enjoyed a highly privileged position in East
Pakistan by virtue of essentially exerting a monopoly over the economy and the media.
Allen McGrath, in his book ‘The Destruction of Democracy in Pakistan,’ 1998, analyses
the efforts at constitution making in the first decade after independence before Sikandar
Mirza dissolved the National Assembly. He highlights the productive role of D.N. Dutt,
a Hindu from East Pakistan, in constitution making in Pakistan. However, there is little
mention of any syncretic efforts of minorities of Pakistan in most Pakistan Studies
textbooks. Most of these books generally take the view that General Zia-ul Haq was
someone who 'took concrete steps in the direction of Islamization.' Such attitudes are
rampant: "During the period under Zia's regime, social life developed a leaning towards
simplicity. Due respect and reverence to religious people was accorded. The
government patronized the religious institutions and liberally donated funds."
Many textbooks claim that there is a 'network of conspiracies and intrigues ' which is
threatening the Muslim world in the guise of elimination of militancy and
fundamentalism.' This defensive posturing intensified under the guidance of Zia, when
Pakistan took credit for the fall of the Soviet Union and ostensibly laid the foundation
for Islamic revolutions to 'flourish'. One book states: " The Western world has full
perception of this phenomena, [which] accounts for the development of reactionary
trends in that civilization….The Muslim world has full capabilities to face the Western
challenges provided Muslims are equipped with self-awareness and channelise their
collective efforts for the well being of the Muslim Ummah. All evidences substantiate
Muslim optimism indicating that the next century will glorify Islamic revolution with
Pakistan performing a pivotal role."
Conclusion
While many apologists more or less correctly point out that there is no inherent material
in the social studies text books that explicitly glorifies the violent form of jihad , the
effect of a polarized historiography on immature minds cannot be ignored away.
Contextualizing the shaping of attitudes from this process, one can induce why this
polarized process is dangerous and has the ability to radicalize students in a society.
This can be explained from observation of ideologues and instigators of extremist
movements, who tend to rely on “black-or-white” or “all-or-none” thinking to direct the
radicalization process (Mandel, 2002). A cognitive divide of social perceptions is created
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between elements supportive of extremism and the 'others', namely, people outside
one’s one social and ideological group or “in-group” (Tajfel, 1981). Violence toward the
'out' group can thus be facilitated by thinking of its members as being justifiably
excluded from the moral considerations one would impact on members of one’s own
group, making violence morally sanctionable .This can also be done by resort to a higher
legal sanction than mere law, which can bring divine sanction and ideology into play.
The perception that a shunned social category is outside the boundaries of the in
group's sphere of morality can free individuals to become morally disengaged in their
behavioural interactions with members of that shunned social category (Bandura, 1990).
Another layer of contextualization to the radicalization potential of such polemic driven
curricula also needs to be added; there is a commonly observed tendency to conceive
such curricula in terms solely of ideology. . This recourse to colonial binaries is as
retrogressive as radicalization itself, and even resembles the social cognitive division
process mentioned as above. Creating an enlightened in-group to differentiate from a
backward, radicalized out-group without factoring in several variables is in itself a form
of radicalization, inasmuch it inculcates a black or white thought process. Such
explanations serve to obfuscate the issues rather than clarify them. These rigid
categories which classify people as savage, barbaric or pre-modern fail as explanations
since they become tautologies: they committed the act because they are barbaric; they
are barbaric because they committed the act. This blanket reliance upon psychological
and ideological explanations to classify people as belonging to a certain type, or
assumed inherent proclivity to commit heinous acts becomes essentialist. Such
explanations also tend to obliterate history, and confuse the material reality that
explains history particularly as being a continuum of dynamics which gradually shape a
society's worldview. This has to be the case, otherwise the tautological definitions
would have to rely on some form of biological determinism, thereby rendering such
categories deeply racist and suspect.
Since the elite have abandoned the public education system, relying instead on a mainly
English-speaking private sector, a wider divergence of educational discourses has
become all the more evident. While all schools are bound to follow similar syllabi in
subjects such as Pakistan Studies, even then a number of private schools now encourage
objectivity and creative thinking among students, which is done by reliance on histories
more open to interpretation. This stratification of Pakistan's educational infrastructure
has created significant divergences of worldviews which are representative of their
curriculum design, no matter by design or by default. Madrassah students tend to
gravitate more toward jihad, a weltanschauung arguably created by their educational
discourse and its emphasis on strict ritualism, and no margin for objective thinking.
Public school or Urdu-medium students are comparably more tolerant, but still have
imbibed radical ideas as illustrated by Christine fair in her seminal works. The private
sector educated elite children have more leeway for objective thinking, but tend to relate
little with the two more mainstream student streams (Rahman, 25 October 2003).
This trend of polarization springing from dynamics of education also effectively
contributes to a widening social divide, which the extremist project exploits by
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manipulating a social and opinion leadership vacuum. Thus, this has the tendency to
promote a 'class war mentality' in which a culturally ‘centrist’ class is increasingly being
wedged in between an indifferent secular elite and an activist ultra-right, which may
force this centre to choose sides. Since the elites do not identify with this centre either,
the radicals are the more natural partner due to being more accessible. As Denoeux puts
it: “when one focuses on their fundamental convictions, their most cherished values,
and the kind of society and political order they aspire to create, moderates have far
more in common with radicals than they do with Western-style democracies” (which is
what the secular elite essentially promote) (Denoeux, 2002).
What then is the way forward? Essentially, with regard to public sector education
syllabi, the focus should be on revising textbooks with the aim of reverting to the
content used prior to Zia’s Islamization during the 1980s. Secularization is another
matter; however, since it is a controversial topic and may not be totally desirable in
Pakistan till the centrist position of the society is defined. Education needs to be delinked from dissemination of specific ideologies, and should go back to stressing
emphasis on moral philosophy as was evident in the 1950s. Rote learning and
regurgitation of this syllabus in examinations needs to be discouraged. Textbooks need
to be revised according to some internationally accepted educational standards, and
need not be construed in absolutist terms. Local histories should be recognized not as a
dividing but as a unifying force, which can promote inter cultural harmony by fostering
understanding of each other. It is as much a purpose of education to raise more answers
from questions that it tries to answer itself; educational revision committees should not
try to create intellectual black or white zone of regimented thinking. It is imperative that
curriculums inculcate the capacity to "think critically, to analyze, to compare and
contrast, to evaluate, to judge and to synthesize. As in the hard sciences, children in the
social sciences should also learn to ask the questions: why and how and who and what.
How did it happen? Why did it happen? Who was responsible for it? Was it right or
wrong? Who was affected? In what ways? What possibly could/should have been done
and so on. Instead of bombarding children with a vast array of unrelated 'facts' and bits
of information, the reasons, causes and dynamics of all phenomena should be
provided." This is all the more relevant in social studies curriculum, which have tended
to shape the worldviews of generations. The Social Studies curricula in Pakistan need to
undergo an urgent transformative process of making them more objective so that they
can stimulate intellect as well as counter radicalization tendencies.
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