INNOVATION PRACTICES ON ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION IN THE TWIN SCHOOLS OF TAGORES VISVA-BHARATI, SANTINIKATAN: A CASE STUDY

Universal global concern for the Environment is important here. Environmental Education is an emerging area of research. Tagores ideas on nature and environment are unforgettable.Visva-Bharati (Santiniketan-Sriniketan) is an exemplar model of environmental education. The twin schools, Patha Bhavana and Siksha Satra reflects indigenous Tagorean thought and practices with regard to environment. There are significant pedagogic importance in terms of curricular inputs, value development and environmentally awakened and enlightened citizenship. Rabindranath Tagore did not remain within the boundary literary practices. The consistent writing of Tagore has chronic adherence to nature. In Tagore, nature is not red with tooth and claw. Nature is neither a benign mother nor a ferocious malevolent agent. To him, nature is the embodiment of freedom that one crazes for from the childhood. Tagore successfully incorporated Idealism into Naturalism. At Santiniketan, Tagore started the festival of the Earth through brikkharopan (planting of trees) in 1927, at which the students would sing and read his poems. This approach gave his environmental campaign a very positive image, so that it was not a negative campaign about what man should not do but rather it was a subtle reminder conveyed through creative expression. This encouraged more people to get involved in supporting his campaign. Tagore wanted to study nature by observation and experiments both. Nature is very much reflected in his poetry, novels, stories and paintings. There is a fundamental unity between nature and man. Nature is nothing but reflection of God in physical form. Education should promote this unity through love of nature. Child should enjoy complete freedom to develop according to his nature. Nature is an effective and powerful teacher of the world.