Religious chauvinism and Minority rights: Pakistani history textbooks and students worldview

Abstract

The present study was designed to bring into view the inadequate presentation of historical narratives inculcated in our Punjab and Oxford history textbooks. Research aim to smoke out the contrasting indoctrination of historical narratives in private school history textbooks in comparison to Punjab textbooks of Pakistan studies. After content analysis of Pakistan studies textbooks of grade 5 to Matric/O level, the impact of content on worldview construction of students were comparatively gauge by researchers. The target population was students of public and private schools. The 200 students of IMPG H.8, IMCG I.9/1, City school capital campus of H.8 and Beacon House Margalla campus of H.8 was selected in sample size for research by employing the techniques of In-depth interviews, multi-phase sampling and tools of Questionnaire and Interview Guide. The results vouchsafed that Pakistan studies of Punjab textbooks incorporated historical inaccuracies and rife religious chauvinism, hate mongering content, ethnic prejudice, militarization and ultra-nationalistic narratives. The Punjab textbooks are critically impotent and disseminate slanted interpretations of historical events in comparison with critically mature content of oxford history textbooks, which incorporated relatively liberal interpretations of historical realities. The impact of textbooks content on cognitive approaches of students are conspicuous in results. The public school students were more insensitive towards minority rights, human rights and having less political consciousness than private school students, who demonstrated more consideration and enlightenment towards all phenomena. In gist, the presentation of knowledge and interpretation of historical discourses in textbooks are extremely significant on critical evaluative skills of students and their worldview construction.