FROM ROTE TO ROOTS: HOW NCERT'S NEW TEXTBOOKS ARE TRANSFORMING INDIAN CLASSROOMS AND IGNITING YOUNG MINDS

As India commemorates five years of the NEP-2020, the sweeping reforms implemented by the NCERT have ignited both optimism and debate.

- RAGHAVENDRA P. TIWARI

The 2025 rollout of revised school textbooks is perhaps the most visible expression of NEP's vision—aiming to shift pedagogy from rote memorization to experiential, inquiry-driven, and values-based learning.

This transformation reimagines classrooms as dynamic spaces for critical thinking and textbooks as living documents reflecting India's diverse cultural heritage. While these reforms aspire to cultivate holistic, critical, and culturally grounded learners, they have also sparked debate over historical interpretation, ideological neutrality, and inclusivity in curricular framing.

This article explores the transformative promise of the new textbooks and critically engages with the emerging criticisms, situating them within broader civilizational and pedagogical currents.

A New Pedagogical Philosophy: From Facts to Frameworks

The revised textbooks mark a departure from passive learning toward active exploration and deeper conceptual understanding. Rote memorization is being replaced with critical inquiry, interdisciplinary connections, and engagement with ethical and cultural questions.

This shift aligns with constructivist learning principles, encouraging students to build knowledge by interacting with diverse perspectives.

A key feature of this transformation is the integration of the Indian Knowledge System into the curriculum. Stories and teachings from the Bhagavad Gita, Ramayana, Panchatantra, and local folk-tales etc. are used not just for cultural familiarity, but to illustrate values, philosophical inquiry, and civic duties.

For example, in Class 6 Social Science, students are introduced to the idea of Bhakti from the Gita—as an inclusive devotional practice, while Sanskrit texts include verses like "कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन" to teach the idea of performing one's duty without attachment to outcomes.