SWABI: The participants of a workshop here on Thursday asked teachers to create awareness among students regarding the significance of heritage sites and museums.

Conducted at Hund Museum under the auspices of Trust for History, Art and Architecture of Pakistan (Thaap) in collaboration with Unesco, the workshop was attended by research scholars, art experts and teachers of public and private schools around the Hund village.

Ghiasuddin Pir, the Thaap project manager, in his remarks said that objective of the workshop was to guide teachers how to create a nexus between museums and schools through different lesson plans so that students could know about the historical role and importance of archaeological sites for integrating them into educational system.

He said that Hund village had great historic and archaeological significance but unfortunately youth knew little about it. He said that teachers should try to integrate tangible and intangible cultural heritage in the school curriculum for educational purposes and also to enable the students to understand, define and relate themselves to the artifacts preserved in the museums.

Speakers say cultural heritage should be integrated into curriculum

Samar Majid, a representative of Unesco, said that museums provided a window into history, cultural and social life. “Our cultural roots cannot be strengthened unless heritage sites are preserved and taught to students through different ways and means. Museums are not just wonder places but are treasure trove of knowledge from which we can learn important lessons for our future to save our identity,” she added.

Ahsanzeb, an expert on art, said that museums possessed materials and information that could and should be used in enriching and improving the school curriculum in various disciplines. “It is for the educational planners to work closely with museum experts on how the educational resources that are available in the museum can be integrated into the curriculum,” he added.

Akbar Hoti, a language specialist, on the occasion said that the every single object from antiquity had a story behind it and should be preserved for posterity. He said that Hund Museum and a monument of Alexander the Great told a lot about the history of the old city and the people, their culture, traditions and life around it.

Mehreen Mustafa, another expert, said that one of the fundamental objectives of the museum was to educate people.

Prof Shah Jahan, Saad Haider and Mehwish Abid also spoke on the occasion.

Published in Dawn, January 25th, 2019