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COMMUNICATION
The Philosophical Studies In India
PREM NATH
It is rather doubtful if the pattern or quality of philosophical studies in our country have substantially changed after the Independence despite new needs and new challenges. Although here and there some excellent work is being done both in regard to teaching and research as well as in the matter of the reconstruction of the curriculum, yet by and large the philosophical scene suffers from the absence of freshness and originality. It is even a growing feeling in some quarters that, if anything the standards of teaching have fallen with indiscriminate multiplication of the Departments of Philosophy in Indian universities.
Curricula of philosophy in different universities have not undergone much change during the last two decades when the overall philosophical knowledge has made some breakthrough. The curricula are particularly negelectful of advanced logic and philosophy of science while philosophy of culture, philosophy of education, social and political philosophy and aesthetics are not adequately taken care of. Subsequently the curriculum in itself has practically no potentialities for training the students to be able to recognise modern challenges and to negotiate them competently. While, of course, curriculum by itself need not necessarily inhibit the vital educational impluses, yet in the nature of things, it does set limits to the educational horizons of the students. There is considerable room for the reconstruction of curriculum to make it dynamic. The curriculum must be flexible and cover a wide range without loss of the rigour in philosophical thinking. Above all it must be problem-oriented, leaving sufficient margin for predominantly speculative and metaphysical thinking. This is calculated to lead students to independent thinking and to enable them to identify and correct problems towards successful solutions.
Any worthwhile education must set a good deal of store by adequate if also elegant expression both oral and written. Unfortunately, our stereo-typed system of, examination and the language muddle have considerably cut down on the ability of the students to express themselves adequately. This is easily borne out by the declining standards of writing as reflected in university examinations; students shy away from discussions and seminars. The scene is not very inspiring even where teaching and examination are conducted in the regional languages; the
