Pedagogy in Akbar’s Reign A Big Historical Perspective

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Afshan Majid

Abstract

This paper looks back at the reign of Emperor Akbar with a fresh perspective of Big History. When one is undertaking such an endeavour, there is an apprehension of crossing rigid boundaries of disciplines that have been set. In this case, there is a tendency to adhere to the sensibilities of the ‘serious,’ traditional historian, but, most importantly, staying true to the methodology of the discipline, while taking the leap with a new perspective. So, interestingly enough, while this paper looks at some of the educational reforms brought about by Akbar (from the perspective of Big History), this paper itself becomes an exercise in Big History.

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Articles
Author Biography

Afshan Majid, Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts, Symbiosis International University

Afshan Majid is an Assistant Professor for History at Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts. She co-developed and co-teaches the first course in Big History in a university in South Asia. She has a PhD in Medieval Indian History from the Centre of Advanced Study in History at Aligarh Muslim University in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh (India). Her thesis involved a reconceptualization of Mughal society and culture as gleaned from 16th century historian ‘Abdul Qādir Badāūnī’s work, the Muntak̲h̲ab-ut-Tawārik̲h̲. In addition to her specialisation in history, Afshan also holds a degree in Women’s Studies and has interdisciplinary publications in both fields. She may be reached at <afshan.majid@ssla.edu.in>.