Cyril Potter College Of Education

Applied Skills For School & Society

The East Indians
Group 3 Members: Jamol Butcher, Jubilee Prescott, Mario
Seeram, Svetlana Dowding, Shonett Wills & Philicia John
Content
 Introduction
The Indian population originated from three separate waves of migration from
Africa, Iran and Central Asia over a period of 50,000 years, scientists have found
using genetic evidence from people alive in the subcontinent today.
The Indian Subcontinent harbours huge genetic diversity, in addition to its vast
patchwork of languages, cultures and religions. Researchers at the University of
Huddersfield in the UK found that some genetic lineages in South Asia are very
ancient. The earliest populations were hunter-gatherers who arrived from Africa,
where modern humans arose, more than 50,000 years ago.
However, further waves of settlement came from the direction of Iran, after the
last Ice Age ended 10-20,000 years ago, and with the spread of early farming.
These ancient signatures are most clearly seen in the mitochondrial DNA, which
tracks the female line of descent.
The Indians arrived in British Guiana in May 1838 as indentured immigrants. They
worked on the sugar plantations where they were treated badly and poorly fed.
After a while of working on the plantation, some of them settled in the now
Guyana while some returned to their home land India.
The few that settled here, started families which caused an increase of that
specific type of people populating various parts of Guyana. When they settled,
they eventually passed on traditional practices which includes foods and food
preparation, religious beliefs and practices along with festivals and celebrations.
Indian culture is one of the most ancient cultures of the world. The ancient
cultures of Egypt, Greece, Rome, etc. were destroyed with time and only their
remnants are left. But Indian culture is alive till today. Its fundamental principles
are the same, as were in the ancient time. One can see village panchayats, caste
systems and joint family system. The teachings of Buddha, Mahavira, and Lord
Krishna are alive till today also and are source of inspiration. The values of
spirituality, praying nature, faith in karma and reincarnation, non-violence, truth,
non- stealing, Chastity, Non- Acquisitiveness, etc. inspire people of this nation,
today also. Material development and materials come under civilization while Art
of Living, customs, traditions come under culture.
Material development is possible to a limit. This is the reason, that the
civilizations got destroyed while Indian culture is present till today because the
basis of development was spirituality and not materialism. Thus, Indian culture
can be called an ancient culture, whose past is alive even in the present. The
reminiscent of the stone-age found in Pallavaram, Chingalpet, Vellore, Tinnivalli
near Madras, in the valley of river Sohan, in Pindhighev area in West Punjab, in
Rehand area of Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh, in Narmada Valley in Madhya Pradesh,
in Hoshangabad and Maheshwar, make it clear that India has been the land of
development and growth of human culture. On the basis of excavation done in
places like Harappa and Mohanjodaro etc. we come to know the developed
civilization and culture of the pre-historical era, which was flourished around 3000
B.C. Thus, Indian culture is about 5000 years old.
However, the Hindus are further divided into
 Madras : These are worshippers of Maha Kali and strongly believes in the
manifestation of dieties as well as blood/life sacrifices.
 The Haribol: These are of the belief that Lord Krishna is the one and only
true God. Persons practicing this religion leads a strict vegetarian life and
abstain from music and other activities such as the use of garlic.
 The normal Hindus , they pray to one divine God in several forms. Each
form is a representation of God for a different purpose. For example: Lord
Ganesh is said to the be diety that is prayed to in aid of removal of
obstacles from one's life.
 Religion & language

The East Indians in Guyana are either Muslims or Hindu. Sanskrit is the primary
sacred language of Hinduism, and has been used as a philosophical language in
the religions of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. Sanskrit is a standardized
dialect of Old Indo-Aryan, originating as Vedic Sanskrit as early as 1700-1200 BCE.
One of the oldest Indo-European languages for which substantial documentation
exists, Sanskrit is believed to have been the general language of the greater Indian
Subcontinent in ancient times. It is still used today in Hindu religious rituals,
Buddhist hymns and chants, and Jain texts.

Social Class of the East Indians

The four classes were the Brahmins priestly people, the Kshatriyas (also called

Rajanyas, who were rulers, administrators and warriors), the Vaishyas artisans,
merchants, tradesmen and farmers, and Shudras labouring classes.
 Herbs & Spices the East Indians would use
Spices
 Allspice
 Cardamom
 Cinnamon
 Clove
 Ginger
 Nutmeg
 Star anise
 Turmeric
Herbs
 Thyme
 Garlic
 Savory
 Sage
 Rosemary
 Poppy seed
 Paprika
 Oregano
 Mint
 Marjoram
 Celebrations / Festivals
Eid-Ul-Adha (Kurbani)
This is the Islamic festival which celebrates the faith of Ibrahim where he was
asked in a dream by the almighty Allah to sacrifice the thing he loves most, which
was his son. Ibrahim being the faithful servant that he was, took his son to the
mountain top, covering his eyes and was ready to sacrifice him. Then, after
Ibrahim closed his eyes and cut what he believed, to be his son's neck, by faith his
son was standing next to him and he had killed a lamb. This is being celebrated
every year by Muslims across the globe where they sacrifice cows or lambs then
share the meat with their relatives and friends.

Eid-ul-fitr
Fitr means to break, this Eid commemorates the ending of the holy month of
fasting; Ramadan. On this day, Muslims buy new clothing, prepares various dishes
and would attend prayers at the mosque then visit the homes of each other
where they socialise and eat.

Youman Nabi
This festival signifies the birth and death of the Muslim prophet Mohammed as he
died on one his birthdays. On this day, Muslims would usually prepare and share
sweets such as vermicelli, cernie, fudge etc along with offering prayers.
Nine day
On the 9th of one’s life, that is 9 days after birth, the mother of a new born baby
would take the baby outside to see the sun while aunties and grandmas of the
family would beat kitchen pots and pans while the baby mother shows the baby
the sun or expose him/her to sunlight. This is mainly to thank the sun God for
blessing their lives with a baby. This tradition is practiced by Muslims and Hindus.
The only difference is that Muslims pierce their daughters ears on this day while
Hindus wait a longer time.
Mehendi night
This tradition is quite common in today's weddings. It usually takes place 3 night
prior to the wedding and one night prior to the maticor/dig dutty.
During the mehendi night, the bride would have someone applying mehendi on
her hands and feet while the female relatives and friends of the bride would
dance,Sing and dance and celebrate with sweet meats.

Maticor
On this night, which is two nights prior to the wedding, Hindus believe that they
must pay respect and homeage to mother earth by preforming puja under the
wedding maro/mandap where the wedding bamboo is bring planted. After the
bamboo is planted, dye(turmeric) is applied to the bride/groom's skin as a form of
purification and also beautification as it cleanses the skin and brings about a
natural glow.

Weddings
As it is commonly known, Indian weddings are of a rich culture where families and
friends dress traditionally and eat, merry and be happy with each other.
 East Indian Clothing
Sari

Orhni
Shalwers

Kurtas
Lahenga
 References

Greene, E. (2000). Social Studies Guyana Our Country Our Home Level 5 and 6. Caribbean

Educational.

McLean, J. (n.d.). Sanskrit. Lumenlearning.Com. Retrieved July 20, 2021, from

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-hccc-worldcivilization/chapter/sanskrit/

Wikipedia contributors. (2021, July 20). Caste system in India. Wikipedia, The Free

Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?

title=Caste_system_in_India&oldid=1034550995

The three levels of intervention are (primary, secondary, and tertiary levels) and are
available to support students. These levels reflect the same organizational framework
applied in public health and community psychology intervention planning.
Some schools have organized the levels so that they include multiple tiers or layers.
For example, a school might have two tiers within a level; this would suggest that
they offer a similar level of intensity but might have a different organizational
schema. One tier might have a standard treatment protocol while the other has a
problem-solving protocol – and together they make up a single level of intervention.
At the primary level, all students are provided with high-quality general education
instruction and progress is monitored regularly. The focus at this level is on effective
core instruction and strategies for all students. So to emphasize, the primary level is
for all students. Students at any grade level will receive the core curriculum.
Since the primary level is a common experience for all students, it is clearly the most
important foundation to successful RTI implementation. If our primary level
curriculum and instructional practices are not meeting the needs of at least 80% of
the students, improving this level has to be the focus for professional development,
curricular decisions, instructional practices, incentives, resources, budgetary
allocation, and other school improvement tools. Accommodations and modifications
are implemented as needed in the primary level.
The secondary level applies to some students who demonstrate inadequate
responsiveness despite receiving high-quality core instruction at the primary level.
These students are given an intervention in addition to their general education
instruction, and progress is continually monitored. For many schools, this secondary
level will be the “test” of whether or not a student will be responsive to instruction
that has proven itself successful.
A small percentage of students do not respond to this secondary intervention and are
provided with a more intense intervention at the tertiary level. In some RTI models
the tertiary level consists of special education; in others it results in a referral for
special education evaluation upon further evidence that the interventions are not
effective.
The levels of RTI. The intensity of intervention and frequency of progress monitoring
increase as a student moves through the levels. The size of the instructional group
decreases, ranging from entire class participation at the primary level to
individualized attention at the tertiary level. The placement of special education
varies by model.