Applying Vedic Techniques to Online Learning
Normally pupils are unaware that training is a journey from the external to the inside: From information to expertise and from awareness to realization. As educators, we the natural way review academic theories. Theories of understanding this sort of as behaviorism, cognitive psychology, constructivism, social learning, and far more have been mentioned and made responses to the phenomenon of mastering, yet in classroom apply (cyberspace or actual physical), we are continue to perplexed by the thriller of mastering and continue to look for, know, and use improved instructional methods for improved finding out. In this regard, Vedic understanding from historical India will come to intellect. In historical India, among the the many paths of discovering for self-realization, pupils of the Vedas also understand to utilize a few simple sequential tactics for mastering a subject matter subject: Śravaṇa (listening), Manana (reflection/contemplation/clearing of uncertainties), and Nididhyasana (meditation on the reality/integration/working experience). However the a few methods were expounded to obtain the information of the Self, these methodologies remain related and applicable even in today’s environment of training. In light-weight of the discovering complications confronted by college students in on the internet lessons, adapting Vedic methods to course structure and lesson strategies, particularly in the initial weeks of faculty, may possibly assistance set a basis for a effective inward journey from dependence on the instructor to independence and self-reliance pertaining to the issue.
Śravaṇa: Listening to and listening to the expert
The first step, Śravaṇa, refers to listening to or listening to the Guru. In an online studying module, the lesson imparted by the trainer, in the kind of audio-online video lectures, readings, or demonstrations, is the beginning of the understanding. The trainer guides the college student via the data, and the most critical requirement is the student’s focus and notice. In this phase, the teacher reminds pupils to hold the brain obvious of preconceptions and misconceptions of the subject matter, as perfectly as prejudices about the topic of examine. In How Grown ups Study: A Reflective Essay (2017), Dr. Sridevi Yerrabati states, “One of the factors that astonished me was that the college students were being relying on culturally-and socially-imposed encounters or preconceived notions, rather than what they had experienced immediately.” Hence, the trainer could possibly create from the premise that less clutter in the mind will make area for greater emphasis, which is probable to make their journey by way of the future two stages smoother.
In gentle of Śravaṇa, an online module could be created with a title that suggests the mind-set essential by the learner. The title could be suggestive of how to technique the module. Here is an case in point:
- Stage 1 of Mastering: Listening/Looking through/Comprehension (How centered are you?)
To these kinds of a module, apart from readings and lectures, a trainer could incorporate formative assessments and/or online games that enable pupils to apply attentiveness and focus (without influencing the quality). Canvas Studio, Hot Potatoes, EdPuzzle, and Quizlet are a couple tools to attain this. Śravaṇa is also similar to Thornburg’s “campfire” thought expressed in Campfires in Cyberspace (2004). He states, “There is a sacred good quality to instructing as storytelling, and this exercise took position in sacred destinations, normally close to the fire. The focal point of the flame, the seems of the evening, all provide backdrop to the storyteller who shares wisdom with students who, in their switch, become storytellers to the up coming generation.” In this feeling, “campfire” is the sacred house for Śravaṇa, the Guru’s impartation of wisdom, and appears comparable to cognitivism, nevertheless the college student is not a passive recipient of understanding but a determinant of the true which means in it. This is the beginning of the understanding. In today’s online atmosphere, the Guru’s part may possibly have modified to that of a guide, but the framework stays the exact same as that of the triad: Teacher, medium of educating, and scholar.
Manana: Reflecting, thinking about, and clearing of uncertainties
From Śravaṇa, college students move on to Manana—reflecting, considering, and clearing of doubts. In this article, they motive and analyze till they evidently recognize the subject at hand. They work by means of doubts, misunderstandings, and confusion in the procedure of examination. Their goal is to completely have an understanding of the teachings of the Guru. This is the room and time for questioning the instructor and discoursing with classmates. Producing notes and repeated looking at are needed right here, and this kind of studying usually takes time and calls for self-control. In an on-line-discovering module, the title of the module could be, for example:
- Phase 2 of Learning: Reflecting on the readings and changing the comprehension to expertise.”
The Manana module can keep discussions and other routines this sort of as running a blog and community conversations. Today’s Mastering Management Devices keep superb discussion applications and are built-in with instructional apps these types of as Padlet. In phrases of Thornburg’s Campfires in Cyberspace, Manana could connect to the “watering hole,” although in Vedic methodology Manana is connected to a Q&A with the instructor, but the plan could just as easily implement to an online module. The emphasis is on reflection with the target of attaining wisdom. Manana, one can guess, will come close to constructivism and social mastering theories. It is vital to reiterate that Manana is the act of digging deeply into the details derived through the Śravaṇa phase.
Nididhyasana: Deepening know-how and realizations
From Manana, learners go to Nididhyasana, where by understanding deepens and realizations crop up. This is the meditative stage where by a single is solo. The information derived or designed from the 1st two levels is internalized here so that it will become a living truth. The discovering is utilized and practiced. With uncertainties cleared, students move to expertise and conviction. The journey doesn’t conclusion in this article since Nididhyasana carries on over and above the study course. In reference to Thornburg, Nididhyasana could relate to the “cave” exactly where a person retreats for deeper contemplation. In a finding out module, this phase could be titled as follows:
- Phase 3 of Finding out: Integrating (It is not ample to know. Can you put into practice this understanding? Working experience it? Allow it circulation effortlessly into action?)
Thornburg claims, “There is 1 other primordial understanding setting of great great importance: the cave—where we came in call with ourselves.” Functioning in the full power of the Self is the Nididhyasana phase. In this kind of a module, assignments these kinds of as essays or examinations can be included. Even if a group task ended up assigned, personal contributions would even now demand solo retreating to the “cave” as effectively as a demonstration of the means to carry out the expertise or talent. This reveals that Nididhyasana is indispensable for studying to arrive to fruition in the variety of realization or knowledge.
In the Vedic age, a great deal emphasis was presented to the student’s mental natural environment as a healthier, attentive, centered head would complete the journey from details to realization with relieve. These Vedic strategies seem to be more pertinent and desired these days in look at of battling, overworked, underprivileged, and distracted pupils. If a learning technique can empower a student’s head and is a 5,000-year aged analyzed methodology, then adding it to the teacher’s toolkit may well just be rational and satisfying to the college student and the teacher.
Nita Gopal is a professor of English at Modesto Junior College or university, California, and has been instructing online due to the fact 2006.
References
Thornburg, David D. (2004). “Campfires in Cyberspace: Primordial Metaphors for Discovering in the 21st Century.” Intercontinental Journal of Educational Technology and Length Mastering. Vol.1, No.10.
Yerrabati, Sridevi. (2017). “How Adults Discover: A Reflective Essay.” Compass: Journal of Understanding and Instructing. VOL. 10, No. 1.


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