Lucknow: Productive learning, with knowledge moving beyond books into action and real-world application, was underscored in a seminar titled ‘Hamari Shiksha, Ham Sab Hi Ka Bhavishya’, held in memory of activist Ashok Garg, at Kaifi Academy auditorium on Sunday.The session, organised by Jan Vichar Manch, began with a rendition of Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s nazm ‘Hum Dekhenge’.Professor Anita Rampal cited Finnish Class VII students acquiring culinary skills as an example of practical skill-building, helping them develop understanding and greater awareness of the vegetation around them.“By nurturing a child’s interests, we can make the process engaging,” said Rampal, former Dean, Faculty of Education, DU.Elaborating on this approach, Rampal referred to a recent viral video of girls protesting the lack of faculty at their college, saying students are finally raising their voices for their rights.Furthering the discussion, anthropologist Nadeem Hasnain said today’s historical and factual narratives are often distorted through social media and other platforms, creating myths and making it important to examine such details critically.The event also focused on informed decision-making, stressing that democratic participation requires attentiveness as Rampal invoked Mahatma Gandhi’s vision of voting as an inalienable right.As a step towards making intellectual growth more expansive, speakers emphasised sharing everyday insights at workplaces, colleges and social spaces, stressing that exchanging ideas can build collective awareness to tackle situations like in the case of NEET paper leak.“Students must be encouraged to think independently and engage with the world around them,” said Rooprekha Verma, former Vice-Chancellor of LU.
