Miseducation and the Subversion of Knowledge: Examining the Dangers of Teaching Unverified Data for Nation Building and Sustainable Development

Abstract

This article interrogates the dangers of miseducation and the teaching of unverified data to students, situating the discussion within the broader dynamics of knowledge suppression and distortion. Building upon the historical reality that the English word God is a late Germanic import imposed upon biblical texts, the study employs the concept of divine subversion as an analogy for how education can be manipulated to elevate certain narratives while marginalising others. Such practices of distortion, whether linguistic or pedagogical, reveal how systems of knowledge can be co-opted to serve ideological purposes rather than truth. The article argues that miseducation undermines nation-building by producing citizens who are unable to critically interrogate knowledge, thereby weakening democratic processes and civic responsibility. Furthermore, it compromises the sustainable development of human minds by cultivating intellectual passivity and dependence on unverified authorities. Drawing from translation studies, postcolonial theory, and critical pedagogy, the article demonstrates that teaching unverified data is not merely an academic error but a structural danger that shapes collective memory, political culture, and national development. It concludes that decolonial and evidence-based pedagogical frameworks are essential for building resilient societies capable of critical thought and sustainable human flourishing.