Last date for nomination: Nov 5, 2025
Note: Nominations will be reviewed only after the last date of nomination (Nov 5). We will reach out to you after the review process.
About Bedrock Series
Educational practitioners frequently come across situations where they either have to choose between two or more available options or defend a choice that they made in the past. They struggle to do so, as, more often than not, their responses are intuitive and commonsensical, the rationale of which is never explicitly articulated. Education, being a highly contingent endeavour, draws heavily upon concepts, principles and theories developed in several other disciplines. Three major disciplines that education draws upon are Philosophy, Psychology and Sociology, which are known as foundational areas of education. The Bedrock Series is designed to help the participants gain an understanding of the relevant concepts, principles and theories of the three disciplines, which help them appreciate the what, how and why of education.
This is a series of short intensive independent courses that form the bedrock of educational practices. These courses are specially designed with a focus on developing a holistic understanding of three foundational areas of educational understanding and theorising; viz, Philosophical Perspectives of Education, Perspectives on Learning, and Sociology of Education. All the courses in the series are conceived, developed and facilitated by well-known education practitioners and academicians.
Participants need to enroll in each course separately. In the Bedrock Series this year, the course 'Sociology of Education' will be offered online. The courses “Philosophy of Education” and “Perspectives on Learning” will be offered in-person (face-to-face).
About This Course
Under the series, the Philosophy of Education course distinguishes itself by its serious deliberations on the Indian education system and its processes at various levels. Specifically aligned to the context, it delves into fundamental philosophical principles within the Indian Context and aligns with educational policies such as NEP2020 and NCFSE23. The provided reading material is written with an Indian context in mind, striving to enhance its comprehensibility, relevance, and utility for participants.
The content and objectives outlined below aim to develop a framework for analysing educational endeavours at various levels. It is a common concern that the Philosophy of Education (PoE) often fails to resonate with the practical aspects of education, leading to perceived boredom among practitioners. We believe this is a wrong perception of PoE, and this course will try to correct this wrong impression.
Course Outcomes
The course will help the participants to see the reason behind what is happening in education and how it is being done. They will be able to theorize the prevailing practices and note any discordance therein. The courses adopt a collaborative pedagogical strategy. This intentionally promotes reflection to answer the questions which will serve as a beginning to start the journey toward becoming a reflective practitioner in education. Participants, after completing the series, if they need so, will be able to design a new system of education, by adjusting the set of parameters learned through the three units of the series.
Pre-requisites
This series/course is ideal for those interested in and engaged with educational thought and practices: educators, teachers, or education administrators, coordinators, and members of leadership teams or program teams of NGOs, etc. Individuals with 3–4 years of experience of working in education or those who have studied the field will benefit the most. However, the courses of the series are also valuable for fresh graduates considering a career in education. Anyone who has a keen mind, and is interested in the rigorous study of education, would benefit and enjoy these courses. However, the ability to read, write and understand the Hindi language is a must, along with an undergraduate degree. Another prerequisite for this series of courses is self-motivation.
Expected Commitment
Philosophy of education (In-person) Participants enrolled in the six-day, face-to-face course are expected to dedicate a total of 64 hours toward their learning experience. This includes 42 hours of in-class sessions, spanning seven hours each day for six days. Additionally, participants are required to allocate 12 hours for self-reading (2 hours/ day for 6 days), and 10 hours each for pre-work and course completion assignments.
Course Details
The course is designed to initiate participants into certain specific kinds of understanding and to start building dispositions, competencies and skills. The specific objectives of the course are -
1) Develop an understanding of normative issues in education with adequate justification, coherence and consistency
2) Identify and examine significant assumptions concerning human nature underlying educational discourse and practice
3) Articulate subtle distinctions between types of knowledge, and trace their relationships with bodies of disciplinary knowledge,
4) Express well-reasoned, sensitive stances on debates in the politics of knowledge
5) Identify the moral principles that are assumed in educational practices, and articulate views on the rightness and wrongness of the practices
Course Dates: December 15-20, 2025
Location: Digantar Campus, Jaipur.
About The Resource Organization
Digantar Shiksha Evam Khelkud Samiti, a non-profit organisation founded in 1978, is dedicated to educational innovation and social upliftment. Key objectives include running schools, advancing educational thought and practices, conducting research, and promoting cultural and social development. Currently, it operates two non-fee-paying schools in Jaipur, Rajasthan, serving marginalized communities.
Digantar's approach integrates theory and practice through The Academic Resource Unit (TARU) and Digantar Publications. TARU offers capacity-building programs for educators, emphasizing the importance of grounding practice in educational principles. The organization advocates for quality alternative education, aiming to cultivate autonomous, rational and caring democratic citizens. Its school and various initiatives reflect this commitment, including teacher training, research and curriculum development.
Facilitators
Rohit Dhankar
Rohit Dhankar is the founding teacher of Digantar Vidyalaya and the founder-secretary of Digantar. He has taught Philosophy of Education at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, and the Azim Premji University (APU), Bangalore, where he also served as the Director of the School of Education.
He played a key role in designing Master's in Education programmes at both TISS and APU, and was a member of the Steering Committee for the National Curriculum Framework 2005. He has collaborated extensively with NCERT and various SCERTs on school and teacher education curricula.
His writings and presentations have sparked important debates in the field of education, contributing to curricular reforms in school and teacher education. A pioneer of independent learning for children in India, he has developed alternative school structures and curricula, which have been integrated into various educational programs and government systems.
Currently, he is leading the transformation of Digantar Vidyalaya to expand the reach of self-paced, conceptually grounded pedagogy, with the aim of integrating it into mainstream schools rather than limiting it to small alternative institutions.
Testimonials
The feedback from the participants was positive and constructive. Throughout all the three courses, participants had the opportunity to read individually and in groups, and they found the experience worthwhile. The reason for this, as shared by them, is that in their day-to-day activities at their organizations, it becomes difficult to find time to read, pause and reflect. Many of them appreciated the residential nature of the courses, which allowed them to be exposed to educational theories and reflect on their thoughts and actions. However, some suggested that the courses could have been made more engaging by incorporating more warm-up activities. Almost all of them requested further resources and more references on the content discussed during the various sessions.
Some of the reflections by the participants, in their own words, are shared below:
“The process, from setting up a theoretical framework to making a curriculum, has been very productive for me in the course. This gave me an inside view into the designing and making of the curriculum.
“To me, it felt that there is so much to know! Introduction to education is happening to me now. Six (6) days of continuously listening, talking, reading, and being challenged are helping me to enhance my criticality.”
“I really liked the process that was followed from day 1, related to the philosophical inquiry of many ideas. It has laid out the foundation from there. If I see any school of education, it will make sense to me. Now I will be able to distinguish between the metaphors people use and the reasons behind them.”
"I will be more aware of using catchy phrases now, which are generally used by many people, including me, just for the sake of using them."
"Being precise with definitions, then extracting the premises/ conclusions in some cases, and analysing the arguments, especially when there is a causal statement in the first premise....I guess it needs some practice. I am enjoying wrestling with it.
"If education and related issues are new to you, whether you are of any age or background, you will benefit from learning from this course. It will prepare you for unexpected and significant situations. Whatever you are doing in education, this course will help you become more influential and thoughtful."
1. https://youtu.be/tAl5maGacto
2. https://youtu.be/ire5UCTqkhc
3. https://youtu.be/EGAvQziH-HA
