Students' Journal of Education and Development

STUDENTS’ JOURNAL OF EDUCATION AND DEVELOPMENT

Project Coordination and Advocacy Team Kalpita Wadher | Kriti Gupta | Saesha Surendran Pillai | Vinay

EDITORIAL

The Students’ Journal of Education and Development (SJED) is a space to bring forth the voice of the student community of Azim Premji University about issues of public importance and in-terest. It is a space to collate the wealth of academic writing from among the students and share learning with the wider community. This sixth edition of the SJED takes this spirit of engage-ment forward and brings to you a collection of insightful research articles, perspective-building pieces, essays, and notes. Our first article in this edition is by Ms. Jayna Jagani. It is a research study that looks at the perspectives of early childhood education teachers on “autonomy” for children during play-activities and finds that classroom learning and pre-decided objectives continue to take prece-dence over children’s autonomy for various reasons. The second article is by Ms. Lipika Kanekal. It is a research study on “Homeschooling in the Indian context”. Through qualitative evidence, the essay comprehensively looks into the curricula used by families where children are home-schooled and also looks into the impact of RTE on this emerging schooling experience. Our third article is based on the East Kolkata Wetlands (EKW), often considered as the “kid-neys” of Kolkata. They constitute an important socio-ecological system providing a range of val-uable ecosystem services. However, the system continues to be threatened by the rapid urban sprawl and constant pressure from real estate. As EKW grapples with the challenges of urbaniza-tion, the study, done by Ms. Madhureema Auddy, uncovers the multifaceted impact of urbani-zation on the wetlands and thus on people’s lives. The essay captures narratives of change in the EKW and how society, in turn, responds to such transformations. Fourth, we have Ms. Nupur Rastogi’s study which considers perspectives of different stake-holders to study community engagement in schools in a village in Jharkhand. She looks at the perceptions of the community members on their own engagement with the school and closely analyses the factors involved in this engagement. The fifth article studies the relationships between a science museum (Khoj Museum) and science curricula taught in two upper primary schools in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Mr. Samrudh Dixit enquires into how museums inculcate conceptual understanding in students and improve their retention of concepts. The sixth article is by an alumnus, Mr. Brihas Tiwari. The essay asks a pertinent question: “Can low-fee private schools be an alternative to government schools?” The answer to this, the author says, is multi-layered and has to do with the social, economic, and political situation in the country. He looks at the perceptions of society, quality of education, and the responsibilities of the government in this respect and also proposes some interventions to turn the situation around. In the seventh article, Mr. Nityanand Rai presents the historical evolution of the post-development theory from development theory. He writes about the ideas of Gandhi and Marx and puts forth the similarities and dissimilarities of their world views. He also goes on to show how Ivan Illich, one of the pioneers of the post-development theory, draws his ideas from Marx and Gandhi. Next, in the eighth essay, Ms. Sariya Ali looks at female genital mutilation (FGM) and female sexuality. The paper notes that FGM is practiced in a number of communities across the world. The paper attempts to understand the practice by exploring the ideological justifications for and the acceptance of this practice. The essay details a number of interventions to tackle FGM under-taken by organizations along with the members of the community. The last article in this edition is by Ms. Rituja Mistra. She reviews a book written by Dr. Nitya Ghotge named Livestock and Livelihood. She presents key points from the book highlighting how livestock is an important aspect of rural livelihood across the Indian subcontinent. She also critically analyzes various gaps in modern veterinary science and examines the status of tradi-tional wisdom of livestock rearers. As is evident, the above-mentioned papers cover a wide range in terms of themes. This issue of SJED has been made possible by the contributions of current students of Azim Premji University, members of its alumni body, the journal’s Advisory Board, the Editorial Collective, and the Coordination and Advocacy teams.

The Project Coordination and Advocacy Team, Students’ Journal of Education and Development. CONTENTS

Research Articles The nature of autonomy as understood by teachers of 4-6-year olds during play-based activity hour in low fee private schools - Jayna Jagani...... 3

Varied Trends of Homeschooling in Bangalore - Lipika Kanekal...... 23 Understanding the Socio-Ecological Impact of Urbanization in the Transformation of Lakes and Wetlands – A Case Study of East Kolkata Wetlands, West Bengal - Madhureema Auddy...... 45 Community engagement in Schools: A Study of a village in Jharkhand - Nupur Rastogi...... 67 Studying the relationship between Science Museums and Science Curriculum taught in upper primary schools in Ahmedabad, Gujarat - Samrudha Dixit...... 81

Perspectives and Practices Can Low-Fee Private Schools Be An Alternative to Government Schools? - Brihas Tiwari...... 99 Contribution of Marx & Gandhi in Evolution of Post Development Theories - Nityanand Rai...... 111

Notes Haraam Ki Boti Topic - Female Genital Mutilation - Sariya Ali...... 119

Classics Revisited Book Review of Livestock and Livelihoods - Rituja Mitra ...... 129

Style Sheet...... 136

Research Articles

THE NATURE OF AUTONOMY AS UNDERSTOOD BY TEACHERS OF 4-6 YEAR JAYNA JAGANI OLDS DURING PLAY-BASED ACTIVITY HOUR IN LOW FEE PRIVATE SCHOOLS

Abstract Nurturing autonomy or agency in children has been viewed as fundamental on-going process for a child’s growth. This study tries to understand what autonomy means to teachers of Early Childhood Care and Education schools during play-based activity hours. To what extent teachers’ beliefs are translated into classroom practices which result in governing the children’s choice, control and movement. A sample of 10 teachers from two low-fee private schools reveals that although autonomy is seen as a significant factor, the degree of autonomy shifts as per the teachers’ discretion. Effective classroom management techniques, discipline and learning outcome take precedence due to which autonomy suffers. Key Words: autonomy, nurture, play-based activity, choice, control, beliefs, movement, learning outcome. 1. Introduction Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) has gained significant ground over the past few years in India. A lot of research has been done in this field which tells us how crucial and essential these early years are for the rapid physical and mental growth of children. Given these benefits, it is indispensable for every child to get the opportunity to develop in a healthy and nurturing environment. (Chopra, 2012). But, mere participation in an ECCE setting is not enough, the quality of the setting is also crucial and for this reason, after a lot of debates and discussions, India adopted a National ECCE policy in 2013. The policy lays down the Curriculum Framework to be followed by the settings and do’s/don’ts for the teachers. This framework serves as a plan or a broad guideline for the implementation of quality care and education for the young ones (Government of India, 2012).

Jayna graduated with an M.A. in Education from Azim Premji University in 2020. She is currently working on an internship project on School readiness and Parent Engagement for children from disadvantaged communities with the organisation Indus Action based in Delhi. She is interested in Early Childhood Education and the practices adopted to teach children in this field.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 3 The role of teachers/care givers has been given utmost importance in the Curriculum guidelines. It says that earlier, there were no guiding principles on the basis of which teachers would work and hence were neglected throughout. The problem arises when, while framing a child centric curriculum, one only thinks about the best practices and activities for children, which will help in better learning, but does not think about the practices for teachers who are the ones who are going to deliver that learning. Thus, keeping in mind the variety of cultures prevalent in India, the curriculum framework serves as a tool to standardize the teaching practices across ECCE settings and provide a common goal to teachers. Hence, teacher’s importance cannot be negated for both academic and non-academic purposes. Given the short-term and long-term gains of ECCE, we need to focus on the age group of children being catered to. Theory of Psychological Development as given by Erik Erikson talks about the stages in which children develop from birth to 65 years of age. Focusing on the years up to 6, the theory says that children, assuming that they successfully complete the cycles of growth, develop trust, autonomy, initiative and feeling of competence during their early years. (Batra, 2013) Given these outcomes, it is natural to assume that children in this age group are highly energetic, spontaneous and impulsive. It brings us to understanding the importance of play and activities surrounding its benefits to be practiced in ECCE settings. As per the understanding given by the National Association for Education of Young Children (NAEYC), USA, ‘Play is an essential part of every child’s life and vital to his/her development. It is the way children explore the world around them and develop practice skills. It is essential for physical, emotional and spiritual growth; for intellectual and educational development; and for acquiring social and behavioural skills’ (Stegelin, 2005). This elaborate definition tells us about the importance of play and its overall benefits to a child. I would like to focus on the exploratory nature of children being talked about over here, as it brings to light the nature of children and the practices followed by teachers to tap this exploratory attribute. The exploration has been further elaborated by NAEYC by stating that it means to manipulate objects and play material by children. Although, the manipulation can be possible only when the teachers provide children the opportunity and choice to do so. We see in the National ECCE Curriculum Framework importance being given to play and considering it to be central to a child’s well-being. It provides scope for constructing knowledge through manipulation and problem-solving activities. It also helps in developing abstract and representational thought. Play also provides opportunity to improve motivation, creativity and positive outlook towards society and emotional and mental well-being. Thus, it is the responsibility of adults to provide children with immense opportunity to play, explore and apply. (Government of India, 2012)

4 Azim Premji University 1.1 Teachers, play and autonomy As mentioned earlier, adult’s involvement in play is crucial as it helps in providing the necessary skills both cognitive and social to children. Below, a scenario is given where a teacher’s intervention initiated the child to play with the material: Three-year-old Mario has been banging bristle blocks against the wall for several minutes. Observing this, an adult comes over to sit beside Mario, and begins putting the blocks together in various ways. As if talking to herself, the adult verbalizes her actions. “I think if I put this red one here, l can make something really different. “Mario watches her and reaches for some red bristle blocks to put together (Ward, 1996). Sometimes, when children are not engaged actively in play, teacher’s intervention helps in building a rapport of the child with other children as well as with the teacher. It is said that when teachers participate and show interest in play, they are conveying that play is valuable and important activity and this helps in building strong student-teacher relationships (Ward, 1996). Research highlights four key elements in play, being time, space, experiences and materials. Usually, a time period of 30-50 minutes is enough for children to build ideas, manipulate objects, communicate and use their freedom. It is also said that when children do not get enough time to play with materials, they usually resort to simple activities and do not exploit their creativity. Any kind of space constraints will also hamper a child’s play time, as then they will not have space to engage with the materials and also carry out socio dramatic play. Through play, children try and imitate their real-life experiences and express their roles. Materials hold the most important aspect in play, as children engage with them in order to regulate their play time and expand their creativity and imagination. This brings us to our next question as to when is it appropriate for adults to intervene in play? research done by Jones and Reynolds (Reynolds, 1992) points out three areas where adult intervention can be beneficial: (1) Children do not initiate in play (2) Children have difficulty playing with others (3) Play seems to be repetitive and dangerous, break down completely. These interventions can be both from outside as well as inside. An outside intervention is one where the teacher stands on the side and gives suggestions, where her/his role to merely prompt the students in case of any confusion or if a child is not engaged actively. An inside intervention is one where the teacher is a part of the play group by either taking on a role or modelling the play as per the children’s needs (Ward, 1996)

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 5 The above understanding of a teacher’s role in play and the interventions made brings us to question about the kind of agency that children have during play time. With the teacher being constantly involved, a child’s freedom to manipulate and explore the materials somewhat gets restricted and leads to curtailment of autonomy as well as functioning of power dynamics in the ECCE settings. As teachers or parents are the ones who sanction play, they are at a higher position of authority to make decisions regarding what to play and how. Research shows that early on, children are able to dichotomise materials as whether they are play based or classroom based. Also, they would see play solely on the basis of freedom to choose (N, 1990). A teacher’s understanding of autonomy with self-regulation, choice and control as aspects of it, becomes instructive in gauging the effectiveness of the environment in nurturing the same in children. The teachers’ actions and approaches will be underpinned by their beliefs about autonomy and their exposure to and perceptions of the various developmental theories. These beliefs and perceptions intermingle with factors which require a conducive situation for their display, such as the class strength, the time allotted for free play, the availability and access to play materials and if the expectations from the teachers are result or process oriented (Lombaerts, 2009). 1.2 Need and significance of study As pointed earlier, Erik Erikson’s theory places importance on the crucial aspects which a child should have by the age of 6. Erikson also talks about play as a ‘function of ego’ which provides a child with the power to be ‘his own boss, because he obeys himself’. He further elaborates by saying ‘play is a way to deal with experiences by creating model situations and to master reality by experimenting and planning’ (Lee, 2015). Thus, in order to bring out its relevance in today’s context, we need to study to what extent are teachers intervening during children’s play time and also the kind of activities being conducted by the teachers, which help in fostering the necessary freedom and initiative. Given the importance of play in children’s life, it becomes necessary to study all its aspects in terms of the kind of choice of materials, control, freedom of movement and exploration. Research in this domain points to the growth of self-esteem, confidence and learning in children. With the dearth of research in India in these aspects, it becomes all the more necessary to conduct research in this domain. The National ECCE Curriculum Framework also points to the significance of play and the teacher’s scope of involvement. The curriculum places emphasis on adequate training to be given to teachers regarding how to conduct classes and what strategies should be adopted to get the learning outcome.

6 Azim Premji University This also puts light to the fact that the teachers are not told explicitly about giving freedom to children regarding the exploration of play materials and enhancing children’s creativity. Thus, there is a need to explore the importance given to freedom by teachers during activity hour. With this regard, whether these aspects are given importance by the teachers in children’s learning during play-based activity hour of 4-6-year old is our interest of study. Since teachers are the authoritative figure in the immediate learning environment of a child, these opportunities for development become dependent on their understanding of autonomy and the degree of significance they attach to it in bringing out the best in children. For this study, we would like to understand how teachers understand autonomy and the causes and influences for the current understanding they hold and its consequences in terms of their practices and interactions with the children. We have chosen low fee private schools because the NGO we are associated with, the KEY Education Foundation, is connected with schools from this economic background across Bengaluru and supports them by providing play materials and teacher training on the numerous benefit play has on child development. We felt studying the understanding of teachers who teach children of a specific socio-economic collectivist cultural background will be of value in assessing child development in this broader context and in also supporting the KEY Education Foundation with feedback on the play kit and teacher training modules they have developed. 2. Research Question The nature of autonomy as understood by teachers for 4-6-year old during play-based activity hour in low fee private schools. For our quantitative study, we will look into what the teachers’ is understanding of autonomy through the following questions. • What are teacher beliefs on autonomy? • What does autonomy during play-based activity hours for 4-6-year old mean to teachers? • What factors contribute to teachers developing autonomy among children during unstructured play time? The variables we will use are: • The necessity for autonomy, teachers’ understanding of autonomy. • Education and training, age, work experience, place of longest residence • Class strength, time, TLMs, expectations as results or process oriented For our qualitative study, we will look into the nature of student-teacher interaction during play-based activity hours through the following questions.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 7 • How does autonomy play out between students and teachers during play-based activity hours? • What are the challenges that teachers face in developing autonomy? • How is it resolved? The conceptual framework we will use is: • Choice of language for instructions, control over initiation of play, choices in movement • Perceptions of teachers on choice, control and initiation • Conflict resolution through dialogue and negotiations, teacher training. 3. Limitations A few limitations that we encountered during the study have been related to translation of the teachers’ answers into English, as my research partner and I were not acquainted with the local language and had to depend on the translator to ask the questions to the teachers and then translate back answers to us in English. We feel some of the nuances of the teacher’s answers might have been lost due to this drawback. Understanding the context in which the school is and its culture. This would have allowed us to look at the background of children as well and what practices does the school follow in order to bring in desired results. 4. Variables The variables chosen for the study are teacher education and training, age, work experience, place of longest residence, the necessity of autonomy, teachers understanding of autonomy, class strength, time, TLMs, expectations as results or process oriented. The National Early Childhood Care and Education (NECCE) Curriculum Framework (2013) specifies the need for qualified staff in early childhood settings and the disparity in the training across both the public and the private sector. Without proper training and exposure, a teacher will not be able to deal with children and the dynamic environment of a classroom or play area. The courses provided by various colleges are obsolete and need an overhaul in terms of practical training and theoretical understanding. A continuous feedback mechanism also needs to be developed so that it helps the teachers to modify their methods and provide ongoing training. The policy also focuses on how it is beneficial for the ECCE school as well as students if the teachers are hired from the local community area itself. The above variables have been chosen on the basis of the main research question which delves into autonomy as understood by teachers of early childhood education. With the growing awareness about early childhood

8 Azim Premji University care, importance can be attributed to various factors such as policy implementations, the role of media, research grants and the government. These factors have led to a popular belief that early childhood education is an ‘investment in the future’ (William, 2007). The other factors of teacher’s background and training cannot be ignored. The dynamic society that we live in, there are constant changes happening around us and this calls for our need to focus on what effect these changes have on young children. For this regard, teachers training, and role also need to be upgraded as per the current demands. We also need to understand how the pre-service training translates into the ECCE settings, what elements inside a classroom or play area help the teachers to deliver better and what elements prove to be detrimental. The teachers’ role is not only restricted to providing quality learning inside the classrooms but also extends to be a facilitator for enhancing the necessary capabilities in children, who are mostly unaware about it at that age. Apart from this, other factors such as the student-teacher ratio and the use of play kits play a significant role in cultivating autonomy and necessary emotional development among children. As mentioned earlier, the nature of teacher’s intervention during play will determine the kind of relationships being developed inside the classrooms. 5. Conceptual Framework Choice of language for instruction: This concept will help us understand how the relationship between student and teacher is fostered in an early childhood setting. According to a study done in Australia, language-rich environments are key to developing overall quality in early childhood care settings. The use of language can also delve into using picture books and dramatic play in order to stimulate the necessary growth in children (Campbell, 2014). The degree of interactions that take place between teachers and students varies according to the activity chosen by either student or teacher. Conforming to the above idea of choice of instruction, a study conducted in the USA regarding the children’s interaction with teachers, peers and tasks across preschool activity settings, describes how the nature of interactions changes when the setting is child-centred or teacher-centred. On average, the interactions of children with their peers and tasks were more positive in a child-directed setting whereas children experienced more conflict during transitions to recess or routine change. Also, the most amount of interactions that happen between teachers and children are during a teacher directed setting, whereas when children talk to their peers, the nature of interaction changes into a more social kind. Moreover, during free play, with minimal teacher intervention, the interactions happen with different objects, tasks, activities, peers, individual self as well as teachers.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 9 The use of colours, drawings, sounds, music and toys lead to a different kind of instruction as given by the teachers. This affects the overall cognitive and psychomotor development of children who are put in an environment which helps in enriching their overall capabilities and develop the necessary skills during that age (Leslie M Booren, 2012) • Control over initiation of play activities, choices of movement: Research done by Elizabeth Ann Wood (Wood, 2014) on the discourse of free choice and free play highlights the importance of a child-centred curriculum which caters to children’s needs and interests and enhances the learning in such a way that it fosters autonomy, agency and self-regulation. The study further extends into understanding the shift in autonomy in the face of shifting power structures involving conflict, negotiation and resistance. The research concludes by establishing the importance of how children make and manage their choice in light of the curriculum framework. These concepts will help us to look at how autonomy is exercised during free play, which is now considered as an important part of a child’s learning. The freedom of choice and initiation that children have, the extent to which teachers manage a child’s freedom of choice and movement, and the challenges that teachers face while conducting free play activities, also do these challenges in some way restrict or curtail the autonomy, free choice and movement of children. • Teacher training in solving conflict situations: We are aware of the importance of quality teacher training for primary as well as secondary education, but the need for a quality early childhood teacher education is extremely vital as well as crucial. By understanding the relevance of training provided and how it is translated into the classrooms as well as during free play, we can comprehend how teachers use their existing knowledge of training and use it to solve any conflicts during play, also how they conduct activities during the free play time. The gravity of an effective teacher training program is highlighted in the National ECCE policy too, where the government has pointed out issues with non-standardization of training programs across public and private sectors. Currently whatever is offered in the name of training is outdated, and devoid of any practical applications. There are universities and government colleges running training programs for teachers with a fixed curriculum and duration, on the other, there are private run institutions who have their own curriculum and no set standards. Thus we have a mix of teachers who are not only ill- equipped but also have different levels of knowledge and understanding. (Government of India, 2012) 6. Methodology A mixed methodology, both quantitative and qualitative has been used to conduct this study. The variables chosen for the quantitative study will help

10 Azim Premji University us to understand the beliefs and background of teachers, their educational qualifications and the kind of training received. The teachers who come from the local area of the school will help in determining whether there is any difference in motivation among children, as recommended in the National ECCE policy. (Government of India, 2012) The teachers’ beliefs and practices will help us to make connections with how they comprehend autonomy and whether they consider it to be a necessary aspect or not. For our qualitative we are trying to understand how those beliefs come into practice and what challenges do teachers face while conducting the activity hour. What choices are made in order to resolve those challenges and how does it build teacher-student relationships is our focus of understanding by using qualitative techniques. 6.1 Sample Details For the quantitative study, respondents will be chosen through a random sampling method from schools which collaborate with KEY Education foundation for their training and activity materials. Ten female respondents of a mixed age group will be chosen from two schools situated in urban and rural area of Bangalore. The schools were chosen by KEY Education Foundation where there was availability of teachers as during that time, the academic year had come to an end. A survey was conducted to find out teachers’ beliefs about autonomy. The survey helped us gain insight into the beliefs of the teachers and how those beliefs translate into actions which have an impact on autonomy of children. A question with ranking scale has helped in understanding what factors are given more weightage while conducting the activity hour and which ones are given less. The participants of the qualitative study will be selected through purposive sampling and those who have received training from KEY Education Foundation. Again, those teachers were selected who were available and were able to take out time from their schedules. The teachers of 4-6-year olds were chosen for the purpose of the study. In total 10 teachers were selected, who also did the survey and were a part of the interview for the qualitative study. The interview helped us to see what challenges teachers face while Observation of the video footage has helped in understanding the interaction of the teachers with students during the play-based activity hour. A mixed methodology has helped us in deriving what beliefs and practices do teachers have with regards to their background and how do these beliefs when translated into actions lead to development of autonomy and hence building student-teacher relationships.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 11 6.2 Tools In order to conduct the quantitative study, a survey was designed to find out teachers’ beliefs about autonomy, their understanding of what free play means and what factors contributed to teachers cultivating autonomy during free play time. The parameters of the responses were kept at: Strongly Agree, Agree, Can’t Say, Disagree and Strongly Disagree. The qualitative study has been conducted using a semi-structured interview, which helped us to gain an insight into teacher’s challenges and how they can be linked to the perceptions of autonomy. Observation of two video footage has been done, which helped us to know how the nature of instructions carried out into the classrooms and how they reflect beliefs about autonomy. 6.3 Ethical Concerns A concern that came up during the research was whether teachers would clearly understand the purpose of the study and the spirit in which they would answer questions, as we had asked them about details of their practices in classroom, which might put the school and the training in bad light. Teachers could also be reluctant to answer questions if it went against school policy. Thus, we changed the names of the teachers for data collection and also gave them the choice to not answer certain questions in case they felt uncomfortable in doing so. 7. Analysis 7.1 Quantitative Questionnaire: Percentage The participants had requested to change their names, so we have given codes to ten teachers from A to J A horizontal (each teacher) and vertical (each question) percentage calculation was done for the survey questions. The figures were arrived at by clubbing the categories into SA/A: 1,2 Can’t Say: 3, SD/D 4,5 for both teachers and questions asked For one of the survey questions, we asked the teachers to rank the choices given in order of their preference and beliefs (1 being the highest and 6 lowest). Weightage was given to each parameter and the responses were analysed by multiplying the frequency with weightage. 7.2 Qualitative The qualitative analysis has been done by describing the codes of the interview response and categorising them into themes. The themes are related to the challenges faced by teachers during the play-based activity hour and how do

12 Azim Premji University they resolve it. The analysis also includes the video footage of two activity hours conducted by teachers in low-fee private schools.

Challenges of discipline related Resolution to materials Teacher led, instructions repeated, Student Comprehension Student extra support, timeout, establish exercising choice Misuse of materials classroom rules, Negotiation and Time firmness, Collaborative: Dialogue and negotiation, exercise of choice: teacher directed then student led Student led: Exercise of choice: student led Video 1: Video 2: No exercise of choice, teacher directed, Conditional exercise of choice, and teacher led, Initiation of play: initiation of play: choice offered at teacher led, Choice of movement: the beginning, choice of movement: teacher controlled teacher controlled

8. Findings 8.1 Quantitative: Beliefs about autonomy and what it means to teachers • 100% teachers agree that play-based activity time allotted in the timetable is important for children • 70% feel that the time of 40 minutes allotted for play-based activity hour is adequate. 20% disagree that the time allotted is enough and 10% neither agree nor disagree. • 90% teachers agree that giving autonomy during play-based activity hour means giving children the necessary choice. 10% neither agree nor disagree. • 50% teachers had agreed to understanding autonomy as giving control to children. 30% disagreed and 20% said neither agree nor disagree. • 60% teachers agree that autonomy means giving children the freedom to choose their play material. 40% teachers disagree with the above. • 70% teachers feel autonomy helps in developing problem-solving skills. 30% teachers neither agree nor disagree. • 100% teachers agree with the statement that play-based activity hour helps in developing confidence in children.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 13 • 100% teachers agree that play-based activity hour helps in developing well-being of children. • 100% teachers feel that when activity is completely designed by the teachers, the learning outcomes are better. • 80% teachers feel that any problems that arise during the activity hour should be solved by the teachers.

FIGURE 1: Chart showing the participants response to the quantitative survey.

Findings: Individual teachers’ response to the survey questions • Teacher A: 80% agree, 10% can’t say and 10% disagree • Teacher B: 100% agree • Teacher C: 70% agree, 20% can’t say and 10% disagree • Teacher D: 50% agree, 30% can’t say and 20% disagree • Teacher E: 100% agree • Teacher F: 70% agree, 10% can’t say and 20% disagree • Teacher G: 100% agree • Teacher H: 90% agree and 10% disagree • Teacher I: 70% agree, 10% can’t say and 20% disagree • Teacher J: 90% agree and 10% disagree

14 Azim Premji University FIGURE 2: Chart showing participants response to each individual question

8.2 Rank For one of the survey questions, teachers were asked to rank the choices given in order of their preference and beliefs (1 being the highest and 6 being the lowest). Weightage was given to each parameter and responses were analysed by multiplying the frequency with the weightage. Below is the table which shows the ranking data and the response given by teachers: Weightage Ranks Number of students in the playroom Weighted Rank Time allotted for play based activity hour Weighted Rank Teachers’ involvement during play based activity hours Weighted Rank Learning as an outcome of play based activity hour Weighted Rank Learning as an outcome of play based activity hour Weighted Rank Play based activity hour as an ongoing process of child development Weighted Rank 95 1 3 285 1 0 0 0 2 190 1 3 285 1 1 95 3 1 95 2 80 2 2 160 2 1 80 3 0 0 0 3 240 2 2 160 1 2 160 1 65 3 2 130 3 3 195 2 2 130 2 1 65 4 1 65 4 1 65 4 40 4 0 0 0 5 200 1 2 80 3 2 80 3 1 40 5 0 0 0 25 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 50 4 0 0 0 5 125 2 3 75 3 10 6 3 30 4 1 10 4 2 20 5 1 10 5 0 0 3 30 5 605 485 470 680 485 425

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 15 8.3 Qualitative: How do these beliefs translate into the classroom practices, where the teachers face challenges and resolve them. • Challenges that the teachers faced were ranging from usage of materials, discipline, comprehension of materials, play with other materials, bringing them under control. • The interactions of the teachers with children are entirely teacher-led. This happens because of students not understanding what to do with the materials which creates chaos, thus in order to resolve, the teachers take control of the situation and direct the children. • Each child is given about 10 minutes to play with the materials, the time given is fixed, which leads to either the material not being used properly, or the children are not given the opportunity to think and use the material. • The resolution of the challenges is usually done through dialogues and negotiation, where the children are ‘coaxed’ into listening to the teacher in the end not given much freedom with the materials. • The negotiation usually happens by reminding the children about classroom rules and making them to follow it in case of any conflict. • In order to maintain discipline in class, children are not allowed to move freely from their assigned groups, which in turn allows the teacher to manage the classroom better. If she sees a child trying to look into other group’s material, she uses her authority to make the child sit in his/her designated place. • The children are sometimes offered to use the material as they wish, but it entirely depends on the teacher to give the choice to children • A few teachers have keeping the classroom quiet at all times as their priority. This means that they do not allow children to talk out of turn or even chat amongst themselves. The only interaction that happens is directed by the teacher who then discusses the activity with children in case they find it difficult to understand. • Students are allowed to use the material as they like only once they have achieved the chosen learning outcome of the material as described by the teachers.

16 Azim Premji University 9. Discussion In developing an educational program…we strive to direct ourselves consciously towards the cultivation of the fundamental human ability, the ability to construct and transform independently one’s own life activity, to be its true agent. It is precisely this ability that enables a person to define herself in the world of life, to become involved in existing kinds of learning activity and forms of interaction with other people and create new ones’ (Davydov V, 2003) The above quote highlights the importance of agency in an individual’s life and how it benefits them overall. Importance of play is seen byall teachers that were interviewed and they feel it is a necessary part of the curriculum. But, the nature of play and how it should be carried out is largely misunderstood as each one has their own understanding about how play hour should be. The teachers understanding of importance of play seems to be limited to including a play-period during the entire routine of the child’s day in school. The freedom to choose materials, problem solve while doing the activity and focus on children’s learning through play is not evaluated. Research done by Elizabeth Ann Wood (Wood, 2014) says that if play is only seen as developing forms of knowledge, skills and understanding that are inscribed in curriculum frameworks they will achieve fixed and partial goals for a child’s development. Whereas putting thought to micro aspects of play like autonomy, free choice, control and movement can lead to different interpretations and meaning of the activity. (Wood, 2014). The latter will help in developing deeper meanings of play-based activity hour where children’s learning is not only restricted to the learning outcome, i.e. cognitive aspects rather psychological, emotional and social well-being too. In the findings I see that teachers believe in giving necessary choice to children regarding the play material but when it comes to giving control, only half of them agree. This underscore the point where more than half of the teachers believe in resolving conflicts between children by teachers’ rather than letting children to solve their own problems. The belief about enhancing confidence is seen only from the light of achieving learning outcome, as with confidence building comes well-being too. I feel that these beliefs arise because of the number of children in the classroom which is being reflected as one of the highest factors regarding autonomy during play-based activity hour. This also leads to a belief about the activity hour being controlled by the teacher as given the number of students per classroom, the idea of autonomy automatically gets restricted. The teachers maybe finding it difficult to control the 4-6-year olds, who are highly energetic and curious about the world around them. Play-time is also one of the ways where they express their curiosity and feel like exploring the materials. The question that needs to be addressed is that if teachers see their involvement as crucial whether from outside or inside

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 17 the activity, what kind of involvement should be present? If the nature of involvement shows teachers exercising more control and giving children little space to explore. The teacher’s outlook towards controlling and teacher- directed practices brings me to question the training that they receive, whether they are only taught about the learning outcome from each activity or to what extent do the address a child’s spontaneity and curiosity, how it can be used to teach skills and development of children. Teachers A, B, E, G, H and J have more or less given responses which are in the strongly agree or agree range. Teachers C, D, F and I have responded mostly towards can’t say/disagree/strongly disagree range. The below table shows the distribution of teachers according to the answers given. Green colour signifies Strongly Agree/ Agree and Red shows Can’t say/Disagree/ Strongly Disagree.

Teacher Age Ed Training Site Exp A 40-50 PUC NTT Urban 11-20 B 29-39 Grad NTT Rural 11-20 E 18-28 Grad D.El. Ed Urban 1-10 G 29-39 PUC No training Rural 11-20 H 29-39 Grad No training Rural 1-10 J 40-50 SSLC NTT Urban > 20

C 40-50 PUC No training Rural 11-20 D 18-28 PUC No training Rural 1-10 F 18-28 PUC No training Urban < 1 I 40-50 PUC NTT Rural 1-10

From the table I can say that those teachers who have received training (NTT or D.El. Ed) and have at least more than 10 years of work experience been able to comprehend autonomy better, as compared to teachers who have not received any formal training. Also, I cannot explicitly state that there is a difference in beliefs of rural and urban settings, as from both areas, I see a concern for autonomy and need to nurture it within classrooms but I felt the teachers in this school had a little more understanding about autonomy, as their facial expressions showed familiarity to the concept and maybe they were relating it back to the training received.

18 Azim Premji University Although one distinction that I found was with the interview of Teacher E, who has got a training from D.El. Ed, she said that (transcript version) ‘children have a different concept and thinking about the material, it is important to give them freedom to choose the material, children make different things from what we think’. This belief might be arising because of the difference in training that the teachers have received. If we look at the NTT course, the course period is for one year where teachers are taught about child psychology, teaching methods, childcare and health, basics of pre-primary education, history and philosophy of pre-primary education and arts and crafts. The D.El. Ed course looks at elementary level children with the course spanning over two years. The course is divided into two parts: General course and Subject discipline, where they also specialise in subjects of their choice. The course covers teaching skills, historical patterns, philosophical theories and current classroom trends. Thus, there might be a possibility that the training received by teacher E also aligns with the National ECCE curriculum framework’s objective, which advocates for a child-centric curriculum and activity. Factoring in the aspect of course duration, a 2-year course provides a comprehensive view about education overall and tries to address all perspectives which are necessary for a teacher to have once he/ she starts teaching. Thus, in case of teacher E, where she has received D.El. Ed training and also has experience of 4 years it shows how with even less experience, it is possible to understand the importance of autonomy and move beyond the cognitive development of child. As mentioned previously, the interviews reflect how teachers are prioritising learning outcome of the activity over everything else, which in turn restricts a child’s choice and control. The challenges that teachers face are student comprehension of the materials, discipline and usage of materials. In order to resolve these, teachers rely on dialogue and negotiation with the child, which in general is teacher directed. When it came to resolve the conflicts, the teachers were assertive to point out that it is a teacher’s job to solve any conflicts and bring the class in order. Managing the class effectively through establishing rules and in turn achieving discipline takes precedence over actual learning. The nature of interaction of the teachers is such that they give the child freedom of choice only when children listen to what teachers have to say. For example, being quiet during activity hour leads to teachers exercising freedom of choice to children. Although the nature of choice is such that even with the exercise of some choice, the teachers feel it is important they maintain control like the situation elaborated above. Choice is viewed as asking for what they want, and it being given. This act of giving keeps the teachers in control as opposed to children choosing from what is available.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 19 Relationship between teacher-student fosters when there is a two-way communication. If children are coaxed into listening to what teachers have to say and are made to compromise on their wishes, then they will soon develop feelings of being reserved and maybe fear. Thus, given the nature of interactions that we see, it is necessary that teachers understand the effects of constant discipline on the child as well as making learning outcome oriented rather than process. In my opinion, a process-oriented learning will inherently lead to desired learning outcome, as the goal to be achieved will be broken down into multiple steps which will in turn lead to better analysis of the learning by the teacher. It will also provide opportunities for a healthy interaction and hence develop confidence and well-being in children. In India, culture plays an important role in the development of child. As unlike West, children in India are expected to stay with their parents. This norm translates into how young children are treated in schools and nursery, where the idea of ‘trusting children’ is not evident and they are made to do things as directed by adults. The concept of freedom is very conditional, where it is granted to certain degree, beyond which socio cultural influences and traditions do not encourage giving too much freedom to children. Research by Megan Lee (Lee, 2015) about play and agency in Early Childhood finds that the distinction between work and play and both being seen as polar opposites is largely an adult’s discourse. Children do not find much distinction between the two and also feel that work can be fun and sometimes play can seem like work. Children saw and liked play because of its unfinalizability and a space where one can do what they want. These findings emphasize the importance of agency as seen by children themselves, which has a crucial role. Otherwise, play will seem like work, where instructions have to be followed all the time and carried out in the manner outlined in advance. Further research done on outdoor play by Ellen Sandster and Ole J Sando (Sandseter & Sando, 2016) points to a contradiction where there is an increased need to send children outdoors and explore, but on the contrary we want to keep them as safe as possible. This contradiction leads to adult’s not allowing children to go outside and play and in case they do, children are sent with certain restrictions and rules to be followed. The above articles focus on how autonomy is viewed as a significant factor in both play and work for children. Also, the nature of autonomy changes with respect to the kind of play being done, but it is never undermined.

20 Azim Premji University 10. Conclusion Collaboration, Communication, Content, Creative Innovation, Critical Thinking and Confidence are the 21st century skills required to be built in children for them to be successful adults as laid down by professors Kathy H.P and Robert Golinkoff (Golinkoff, 2016). Developing these skills from an early age is an important and crucial task which needs to be carried out effectively by teachers. From the research I can say that teachers recognise the need for confidence building, problem-solving skills, social relations, overall well-being and appropriate learning outcomes for children. But, the need of the hour is to not focus on one skill rather look at them together and analysing it from minute perspectives. If the activities are broken down and analysed, I feel other factors such as autonomy and freedom of movement and control will find place for discussion and can foster too. Currently, few teachers are aware about the need for agency, but they themselves are not aware to what extent it should be allowed and how to nurture it. The National ECCE Curriculum Framework suggests for a child-centric but with specifics to our research it is concerned with making the material appropriate for the children but in how it is then used and introduced to children the focus shifts to achieving the learning objective. The understanding of teachers here is that learning is established through the learning objective: the outcome preferred over the process, a reason why autonomy suffers. Thus, although we find teachers who are aware of the significance of agency, given their years of experience, training and education, the need of the hour is to focus on how teacher training is carried out in both government and private institutions. As pointed out earlier, currently the scenario is sporadic, with standards not being clearly mentioned about the quality of training to be maintained. Also, I feel the training is designed in a manner where the teachers are made to focus on the learning outcome only. Other factors of how training should be carried out, challenges that can arise in classroom, effective ways to solve them, how to utilise each child’s skills and capabilities to achieve the learning levels as well as social and emotional growth. When we point as play being exploratory, it should not only mean manipulation of materials rather how is that manipulation being enhanced and cultivated within activities, how is it being translated into giving children the freedom to choose their materials and use it, to move around and ask questions. Here, a teacher being merely patient, and caring will not be enough, rather he/she needs to prompt the child wherever necessary in order to bring out holistic development.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 21 11. Suggestion After the study, although all teachers have received KEF training for using materials and conducting classes, the training provided can also address the importance of autonomy of children during school hours. NGOs working with teachers should give them this perspective and learning too.

References Batra. (2013). The psychological development of children: Implications for education and society-Erik Erikson in context. London: SAGE Publication. Campbell, S. (2014). Pre-packaging Preschool Literacy: what drives early childhood teachers to use commercially produced phonic programs in prior to school settings. Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 40-42. Davydov V, I. S. (2003). The Elementary School Student as an Agent of Learning Activity. Journal of Russian and East European Psychology, 63-76. Golinkoff, K. H. (2016). Becoming Brilliant: What Science Tells Us About Raising Successful Children. Washington DC. Leslie M Booren, J. (2012). Observations of Children’s Interactions with Teachers, Peers, and Tasks across Preschool Classroom Activity Settings. NCBI Resources, HHS Author Manuscripts, 517-538. Lombaerts, K. (2009). The Regulated Learning Environment:: Supporting Adults to Support Children. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 79-96. N, A. M. (1990). Economics and Control in everyday school life :Ideology and Curriculum. Routledge. Reynolds, J. E. (1992). The Play is the thing: Teachers role in children’s play. Teachers College Press. Stegelin, D. A. (2005). Making the Case for Play Policy: Research-Based Reasons to Support Play-Based Environments. YC Young Children, NAEYC, 76-77. William, T. J. (2007). Early Childhood Care and Education: Lessons and Puzzles. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 633-634. Wood, E. A. (2014). Free choice and free play in early childhood education: Troubling the discourse. Internal Journal of Early Years Education, 4-18.

22 Azim Premji University VARIED TRENDS OF HOMESCHOOLING LIPIKA IN BANGALORE KANEKAL

Abstract Schooling is considered to be a very important and essential part of a child’s life. Most people in India look at and believe that school education is confined to either a government or a private school. This however has been changing over recent years and many parents have started looking at alternative ways of schooling that break the barriers of conventional methods of schooling and teaching, which focuses more on textbook learning and exams rather than on experiential learning that emphasizes critical thinking and problem solving. While alternative schools have been in existence in India for several years and have only become more popular over the years, another form of schooling that has started gaining interest and is becoming popular in India over the past couple of years has been homeschooling (Bhalla, 2018a). The focus of this study is to get a deeper understanding of the concept of homeschooling and the reasons for doing so in the Indian context and also to understand the impact of homeschooling on parents and children who are homeschooled in India. The study also seeks to analyze the Right to Education (RTE) Act on homeschooling and the impact that it has on homeschooled children and their future prospects. Research Questions 1. What are the curricula that are used by parents in teaching children who are homeschooled? 2. Is socialization a cause of worry for homeschoolers? How does socialization happen in a homeschool setting? 3. How does the Right to Education Act effect or have an impact on the homeschooling concept in India? What are parents’ views on this issue? 4. How does homeschooling have an impact on parents and homeschooled children?

Lipika Kanekal is currently pursuing her M.A. in Education from the Azim Premji University, Bangalore. She has previously been a fellow at Teach for India. An area of education that is of keen interest to her is Early Childhood Education.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 23 Literature Review Introduction Homeschooling has always been a popular method of schooling children in the West where many parents traditionally educated their children at home. This has led to a larger number of children being homeschooled than the overall number of students attending charter and voucher schools in America (Bauman, 2001). Homeschooling has slowly started gaining popularity in India as well. While the number of schools and school going children has been increasing over the years in India, there have also been a growing number of parents who do not believe in the traditional schooling system and have therefore been looking for alternative forms of education. Homeschooling is one such alternative and has been on the rise in the country over the past couple of years with more and more parents seeking to homeschool their children. Some of the common beliefs of homeschooling are that it is a form of schooling where children are educated full time at home by parents, guardians or tutors instead of an external place, like a government or public schools (Lips and Feinberg, 2008). John Holt however believes that one of the important aspects of homeschooling that makes it different from other schools is that it is not a school at all but is instead a home which is one of the most important places of a person’s life. He is of the opinion that educators should stop trying to make places of learning more like schools but instead focus on making them more like homes because homes are an integral part of society that one cannot imagine living without (Holt, 1981). Reasons for Homeschooling The decision of parents to homeschool their children is a result of a number of carefully thought out reasons. The primary reason to homeschool children is because parents have lost faith in the system of public and private schools and the type and quality of education that has been imparted in the past by these schools. A common belief about homeschooling is that it began due to religious reasons by conservative Christian families in the West in order to impart religious education to their children. However, the ironic reality of the homeschooling movement is that it started off in the mid-century as a liberal movement because many people then believed that schools were imparting a very rigorous conservative education and therefore wanted a change to a more liberal form of education (Romanowski, 2006). The desire for a liberal education was nevertheless replaced by conservative education due to many conservative parents being unhappy with the ways in which the prayers and Bible readings were being conducted in schools (Romanowski, 2006). This led to many conservative families removing their children from formal government schools and homeschooling them instead.

24 Azim Premji University Van Galen (1988) was of the opinion that parents who homeschool their children could be put into two broad divisions named as ‘ideologues and pedagogues’. The ideologues have strong religious values and beliefs and criticize the public schools for not instilling religious values in children through their curricula. Hence, these parents prefer to teach their children at home with the intention to safeguard and protect their children’s religious development. Pedagogues on the other hand do not have a problem with the content of what is being taught in schools but instead are of the belief that all that is being taught in school is lacking in many areas. These parents strongly believe that their children would reap the benefits of quality education and learn better if their creativity and intellectual capabilities would be tapped into, through good pedagogical methods and this can be achieved only by homeschooling children (Galen, 1988, Romanowski, 2006). In India, the homeschooling movement is gaining more and more acceptance by the parent community with a lot more parents opting to homeschool their children instead of sending them to the traditional schools. The reasons for parents to educate children at home in India are not very different from that of the western countries which mostly are because of concerns regarding the school environment, dissatisfaction with the curriculum and the teaching methods and practices and with the morals and values that are currently being imparted in schools (Gorder, 1987). (Elassery, 2008) believes that one of the biggest problems in the Indian education system is that it focuses on increasing knowledge which is of no use to a student when they start working. This is one of the reasons why many youth in the country are unemployed and the ones that are employed need extensive training before they can do their jobs (Elassery, 2008). Another common reason among parents is that of the schooling environment which is way too competitive and thus ends up killing children’s curiosity. In schools, all the children are expected to do things in a certain way and everything is based on creating something that is perfect. Different methods and ways of learning are not encouraged in most of our schools (Joseph, 2018). John Holt in his book, How Children Fail has written that one of the main reasons that children don’t do well in schools is because of ‘fear’ and this fear is instilled in the schools. He believed that human beings are animals whose innate ability is to learn and nobody needs to teach a person how to do this but the reason why learning is hindered is because other people try to interfere with the process by bringing in rules and by controlling it (Holt, 1964). There are several different reasons that lead one to the decision of homeschooling but one of the key things to be kept in mind is that when

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 25 parents make this choice, they make an informed choice and a commitment to being fully involved in their child’s learning and development and therefore play a much greater role in their children’s learning (Saghir, 2008). Choosing Curricula in Homeschooling A large number of homeschooling parents believe that they are able to provide a much better foundation in academics for their children than what is being provided in schools. Children are all different and therefore also learn differently. Every child has a different learning style and schools do not cater to the diverse learning needs of children. Most parents who educate their children at home understand and believe in letting their children explore their own learning styles and also give them the freedom to learn at their own pace, which is seldom provided in regular schools (Saghir, 2008). Schools are supposed to be places where children from diverse backgrounds come together and create a space where everyone is treated equally. However, the hidden curriculum that is often a part of every school ends up creating more inequalities in society, rather than creating equality (Van Galen, 1988). Homeschooling parents have the freedom to choose the curricula that their children should or could learn and can even create their own curricula as they are not forced to follow any set formal curriculum. Homeschooled children who wish to receive a school degree are eligible to write the NIOS or the IGCSE board exams when they reach the 10th or 12 grade (Banerjee, 2013). While there are a lot of parents that prefer following certain set curricula, there are also parents that do not believe in degrees and certificates and instead let their children choose their own paths based on their interests. This is known as unschooling, where parents let their children explore and learn by themselves based on their natural instincts. Parents, who believe in the unschooling path, believe that children have an innate ability to learn and hence should be encouraged to explore and find out what they are interested in by themselves instead of adults making those decisions for them (Sinha, 2016). While some parents like to follow a single curriculum while teaching their children there are also quite a few parents that like to prepare their own curriculum, based on different curricula that are available and that best suit their child’s interests and needs. A few parents use a mix of ICSE, CBSE and IGCSE curricula along with other resources such as the Oxford publications to create curricula of their own (Raj, 2017). Many homeschoolers in India also use the Waldorf and Cambridge systems which focus on understanding the application of things in the practical world rather than on just rote learning. The Waldorf methods of learning focuses on helping the child learn through

26 Azim Premji University their creativity and imagination. They use stories, songs, theatre and many more creative forms of learning to spark children’s creativity and imagination (Raj, 2017). Socialization aspects and common beliefs of homeschooling While there are many reasons leading to parents’ decision in homeschooling their children, the number of students being homeschooled in the West and in India has only been increasing over the years. This is an indicator that many parents have been accepting of the idea of homeschooling children. Notwithstanding this, there are also quite a few critics of the whole idea of homeschooling. One of the most common criticisms of the concept of homeschooling is that of the socialization aspect of children who are homeschooled. Many people believe that children who are homeschooled do not get enough exposure to the outside society and are lacking when it comes to social skills and therefore find it difficult to get along with others in society. One of the arguments for this belief is that schools are the only places where children get exposure to the real world and no other form of schooling can teach this skill to children; homeschooling therefore leads to creating ‘misfits’ in society (Romanowski, 2006). The term socialization refers to various different things by different people. Some people refer to socialization as a manner in which children interact with their peers through games and extracurricular activities while others believe that socialization is a process by which children are exposed to the various cultural beliefs and norms in society that equip them to gain entry into and become a part of society (Romanowski, 2006). Contrary to many beliefs, Romanowski was of the opinion that homeschooling parents very well understand the importance of socialization for their children and are therefore constantly trying to create an environment and opportunities for their children to involve themselves with various activities where they can interact with their peers and other people in the society that they are very much a part of (Romanowski, 2006). Elassery (2008) is of the opinion that the socialization problem that most critics are worried about is not as big a worry as is often made out to be. Schools are definitely great places for children to interact with each other. However, in schools children often tend to interact with others who are similar to them and are of the same age group. Homeschooled children have an advantage here as they are taught the ‘art of interaction’ by none other than their parents themselves (Elassery, 2008). Many homeschooling parents believe that the kind of socialization that is currently happening in schools causes more harm than good. In schools, children are divided into different groups based on their age, academics and learning abilities.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 27 Children that do not learn at the same pace and style as the other children are often shamed and punished and children who are different from others are not encouraged in a classroom. All this leads to creating a very unhealthy environment for a child to grow up in (Mazumdar, 2016). John Holt believes that the one place that children would not learn any good form of socialization is in schools. He is of the opinion that children can learn how to interact with others and learn about different cultures and diverse groups of people by being a part of community gatherings and schools are not required for this. Instead of schools making children learn more about themselves and their identity and the unique nature and diversity of other individuals, they make children doubt themselves and end up creating insecure individuals who end up looking down on others whom they consider to be weaker than themselves. The majority of the children who do not go to school end up treating others with much more respect and dignity and find no need to despise others as they grow up to have a much stronger sense of self worth and confidence (Holt,1981). The RTE and Legality regarding Homeschooling in India While homeschooling has been legalized by many countries in the West by creating certain laws that recognize children who are being homeschooled, this has however not been the case so far in India. In the year 2009, the Right to Education Act was passed, which made education free and compulsory for all children between the age groups of six to fourteen years of age in India. The Act however, recognized schools only as an external place and not as a home or anywhere else, apart from a recognized school. The Act made no provision or mention of children who are being schooled at home. Many parents are of the opinion that the RTE act has restricted schooling to only a particular type of schools and has therefore threatened the very existence of any other forms of schooling. Therefore many parents believe that the Act was not a Right to Education but was instead a Right to Schooling (Bhalla, 2018b). Due to several homeschooling parents’ concerns regarding the legality of homeschooling, the Times of India in 2010 carried an article by Kapil Sibal, the then HRD Minister, on his views on the RTE Act with regard to homeschooling. To quote from the newspaper article: The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009 wants every child to be in school, but if somebody decides not to send his/her children to school, we are not going to interfere. The compulsion is on the state, not on the parents. Parents are free not to send their children to school, but teach them at home. We cannot be micromanaging, Sibal told TOI on Tuesday. The Act stipulates eight years of formal education for all children between 6 and 14 years of age. Homeschooling parents believe in individual skills

28 Azim Premji University and want to nurture them in their children at home rather than in schools. The Act, outlining the duties of the parents, says “It shall be the duty of every parent or guardian to admit or cause to be admitted his or her child or ward, as the case may be, to an elementary education in the neighbourhood school” (Chakravorty & Bajaj, 2018). While this statement did give some sort of relief to homeschooling parents, the problem arose when no formal version of this statement could be found online and the same is the case even today. A homeschooled student, Sherya Sahai, petitioned the court regarding the matter of legalizing homeschooling but was directed by the court to approach the government instead. The government in the past has stated that homeschoolers were free to homeschool their children but they were not looking at legalizing homeschooling yet (Vidyut, 2013). Homeschooling parents and children come into another problem with the RTE act with the certification of education that is provided to homeschooled children. Most children who are homeschooled take the NIOS exam which is recognized by the Indian Government as equal to a certificate provided by any other school in order to seek higher education or job opportunities. However, due to the RTE act regarding elementary education, the NIOS initially decided to discontinue the Open Basic Education Program (OBEP) for all children between the ages of six to fourteen years of age after 2013. The NIOS however has kept extending the OBEP program, first till 2017 and now till 2020, due to the success of many students in the program (Bhalla, 2018b). The lack of any legality surrounding homeschooling leads to many students facing difficulties while applying to colleges and getting accepted into institutions of their choice. Even though assurances have been given in the past by the government regarding parents’ choice to homeschool their children, parents believe that till the government makes a provision for homeschooling in writing, there is absolutely no guarantee and a day may come when different forms of schooling will become illegal and action will be taken (Vidyut, 2013). Although the legal aspects of homeschooling in India is blurry, parents who believe in homeschooling are of the opinion that their children’s freedom in learning is of the utmost importance and therefore they will continue to homeschool their children until such time as they see fit, as they believe that presently it is the best option available for their children (Vidyut, 2013).

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 29 Impact of Homeschooling on Parents and Children Many homeschooling parents, while strongly agreeing to the advantages and benefits of homeschooling with respect to their children, also often believe that homeschooling takes up a lot of their time and is a full time commitment. Many a time it is hard to separate homeschooling from life. Parents’ lives generally revolve around their homeschooled children, their learning, activities, food, interests and many more such things (Rochelle, 2016). A majority of the time gets dedicated to homeschooling and therefore there is a shift in lifestyle for many families. Homeschooling parents end up spending even more time with their children than what most other parents usually do, which leads to all other activities, chores, passions that are not concerning their children to generally take a backseat and parents end up getting lesser time for themselves (Calvert). While there are many who believe that homeschooling parents have to give up their careers and passion, there are also a number of homeschoolers who believe that this is often a myth and instead are of the opinion that homeschooling parents can do both – manage their careers as well as homeschool their children (Chakravorty &Bajaj, 2018). Although it does seem difficult, there are many homeschooling parents who are managing to do both of these and believe that in this way they get to earn a decent living along with providing their children with individual attention that helps meet their educational needs as well. Most children who are homeschooled do not follow the same timings as that of a regular school. The number of hours that a child usually ends up spending in a regular school is longer because the day is divided into a number of things including assembly, transition period, playtime and lunch and therefore they end of spending most of their day in school. This however is not the case in homeschooling as children usually begin their day early in the morning and complete their studies by lunch time as they get individual attention and are therefore more focused. Vanderkam is of the opinion that “one-on-one teaching is more efficient” and therefore both parents and children get more time for themselves to do other things (Vanderkam, 2016). One of the other common myths about homeschooling is that homeschooled children are usually the ones who are weak in learning and need additional help and are therefore taught at home. Another common belief is that homeschooled children find it difficult to take up and pursue professional courses like medicine and engineering (Chakravorty & Bajaj, 2018). Homeschooling in India received much media attention a couple of years back when a boy who stood first in the IIT-JEE examination had been

30 Azim Premji University homeschooled. In a similar case, a seventeen year old homeschooled girl from Mumbai, Malvika Joshi, received admission for a degree program in science to the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) at Boston (Balasubramanyam, 2018). Homeschooling parents believe that one of the biggest advantages of homeschooling is that children get the time to learn and discover things for themselves at their own pace and also tend to develop a love for knowledge. Children also get an opportunity to pursue a range of different subjects that are of interest to them. Apart from academics, the children are also more inclined towards other vocational activities that are generally not academics related, which gives them an opportunity to follow their passions along with their studies. Homeschooling however is not all fun and games and involves a lot of independence and hard work on the part of the homeschooled children (Gadgil, 2016). Some people hold the opinion that homeschooling has a few drawbacks when it comes to higher education as sometimes homeschooled children may find it difficult to get along with different types of people in college and may also find it difficult to cope with the work and stress that college brings along with it (Balasubramanyam, 2018). However, the decision to homeschool or not is a decision of the parents and their children and more often than not parents know what’s best for their children (Chakravorty & Bajaj, 2018). Context of the Field Site and Participants The field site for our research project was Bangalore as we found that there were a large number of homeschooling families that have been homeschooling their children in the city. The participants that we considered for our research study were eight homeschooling families in Bangalore, four of whom followed a certain curriculum and the other four were unschooling their children and therefore did not have any particular curriculum that they followed. The age group of the homeschooling children that we met and whose mothers we interviewed belonged to a wide age group of 4 to 15 years of age. Research Methodology and Methods The methodology that we used for our research study was purely qualitative in nature. We mostly made use of the snowball effect to identify and locate our participants where we located one homeschooling family and they led us to more families that were currently homeschooling their children in the city. We wanted to interview a mixed group of homeschooling families in Bangalore who were using different methods and approaches of homeschooling and who were not part of the same homeschooling groups, a lot of which actively exists in the city. However, while interacting

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 31 with some of the homeschooling mothers, we realized and were also told by one of the mothers that, “no two homeschooling families have the same approach to homeschooling”. This was something that we also observed while interacting with the parents. We interviewed eight homeschooling families living in different parts of the city. As we had only two weeks assigned for our research project, we visited one family in a day and spent about two to three hours speaking to the mothers and children and also observed a few of the children while they were learning and engaging in activities. Prior approval and written consent was also taken from the participants. As we were two of us working on our research project, we divided our work, where I interviewed the mothers and children while my partner took down notes. We used the information that we collected from our interviews and observations and put them under broader themes. Based on our research questions the two of us, through our coding and analysis of the data tried to draw out common patterns that came out while analyzing and coding the data collected. Observation, Analysis and Findings The age group of the homeschooling children that we visited was of a large range, starting as young as four and going up to 15 years of age. All except for one of the homes that we visited had two or three children that were being homeschooled together and almost all of the children studying together were siblings. Only one of the families that were homeschooling had three children of the same age group that studied together. This was possible because the homeschooling parent taught her son along with her nephew and his friend who were all eleven and therefore they all studied together, followed the same curriculum and did the same activities together. Age differences between children mattered when it came to learning and studying together and in most cases all the children had similar schedules but studied and worked on different things depending on their grades and interests. A homeschooling parent said the following about children learning together: “They all study at the same time usually but since there is a big age gap between the three of them and each of them are doing completely different subjects and topics, they don’t study together.” However, there were also a few families where the age gap between siblings was only a year or two and in this case the children sometimes worked together and studied the same topics but almost all the mothers were of the opinion that their children were very different from each other and had different interests and passions. One of the mothers said that “All three of my children are very different, they are

32 Azim Premji University unique in their own way and we don’t want them to lose their individuality”. Most parents know their children well, but when it comes to homeschooling, the parent’s knowledge about their children is way more heightened than otherwise. One of the things that homeschooling parents tend to observe and realize soon is that each of their children are so different from each other and therefore are also able to recognize the deeper differences amongst each of their children and also in their learning styles. This understanding of different learning styles helps parents to better plan their children’s learning schedules and activities and also helps parents in creating a more diverse environment that helps meet their children’s learning needs (Smith, 2018). A majority of the homeschooling children, especially the older siblings in almost every household had been in a regular school at some point of time in their lives but were then taken out from school because the parents were not too happy with the way in which education and learning was happening in the schools. Parents who decided to homeschool their older child or children and who had prior experience of homeschooling and its benefits, often made the decision to not send their youngest child to regular and mainstream school and instead homeschooled them right from the beginning, “The younger one has never been to school, really. He has always been homeschooled. By the time he was to go to school I was comfortable with homeschooling and decided to see how this would work with him studying at home with me.” Most parents believed that, though the decision to homeschool their children was initially theirs, the final decision was only taken after speaking to their children about their idea of homeschooling and it was only after their children were on board with the idea was when the parents took them out of their schools and started with the process of homeschooling. This was said by one of the mothers, “Before making this decision we knew that we had to speak to our children and see how they felt and what they thought about all of this. My kids were involved in this decision and they have not wanted to go back to school since then.” As mentioned above, Van Galen (1988) divides parents who homeschool their children into ‘ideologues and pedagogues’. The ideologues are more religion oriented and the pedagogues are more teaching oriented. I believe that all the eight homeschooling families that we visited were pedagogues as one of the primary reasons that all of them stated for making the decision to homeschool their children was that they were not happy with the ways in which teaching and learning were happening in the schools. Pedagogues according to Van Galen do not have a problem with the content of what is being taught in schools, but instead are of the belief that what is being taught in school is lacking in many areas. These parents strongly believe that their

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 33 children would reap the benefits of quality education and learn better if their creativity and intellectual capabilities would be tapped into through good pedagogical methods and this can be achieved only by homeschooling children (Van Galen, 1988). Many of the homeschooling mothers said that they decided to homeschool their children because they did not understand the reason for putting so much pressure on young children to study. A parent shared the following, “Most of what they study in school is forgotten after sometime and the kids study only to pass their exams. So much unnecessary information is given to them in school. I did not want my kids to miss out on their childhood because of school work and pressure from school and others.” Also the school’s environment is very competitive and ends up killing the natural creativity and curiosity of children (Joseph, 2018). In schools, children barely get enough time to do anything apart from their school work. Therefore another common reason for parents choosing to homeschool their children was to give them time to pursue their other interests and passions apart from just focusing on subject learning. Curricula One of the main focus areas of our study was to understand the various curricula that homeschooling parents follow in order to teach their children. 4 out of the 8 families that we met followed a structured curriculum while the other 4 families were unschooling their children. Homeschooling parents have the freedom to choose the curricula that their children can learn from and can even create their own curriculum as they are not forced to follow any set formal curriculum. (Banerjee, 2013) believed that most parents in India that homeschool their children follow the CBSE or the state board curricula. However, the curricula that were followed by all the four families that we interviewed and who followed a particular curriculum were all different from each other. The curricula that were used were the IGCSE, CBSE, ICSE, NIOS and the Waldorf curriculum. Some of the families also followed a mix of different curricula to teach their children depending on their children’s interest areas. The decision of curricula was based on the kind of schools that the children were in previously. Most of the homeschooling families that followed a curriculum made use of the same curricula that their children were familiar with at their previous schools. One of the families was following the Waldorf curriculum and this was because all the three children had been in a Steiner school setting before and the parents really liked the way in which the curriculum was designed. The Waldorf system focuses on understanding the application of things in

34 Azim Premji University the practical world rather than focusing on just rote learning. The Waldorf methods of learning focuses on helping the child learn through their creativity and imagination (Raj, 2017). There are a number of different activities and subjects that keep getting added at every grade and these activities are clearly mentioned in the curriculum under each grade, “it is a nice mixed bag of everything.” One of the concepts that the curriculum follows is that of “breathing in and breathing out.” Steiner’s idea behind this concept is that in order to survive we need to breathe in and breathe out. Therefore children should also be engaged in learning things that help in both, breathing in and breathing out. The following was shared by one of the mothers “The breathing in activities is mostly academic related like Maths and Science and the breathing out activities that the children were currently involved with are gardening, woodwork, playing the recorder and the violin”. This particular curriculum is very detailed and requires a lot of effort and learning on the teacher’s part as well -- “The main reason that my sister and I decided to go with the Waldorf curriculum was also because I was familiar with it since I have taught in a similar school setting and I knew about the curriculum and liked it.” Some of the homeschooling parents also followed different curricula with each of their children, depending on their children’s area of interests and the subjects offered by certain boards. It is usually in the 8th grade, when children who wish to appear for the IGCSE board exams in their 10th grade have to make a decision on which board they wish to write the exam with and based on this decision they choose their curricula. One of the parents was of the opinion that, the IGCSE curriculum offers subjects that are more mainstream and professional whereas the NIOS board offers a wider variety of subjects to choose from -- “The NIOS has about 26 different subjects to choose from and I was surprised to see that their curriculum is very well written and planned”. The children have to compulsorily choose any five of the subjects of their choice based on which they will end up writing their board exam on. The families that followed a specific curriculum had a more structured daily schedule plan that the children followed. However, these plans were very flexible and mostly revolved around the children’s interests. Most ofthe children complete their studies by afternoon and they have the rest of the day to pursue other activities that they are interested in. Almost all the homeschooling children that we met were pursuing various activities apart from just their academics.One of the reasons that homeschooling parents believe that this is possible is because the children have the time and flexibility to pursue other interests without having to worry about missing classes,

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 35 exams or homework. A homeschooling mother said this, “My elder son is a footballer and he will be travelling to Amsterdam soon for a few months to play a few matches. If he was in school it would have been difficult for him to travel during this time because of the school exams and also because he would be missing his classes. Being homeschooled gives my children a lot of freedom and flexibility in managing their studies and their other activities and interests.” Many homeschooling families do not believe in following a curriculum and are instead “unschooling” their children. In unschooling, it is the children who decide what they want to study and when, based on their own interests. In the unschooling form of learning, parents let their children explore and learn by themselves based on their natural instincts. Parents, who believe in the unschooling path, believe that children have an innate ability to learn and hence should be encouraged to explore and find out what they are interested in by themselves instead of adults making those decisions for them (Sinha, 2016). It was not like the children who were being unschooled do not learn reading, writing and maths and do not have a schedule. Most of the children who were being unschooled have been to school at some point of time and therefore have learned some basics. However, it is up to them entirely to decide their schedule and what they want to learn. The unschooling children usually take up very different courses and they learn academic subjects only if it is of interest to them. One of the homeschooling mothers said this, “My son is very interested in gaming, coding and hackathons and for this he requires a lot of maths. He learns maths online through Khan Academy and has already completed the grade 9 maths course and he is 11 now.” Therefore most of the learning that happens takes place through the various activities that children are interested in and are mostly non-academic related. The unschooling children are often self learners and through exploration by reading books, articles and online videos they learn a number of things. One homeschooler shared the following, “I was always interested in making YouTube videos, and made a lot of videos on how to make cosmetics with colour pencils. Through watching YouTube videos I also got into the technical bit of making videos. I learned most of the things about software, especially the editing bit of it because I needed to learn it to edit my own videos.” Many unschooled children also take up short courses on subjects that are of interest to them and work on various activities and interests simultaneously. As shared by a homeschooler, “I did a course on film making from IMI (Institute of Moving Images) and for a few months I did some theatre work also with Anuja Goshangal. I also started to compose music for a short time and have again begun composing music recently.”

36 Azim Premji University More than being teachers, a majority of the homeschooling mothers believe that they are facilitators and help their children whenever help is needed. Many of the mothers are also sometimes very involved in their children’s activities and sometimes the children and the mothers work together on a particular activity and both end up learning together. A homeschooling parent shared the following, “When my children are working on clay and woodwork and gardening, I also get to do the same things. I am doing all that they are doing and learning along with them which is what I love the most about homeschooling.” Assessments All homeschooling children are eligible to write the NIOS and IGCSE 10th and 12th board exams and get their school degrees under these respective boards (Banerjee, 2013). Most of the homeschooling families that we met did not have any particular assessment format or schedule that they followed regularly. Most of the families did not have any assessments and even if assessments were conducted they are done in a very unstructured manner. One of the homeschooling mothers said that, “Most of the time, I know what my children have understood and what they require more help with”. Many homeschoolers also made use of the Khan Academy online tests to assess themselves whenever they feel like taking a test, but most parents are of the opinion that they know and are very much aware of their children’s learning levels. Many international schools allow homeschooling children to take their exams along with the exams of their other students and homeschooled children who wish to be assessed can enrol themselves with an international school and take their exams. Another organization that is in the city and that prepares assessments for homeschooling children is Grahashiksha. They prepare assessments for children and send it to their homes and once the children write the test, they provide feedback to the children. While there are many homeschoolers who plan on taking the NIOS and IGCSE board exams in the 10th grade there are also many children, mostly those who are being unschooled, who do not wish to take any of these exams. They do not believe in certificates and degrees and their focus is more on skill building and learning about those things that are of interest them. A homeschooling mother shared the following, “We are not worried about certificates and degrees. If my daughter is doing well in something that she is interested in, then I am sure that she can make a career out of that. Here she has so many interests and in the process she is learning so many skills which I am sure will be of help even without any certificates.”

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 37 Socialization When it comes to homeschooling, one of the biggest criticisms about it is that children often become ‘awkward and introverts’ and find it difficult to speak to and get along with different kinds of people. Many believe that children who are homeschooled do not get enough exposure to the outside society and are ‘lacking’ when it comes to social skills and therefore find it difficult to get along with others in society(Romanowski, 2006). However while speaking with and interviewing homeschooling families, one of the things that came through very clearly from our interactions was that socialization is not a problem at all and the belief that homeschoolers find it difficult to socialize is a “myth”. Homeschooled children have an advantage as they are taught the ‘art of interaction’ (Elassery, 2008). In fact, almost all the homeschoolers believed that their children get more opportunities to interact with different kinds of people and not just their peers but also people of different age groups because of the exposure that homeschoolers have due to the number of activities that they are involved in. According to a homeschooling mother, “I do not believe that socialization is a problem at all. In fact from what I have seen, I think that the quality of socialization that homeschooling kids get is much better.” Homeschoolers have the freedom to choose the people they want to speak to and be friends with. No one forces them to be friends with anyone and the decision of interacting with others is up to them entirely. A parent shared the following, “My children interact with not just their peers but also with people of different age groups and they know how to deal with different kinds of people and they have different dynamics with different people. Therefore socialization is not a concern at all.” Homeschoolers are involved in a number of activities such as theatre, dance, football, squash, music, film making and many more such different activities. Children who are homeschooled are indeed considered to have greater exposure to a wide range of activities and people than regular school going children (Romanowski, 2006). They also take part in a number of competitions and events where they get to meet a number of different kinds of people who may sometimes be very different from them. The following was shared by a homeschooling mother, “My son for the first time took part in a hackathon competition recently in Chennai and won the first prize there. He was one of the youngest participants there but he found it so easy to make friends and have conversations with different people who were much older than him. I myself was surprised to see him interact so easily with so many people.”

38 Azim Premji University A majority of the homeschoolers that we interviewed lived in apartments or gated communities and many of the children’s friends who they played with on a daily basis lived in the same apartments. Therefore I believe that children who live in apartments find it easier to socialize and interact with people on a daily basis when compared to homeschoolers that live in independent houses. A parent shared, “we used to live in an apartment before and the children had a lot of friends who they met everyday there. We recently moved to this house and my children haven’t yet found any friends here so there isn’t too much interaction that is happening with others on a daily basis now and we are working on this.” Homeschooling parents very well know the importance of socialization and therefore try their best to provide a diverse learning environment for their children where they regularly get an opportunity to meet other children and interact with them. Right to Education As per the Right to Education Act, homeschooling in India is not considered as legal from the government’s point of view and has been a cause of worry for many parents. There are a few parents who believe that the right to education act restricted and threatened the existence of any other forms of schooling apart from the regular mainstream schools and therefore believed that it was a right to schooling and not education (Bhalla, 2018b). While all the eight homeschooling mothers that we interviewed believed that it would be good if the government legalized homeschooling, many of them were also of the opinion that the right to education act was not a bad act and it was intended for a completely different audience. A homeschooling mother said the following, “I have read the whole RTE document carefully and I agree that it is not a bad act and is helpful to many children.” The parents believed that homeschooling is not legal but it is not illegal as well and as long as it is not made illegal they are okay with the way things are for now. There are a number of parents who have been working towards getting homeschooling legalized and many homeschoolers are working on this slowly and carefully as they do not want to push the government or anyone else for that matter to take any drastic decision. “Silence in this case is not a very bad thing because as soon as a lot of us make noise and demand for recognition, chances are that it will become illegal. So as long as nothing is said and it is neither illegal nor legal, the middle ground is okay for us as of now.” When many of the homeschoolers wrote to Kapil Sibal regarding the right to education not having mentioned anything about homeschooling in India, he said that (as quoted by a parent), “the RTE was targeted towards a completely different population of the society and not the elite. “What the elite do with their children is not our concern as of now.”

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 39 A few homeschooling parents were also of the opinion that it is difficult to make homeschooling completely legal because then homeschooling would have to have a structure and most homeschooling families in India follow very different ways and methods of homeschooling. Many higher institutes of study and scholarships for the same require some sort of certification of education of children. The lack of any legality surrounding homeschooling leads to many students facing difficulties while applying to colleges and getting accepted into institutions of their choice (Vidyut, 2013). However, during our interviews with parents and children, many of the mothers were of the opinion that more people have become aware about homeschooling now, at least in the bigger cities and many educational institutions have also started recognizing and accepting homeschoolers to their institutions. A homeschooling parent said the following, “When my elder daughter completed her 10th grade we applied to many colleges and all of them seemed to know about homeschooling and were interested to know more about it. They were very open to speaking to her and she also got accepted to many colleges but she decided to continue with homeschooling under the NIOS board”. While all the parents hope that homeschooling becomes legal and is recognized by the government, not many of them are too worried about the legal aspects of homeschooling. One parent said that, “We’ll cross the bridge when the time comes.” For now, most of the parents were okay with not having anything being said about homeschooling as this has not affected them or their children and they are still free to homeschool their children in the way that is of theirs and their children’s choice. They are happy with the way things are at least for now and if homeschooling becomes illegal then they would take immediate action. Impact of Homeschooling on Parents and Children Contrary to my own belief, and to my pleasant surprise, 6 out of the 8 homeschooling mothers that we interviewed were working mothers and were managing to homeschool their children along with following their own interests and passions. One of the homeschooling mothers shares her experience with relation to this, “I have worked almost all my life. Even while I was homeschooling in the beginning it wasn’t like I had to give up on the things that I like to do in order to teach my kids. I have always continued with my work and the boys’ education and interests all revolve around my work. I couldn’t expect my children to follow their passion and interests if I myself was not doing what I love.” Most of the homeschooling working mothers were working from home on most days so that they were able to be with their children as well as work

40 Azim Premji University on their own interests. They believe that it was possible for them to work as well as homeschool their children due to the flexibility of homeschooling. The children generally finish their work and studies by afternoon which gives the homeschooling mother’s time in the evening to work and pursue their passions. All eight of the homeschooling mothers that we met really enjoyed homeschooling their children and one of the things that all of the mothers absolutely loved the most about homeschooling was the amount of time that they got to spend with their children that has made the bond that they share much stronger. This was shared by one of the mothers, “I love the amount of time I get to spend with him. I really seem to know my son and it’s only because of the time I get to spend with him. We have a very good relationship with each other and there is a lot of trust that we share. I wouldn’t have been able to have such a strong bond with my son and found out about his strengths if he was not homeschooled.” Most of the homeschooling mothers are very involved with their children’s learning and are often learning new things along with their children. One of the homeschooling mother’s that we interviewed and interacted with shared her experiences of homeschooling her son and learning along with him. Her son is very interested in gaming and coding and because of his interest in designing games; she also got introduced to designing and coding while working along with her son on designing games. Therefore while their children are involved in activities and learning new things, many homeschooling parents are also getting involved with their children’s learning and are in turn learning a number of new things themselves. The main focus of homeschooling has been on the children and most of the homeschooled children believe that homeschooling has given them the freedom and flexibility to follow their passions and pursue the things that they love doing. A homeschooled child shared the following, “I have always been more interested in making videos, and in theatre and music and being unschooled has given me the time to learn and do the things that I am interested in. I am also learning how to play a few different instruments now and have also started composing music recently.” Discussions on Key Findings While interviewing homeschooling parents and later analyzing my data, one of the findings that I found very interesting and would like to work on further is the impact that homeschooling in India has on the parents and children. While there are many who believe that homeschooling parents have to give up their careers and passion, there are also a number of homeschoolers who

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 41 believe that this is often a myth and instead are of the opinion that homeschooling parents can both, manage their careers along with homeschooling their children just fine (Chakravorty & Bajaj, 2018). I was pleasantly surprised to find out that there were many homeschooling mothers who were managing to homeschool their children as well as manage their work and would like to research and know more about working homeschooling mothers and see if homeschooling plays a role in influencing parent’s choice of work. Another area that is of keen interest to me and that I would like to research further is the influence and effect of homeschooling on homeschoolers that have completed their 12th grade and under-graduation. I would like to understand the influence that homeschooling has had on their career choices and how open are companies in hiring homeschooled children. There has been an increase in the number of employers and businesses who have started hiring more and more homeschooled children to their companies because they are of the belief that children who are homeschooled are passionate to learn along with being very skilled. They believe that homeschoolers are eager, hardworking, driven and smart and have a high level of loyalty (Klicka, 2005). While speaking with one of the homeschooling mothers she said that, “Many companies have begun to accept students as short term interns which help in gaining skill-based exposure. I think that companies also now are looking for people with skill more than looking for certificates and degrees.” There are many homeschoolers in the city who are doing short term courses and who are also interning with many companies while being homeschooled. I would like to document older children’s perspectives on being homeschooled and the career choices that are available to them. I believe that this would give me a better understanding of the relationship between homeschooled children and their future aspirations and career choices in India.

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Bhalla,V. (2018a, August 6). Enabling a Right to Education of Choice: Homeschooling in India. Spontaneous Order. Retrieved from https://spontaneous order.in/enabling-a-right-to-education-of-choice-homeschooling-in-india/

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Gadgil, R. (2016). Homeschooling Is Here. Retrieved from https://www.lifepositive.com homeschooling-is-here/ Gorder, C. (1987). Home Schools: An Alternative, it’s Your Choice! Richmond, TX, U.S.A. Blue Bird. Holt, J. (1964). How Children Fail. New York: Pitman Publishing Company. Holt, J. (1981). Teaching Your Own. Cambridge, MA, United Kingdom. Ingram Publisher Services US. Joseph, S. (2018, August 19). Homeschooling In India #2 – To Avoid Unhealthy Competition [Blog Post] Retrieved from https://afathersheartbeat.com/we-homeschool-our-children-to-avoid-unhealthy-competition/ Klicka, J. (2005). Homeschooling Works in the Work Place. Retrieved from https://www. home-school.com/Articles/homeschooling-works-in-the-work-place.php Lips, D & Feinberg, E. (2008). Homeschooling: A Growing Option in American Education. Background- er. No.2122. Massachusetts, Washington. The Heritage Foundation. Pp.2-8.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 43 Mazumdar, A. (2016, September 3). A Homeschooling Mumbai Girl gets Admission into MIT, Know What Homeschooling Is. The Logical Indian. Retrieved from https://thelogicalindi- an.com/story-feed/awareness/homeschooling-in-india/ Medlin, R (2000). Homeschooling and the Questions of Socialization. Taylor and Francis Ltd, (75), 107-123 Raj, A. (2017, September 19). Homeschooling in India – Some Key Findings and Myths Busted [Blog Post] Retrieved from https://firstmomsclub.in/homeschooling-in-india-some-key-findings-and- myths-busted/ Rochelle. (2016, February 14). The Dirty Truth of the Time Required to Homeschool [Blog Post] Retrieved from https://aslrochelle.com/rochelle-barlow/time-required-to-homeschool Romanowski, M. (2006). Revisiting the Common Myths about Homeschooling.Clearing House, 1-6. Saghir, A. (2008). An Introduction to Homeschooling for Muslim Parents (Unpublished The- sis). California State University, Sacramento, US. Sinha, C. (2016, November 17). Class of Their Own. India Today. Retrieved from https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/society/story/20161128-homeschooling-in-india-alternative-formal-schooling-education-igcse-nios-829901-2016-11-17/ Smith, L . (2018). How Homeschooling Brought Our Family Closer. [Blog Post]. Retrieved from https://study.com/blog/how-homeschooling-brought-our-family-closer.html Van Galen. (1988). Ideology, Curriculum and Pedagogy in Home Education.Education and Urban Society, (21), 52-62. Vanderkam, L. (2016). How These Parents Work and Homeschool Too. https://www.fastcom- pany.com/3055528/how-these-parents-work-and-homeschool-too Vidyut (2013, December 14). Homeschooling India. Retrieved from https://homeschooling- india.in/homeschooling-legal-india/

44 Azim Premji University UNDERSTANDING THE SOCIO-ECOLOGICAL IMPACT OF URBANIZATION IN THE MADHUREEMA TRANSFORMATION OF LAKES AND AUDDY WETLANDS – A CASE STUDY OF EAST KOLKATA WETLANDS, WEST BENGAL

Abstract Urban commons including wetlands constitute important socio-ecological systems providing valuable ecosystem services. However, unplanned rapid urbanization has resulted in large- scale decline and transformation of commons, adversely affecting the traditional and vulnerable users. East Kolkata Wetlands (EKW), a network of natural and manmade wetlands, constitutes an important but neglected ecosystem of Kolkata on its eastern fringe. Traditionally maintained by the conventional scientific wisdom of the urban poor, EKW provides a range of valuable ecosystem services. Often considered as the kidneys of Kolkata, the dual benefits of natural sewage treatment of Kolkata, and wastewater fed aquaculture, thereby ensuring livelihood of thousands, makes EKW indeed a unique system. Rapid urban sprawl, constant pressure from real estate have brought about significant changes in the system, its use and management leading to large-scale shrinkage over the years thereby threatening its ecosystem services. In the process of such transformation, the study examines the perceptions of different stakeholders of EKW over the value of wetland, their response to such change and its impact on human-water resource relationship. 1. Background Urban aquatic environments encompassing lakes and wetlands are of very high ecological value and are now at stake. Today, India witnesses large scale loss of green spaces and numerous wetlands and lakes, which once served as the medium of drinking and irrigation water owing to rapid urbanization. Despite being central to our lives for its high ecological and social value, it has not been the central point of focus in our planning. It is one of the most under-prioritized but over-utilized resources, which have witnessed numerous problems ranging from encroachment, conversion and pollution from industrial and domestic waste (as is evident from the example of the loss of lakes in the city of Bangalore today).

Madhureema Auddy completed an M. A. in Development in 2019 from Azim Premji University. She is currently working as a Programme Coordinator at Gramin Vikas Vigyan Samiti (GRAVIS) in Jodhpur. She is keenly interested in exploring issues on water and waste management, climate action and sustainability from a systems approach.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 45 Moreover, the situation has further worsened with lakes being converted to other land uses, whereby the clogged connecting channels with solid waste have adversely affected the drainage system which once served as the connecting medium of these lakes (Sudhira et al., 2007). The result is acute water shortage and lack of access to water. Conducting surveys in Bangalore and having read some articles including that of T V Ramachandra triggered my interest in this field. It made me ponder over what gives rise to such problems? Who are the losers and winners in the process of rapid change around lakes? Is it solely a natural process or is there a bigger picture to it? Despite rapidly improving insights, many questions remain unanswered relating to the complexity and multifaceted aspect of transformation in lakes and wetlands with urbanization. Reducing this knowledge gap and conducting proper research is relevant to understand the different realities of commons of the place, the discourses and the narratives at a material level to examine its various implications and how the society in turn responds to it. 2. Introduction Lakes and wetlands, which are part of urban ecological commons, are believed to be rich functional ecosystems providing valuable ecosystem services. These are characterized as provisioning, supporting, cultural and regulating ecosystem services (MEA (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment), 2005). According to a study by Bolund and Hunhamar (1999) in Stockholm, Sweden, wetlands perform six valuable ecosystem services including air filtration, rainwater drainage, and sewage treatment, preventing flooding thus regulating the microclimate of the region coupled with adding cultural and recreational values. Thus, maintaining such ecosystems becomes necessary for environmental sustainability, economic development and well being of urban residents especially those who depend on it (TEEB, 2011; Elmqvist et al., 2010). However, many such rich urban and peri-urban resources are lost while some are in a critical condition with rapid urbanization and privatization. Massive urbanization accompanied by rapid land-use transformations is widely observed in developing countries in Asia and Africa. Such a trend is also common in India where urban land expansion rates have been the highest in recent years (Seto et al., 2011). The rapid emergence of urban sprawl has been devastatingly evident in sharp decline of valuable agricultural and eco- sensitive (wetlands) lands, higher greenhouse gas emissions from increased private vehicle use and higher energy consumption. In recent years there has been rising concern over the continuous degradation of wetlands owing to unplanned development activities (Ramachandra T. V. et al., 2002). It has been revealed by a field survey of all lakes (2014-15) that slums surround about 38% lakes, 82% witnessed loss of catchment area while those fed with

46 Azim Premji University sewage stood as high as 90%. What demands urgent attention is a need for sustainable management. In this respect, it is important to note that civilizations knew the importance of water and thus conserved the lakes and wetlands through traditional practices. However, such practices got undermined as canal and large river valley projects got prioritized during the imperial period coupled with lack of management induced by high and oppressive irrigation cess and receding community participation led to massive decimation of irrigation tanks and lakes. The consequences of such projects with a capitalist motive are evident in the silting of thousands of lakes with overall reduction in storage capacities and groundwater recharge. With irresponsible management of natural resources important constituents of landscape (wetlands) get reduced to breeding grounds of disease vectors and emitters of GHG’s thus adversely affecting the public health and loss in biodiversity (Ramachandra T.V., Vinay S, 2015). Moreover, the prioritizing of the recreational use of the middle class bourgeoisie over the social and livelihood based uses of urban poor resulting in enclosure and exclusion of commons have been a dominant picture in most Indian cities undergoing rapid urbanization (Baviskar, 2011; D’Souza & Nagendra, 2011). Often a deep contrast is found to exist between the myths and reality of what actually causes change around lakes and its associated management practices. Empirical evidence of lakes in Bangalore throws light on the numerous wetlands, which are dying a slow death. While some point to rapid climate change to be responsible for it, it is important to delve into the root causes of such rapid loss and deterioration. A study by Indian Institute of Science on the city’s water bodies argues that it is poor governance, lack of collective action with loss of sense of belonging and changed perceptions of lakes coupled with regulatory vacuum around wetlands, which have resulted in such a mishap (Khelkar, 2016). In fact, both private dwellers comprising slum dwellers and the real estate sector together with government agencies have been involved in such illegal encroachments contributing equally to the loss of such rich ecosystem resources. While government agencies race to chase and embrace new sources of revenue, regardless of their consequences on ecosystem and society at large (evident in the tradeoff between selling treated water for power production and groundwater recharge through the lake, the corporate world encroach illegally with due diligence from the state (Koliwad, 2016). Such information in fact, rather than clear doubts, raises many questions regarding the political ramifications and future action. The large-scale encroachment in EKW despite the existence of different legal measures, where the West Bengal Government itself grants permission to

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 47 build flyovers and for other beautification projects through the wetland area, present a similar scenario. Such faulty decisions of the authorities that are liable to protect the wetland urge the need to go beyond the myth and map the underlying cause of change in such fragile ecosystems thereby questioning the power dynamics existing. Living in an era where the world is rapidly urbanizing, it is important to note its impact on commons particularly located in peri-urban interfaces of cities. The peri-urban commons which support both ecological functions and provides livelihoods of local communities are facing rapid environmental degradation in most Indian cities owing to socio-economic inequities and lack of clarity about ownership coupled with fragmentation and overlaps in policy and administration (Allen, 2003; Mehta & Karpouzoglou, 2015). Moreover, the implications of rapid urbanization are also largely felt in institutions for management and social demography, which gets transformed thus leading to weakened protection of these contested resources like urban commons by challenging collective management. While talking about urban commons, which encompasses close interaction between nature and society, it must be remembered that these are considered as social-ecological systems. In an era of rapid urban sprawl, understanding such socio-ecological systems and their ecosystem services become vital for building resilient cities, which are sustainable and equitable. For this is needed good governance and ensuring access of vulnerable communities to the valuable ecosystem services (Adger, 2007). While most literature captures the adverse impact of urbanization on the urban commons including wetlands, none of the papers capture the stories, struggles and negotiations that the local people and traditional users of the resource make to avail services from the lakes with its transformation with time. The perspectives of the local vulnerable groups including fishermen, farmers and the coping mechanisms they deploy as their access to the eco- sensitive water resources get threatened remain largely unheard. Hence, this research aims to go beyond the normative character of statements and situate a broader understanding of the multivariate effect of rapid urban sprawl on wetlands and thus people’s lives. Capturing the different experiences and perceptions of people (both users and non-users) through conducting interviews and through participatory action tools, the study attempts to unravel what is the condition of the wetland in the city from the socio-ecological lens brought about by urbanization, narratives of changes in the East Kolkata wetland and how the society in turn responds to such transformation.

48 Azim Premji University 3. Key Objectives The idea was to gain an understanding on the transformation in the wetland over time and analyze the narratives of different stakeholders on the change in the wetland imposed by urbanization. Accordingly, the three key objectives of the study involved: 1. To understand the evolution of ownership over lakes and wetlands through time. To examine the impact on human-water resource relationship (livelihood based/ recreation based) 2. To assess the challenges faced by the residents (users and non-users of the wetland) and how has the society responded to such change around urban lakes? 3. To analyze the narratives and perceptions of different stakeholders (users, non-users; men and women) arising from the social, ecological and political aspects of such transformation. 4. Study Area Rapid urbanization and population expansion in almost all cities in India is a major concern today. Like other cities in India and elsewhere in Asia, Kolkata is also no exception, which is expanding rapidly. Supporting a population of as high as 4.5 million with an additional burden of about 6 million floating daytime population (KMC, 2015), the city generates 750 million liters of wastewater and 2,500 metric tonnes of waste per day. While most expanding cities face the challenge of managing, disposing and treating wastewater, Kolkata stands as an exception in this case, where the cost of sewage treatment is among the cheapest in the world due to the wetlands which has been serving as a natural sewage treatment plant for more than a century. East Kolkata Wetlands, often described as the kidneys of the city, is a network of manmade wetlands bordered by green embankments and channels. Covering an area of about 12,500 hectares, the wetlands are spread over 37 mouzas (rural administrative units) in the districts of north and South 24 Parganas in West Bengal, including 7 Panchayats and 2 municipal bodies. These unique wetlands receive nearly 80% of the city’s sewage, which passes through a network of wastewater channels and is the largest of its kind in the world (Ghosh, 1999). With the help of sunshine, oxygen and microbial action the wetlands organically treat the sewage and turn it into a nutrient rich water used to feed fish and grow vegetables and paddy. Moreover, about 18,000 MT of fish is produced in the bheris of EKW every year; about 50,000 MT of fresh vegetables from vegetable farms and a yield of about 15,000 MT of winter paddy are obtained from the agricultural fields every year. With 22 % of paddy and about 44 % of fish production of the state coming from EKW,

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 49 this part human, part natural ecosystem, thus, plays an important role in ensuring the food security of the city (KEIP, 2013). Moreover, the wetland provides employment opportunities to thousands of people who mainly engage in wastewater pisciculture and vegetable farming and other associated activities. Thus, acting as an ecological subsidy of Kolkata by saving its municipal cost of treating wastewater and by supplying fresh food at an affordable price, these wetlands contribute towards a stable urban fringe where the citizens of Kolkata seem to be the biggest beneficiaries of this phenomenon. The unique functioning of EKW where both wastewater treatment and sewage fed aquaculture are complementary to each other as part of an integrated aquatic system, indeed pose an unique example of a system, where sewage is a nutrient and not a pollutant, maintained by conventional scientific wisdom of the community. The survey was mainly conducted in the mouzas of Bhagbanpur, Kharki and Deara under Sonarpur block and Hadia and Tardaha Kapashati mouzas under Bhangor I block of East Kolkata Wetlands, located on the eastern fringe of Kolkata. The selection of the mouzas, which are the most threatened areas of East Kolkata Wetlands in terms of encroachment, were primarily based on the suggestion of East Kolkata Wetland Management Authority who was approached for their necessary support for the project. 5. Methodology i. Research Method and Sampling A qualitative study was carried out through purposive sampling guided by ecosystems services framework. This involved several field visits whereby semi-structured interviews were conducted to get an understanding on certain targeted aspects in mind as well as analyze other themes arising in the process. Moreover, since different stakeholders hold different perspectives, community dialogue and discussions were held with the EKW dependent communities (including fishermen, farmers), residents of nearby neighborhoods and government officials and activists. This helped to collect information on the change in nature and frequency of lake use, associated problems faced in accessing the wetland over time, conflicts among users, their coping mechanisms to such changes and the varying perceptions of the users and non-users regarding the value of the resource. Analysis was also done on the impact of such transformation of ecological landscape on the social interaction of the people with the wetland. The survey, which began from 12th November, continued till 22nd December 2018. About thirty-six individual interviews were conducted along with two group interviews with group sizes between two to four. 20 interviews were conducted with the EKW users (fishermen and farmers), 10 were held with residents of nearby

50 Azim Premji University neighborhoods, while a number of interviews held with government officials and activists stood at 4 and 2 respectively. Thus, overall the study involved conducting interviews with 45 individuals. The interactions were mostly conducted at and around the fishponds and farms while some were held in the village area. The offices of East Kolkata Wetland Management Authority (EKWMA) entrusted to maintain and conserve the wetland area, and that of Kolkata Municipality Authority under whose jurisdiction EKW falls, and 2 fishery cooperatives in the areas surveyed were also visited during the survey. ii. Challenges faced The main challenges faced during the fieldwork revolved around lack of availability of the farmers and fisherfolks in the selected mouzas. Most of the fishermen used to leave for fishing in the bheris as early as 4 am, which was followed by selling the fish in the local markets. Hence, getting access to the fishermen at the appropriate time seemed to be a major problem mainly during the first few days of survey. However, gaining a rough idea of their schedule during the initial visits of my fieldwork made it easy to approach them at appropriate times during the following days. Moreover, another major challenge was that often respondents either refused to participate in the survey or respond freely to the questions asked under the fear that this might create problems once revealed to the government or the local politicians who are largely responsible for their loss of livelihoods. Again, in the face of the area being flooded by researchers over the years while their lives and associated problems saw no improvement, some even doubted if it was of any use to participate in the survey. A 45-year-old farmer asked, “What benefit will we get if we answer your questions?” In such instances, assuring them that the survey conducted is solely for academic purpose and that their confidentiality would be maintained was necessary. It also required engaging with the community in informal conversations initially to make them feel comfortable to share the required information and thus understand the ground reality of the place. Interviews with the government officials who were another category of participants for the project also seemed difficult due to their busy schedule as this involved frequent phone calls and sitting in their office for long hours to get an appointment for a survey. Thus, discussions and dialogues with the community were held with due attention being paid to the above mentioned challenges and concerns along with ensuring throughout the project that the confidentiality of the participants were maintained and their sensitivities are not hurt in any manner.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 51 6. Findings and Analysis i. Value of EKW: Ecosystem complementarity and natural treatment of wastewater Streams of motorbikes, towing 4-wheeled trailers, piled high with vegetables and fat silvery carp were seen being lugged from the wetland towards the city markets as I made my way towards Sonarpur, a block under East Kolkata Wetland. Every morning, large amounts of fish and green vegetables grown in the wetlands make their way to the city markets, sold at considerable prices thereby providing livelihood for many. Moreover, the low-cost traditional and indigenous recycling practices undertaken by the fishermen and farmers in the area have led to mainly 3 eco-environmental practices viz. wastewater fisheries, effluence-irrigated paddy cultivation and vegetable farming on garbage substrates. Such resource recovery practices of the urban poor at EKW are represented through the following diagram (Figure 1).

Figure 1 showing resource recovery practices in EKW.

The wastewater from Kolkata flows through sewage fed interconnected ponds prepared by fishermen. The wastewater is then turned naturally by the wetland into nutrient rich water ideal for Plankton. This is then used as fish feed for fish cultivation in sewage fed fisheries and for vegetable and paddy cultivation in farms. The fishermen and farmers then sell the fresh supply of fish, vegetables and paddy in local and city markets.

52 Azim Premji University Besides such regulating services including the natural sewage treatment and provisioning services including fresh supply of fish, vegetables and paddy thereby ensuring livelihood for many, this “waste recycling system” also provides cultural services in the form of recreational and different physical health facilities including bheris used for boating and open spaces as picnic spots. However, EKW which claims the unique distinction of being the world’s largest “wastewater fed aquaculture system” where the sewage is recycled for both agriculture and pisciculture” is today groaning under the pressure of urbanization and illegal encroachments which threatens the ecosystem services. Figure 2 shows the ecosystem services provided by EKW and its present status.

Figure 2 showing ecosystem services of EKW along with the changing status of uses and users ii. Management of the wetland: Legal initiatives and informal arrangements The movement for appraising the court to protect the EKW began in 1992 when a PIL was filed by a pressure group called PUBLIC (People United for Better Living in Calcutta) in the Calcutta High Court, which led to the formal regulations for protection of this Waste Recycling Region from encroachment. The remarkable contribution by Dr. Dhrubojyoti Ghosh, a UN Global 500 laureate and recipient of the prestigious Luc Hoffman Award from the International Union for Conservation of Nature in 2016,

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 53 who fought bravely for the conservation of EKW for decades deserves mention. It was his efforts, which led EKW to be designated as a Ramsar site thereby making it a wetland of international importance (Ramsar, 2007). He believed that it is not policies but the unique traditional wisdom and love of the people in EKW, which protects it. The East Kolkata Wetlands Conservation and Management Bill passed in 2006 marked another major legal initiative where about 12,500 hectares was designated under the wetland area. The bill laid severe penalties on any buildings built recently within the designated wetland area while all existing structures were to be destroyed with immediate effect and actions required. The wetland falls under 2 municipal bodies and 7 Panchayats while the bheris are either under private ownership or are governed by fishery cooperatives. However, despite such regulatory interventions involving the High Court order, a national commitment to the Ramsar Convention and a state legislation thereby making it a protected area, hunger for land for development activities and rapid encroachment continue to be a serious concern for the wetland and EKWMA (East Kolkata Wetland Management Authority formed under the East Kolkata Wetland Conservation and Management Act, 2006 for conserving the wetland area). The lack of coordination between the different stakeholders including Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority, local residents, fishery-cooperatives, NGOs, real estates, and EKWMA remains an obstacle in achieving the required targets. Despite being designated as a Ramsar site in 2002, this fragile ecosystem is yet to possess a wise-use plan and effective interventions and implementation mechanisms necessary for the conservation and sustainable use of the wetlands. Moreover, in the absence of any management plan, most of the projects are sanctioned in an ad hoc manner. iii. Maintenance by indigenous knowledge systems of the urban poor for decades The wetland area is sustainably managed by the unique ecological knowledge of the urban poor. The people of the area protect the area whereby the fishermen and farmers have dedicated their life and work day andnight towards maintaining the wetland. From excavating the ponds to the correct depth, mixing the suitable quantity of sewage, cleaning the water through applying lime and oil cakes (which many be referred to as khols) and kerosene, when to add spawns, the method to protect the embankments through water hyacinths to allowing the sufficient time to ensure conversion of the waste into fish feed- they know everything. Such close association with the bheris and the mastery of the traditional users over the resource recovery activity is indeed noteworthy and deserves mention.

54 Azim Premji University iv. EKW in transformation: land use change; encroachment Conversion of once fertile vegetable gardens into illegal developments of leather processing units, drying up of once thriving fishponds to build housing complexes to accommodate the growing population, and construction of new roads have been the major transformations in the wetland under the area surveyed. Many new plastic recycling units have also emerged in recent times. Such illegal conversion of wetland areas by land mafias has significantly increased over the years particularly in Deara and Bhagabanpur. In fact, such large-scale loss of wetland area in Bhagabanpur mouza is evident from the data showing a rapid decline in wetland area from 88% in 2002 when the East Kolkata Wetland was declared as a Ramsar site of international importance to 57% during 2006 to as low as 19% in 2016 (as reported by Dhruba Das Gupta, Project Director of the organization Society for Creative Opportunities and Participatory Ecosystems). This rapid scale of decline is evident in almost all the other 21 villages, which make up the 125 square kilometer of wetland, the only difference being in the degree of shrinkage. The survey conducted in the area showed that a large number of the residents are migrants who provide cheap labour to the city. Such trend of growing in- migration has largely contributed to the increase in population in the wetland area thereby leading to gradual filling up of the fisheries by residential complexes. Thus, the survey revealed three major types of transformation in land-use patterns: namely, from water body to urban settlement, from agricultural land to settlements and open spaces converted to support housing complexes or industries like plastic units and leather scrap shaving units. Large areas of water bodies have also been converted into paddy cultivation over the last few years. v. Implications: indigenous knowledge systems threatened; viability of legal initiatives The implications of such wetland violations have been felt in many spheres. Such loss affects the livelihood whereby local farmers and fishermen are forcefully evicted due to acquisition of wetlands. Moreover, such trends of urban sprawl threaten the hard fought rights particularly of the EKW dependent communities battling for the ecological protection of the wetland. Hence, removal of wetlands largely threatens intergenerational equity. In fact, what is often ignored in the race of capital accumulation is that such short- term price as prime real estate actually threatens the long- term sustainability of the wetland and the society at large. The existence of these illegal developments on a wetland which is protected under laws of international importance, which strictly bars any construction on the wetland, implies the very fact that violence often remains deeply associated with such wetlands

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 55 where voices are mainly dominated by power dynamics. An important question arises: Are these laws of the land effective on ground or are observed only in the breach? It is sad to see the lack of awareness of the value of the wetland, a system notable for its unique symbiosis with the sustenance of the metropolis of Kolkata, which is constantly abused rather than preserved. As Dhrubajyoti Ghosh used to say, in the face of such rapid growth of high rises and consequent loss of the valuable ecosystem, it seems that the wetland is treated as any other real estate, a commodity in waiting. vi. Perceptions of community about desirability of filling up of the wetland The survey revealed varying perceptions of the local community about desirability of filling up of fisheries and farms for development activities. Most of the people who did not depend on the wetland and worked elsewhere in the city had supported the filling up of sewage-fed fisheries for building roads, industries, houses and educational institutions as they believed that such development activities provide better livelihood opportunities, improve transport amenities and ensure better places to stay. Among those who preferred such development activities, the majority were migrants who have settled recently in the area surveyed from the last 2 or 1 year. “I never heard of EKW nor did I know that such huge wetlands existed”, was the response of Kuldip Sarkar, a resident of Kharki who had migrated there only the previous year. For some, the wetland was nothing but a garbage dump, abode of mosquitoes while a few reported their fish and vegetables coming from the wetland. The drainage services provided by the wetland to keep the city running was hardly known by any. Rushing through a busy day, such a trend of ignorance is commonly observed among commuters who are barely aware of the EKW, which has been quietly treating the waste out of the city’s system for over a century. One might become aware of such invisibility on the Metropolitan Bypass itself, which roughly sets the boundary between the wetland and the thickly populated city. In fact, there is no billboard or sign, which acknowledges its existence or the services it, provides viz. producing much of the city’s food and treating its sewage. On the other hand, the fishermen and farmers dependent on the wetland for livelihood opposed the idea as sewage fed aquaculture and effluents irrigated paddy cultivation ensured their livelihood. Some fishing families alleged that ponds are being deliberately sabotaged with channels blocked up mainly to force them to abandon their livelihoods. In the face of such power dynamics and illegal encroachments, they struggle hard to protect the wetland. They even felt that even if new employment opportunities were created, they may not fit in the new schemes due to lack of required education and skill.

56 Azim Premji University Interacting with the fishermen and farmers, it was found that income from fishing or farming is not sufficient to support daily needs of life. Insuch instances, many engage in other activities associated with the bheri or in the village itself thereby supplementing the work in bheri. This additional income helps them particularly when income from fishery is low. A change in pattern of ownership over the farms and bheris in the East Kolkata Wetland have also been observed. Huge areas which were once owned by the Naskars in Sonarpur (whom many referred to as Babus) have now been bought either by the land grabbers of Kolkata or by the local farmers and fishermen themselves. Today, most of the sewage-fed fisheries in the Sonarpur block surveyed are under private ownership while 3 bheris are under Fishermen’s cooperatives and 1 State-owned run by the State-Fisheries Development Corporation. Such change in ownership has benefited the farmers and fishermen as they can enjoy full right over the land and fishponds and the entire income earned and not in parts, which was the case earlier. vii. Disturbance of ecological Balance: emerging problems; response of the community EKW, the largest natural treatment system, is witnessing disruption of ecological balance owing to obstruction of wastewater flow due to encroachment, siltation in bheris and change in quality of the water. Moreover, the widening of roads or building of new roads, while improving the transport facilities for the community of the area (based on survey), has adversely affected the sewage supply. “The roads which have been built actually harm the canals thereby lessening the sewage supply to the bheris and aquatic gardens’’, said Dhruba Das Gupta. While walking along the bheris I observed a large number of fishes lying dead. While talking with a few fishermen, it emerged that since the last 2-3 years a major concern has been the newly observed diseases in fishes, which have resulted in the deaths of many fish species. What caused such diseases remained unclear. However some responded that such diseases might be attributed to change in climate or water quality. Bhola Mondol, one of the fishermen interviewed in Kharki informed that huge sums are often invested in buying medicines, mostly from local markets, to treat the disease and maintain the fish cultivation. The liquid chemicals are then spread over the water. The local fishermen themselves guided by Deepu Mondol, the local head of the bheri, do all the work. However, the problem emerges, as those with small plots cannot afford to buy such expensive medicines and thus suffer due to loss (less fish and hence low income). Today, what has added to the burden is the reduced availability of sewage water, which is used for farming and serves as fish feed. Consequently, the costs of production have increased, as large amounts of

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 57 fish feed are purchased which was not the case earlier. In recent years, quality of the limited farming available has reduced further due to degraded soil conditions and sewage water availability besides large plots being filled up for construction purposes. In response to such reduced wastewater availability, the fishponds are often dredged. A similar project is carried out under the fishery cooperative named Charchariya fishery cooperative in Hadia mouza. Nilkanta Mondol, a committee member of the cooperative informed, “The dredging of the bheri under the ongoing project funded by the government, has increased the water depth from 2 feet earlier to 6 feet at present”. Such increase in bheri area is believed to increase the fish cultivation in future and thus will benefit the community. However, what is often ignored is that such activities involving digging out the mud might prove to be harmful as it would disrupt the fish-cycle which is generally nature-determined thereby making the bheri dysfunctional for one whole season to return to its desired condition which would adversely affect the income of the fishermen. “I am not sure whether this deepening of water will avail better fish yield. The fish cultivation might increase or the fish might not thrive in deep water”, was the response of Prahlad Patra, a fisherman who works under the Charchariya cooperative. Such doubt in the viability of dredging activities which involves deepening of water in fishponds become evident as fishes in EKW have thrived in water bodies of shallow depths. The wastewater fed aquaculture might make one wonder: How safe are these fish and food grown in the bheris and farms fed by sewage? A visit to the wetland area and talking to the community who primarily depend on the bheris for their livelihood and also for consumption might provide the answer to such doubts who claimed that the fish and food grown on wastewater is completely safe and is sold daily in the markets and are also used for consumption. However, the illegal mushrooming of the leather processing units have changed the water quality over the years thereby affecting the health of fish species available as claimed by many fishermen. “We don’t consume any fish from the bheris nor do we use the water. It’s not safe”, was the response of another local resident who has recently migrated and blamed the illegal Kolkata Leather Complex located outside the wetland. Such fear and doubt in the safety of the fish cultivation in the bheris, which was not the case earlier, become evident in the face of the emergence of these illegal leather-processing units which not only pollutes the air by releasing noxious fumes but is also harmful for the fish as effluents from these industries find their way into the wastewater canals that feed the bheris. However, a definitive claim can’t be made on the specific nature of change in the quality of the sewage. 58 Azim Premji University Hence, such change in water quality and quantity, owing to rapid urbanization and unregulated dirty industrialization, has adversely affected the fish species and farming thus threatening the livelihood of the fishermen and farmers to a great extent. viii. Lack of consensus among divergent groups on major constraints faced in EKW An important outcome of the study was the wide variety of perceptions among the stakeholders with regard to the challenges emerging in their production process in the wake of rapid urbanization. The EKW dependent community reported that siltation of canals and water bodies emerged to be the primary challenge while the NGOs complained that it is the lack of designating a clear boundary around the wetland, which creates the problem. For government officials, the existing socio-economic and political setting seems to be the most important constraint where there is a general absence of strong political will and the weakness of the poor communities to fight against the encroachment. It was found that lack of funding required for maintaining the bheri and wastewater recycling practices often stands as a major hurdle in operation as reported by a few members of the fishery cooperative. The other major constraints, which were listed during the interview, included insufficient supply of sewage, the pollution of the water by the untreated effluents disposed by Kolkata leather Complex and general lack of awareness concerning the value of the wetland among the non-users. It is important to note that though several constraints concerning production in the wetland area were reported by every category of respondents interviewed, namely EKW users (including fishermen, farmers), local residents including migrants, government officials and activists, there was a general lack of consensus among the stakeholders with regard to the primary constraints faced. However, silting up of canals and fishponds and increasing encroachment of the wetland area by the real estates was found to be a common problem for all the participants in the survey. As the EKW falls prey to the cruel teeth of urbanization, such lack of agreement on the issue of major constraints faced in production itself seems to be a major concern as it delays the formulation of effective measures to address the issue thereby enhancing opportunities for real estate speculation. ix. Transformation in ecosystem services: Threat of beautification projects on livelihood based services The principal ecosystem service provided by the wetland has been mainly livelihood based where the traditional practice of wastewater aquaculture and fertile vegetable gardens form the sole source of livelihood of many. Moreover, these fisheries also present recreation facilities through development of waterfront sports and entertainment centers. Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 59 These include the recreation services in the form of leisure cum boating resorts available at the fishery of Nalban operated by Bansilal Leisure Parks Limited, thereby providing the dual benefit of fishery and tourism. Often, such scope of utilizing the water body for both livelihood generation and recreation is under explored. Considerable attention needs to be given to the immense contribution by the bheris of EKW towards sustainable living in the form of access to clean and cool air, quiet open space and boating services. Such ecosystem services, which are often enjoyed as free goods, can be made to pay by the society, which benefit not only the city dwellers but also the EKW dependent communities through creation of effective economic incentives. However, with large scale illegal encroachment, sanction of projects by the government in the form of amusement parks, flyovers and widening of roads through the core of the ecologically sensitive wetlands, threat from unplanned urbanization and consequent disappearance of many fertile aquatic gardens and fishponds, we see how aesthetic values associated with modernity and commodification of these natural resources with capitalist motive in this neoliberal era have dominated and thus affected the urban– peri-urban interflow. Hence, the ecosystems services have been transformed with a pattern of ‘accumulation by dispossession’ where the worst affected have been the communities dependent on EKW. x. Change in perception and vocation switch of the younger population Most of the EKW dependent community engaged in traditional vocation primarily involving fishing and agriculture. Those involved in the agricultural sector either practice farming on their own land or work as labor in other’s land, while some are fruit vendors. On the other hand, those engaged in fishery sector work either as fishery cooperative members, as bheri manager or practice fishing in the bheri while some are involved in fish business as vendors or fish spawn suppliers (traditionally called Goldar). A few work as hired labor at the bheri, make fish catching instruments and netting. Women particularly do cleaning and guarding the areas around the bheri, as was the case in both Charchariya and Nalban fishery cooperative societies. However, with scope for better education and lure of modern employment opportunities, the toll of urbanization is also felt with a loss of appeal for fishing and farming among the younger generation. The perception over the value of the wetland and the incentive to maintain the ecosystem is changing where youths no longer believe that fishing or farming can impact their lifestyle in a positive manner. Today, as the children go to school and get educated,

60 Azim Premji University the younger population prefers to engage in jobs in cities or in the nearby Kolkata Leather Complex, which would ensure higher income and thus better lifestyle (as reported by 40% of the farmers and fishermen interviewed). This a major concern as a few farmers and fishermen complained that such changed attitudes and perceptions have led to scarcity of efficient farmers and fishermen to look after the existing wetland area. xi. Urban sprawl and reduced sewage availability: EKW traditional users battling concretization The process of urban sprawl has been largely destroying large areas of the ecologically fragile wetland evident in Bhagabanpur, one of the most threatened mouzas of East Kolkata wetlands (often called the kidneys of Kolkata). Today, the rural agro-economy has become a part of urban eastern fringes of Kolkata with the Kolkata Leather Complex and other high-rises existing nearby. However, such rapid urbanization has brought utter mishap in the lives of urban farmers like 45 aged Ratan Patra. Uncertainty dooms their lives whereby they are confronted with a choice between selling their lands or continuing farming given the adverse and changing conditions of the modern era dominated by urban sprawl. In the midst of an emerging era dominated by its rising urban boom whereby a large number of farmlands of EKW has been lost, Bhagabanpur’s story is resembling the current situation throughout the East Kolkata Wetland. With new land use changes in peri-urban areas, farmers’ resilience is being largely challenged. In view of the reduction in wastewater supply of the wetland, the larger ramification is evident in adverse impact of such reduced water availability on the food supply chain through farms like Ratan Patra’s whose only source of water to grow vegetables is the wastewater from the wetland which is now under threat. Such a threat was evident from the interaction with the farmers of Bhagabanpur mouza. With rapid expansion of cities, while some farmers are being forced to leave farming, some are determined to not sell their lands. They continue farming with a belief that it is important for the city especially the urban poor who largely depend on locally sourced food. Moreover, what adds to their burden is a lack of options to shift to some other occupation, as they are skilled only in farming. While such encroachments have snatched away the livelihood of many and compelled them to shift to other jobs, and the lack of incentive and interest of the new generation in fishing or farming, a stark contrast was inferred from the narratives of Ratan, a farmer from Deara mouza. He prefers to continue vegetable farming with the nutrient rich water from the wetland

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 61 and carry forward his age-old family occupation. “I have been farming since I was a young boy”- said Ratan with a smile while his face lit up while narrating his childhood memories of working with his father in the fields. He used to see his father work hard to maintain the farm. When something went wrong, he knew what to do with his traditional knowledge. Ratan too struggles to keep his father’s dream alive, to take care of his farm, his only source of income and save it from the greed of land sharks. His story represents many such farmers and fish folks in whose lives, the wetland still holds immense importance and who struggle daily, against the odds of land grabbing, for the ecological protection of the wetland. Such efforts of the community to safeguard the productive resource, which forms the primary medium of livelihood of thousands, is indeed commendable. In the face of such immense productivity of the resource, an important question arises: Are people willing to let go of this valuable resource? With growing incidence of land grabbing and change in land-use, unraveling such complex issues becomes necessary to understand the impact on human-water resource relationship with urbanization. 7. Conclusion The survey indeed portrays the impact of rapid urbanization on valuable ecosystems like East Kolkata Wetlands and the changing land uses around the wetland over the years. This is evident in large-scale transformation of sewage fed bheris and vegetable gardens, change in water quality and sewage water availability, the transformation in sense of belonging and perspectives on importance of the wetland with generation and the response of the local communities especially of the urban poor to maintain the rich ecosystem through their indigenous knowledge systems. Moreover, such trend of urbanization not only indicates lack of complementarity between the two alternative agendas of urban planning encompassing wastewater treatment and urban growth in a holistic framework, but also implies the large-scale threat to the indigenous knowledge systems of the urban poor who have maintained the system for more than a century. In the face of rapid transformation of wetlands, the larger question arises: who are the winners and losers in the process of such change? As the wetland is being lost to several beautification projects, the livelihood-based relationship of the community with the wetland gets largely threatened. Often efforts have been undertaken to protect these resources through creation of fishery cooperatives. However, such efforts for rejuvenation of wetlands have been often done at the cost of alienating the urban marginalized section where party politics at the top level tends to squeeze out money out of the bheris often misleading the fishermen to make wrong decisions. Again, in many

62 Azim Premji University cases the authorities in charge of protecting the wetland are reduced to filing FIRs against such illegal constructions with no sound measures on ground. Going beyond the analysis of who gains and who loses among the different stakeholders in the midst of such rapid transformation of fragile ecosystems, the narratives emerging during the survey provide a glimpse of the effect of urban-environment trajectories of the commodification of commons, which is becoming a perennial problem in peri-urban and urban spaces. EKW is indeed a complex site where the binary between state-led environmentalism largely feeding the capitalistic motive of the middle class and the environmentalism of the poor becomes a dominant picture, a system around which evolves complex and plural arrangements among divergent stakeholders involving the state, civil society and the urban poor. As cities are growing accompanied by rapid encroachment of urban commons, as the authorities and ministries entrusted to protect the natural resources and people’s rights are failing to do so, as the urban poor are getting mobilized by the civil society to stand up for their rights, resistance and protests are making their presence in different cities in different ways. In the process, the commons are evolving as sites of politics, power dynamics, constant negotiations and conflict. The East Kolkata Wetlands present a similar case where development agencies and the real estate sector tend to attract investment through urban and industrial development in this region while NGOs like SCOPE and PUBLIC and traditional users of the wetland are fighting for the conservation of the wetland. In an era of urban sprawl and increasing generation of urban wastewater, the East Kolkata Wetlands present an astounding example of reimagining the way we look at wastewater and the extensive potential of peri-urban ecology to reuse it for variety of purposes thereby generating livelihoods for thousands in the process. The immense significance of this ecosystem needs to be recognized and recorded in view of the constant threat of encroachment to the EKW and thus safeguard the livelihoods of the urban poor. Where most Indian cities are struggling with setting up STPs and maintaining it in the long run, the wetlands on the eastern fringes of Kolkata, saves the municipalities of the city crores to set up a Sewage Treatment Plant, by organically treating it for ages. It must, thus, be noted that decline of such valuable resources like East Kolkata Wetland, would not only threaten the livelihood of thousands of fishermen and farmers, but would also mean loss of the city’s natural waste water tank. While praise and credit must be given where it is due, it must be remembered that the government or the civil society alone can’t achieve conservation of wetlands, which serve valuable services. Breaking the existing power and political dynamics and binaries, namely government versus citizen action groups which are often regarded as adversaries and not

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 63 allies, the need of the hour is a joint effort by all the relevant government ministries together with civil society organizations and the citizens of Kolkata to protect systems like EKW in a meaningful manner and deliver environmental and social justice. It will be then that celebration of days like International Wetland Day will be meaningful in true sense ensuring sustainability of the wetland and thus the society at large.

8. References Adger WN. 2007. Ecological and social resilience. In: Atkinson G, Dietz S, Neumayer E, editors. Handbook of sustainable development. UK: Edward Elgar Publishing Limited, and USA: Edward Elgar Publishing Inc; p. 78–90. Allen A. 2003. Environmental planning and management of the peri-urban interface: perspectives on an emerging field. Environ Urban. 15:135–148. Baviskar A. 2011. What the eye does not see: The Yamuna in the imagination of Delhi. Econ Polit Wkly. 46:45–53. Bolund P., Hunhammar S. 1999. Ecosystems services in urban areas. Ecological Economics. 29: 293-301. Chattopadhyay, Hariprasad; “From Marsh to Township East of Calcutta: A Tale of Salt Water Lake and Salt Lake”; Calcutta: K.P. Bagchi; 1990 D’Souza R, Nagendra H. 2011. Changes in public commons as a consequence of urbanization: The Agara lake in Bangalore, India. Environ Manage. 47:840–850. Elmqvist T. et al. 2013. Benefits of Investing in Ecosystem Restoration. Conservation Biology. 27 (6): 1286-1293. Ghosh, D. 1999. Wastewater Utilization in East Calcutta Wetlands. WASTE, UWEP Occasional Paper, Netherlands Development Assistance (NEDA), Ministry of Foreign Affairs, July 1999, http://dhrubajyoti.brinkster.net/publ/OP_calc.pdf (accessed 25/12/2018). Ghosh, D.; Ecological and Traditional Wetland Practices; Kolkata: Worldview; 2005 Khelkar A; (2016); “More than 90% of Bangalore’s lakes are polluted or encroached”; ; accessed 22nd September, 2018 Koliwad, K.B. et al. 2016. Report on lake encroachment in Bangalore Rural and Urban areas (House Committee Report). Karnataka Vidhan Sabha Secretariat, Bangalore. Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) 2015. Basic Statistics, https://www.kmcgov.in/ KMCPortal/jsp/BasicStatistics.jsp (accessed 18/ 1/ 2019). Kolkata Environmental Improvement Project (KEIP), The East Kolkata Wetland System. http:// www.keip.in/bl3/wetlands.php (accessed 7/1/2019). MEA (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment); 2005; “ Ecosystems and Human Well-being; Wetlands and Water Synthesis: Washington DC: World Resources Institute; Accessed March 6, 2016 Mehta L., Karpouzoglou T. 2015. Limits of policy and planning in peri-urban waterscapes: The case of Ghaziabad, Delhi, India. Habitat International. 48:159-168.

64 Azim Premji University Ramachandra T. V. et al., 2002. Conservation of wetlands of India- a review. Tropical Ecology. 43 (1): 173-186. Ramachandra T V, Vinay S, Sincy V; “ Pathetic Status of Wetlands in Bangalore: Epitome of Inefficient and uncoordinated Governance”; (2015); ENVS Technical Report 93 Energy and Wetlands Research Group, CES IISc. Ramsar (2007). Ramsar Sites Information Service. Electronic database accessible at http:// ramsar.wetlands.org/Database/Searchforsites/ tabid/765/language/en-US/Default.aspx. Sudhira HS, Ramachandra TV, 2007; “City profile: Bangalore, Cities”; Vol. 24; pp. 379-390 Ramachandra T V, Bhat S; “ Wetlands: Treasure of Bangalore”; ETR 101 Energy and Wetlands Research Group, CES IISc;(2016). ●Seto KC, Fragkias M, Günerlap B, Reilly MK. 2011. A meta-analysis of global urban land expansion. PLoS ONE. 6(8): e23777. TEEB-The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity. 2011. TEEB manual for cities: Ecosystem services in urban management. Available from: www.teeb web.org.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 65

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT IN NUPUR SCHOOLS: A STUDY OF A VILLAGE IN RASTOGI JHARKHAND

Introduction ‘Community’ has always been integral in giving valuable education to children. It has been since ages that members of a community have taken the responsibility of educating their children. From Buddha to Gandhi, education has never been thought of without the engagement of the community. It was only in colonial times that schools started mushrooming, and a disconnect emerged between schools and the community. Pre-colonial history shows that teachers used to be from the community, and their salary used to be paid by the combined efforts of the community members. But the colonials made the teacher a ‘paid servant’, by offering a job and ‘government salary’. It led to the distance between teacher, school and village. Since then, teachers and schools are alienated from the village and see each other as separate entities (Kumar, 1991). International institutions like the World Bank and UNICEF emphasize the significance of community participation in schools, and hence it turned to be an integral factor to Samagra Shiksha, formerly known as Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan. It has been a constant attempt to improve participation of the community in schools by building committees like Village Education Committees and School Management Committees. But how far are the communities practically engaged with schools, is still a question. Rao (2009) also points out that a lot of responsibilities have been put on the communities in the name of participation but not much has been done in terms of their capacity building. The study primarily focuses on two broad objectives: first, to know the perception of the community about their engagement in schools; and, second to find out the factors influencing that engagement. These factors canbe understood on the spectrum of gender, livelihood, awareness, and dynamics of the village. The literature on different community engagements has been reviewed for this study. For this research, villagers, teachers, and PRI (Panchayati Raj Institution) members have been considered as ‘Community’. ‘Engagement’ refers to the active involvement of community members in organizing events in schools, participation in decision making, and extending

Nupur Rastogi is pursuing her MA in Education from Azim Premji University. She is currently on sabbatical for a year to work with Telangana Government as Strategy Consultant For Inclusive Education.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 67 support to teachers and headmasters, if needed, for the overall benefit of children. Literature Review The following literature review situates the scope of the research, reviewing some attempts that have been made to improve the engagement of the community with schools. Shiksha Karmi Project and Lok Jumbish, Rajasthan Ramchandran (2001) did a study on ‘Community Participation in Primary education’ in the context of Rajasthan. She referred to the disempowered, either in the geographic area or gender as ‘community’. She studied two innovations in Rajasthan -- Lok Jumbish and Shiksha Karmi Project (SKP). She writes that community participation was started as an official acceptance of the problem of dysfunctional schools. The SKP started in 1987 as a ‘people’s problem’ when the community got engaged enthusiastically. All the decisions and consensual functioning started happening in the Village Education Committee (VEC) meeting. But later the leadership of the project got too involved with the “success” of the project, and the community was left behind. Another innovation, Lok Jumbish came in 1992 as a solution to non- participation of people in schools. The focus was on involving people who are generally left out and then having a debate around educational matters in the village. The project also ensured that the functionaries and teachers became accountable to the community. However, it was found that still there were families on the fringe that were left out. Ramchandran (2001) questions that though building consensus and meaningful conversations are important for community participation, are these possible in an unequal society like ours? Alternative Basic Education for Karamoja, Uganda A non-formal learning program was started for the Karimojong community in Uganda named, “Alternative Basic Education for Karamoja” (ABEK). This program worked on developing a flexible timetable that led children to attend classes without compromising on household chores. This small change led to enhanced participation of children in formal education. The curriculum was also designed according to the local pastoral context and teachers were recruited from within the community. Earlier this community was rejecting formal education as children had to be involved in household chores. (UNCHR-UNDP, 2004). This program uncovers the reasons why communities reject formal education and do not consider it relevant. It is a relevant example to understand that the education structures need to be molded according to community and their ways of life not vice-versa.

68 Azim Premji University Primary Education Program, Malawi In Malawi, the primary education program (1995) funded by the World Bank aimed at the participation of the community in building the classrooms and other infrastructures. The orientation of the community was done to mobilize them and make them own the program. The government identified the area in which the school was supposed to be open. The community finalized the site and efficiently completed the construction (World Bank, 1999). The involvement of the community contributes to solving issues that the school faces in terms of infrastructure, teachers or even the students who have difficulty in pacing up with classes. It gives a sense of responsibility to the community and hence “... promotes transparency and accountability in the existing education system and can promote the sense of ownership among the community” (Sharma et al., 2015). Janshala, Jharkhand An experiment with community involvement in education took place in Jharkhand with the name ‘Janshala’ which revealed what community participation can do to schools. After getting the community engaged in schools, Teacher participation improved extensively. Teachers got more involved in cultural activities, in classes and preparing Teaching Learning Material (TLM) which had a direct effect on enrollment and retention of students. Students were more interested in attending classes, and thus Paliwar and Mahajan (2005) say that a simple engagement in the form of an experiment built a conducive environment for education in the community. Community-owned primary education Program, Nepal In Nepal, COPE (community-owned primary education) program funded by UNDP focused on the building of schools by mobilizing the local resources. The schools are being managed and monitored by the community members and the local governing bodies. The program has succeeded in ensuring enrollment of girls in the school, providing them equal opportunity in education. These girls would else be engaged in looking after their siblings and doing household work. Out of around 9000 students enrolled in 120 COPE schools, 52 % are girls. 63 % of the total number of girls being enrolled are from disadvantaged groups (UNDP, 2003, as cited in Pailwar, Mahajan, 2005). A study was conducted by NGOs ‘Save the children’ and ‘Oxfam’ on Community Engagement with schools in five states including Jharkhand in 2013-14. It revealed the gender dynamics of the community engagement as the women were assigned roles limited to ‘caretaking and nurturing activities’ while men were involved in decision making about expenditure

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 69 and civil works. Thus, gender is one of the major spectra while considering community engagement in schools. Another is what Gaynor (1998) stressed that the teachers are not inclined towards parental engagement in schools as they view it as disrespect to their professional status. This can be understood from the teacher’s position as follows: What if community engagement comes with insecurities for teachers? Williams (1994, as cited in the World Bank document, 1999) identified three models of community-education linkages. It can be a traditional community- based education in which the older generation passes the required skills to the younger generation. The government has a minimal role to play in this model. The second model is government-provided education in which the government assumes that the community needs to hold key responsibility to ensure quality education but the community acts as a passive recipient of the service. The third is the collaborative model of education in which the community supports government-sponsored education. The question here is, do all communities fall under one of these models or has the model has been extended in the current context? The literature suggests that whenever attempts are made to involve the community, it has always generated positive outcomes. The outcomes have varied from teachers, parents, students, and infrastructure based on the kind of engagement that has been made. The literature brings forth one more important aspect of the involvement of the third party in developing community engagement in schools. In all the cases studied above, the program is run and funded by an intervention. Does it mean that community engagement is not an organic or self-driven process, instead of always needing a foreign intervention? A few cases also question if it is possible to include ‘everyone’ in the process of engagement. Ramchandran (2001) says that decentralization and community participation go hand in hand. If it is so, what could be the dynamics of this engagement and decentralization in a rural North belt of India? The process of searching for literature helped in understanding that in the name of ‘community engagement’, most of the research has been limited to SMCs and VECs, and thus very limited literature is available that goes beyond these institutions. Research Questions 1. What is the perception of the community about their engagement with schools? 2. What are the factors that influence this engagement?

70 Azim Premji University Methodology The site for the study was a village in Ramgarh district, in the state of Jharkhand. The study was both qualitative and quantitative, and both exploratory research methods (i.e. Focus Group Discussions), personal interviews, observations and structured research methods like survey questionnaires were used. Personal interviews were conducted with 22 respondents including teachers and parents from all castes, both genders, and Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) interventions working in the village. The questionnaire was done with 19 respondents including teachers and parents. These parents also include members of the school management committee. The Focus Group discussions were conducted in a group of teachers and parents. Ethical Considerations The fieldwork conducted for this study is a part of academic learning. No personal benefits were involved while conducting the study. All the respondents were asked for consent before starting personal interviews with them. They were given consent forms, and the interview started only when they signed the form. The consent form that informed them of the objective behind conducting this study. They were also told that they could choose to opt-out of the interview whenever they want to, and they can also choose not to answer any particular question. Their names have not been used while submitting data for the study. For questionnaires, they were asked to fill in anonymously. For Focus Group Discussion also, no names are mentioned and only the conversation was noted. The data has been kept safe, and only used anonymously for analytical purposes. Data Analysis Responsibility: The current study was done with the intent of understanding the current engagement of the community with schools, and what community that includes villagers and teachers think about it. The data shows that both teachers and parents have different opinions about the responsibility of the education of children. Teachers say that both parents and teachers are equally responsible for education, though they also acknowledged that the mother has an important role to play in a child’s life, that is why parents are more responsible for their children’s education than teachers. On the other hand, though parents acknowledge equal contribution still the dependence was more on teachers. They say that they are illiterate and don’t know what to teach their children. Some parents have assumed a demarcation and say that whatever is happening on the other side of the line is the teacher’s responsibility, and they have no role to play on that side. Teachers have

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 71 demanded that at least parents should take responsibility for sending their wards daily to school but parents say that even though they send their children, nothing happens in school and children pass their time around the pond, so they think it’s better not to send them to school at all. This data presents a gap that is existing between parents and teachers, which is leading to nowhere but allegations on each other. This gap continues with teachers saying that parents do not come for meetings when they are called. While parents say that they do not even get to know if there are meetings. This conversation pointed out that teachers only inform students orally during the assembly, and this information does not reach parents. Thus, the issue of taking responsibility is a matter of concern from both parents and teachers. Private School Parents: Conversations with parents who send their children to private schools informed that a private school is considered better than a government school because the private school has more accountability towards children. The question emerged during the interview: do they consider themselves part of the community, and believe that they should have a say in the school? Quantitative data suggest that 80% of respondents believe that the community should have a say in the functioning of the school. During interviews, parents said that they should have equal say in the functioning and decision-making of the government school because they are a community, and the children from the village belong to them too. However, some bias was found towards these parents when one of the SMC members questioned one of these parents during FGD that parents who send their children to private schools have no right to get involved with government schools. This again led to the idea of contention among themselves of seeing each other as part of the same community. This discussion also brought forth the new emerging institutionalized version of the School Management Committee (SMC). In the heat of the discussion, it was found that one of the SMC members has his children in a private school. It was after he was chosen as SMC member that he transferred his children to private school, and no elections happened after that time. Youth as volunteers: The teacher said that unemployed youth from the village should come and teach in school but the people from the village said that teachers don’t do anything, youth should get at least some minimum amount if they are to teach in schools. On asking about their current engagement, parents said that they only go to school for attending Independence Day and Saraswati Pooja celebrations. They never go and question the school authorities by themselves because they are illiterate and that is why they have no right to questioning school authorities. 72 Azim Premji University Community Volunteers: Para-Teachers have their concern that they are not paid well, and that is why they are not able to give their best in school. They said that their constant worry is how to get money for the home. On the other side, there is a community volunteer who is teaching in a private school as a formal teacher, and in a government school as a volunteer for the last 4 years. He said that he cannot accept that children are passing 9th and 10th without any guidance. The school has no teacher for class 6th to 10th for the last 4 years. He does not know how to get teachers for the school. He says that the best he can do is, going and teaching by himself so that at least they pass their matriculation examination. It was observed that though everyone respects him nobody comes forward to support him in teaching, or to support him financially. SMC: SMC members said that they hold meetings on regular meetings, but some parents are not SMC members denied this claim. They said that these meetings do not happen at all, and instead, they said that SMC is only about a family having all its members in SMC. These members decide everything by themselves, and nobody gets to know anything about the meeting. SMC is not trained as per the need. They are not much aware of their roles and responsibilities except for managing the funds they receive for school. They never go out and interact with the villagers. Quantitative data suggests that 80% of respondents were aware of some committee in school but they have never been engaged or called by the committee. PRI representatives acknowledged that nothing is happening in terms of community engagement. Some said that parents are responsible while others said that SMC members are responsible. Factors: The data suggest that livelihood, illiteracy, and lack of awareness are major reasons that the villagers don’t get engaged with the school. Some of them said that schools should call them, then only they can start their engagement with schools. While teachers said that parents should come and question them, they cannot call all parents for engagement all the time. Thus, again the problem of who takes the initiative. However, quantitative data suggest that 78% of respondents believed that villagers should take the initiative. But how? They had no idea. Intervention: Some teachers also expressed the need for having some intervention from outside that could guide them in bridging this gap of lack of communication. Thus, the lack of communication was another factor that influences their engagement. Quantitative data suggest that 94% believed that better awareness

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 73 and communication can enhance the engagement of the community in the school. Some villagers also expressed that they do not want teachers from the local community as the local teachers are their(villagers’) relatives and community do not take these teachers seriously. Thus, the community want teachers from outside. Differences in Caste and Class: Differences exist in the community in terms of caste and class. OBC has the majority but the Schedule Castes and Tribes who too are not economically sound, are not involved in any decision making at all. Even the Muslim families have a sort of disconnect with village and school. However, gender did not come out as a negative factor at all. Instead, the little discussion that happens in the village is in a village organization among women. Key Findings of the Study 1. Perception: Sense of Community. Even before assuming that there is a ‘community’ that has to be engaged with the school, it is important to understand that if they have any ‘sense of community’ among themselves. Before seeing school as a separate entity, do the villagers also see each other as separate entities? The study confirms it positively through instances of caste and religious differences and discrimination. The presence of power structure demolishes any sense of community among people. During interviews, the instance of personal grudges among women leaders of the village emerged. Then parents who send their children to private schools -- are they ‘community’ or not? The question emerges while interviewing different stakeholders. Parents say that they have full right to be called community and get engaged with the school, however, SMC members don’t see them as a community. This gap might change according to context but the broad question emerges: Can the entire village be not called ‘community’ because of the differences existing in today’s context? If not, then what are the limitations of community engagement? A very important aspect that emerged is a psychological shift from local to the outsider. There has been a demand for intervention from outside to bridge the gap among villagers and call them together on one platform for the benefit of the education of children. Thus, there is hopelessness in bridging this gap by themselves. Some of the parents also demand teachers from outside because the local teachers are their relatives and they don’t respect them anymore. Thus, it was found that they don’t want a sense of familiarity with the teacher. There is also a lack of trust among teachers that they don’t teach at all, and knowing local teachers personally just adds to that distrust. 74 Azim Premji University 2. Factors: School Management Committee. The committee was made as a link between villagers and school. Few parents were elected from the community to be a member of the committee so that the community gets involved with the school. The step was taken knowing the significance of community engagement with schools. Ideally, the committee is a representative of both the school and the villagers, which makes them exchange each others grievances and opinions. However, the committee is not representing the village at all. SMC never reaches out to villagers and asks them what they have to say about the school and the way it is functioning. Meetings are not regular and are limited to a handful of parents. Most of the villagers don’t even know the committee members. When the SMC members were asked if they ever try to reach out to villagers, and make communication with them, engage them in decision making or at least inform them of the major decisions that have to be taken on certain matters. The answers were negative, and they assume that villagers should come to them not vice versa. When asked about their responsibilities, they said it is to look after mid-day meals, attendance of teachers and students, and managing funds. It brought forth that SMC is not working as a representative or link between villagers and school but more like an institutionalized structure where the power of decision making is limited to only a few members. Communication and awareness were another two major factors that influence participation. There is no discussion on education in the village, except for the village organization. People are not aware that their engagement is even important in the education of their children. However, 94% of respondents suggested that better communication and awareness can improve the engagement of the community in schools. For communication, the focus group discussion was in itself evidence that even after calling the number of people, only a few parents turned up. Again, SMC as a link between villagers and teachers has a pivotal role to play. SMC has that space of building communication and awareness among parents and teachers. Seeing it from another side, if communication and awareness get better among the village community, it can make both SMC and school accountable for their duties, and even dissolve SMC and form new ones if it is not functioning as per expectations. Discussion It is found that the feasibility of community engagement is a bit unclear in the absence of a ‘sense of community’ among people. It is also found that a major psychological shift is happening in demand from local to teacher from outside. Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 75 SMC as a representative is not adhering to its role and responsibilities, and the communication and lack of awareness are other two major factors that are influencing the engagement of the community with schools. ‘Community’ has always been considered very significant in imparting quality education to children. The aspect of psychological shift is very crucial in understanding this engagement. A lot of programs constantly focus on having a teacher from the community so that villagers do have a sense of familiarity, and the teacher is also familiar with the language and context of the children. Gandhi’s ‘Nai Talim’ was about having teachers from the locality so that education is imparted with a modified local curriculum and pedagogy. However, the current study suggests otherwise. The need for intervention and unfamiliar teachers is a very colonial idea, that is still residing in the minds of the people. The question is whether this is a current psychological shift or was it always like this. Is the need for unfamiliarity and intervention is a new aspect of a community? This need can vary with the community but it is clear that on the issue of community engagement, it has become imperative to ask the community what do they think about Local teachers and extracting if there is a shift that is taking place? The question is, considering this aspect, would the definition of ‘community’ change totally? The second aspect is if interventions can bring this change in this psychological shift by working with both the local teacher and villagers? The literature cited by Ramchandran (2001) suggests that even after working with projects, some disadvantaged groups are always left out on the fringe. She also questions, whether building consensus and having a meaningful conversation is possible in an unequal society like ours. This brings back the power structure that has been built by the SMC which has institutionalized itself and takes all major decisions by itself. The study found that there have been families that are not given equal respect by the villagers because of their double marginalization of caste and class. Thus, the question arises if it is even possible to include everyone. Also, the question: What kind of training does SMC need? Why are they not aware of their roles and responsibilities, and who will do that? A point that emerged in the literature review was that community engagement comes with insecurities for the teacher. Gaynor (1998) stresses that teachers see it as professional disrespect. This study did not find much to support that point. Teachers stressed the importance of community engagement and the benefits children can incur from this engagement. However, the constant thread of interventions that were found across all programs reviewed in the literature suggested the role of interventions in developing community engagement. The study also revealed that the demand for intervention was

76 Azim Premji University made. The presence of the first NGO working on livelihood has made great impact on livelihoods in the village. This has also convinced villagers that interventions can have advantageous results on the community. It was interesting to find out that the community that was studied, also falls in one of the three models of community-education linkages, reviewed in the literature. The community falls under the second model in which the government provides education and assumes that the community needs to be responsible to ensure quality education but the community acts as a passive recipient of the service. The community that was studied fits well in the model. Thus, it is also an interesting study to know if all communities fall in one of those three models given by Williams (1994, as cited in the world bank document, 1999). Research Limitation and Future Scope The current research was done only in a single village of Jharkhand. There is scope of exploring other villages too that might or might not be carrying out some good practices of engagement with schools. Another NGO informed us that there was a village nearby that holds substantial discussions around education during Panchayat meetings, because of this NGO’s intervention. It could be an opportunity to study that village too but the time duration of the field research was a limitation. Also, the literature review could have been studied well to shape more analytical questions around power structures. Though it was found that there were power structures present in the village specific questions in the interview and questionnaire could have given the more nuanced understanding of what villagers think about existing power structures. It is also important to walk around the site for the first two days, to sneak peek into nooks and corners of the village. It was by the end of the study that it was found that the most fragile and disadvantaged group resides at the periphery of the village. Instead, those peripheries should be a quality starting point for initiating interviews. The study has immense scope in the future, and it can be carried out from the questions raised in the Discussion section. It has to start from what is called a ‘community’, and are people even ready to come together as ‘community’? Also, what kind of guidance and training do SMCs need? Is it turning into another institutionalized power structure, excluding villagers from consensus and decision making? The scope is wide, only the context of community and school would keep changing with the sites chosen for conducting the study.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 77 Conclusion The research concludes that the word ‘community’ is in itself very subjective, and making people come together as a community has to be considered while doing work on community engagement. Perhaps, the objectivity about the specific members of the community would be the key to pursuing research. However, the significance of community engagement is neither denied in the literature review nor the study. Interventions have a major role to play in community engagement in schools, suggested by both literature and the study. Thus, further research can take it from what sort of interventions are needed to develop community engagement, and do these interventions have to work first in developing a sense of community among villagers and teachers. Good research is needed on SMC training and the kind of training they need. Does it need to be context-specific because what works out at one site might not work in another? The role of SMC as a community representative needs to be explored rather than a power-centric committee. With interventions and working with SMCs, communication and awareness need to develop among villagers. Communication and awareness are both the process and product of engagement. Thus, several factors influence the engagement of villagers with the schools, and all are imbibed in the perception of different stakeholders. All it needs to work out is discussion and dialogue between everyone, and capacity building of both villagers and SMC members to carry out their respective role in improving the quality of education for their children.

References Gaynor, Cathy. (1998). Decentralization of education - teacher management (English). Directions in development. Washington, D.C. : The World Bank. http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/ en/687011468739325724/Decentralization-of-education-teacher-management Krishna, K. (1991). Political agenda of education: A study of colonialist and nationalist ideas. New Delhi: Sage. Pailwar, V. K., & Mahajan, V. (2005). Janshala in Jharkhand: An Experiment with Community Involvement in Education. International Education Journal, 6(3), 373-385. Ramachandran, V. (2001). Community participation in primary education: Innovations in Rajasthan. Economic and Political Weekly, 2244-2250. Rao, V. S. (2009). Lack of Community Participation in the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan: A Case Study. Economic and Political Weekly, 44(8), 61-64. Retrieved January 28, 2019, from https://www. jstor.org/stable/40278530 Sharma, S., Burnette, D., Bhattacharya, A., & Nath, S. (2015). Community Participation in Primary Education (No. 13). Working Paper Series. The World Bank. (1999). Community Participation in Education: What do we know? (pp. 16–18). 78 Azim Premji University UNCHR and UNDP Seminar. (2004). The case of Alternative Basic Education for Karamoja (ABEK). In Strengthening the delivery of services contributing to the realization of Human Rights. Seoul, Republic of Korea. Retrieved from http://www.ombudsman.gov.ph/UNDP4/wp-content/ uploads/2013/01/The-case-of-alternative-basic-education-for-Karamoja.pdf UNDP (2003). Community Based School Offer a Model for Nepal. Newsfront, 15 May. [Online] http://www.undp.org.np/news/news070.htm Williams, James H. (1994). “The Role of the Community in Education.” In The Forum For Advancing Basic Education and Literacy, Volume 3, Issue 4, September 1994. Cambridge: Harvard Institute for International Development.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 79

STUDYING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SCIENCE MUSEUMS AND SCIENCE SAMRUDHA CURRICULUM TAUGHT IN UPPER PRIMARY DIXIT SCHOOLS IN AHMEDABAD, GUJARAT

Introduction A science museum is one of the most stimulating experiences. Deep gasps, excited glances and mouths open in awe are quite common expressions one can observe in the visiting children and adults alike. What is it about the science museum which gets children excited? Experiential learning can be imparted in the school science laboratory itself. This research was driven by enquiries of what more does the science museum offer in discovering the subject or is it just an amusement space. The research looks at Science museums (and science centres) as educational spaces where teaching and learning of science happens. It then studies the retention and relevance of what is being offered at science museums as part of experiments and illustrated scientific concepts. The academic research is part of the semester long MA Education (first year) program as Introduction to Research (ITR) course. The research studied how the visits to science museums were conducted with three types of participants; school students, teachers and museum staff. Total five museums were approached in Ahmedabad and Bengaluru out of which, Khoj Museum in Ahmedabad supported us with the research. The museum had just finished its first year when the field research was conducted in March 2019. Started by Manthan Educational Programme Society (MEPS), the museum has collaborated and partnered with various organisations both national and international. MEPS has been involved with interventions in science education in rural and urban parts of Gujarat for about two decades. Two schools from Ahmedabad were part of the research. The students from 8th grade were selected at random for the research. The methods employed were to understand if the visit to the science museums inculcate conceptual understanding in students to what extent and what is their retention of these concepts or principles after the visit.

Samrudha Dixit is a graduate of Industrial design pursuing MA Education at Azim Premji University. He seeks to investigate the pedagogy methods practised in Indian crafts.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 81 Khoj Museum The museum building, a repurposed astronomy lab, has three stories with a medicinal plants garden and a geodesic dome shade at the front. The ground floor is the office and waiting space for visitors. The three floors are divided in three themes which the museums change every 8-10 months. All the equipment or exhibits are made inhouse by MEPS with the goal of maximum learning with minimum investment (as they will be replaced within a year). At the time of research, the first floor is a bubble room, with equipment and experiments designed to understand air pressure with soap water, a variety of contraptions and dry ice. The second floor was moving images. This floor showcased a chronological advancement in moving images from flip books to green screen animation. The third floor has been planned to be dedicated for astronomy as an homage to the building’s past. The visitors are encouraged to play and experience the exhibits, there are floor mentors for each floor who guide visitors with doubts and give them further information on all the showcased concepts. Significance of the research Considering the vast positives of teaching science to students both in schools and in informal spaces, the Ministry of Culture, India has set-up an autonomous organisation National Council for Science Museum (NCSM). They are instrumental in setting up Science Cities, Centres and Innovation Hubs in various parts of the country. “A Science Centre provides the scope of ‘doing science’ adopting a hands-on approach for which it offers to the visitor a number of experimental options through which they can discover the scientific concept themselves. Such a mode of education has sofar proved to be very effective in supplementing formal science education in our country.” (Ministry of Culture, n.d.) With the formation of institutions like NCSM there has been a plethora of interventions setting up science centres and museums. The short academic research project questions the relation between teaching-learning science at a Science museum. There has been similar research which tries to quantify science learning at science museums, but not much academic research is in place in the Indian context. During discussions with the school’s teachers we realised they were interested in knowing our findings as they would like to know if the visits are of any use and to what extent. Although it needs to be noted that this is a short academic research and is merely a starting point, the research findings highly suggest a need for extensive and much elaborate research in future.

82 Azim Premji University Moving images Astronomy Bubble

Conceptual framework This short research revolved around the interaction of students with scientific equipment for experiential learning. The relation they hold with each other on the grounds of science education governs the research and its conceptual framework. The research had devices ways to study understanding of scientific concepts than asking directly. NCSM identifies science museums, science centres and innovation labs with varied functions and expects them to work in tandem. This report considers all the three under the head of the science museum, although the focus is on the museum where students and visitors can interact with the exhibits for teaching and learning science. The following were studied as part of the research framework: 1. At museum a. Student – floor mentor interactions The way the floor mentors introduced the scientific concepts of the exhibits. The Q & A between the students and the mentors. b. Students – exhibit interactions The student’s perception of the exhibits, info graphics and installations. c. Teacher – exhibit interactions How do teachers experience the exhibits? d. Students – teacher interactions Do the teachers and students interact at the museum about the classroom activities. What were these interactions? 2. At School a. Teacher perspective on students understanding after a science museum visit. b. Students retention of scientific concepts.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 83 Objective To find the overlaps between the science curriculum and the science centre/ museum exhibits. Then to assess do they aid teaching and learning science in schools. Research questions In what ways do schools integrate visits to science museums in their science curriculum of 8th grade? • What activities are done pre-during-post visit to science museums by teachers? ● • In what ways have the students internalised the scientific concepts experienced in the science museums? ● • To what extent do Science Museums are being used for teaching and learning science in schools? Variables: ● • School/Board type, school schedule and Financial aid. ● • Access and distance to the Science museum. ● • Museum schedules, program availability, capacity of accommodating students. ● • Teacher working experience in years, gender, Training received from Science Museum. ● • Sampling of the students. Literature review “We do not learn from experience... we learn from reflecting on experience” (Dewey J., 1910) A science museum has been identified as a source for learning by the NCERT, NCSM and Ministry of Culture. Although during the literature study it was found that the perception of science museums is distinctly different from the organisations. As per NCERT’s prescribed educational framework “sites of curriculum that are physically located outside the school premises are just as important … These are sites like local monuments and museums, natural physical features such as rivers and hills, everyday spaces such as marketplaces and post offices.” (NCERT, 2005). It also prescribes that visiting informal spaces like Science museums should not be treated as ‘extra’ curricular activity but part of the subject curriculum. Such integrated visits with the curriculum foster scientific vigour and temperament in students. Learning science in India is more than just learning the fundamentals of the subject. As a nation rich in diversity of cultural, social and religious wisdom. There are numerous interpretations of the natural world around us.

84 Azim Premji University Many of them have lost their reasoning over time and fallen prey to superstition. NCERT’s National Focus Group report for Teaching Science brought up various collaterals where teaching science can make a difference in society. They acknowledged that science curriculum can be instrumental in closing the society’s gap in gender, caste, region and even religion. Equipping people to higher learning and opportunities. As part of Indian Ministry is promoting the work science museum do, “a Science Centre provides the scope of ‘doing science’ adopting a hands-on approach for which it offers to the visitor a number of experimental options through which they can discover the scientific concept themselves. Such a mode of education has so far proved to be very effective in supplementing formal science education in our country.” (Ministry of Culture, n.d.). The role and expectations from the science museum have been laid out by these documents but there is an ambiguity on the receiving end i. e., schools. As mentioned earlier there hasn’t been ample research in the Indian context, there have been some extensive studies globally. “Researchers in the field claim that bridging activities (between schools and science museums) increase the impact of students learning in out of school settings” (Bamberger & Tal, 2008). Although an intriguing viewpoint emerged during the review. Many researchers have found that students do not learn new concepts through museums, but museums are essential to reinforce the ideas and accommodate the nuances of the concepts. “As science-centre director Tom Krakauer recently quipped, museums teach the public “what they almost already know” (Falk, 1999). An experiment (Davidsson, 2015) asked visitors on what they knew all they knew about science. It was found that the participants gave elaborate answers to the concepts but denied learning the new concepts during their tour. This is an essential finding to the proposed research as it states the importance of the need for schools and museums to work in tandem to aid better understanding of scientific concepts. It must be also discussed that the role of the educator is not only confined to pre-visit preparation. ‘To optimize students’ attitudinal and cognitive gains, teachers should assume an active role during the visit, calling students’ attention to a given phenomenon, asking them to explain the phenomena under observation, providing support and “scaffolding” between students’ existing concepts and the exhibits’ (Morentin & Guisasola, 2014). The accommodation of the concepts happens through conversations around the exhibits. One research (Bamberger & Tal, 2008) found that when graduate students guided schools’ students through a science museum. It was seen that the school students got motivated to ask questions when the graduate students shared their projects and understandings.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 85 “The classroom preparation before the visit to the science museum plays an important role for children to be able to make connections with science museum exhibits. Similarly, during the science museum visit, the children should be encouraged to ask questions, explore things that they find interesting. The questions children come up with should be linked to their life and classroom teaching. This creates an opportunity for children to control their learning. During the exploration, the museum guide and the teacher would stay around and see their role as mediators in the process of learning science” (Tai et al. 2005; Cox-Petersen et al. 2003). The teachers should play a central role as they understand the child best and can draw an association between science museums and things taught in science class. The teachers end the trip to the museum with a wrap up visit by taking specific photos, drawing, talking with the museum personnel and so forth. The teachers should follow up the visits in the classroom by asking children to share their museum experience in a group and connect it with the classroom teaching.” John H. Falk (1999) in “Museum as institution of personal learning” affirms the above statement that “most learning that occurs in museums, has more to do with consolidation and reinforcement of previously understood ideas than with the creation of totally new knowledge structures.” Research into science museums and field trips indicates that it is necessary to integrate the visit in lesson planning to optimize the learning (Falk & Dierking, 2000). Maite Morentin and Jenaro Guisasola (2014) in “The role of science museum field trips in the primary teacher preparation” point out that “The peer-peer interaction in the science museum promotes learning. Museums generate interest among students by relating to their interest and encouraging them to revisit museums and use it as a resource of learning.” Falk (1999) makes the following research finding: “After completing their visit, visitors of all ages were able to demonstrate a significantly greater understanding of the multiple life processes that all living systems share.” The research brings out another interesting point that various other factors also contribute to construction and development of children’s knowledge. These factors include interacting with parents and other people in enrichment and extracurricular activities and in more informal interactions at home; reading books; watching television programs; playing with and disassembling electric and motor driven toys; and participating in school and museum-based experiences. John Hennigarh Shuh in “Teaching yourself to teach with objects” (1982) makes the following point: “Unlike the print materials (books), the objects are age and grade neutral. In other words, it is not required for the students to attain a specific proficiency to see and engage with objects in an educationally engaging manner. This is not to say that every object will generate equal appeal for students at all levels. Children of different age groups will interpret the objects distinctly as per their own life experience and observation skills.

86 Azim Premji University Subsequently, they will assign meaning to it. Learning to use objects with children enables them to do a careful and critical observation of the world. It helps children to ask probing questions and provide them the opportunity.” In a review of the literature, Smylie (1994) discussed the redesign of teachers’ roles and the school as a workplace. He indicated that, in order to promote change and increase effectiveness of teachers and schools, “professional communities” need to be created. The Professional Development School (PDS) model enriches the classroom learning community by bringing in university resources, preservice interns and faculty, as well as resources and personnel from the community such as museums and science centers. Wellington (1990) examined features of museums that are most effective in developing visitors’ interest in and understanding of science. He pointed out that the overall atmosphere of informal science learning, including features such as “voluntary, un-structured, non-assessed, open-ended, and learner- centered”, led to interest and learning. Cláudia Faria and Isabel Chagas (2012) in “School-visit to a science centre: student interaction with exhibits and the relevance of teachers’ behaviour” found out that “students interacted with the modules for very short periods of time, giving the impression that they were “shopping around”. Acting this way, they visited many modules for very brief periods of time: 50% to 59% of the visits to a module lasted less than one minute and 73% to 90% lasted less than two minutes.” In a literature review, Jarvis and Pell (2005) suggested that to optimize students’ attitudinal and cognitive gains, teachers should assume an active role during the visit, calling students’ attention to a given phenomenon, asking them to explain the phenomena under observation, providing support and “scaffolding” between students’ existing concepts and the exhibits. The literature provided an insight in how science museums perform in educational activities. The findings of the researches were considered for validation through various methods adopted by this research. Methodology The research used a mixed method for collecting the data. Qualitative to study the scientific understanding of the students and qualitative to gauge their retention from the visit to science museum. The participants of the research were divided in two spaces; the school and the museum. The methodology was realised through the following steps: ● 1. Connecting with science museums – As the research was to be conducted on the museum exhibits and the schools visiting it. It was necessary that the museums understand the research project. In all five museums were approached out of which only one museum extended their support towards the research. Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 87 ● 2. Research at museum – there were five research activities conducted: a. Exhibit analysis The school textbooks were studied to see if they complement the museum’s themes and exhibit. b. Pre- and Post-visit interviews of students During one of the school’s visits to the museum, based on the literature studied, this method was framed to study the retention of new concepts in students. Same questions were asked in relation to the scientific concepts covered in the museums before and after the visit to the museum. Their responses were recorded for analysis. c. Semi-structured observation During the students’ visits to the museum, the interaction between student-exhibit, student-teacher, student-floor mentor and teacher- exhibit were observed. d. Questionnaire for the museum staff General information questions about the background of the staff. e. Interview with the museum staff. The questions were about their perception of student/school visit and science education. ● 3. Identify schools – With discussion with the museum staff we found the school which have recently visited the museum. This was a snowball activity; Four schools were approached out of which two schools agreed to participate in the research. Both were low fee private state board schools; one was English medium while the other was Gujarati medium. ● 4. Research at school – data was collected from 29 students and 6 teachers from 2 schools. The activities conducted were: a. Questionnaire and test for the students The questionnaire was divided in three parts: i. General information about the students, her/his background. ii. Objective questions which tested the memory retention of the scientific concepts introduced at the museum. iii. Application questions which tested if the students had understood the scientific concepts. b. Interview with the students The interview was to know the student’s perception of the museum.

88 Azim Premji University c. Questionnaire for the teachers This had general information about the teachers and their experience at the museum. There were four science teachers and two other subject teachers, out of whom only five had visited a museum with the students. d. Interview with the teachers The interview was structured to get how teachers perceive museums and if they felt the need to integrate it with their curriculum or lesson plan. ● 5. The documented raw data was transcribed and converted in tabular format. These were then processed by categories and finding the mean standards of the data keeping the conceptual framework as reference. The analysis was then discussed with respect to the literature reviews to formulate the conclusion. Ethical considerations The research ensured that all ethical considerations were met. Written consent was taken from the participants prior any research activity. The nature of the research project and measures for keeping the data private were also communicated to the participants. Limitations As a short academic research, the constraints of time and engagement with the participants were limited. This research was conducted in March 2019, when most of the schools had their academic year end examinations lined up. There were three repercussions of these, firstly as this leg was snowball only two schools were ready to participate in the research. Secondly, the student sample during the questionnaire was not random. Only the higher scoring students could participate in the research. The reason given to us was that these students can cover up the missed class and the others should focus on the studies. Although because the sample size was about 15 per school the results were not entirely biased. Lastly, in one of the schools the time allocated was limited for all the activities, and was less than what was needed. Only one out of five museums approached were ready to give access for the research to be conducted. It needs to be noted that this is the only museum which has guided tours by floor mentors. This was taken as an opportunity to validate certain literature written on guided tours. As the school visiting the museum came in a group of about sixty for a duration of only 2 hours. Conducting pre-post interviews with semi-structured observations were compromised. The pre-post interview was successfully conducted for 10, 5th grade students but only a handful of 8th grade students who were the focus area. Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 89 Analysis The analysis is based on the mixed method of research. The participants were teachers (either science teachers or teachers who had visited with the students), students (who had visited the science museum recently) and the museum staff. Quantitative research analysis The questionnaire set for students had general information of the students and questions related to the scientific concepts introduced at the science museum. In response to the literature review the latter had application and memory-based questions. The application-based questions were to observe if the students have understood the scientific concept and the other to observe if the students retain newly introduced information/knowledge. The following is the analysis of the student’s questionnaire based on their visit to science museum 19 students scored an average of: ● • 67% in objective tests designed to test their memory (Highest: 100%, lowest: 36%). ● • 60% in application test designed to test their scientific understanding of concepts (Highest: 83%, lowest 0%) ● • The test was of 10 marks Standard deviation: 1.7; Mean 6.5 Students falling in bell curve: 12 of 19 (63% between 4.8 to 8.2) Gender • Boys (10) averaged 75% • Girls (9) averaged 53% Students whose both parents are: • School pass outs (7): 64% ● • Higher education (7): 60% Students whose are working: • Both work (4): 69% ● • Homemaker (12): 64% The teacher’s questionnaire was to see how the teacher perceives the science museum visit, their awareness and if they integrate it in their curriculum. Following is the analysis of teacher’s questionnaire: ● • Out of 5 teachers who accompanied the students only 1 was a science teacher. • No classes were conducted which linked with the museum before the visit.

90 Azim Premji University ● • Out of 4 science teachers interviewed, 1 had never visited a science museum. ● • 3 out of 6 teachers visited the school for the first time with the students. ● • Out of 2, one school had 60-100 students visiting in one trip. ● • All the teachers feel that the time given presently (2-3 hours) is not enough and should be increased. • 1 out of 4 teachers felt that experience at science museums is not retained. • The teachers believe that the quality of exhibits contributes the most in student’s conceptual retention. ● • The teachers believe that students cannot learn on their own at a science museum. The analysis of the questionnaire filled by three museum staff members reviled: ● • The curator’s perspective on most liked and disliked exhibits matched with the visiting students. ● • The curator finds it essential that the teachers are prepared for the visit and the guided tours make a big difference in student learning. ● • 30-60 was the ideal group size for the guided visit. Qualitative research analysis There were two sets of interviews with the students. First was the pre- and post-visit to the science museum. In response to the literature review which claimed students do not retain new information, questions were asked to students relating to the scientific concepts of the exhibits at the museum to see what they knew before and after the visit. The analysis showed: • Many children knew the answer/concept (for example, why can’t we see stars in the day?) but there was no significant increase in their answers in the post-test. • Regarding the moving images room, a few students could retain the terminology introduced during the guided tour like green screen or 1/16 of a second (speed of our eyes to capture images). • The exhibit which was new for them (bubble room), caught their interest, it was found that most of them liked it and nobody disliked it. The other set of interviews with the students were more elaborate. One school had visited the museum a month ago whereas the other only a week ago. Analysing their responses showed:

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 91 • Students wanted to learn science for the understanding of the world around, for general knowledge, career prospect and nation development (in order of priority). • During the categorisation of the reposes on how their experience was, the most marked category was amusing, followed by new learning. • Out of 23, 12 students learned something new from the museum visit. Only 2 could associate it with the science taught at school. Others liked the museum because they could do the experiments themselves.

Prior knowledge Interest Didn’t understand Bubble 5 of 23 13 of 23 2 of 20 Astronomy 7 of 23 5 of 23 6 of 20 Moving Images 3 of 23 5 of 23 6 of 20

• The above table show how many of the students knew something about the scientific concepts exhibited at the museum, how many were interested (as per the room themes) and how many students did not understand what was explained or experienced at the museum (as per the room themes) • More than half the students could relate to some scientific concepts in their daily life which they experienced at the museum. The interview with the teachers showed us that: • The teachers appreciate the experiment driven nature of the museum and provide opportunity for learning. The models made it easy for teaching certain abstract scientific concepts. • The museum offers science learning which is essential but extracurricular. This also breaks the tendency of rote learning. • Pre preparation wasn’t done to maintain the student’s curiosity, but they were followed up after the visit. (an average of 63% scored by the students, the visit was a few months old). • No preparation of link with curriculum (67% scored by the students, the visit was a week old). • The teachers support the presence of a more knowledgeable one to guide the students during their visit. The interview with the museum staff revealed: • Based on their observations and expertise the museum staff followed a format school museum visit. They first let the students explore the space with the exhibit with no instructions for about 5-10 minutes. The floor 92 Azim Premji University mentor explains all the exhibits, after which they are free to re-explore the exhibits. • The museum strongly felt that the science museums should not align with purely what is taught at schools. Their aim was to aid students bridge the gap between theoretical science taught at schools and science of everyday life. ● • The science museum was free for government school and the fees for private school was close to government funded museums. ● • The idea of periodically replacing the themes was to excite students who have visited before and as well as who will be visiting again. It also pushed the museum to reinvent their themes and implement their observations ensuring they don’t stagnate. Textual analysis As both the participating schools were Gujarat State Board, the science textbooks were studied. As it was observed during the pre-post visit interview students remember what they have learned from previous grades too. Textbooks of three grades were students 7th, 8th (the students’ present grade) and 9th. The following are the notes for the analysis: • The objective of the textbooks as mentioned in the preface was, ‘This principle marks a departure from the legacy of book learning which continues to shape our education system and is creating a huge gap between the school, home and community’ (Vaghela, et al., 2013). ● • Only two chapters were directly linked to the exhibits, ‘air pressure’ in 8th and ‘our solar system’ in 7th grade. ● • The textbooks were developed in 2013 and are still used after six years. • The textbooks classified its content in seven techniques: Activity, Questions, Group activity, Project work, Only for information, Exercise and Think. ● • The textbook mentioned, ‘There is air in our body. The pressure of air inside the body and in surrounding is balanced so we are not crushed’ (Vaghela, et al., 2013). Discussion There were two findings in the literature review which this research had probed in. Firstly, it was the claim that students or visitors do not learn new concepts at science museums, but the earlier concepts are just reinforced with the experiential learning. The other was the need for a guide to give an insightful experience. The research analysis suggests that both the inferences mentioned are in tandem. The museum had a clear policy for floor mentors who guided the children about concepts, associate the concepts with daily life Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 93 activities and the link with scientific concepts and theories. It was found that although most of the students visiting did not know about the concept of bubbles, they could correlate it from their chapter from air pressure. It also showed that their memory retention of the key ingredients to make soap water was also high, rejecting the claim that science museums can only reinforce pre introduced concepts and theories. It needs to be accounted that the format of the museum was well informed about various learning methods. The explore-learn-reexplore technique seems to have worked considering over students scored over 60% in the tests which was based on a two-hour visit. Considering one school had visited the museum a month ago the results seem remarkable. The other issue which came to light was the complexity of including museum visits in curriculum. Due to the administrative constraints the visit to the science museum is independent of what is being taught. Adding to it only the teachers who are free accompany the students, making the student-teacher interaction obsolete as the teacher may or may not know about the learning graph of these students. This also causes lack of association with what is being experienced at the science museum and taught at school. Lastly it was observed in the scores the difference in scores between boys and girls. It marks a necessary probing to validate the result again with a larger sample and find the causes for such drastic difference. It was observed thatthe students in one school were divided in groups of boys and girls. Although the mentors treated both the groups with same attention, a further study is required observing the nuances between the two. Conclusion One of the teachers had confessed to us that it took me several classes to explain the solar system and eclipse, but the students understood in a jiffy at the museum. The research has been insightful for the schools, science museum and us. The field research itself triggered thought-provoking conversations amongst the participants. A few teachers also mentioned that they would visit the museums again and try to integrate it in their lesson plan. With the analysis and finding it can be concluded that the perception of NCSM and NCERT of science museums as teaching and learning space is acknowledged but not clear or assertive. The research demonstrates the retention of both memory-based and application-based understanding of scientific concepts amongst the students. It also proves that students were able to link the concepts to their daily life activities; one of the goals of science education. In comparison to the observations in other museums the research also reinforces the necessity for a guide or mentor during the visit.

94 Azim Premji University Suggestions The research suggests awareness programs for teachers about science museums. Having information about their local museums will allow them to plan their lessons such that they can use the science museum as a teaching learning resource. Also, in cases of museums which do not facilitate tours or guides it can be that the science teachers accompany the students so that they can connect the classroom learning with the experiential learning.

References Bamberger, Y., & Tal, T. (2008). Multiple Outcomes of Class Visits to Natural History Museums: The Students’ View. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 17(3), 274-284. Davidsson, E. (2015). Investigating visitors’ learning related to science centre exhibits- a progress report of recent research Literature and possible Future research Foci. Utbildning & Larande, 6(2), 28-47. Falk, J. H. (1999). Museums as Institutions for Personal Learning. Daedalus, 259-275. Retrieved 08 27, 2017, from www.jstor.org/stable/20027574 Faria, C., & Chagas, I. (2012). School-visit to a science centre: student interaction with exhibits and the relevance of teachers’ behaviour. Revista Electronica de Enseñanza de las Ciencias, 11(3), 582-594. Jarvis, T., & Pell, A. (2005). Factors influencing elementary school children's attitudes toward science before, during, and after a visit to the UK National Space Centre. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 42(1), 53-83. Ministry of Culture, I. (n.d.). Scheme for Promotion of Culture of Science (SPOCS). Retrieved from National Council of Science Museums: www.ncsm.gov.in/documents Morentin, M., & Guisasola, J. (2014). The role of Science Museum field trips in the primary teacher preparation. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 965–990. NCERT. (2005). National Curriculum Framework. New Delhi: National Council of Educational Research and Training. Ramey-Gassert, L. (1997, March). Learning Science beyond the Classroom. The Elementary School Journal, 433-450. SHUH, J. H. (1982). Teaching Yourself to Teach with Objects. JOURNAL OF EDUCATION, 8-15. Smylie, M. A. (1994). Redesigning Teachers' Work: Connections to the Classroom. Review of Research in Education, 20(1), 129-177. Vaghela, N., Joshi, R., Jadhav, K., Makwana, V., Patel, G., Bhatt, K., . . . Vaghela, V. (2013). Science and Technology. Gandhinagar: Gujarat State Board of School Textbooks. Wellington, J. (1990). Formal and informal learning in science: the role of the interactive science centres. Physics Education, 25(5), 247.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 95

Perspectives and Practices

CAN LOW-FEE PRIVATE SCHOOLS BE AN ALTERNATIVE TO GOVERNMENT BRIHAS SCHOOLS? TIWARI

Abstract There’s an ever increasing trend of parents preferring to send their children to private schools over government schools. Reports of CABE, Pratham and personal research conducted in rural Karnataka confirm this claim. Those from low income brackets opt for low-fee private schools because that is what they can afford. Consistently, the move away from government schools is the choice made by all classes of society in urban as well as rural India. In the last twenty odd years, with the onset of liberalisation and privatisation, the dismal number of students in government schools raised a pressing question; can low-fee private schools be an alternative to government schools? The answer to this is multi-layered and has to do with the social, economic and political situation in the country. Perceptions of society, quality of education and responsibilities of the government have the most important role to play in overcoming this impasse and turning the tables. This paper will delve into all these aspects and even propose some interventions to turn the situation around. Introduction The drive towards liberalisation and privatisation witnessed changes in government policies across the world around the 1990s. One major event was the Revolutions of 1989 and Gorbachev’s privatisation of the centrally planned economy. India wasn’t oblivious to this global phenomenon. Liberalisation, globalisation and privatisation, commonly known as LPG, was a model of economic reform that made India go through several significant policy shifts in the early 1990s. Several industries were privatised of them were telecommunication, banking, airlines, media and also education. Prior to this, private schools did exist. However, the advent of these economic reforms had such an impact that private schools of varied types began to spring up across the country. Today, almost thirty years later, there are private schools, low-fee private schools, aided schools, quasi aided schools, ashram schools to mention all the broad categories of K-12 schools. Parents have a variety

Brihas Tiwari graduated with an MA in Education from Azim Premji University in 2019. Currently he works in the French International School of Pondicherry as a School Development Officer. Having attended an alternative school, his passion lies in mainstreaming alternative educational practices.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 99 of schools to send their children to, yet the major distinction comes from government schools and private schools. Most parents who have to make this choice are from low income brackets for whom the option is generally between government schools and low-fee private schools. The mushrooming of the latter kind of schools has made students migrate from government schools to them. “In recent years India has seen an explosion in low-fee private (LFP) schooling aimed at the poorer strata of society. This marketisation of primary education, around which there is much contentious debate, is a reflexive reaction to the well-documented failings of the government system.” (Härmä, 2010, pg. vii) At present, more than ever, the meagre number of students in government schools is compelling government schools to shut. This is corroborated in a report titled ‘Status Report of Closure of Schools after. RTE Act 2009’ that analysed data received from 9 state governments and mentions, “A total of 8602 schools were closed – primarily due to zero enrolment and 15,082 schools merged because of low enrolment. Out of these, the majority of closed schools were government primary / elementary schools.” (Ramchandra, V. and Reddy, A.N., 2015, pg. 8). Keeping this in mind, the question whether low-fee private schools can be an alternative to government schools becomes a pertinent one to ask. This paper argues that the answer to this is a definite no. Yet, the relevance of government schools, improvements therein, existence of low-fee private schools and possible interventions that can change the situation for the better are to be dealt with, keeping the societal perception, economic conditions and political efforts in mind. The paper thus structured with each of the above mentioned points as a subheading. Low Fee Private Schools Can’t Be An Alternative The proposition that low-fee private schools can be an alternative to government schools assumes that the responsibilities of education for all and the aims of education are the same in both these types of schools. Government schools have a Constitutional responsibility to provide “free and compulsory education of all children in the age group of six to fourteen years” (Constitution of India, 2009, pg. 23) and this education shall be in accordance to India’s Constitutional values reinforced by the National Education Policies and National Curriculum Frameworks. While this is true for government schools across the country, private institutions have no such compulsion as they can charge tuition fees, discriminate students based on affordability, gender, religion etc. and have values that aren’t necessarily featured in the Constitution. Therefore the aims of both entities can and are different in several cases.

100 Azim Premji University Suggesting that low-fee private schools are an alternative to government schools implies that if government schools didn’t exist there would be no problem. On the contrary, there would be a major problem. To begin with, having the choice of only low-fee private schools would deprive a section of society from being educated as they wouldn’t be able to afford to pay for education. “What is meant by affordability is that a family should be able to pay for the education of their children, and ideally all of their children to the same standard and at the same type of school, without having to excessively restrict spending in other essential areas such as food, medicine or shelter. Schooling is not considered affordable where families must cut severely from these essential areas, or where loans at punitive levels of interest are taken to pay for it” (Härmä, 2010, pg. 6) Subsequently, this deprivation would lead to further the divide and inequalities in society. Moreover, a social segregation would be created and families would have no avenues to fight out of it. This would lead to a number of social problems; to name a few, exploitation, discrimination, crimes and oppression. At present, broadly those who can’t afford even low-fee private schools enrol in government schools. “The government sector has become a ghettoised option of last resort for the poorest and most marginalised in society” (Härmä, 2010, pg. 38). Imagine this population would be deprived of their fundamental right. Being educated would be a first step in gradually overcoming the problems faced by this section of society. It isn’t suggested that all problems would be solved but only that it would help in that direction. “At the moment government schools have only those ‘drawn from the poorest households likely to be first generation learners.’” (Härmä, 2010, pg. 6) Previous generations often weren’t educated and the emphasis on education wasn’t as pronounced as it is today, hence it is essential that low- fee private schools don’t become an alternative and as a result perhaps lead to government schools shutting down. Government Schools Should Continue to Exist The case being made is for government schools to continue to exist because they have a relevance and the government has a responsibility towards their citizens. Education is a public good and should be accessible to all not only by the monied class. “Governments worldwide have recognised education as a fundamental human right for almost 70 years; since then, they have made repeated commitments to ensure education for all – and this includes the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agreed in 2015. (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 26, 1946) Therefore it is the duty of the government to ensure all are being educated and no child is left behind.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 101 Another compelling reason for government schools to continue to exist is that government ensures that education won’t be commoditised. As we know, several private ‘schools’ have turned themselves essentially into training centers to pass Joint Entrance Examination or Union Public Service Commission or to qualify the eligibility to enter top universities. The aim of education upon which the objectives and curriculum will be formulated would consider education as a development of all aspects of the child as its primary goal and not for mere employability. The aims of education determines the quality of education and as the government derives its aims of education from the Constitution and it is accountable to the public, there’s very little room to dilute its aims to that of employability. Finally, the curriculum across all government schools in the country would be largely the same and therefore there would be a contribution to the sense of national unity which will be formed in this mass of people. Furthermore, if a child has to migrate to another city or another state, if not anything else, the education of this child will have a broad continuity. Despite these fundamental necessities for government schools to exist there are numerous shortcomings that need to be resolved at the ground level such as teacher’s commitment to teach, accountability, community perception, and some at the policy level such as RTE 12 (1) C, English medium instruction and burdening teachers with administrative tasks to highlight a few. These shortcomings are substantiated by another research that underlines the problems in the Indian education system, “The main problems are the high drop-out rate, especially after Class 10, low levels of learning and achievement, inadequate school infrastructure, poorly functioning schools, high teacher absenteeism, the large number of teacher vacancies, poor quality of education and inadequate funds.” (Lall, M, 2005, pg. 4) These will be later discussed in the ‘Intervention’ section. Low Fee Private Schools Should Also Exist This proposition might come as a surprise yet low-fee private schools have a relevance too. Currently, it is these schools that are attracting most students primarily because they offer English medium education (Rahman, 2012) and the perception that sending children to private schools guarantees better quality education is rampant as observed on the ground in Almora, Uttarakhand and Khambadakone, Karnataka. This conclusion is corroborated by research conducted in Khambadkone, Karnataka. Over 50% parents interviewed and surveyed in both government and private schools of Khambadkone, Udupi district, were of the opinion that they would choose private schools because of English-medium education (Tiwari & Rao, 2018). This trend is apparent across the country. A report published by Azim Premji

102 Azim Premji University University titled ‘School choice in low information environments: A study of perceptions and realities in four states’ concludes that teaching-learning is the most important reason for parental preference of a school for both public and private schools. “Parents’ perception of Teaching-Learning was seen to be very important for both sets of parents, that is, those choosing public schools as well as those choosing private schools” (Azim Premji Foundation, 2018, pg. 8). Public school is the only option for those who cannot afford private school. Hence, the same study conducted by Azim Premji Foundation in the 4 states indicates, “ For most of the poor families with children going to public schools, the schools were seen to be a default choice in terms of affordability. Contrarily, the distinguishing qualities of private schools, as expressed during the interviews by parents sending their children to private schools, mostly centred on English teaching and discipline.” (Azim Premji Foundation, 2018, pg. 8). This study analysed perceptions of parents across four states; Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand and Rajasthan. The argument for the existence of low-fee private school is that they can have different teaching practices that can be useful to incorporate or share with government schools or with educational practitioners in general. There isn’t one way to go about educating so the more experiments take place the better for humanity as a whole. This thought is echoed in the book ‘Turning Learning Right Side Up: Putting Education Back on Track’, by authors Russell L. Ackoff and Daniel Greenberg wherein they point out, “In the educational process, students should be offered a wide variety of ways to learn, among which they could choose or with which they could experiment.” (Ackoff, R.L., Greenberg, D., 2008, pg. 5). However, a word of caution here is that the government should approve or recognise them and should certify them as schools if their prime objective is education and not training. Education here is, broadly referred to, a pursuit of knowledge and understanding by building cognitive perspectives and emotional development and physical education. The recognition of these types of schools, including home schools, is particularly pertinent as the New Education Policy 2019 makes a mention of recognition of such schools or educational practices. The emphasis on the existence of low-fee private schools can be underlined by an example. The Sri Aurobindo International Center of Education (SAICE) is an alternative school with its aim of education being different from ordinary schools. It offers integral education that is nurturing the mind, body, heart and soul. The school’s official website states, “ SAICE strives to evolve a system of integral education in an environment that inspires children to develop the five essential aspects of personality: the physical, the vital, the mental, the psychic, and the spiritual.” (SAICE website). Admittedly this

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 103 school can not be compared to regular low-fee private schools yet practices of this school can be an example for others to follow. Pranab Mukherjee, the former President of India, said in his address to the students of this school, “As a nation, we should aspire to follow these ideals [of Integral Education[1] - a balanced emphasis on the physical, the mental, the vital and the spiritual].” (Mukherjee, 2013) The families that choose this school do so because of the aims of life and education that the institution follows. On a personal note, had it not been for this school, my education would have been in a government school. The opportunities of learning, reflecting and developing my entire being was offered at this school. Others who are also from modest backgrounds but go to government schools, often don’t receive these opportunities. This is an example of the progressive and avant garde philosophy of education and pedagogic practices followed in a low free private school can transform lives of students and subsequently families. The possibility of such a transformation through education reaffirms the place for schools other than government schools. Additionally, having low-fee private schools makes the government and educationists reform education as their existence has built competition against government schools. It is possible, the absence of low-fee private schools could have resulted in a kind of monopoly where teachers and officials would take for granted that children who cannot afford private education have nowhere to go, hence they would be obliged to choose government schools for education. The advent of private schools of all levels and affordability occured in the late 1990s after the LPG movement. During this period, the education sector witnessed a rapid growth in the number of private schools. “For the most part, state-run public schools offer their instructions in the respective regional languages of the state. Unlike government schools, private schools predominantly offer their instruction in English. In multilingual India, English is both a dominant language of commerce and higher education, and the official language of government transactions. Consequently, across all social classes, English is valued as a language for employability and social mobility. This in turn significantly drives the demand for “English Medium” private schools in India.” (Chattopadhyay & Roy, 2017, pg. 3). Further, parents perceive private schools as one with better quality of education and with elevated societal status. Today, due to the competition and migration, teachers and education officers are frequenting households and schools advertising government school achievements in ranking, benefits provided by the government to study in their schools and sending feedback to their superiors to curb this trend. This was witnessed and documented during the research study in and around Khambadkone, a village in Udupi District, Karnataka. 104 Azim Premji University Intervention Although both government and low-fee private schools should exist, the current scenario seems to tend towards the disappearance of one at the cost of proliferation of the other. A recent article from The Economic Times titled ‘What is making children turn away from government schools’ states “The mushrooming of English medium private schools have led to the decline of public schools in Bengaluru (and elsewhere). Many public schools that once teemed with children are facing closure” (Akshtha, 2018). The healthy balance of the existence of the two is what should be strived for. In order to accomplish this there are a number of proposed interventions. The foremost intervention would be to make it mandatory for government employees to send their children to government schools. As soon as their children will be in government schools not only will the perception in society start changing but also government officials’ investment into improving standards and quality of education will increase. This is at the root of it all as the following interventions would be natural results of this.However, as lawmakers are also part of the government along with government employees, it seems unlikely that they would pursue the idea of making it mandatory to send their wards to government schools. Therein lies the difficulty of bringing to light this proposition. Next, the government should make English medium instruction mandatory from class 1 as that is the primary reason for parents to choose private schools to enrol their children. Out of 101 parents surveyed in Khambadkone, a village in rural Karnataka, over 50% chose private schools for this reason (Tiwari, B. & Rao, S., 2018). However, the teaching of the regional language should continue as a subject. This would require more qualified teachers hence it should be mandatory for private school teachers to spend one hour per week in government schools to teach the same subject he or she teaches in the private school. This intervention would help bridge the gap of shortage of teachers. Moreover the pedagogic practices might be different and knowledge sharing can occur organically. The other solution for this would be to merge schools and better optimise the resources at hand that includes one teacher per grade or one teacher per grade per subject. Challenges remain in closing down and merging schools too; it could dissuade parents to send their children to school as the distance from home to school would no longer be 1km and hence safety would be a concern, resistance from local chieftains, local power dynamics and so on. Efforts of different state governments to do so have faced stiff opposition by teachers, parents and associations. One such example of “The President of The Gujarat State Primary Teachers’ Association (GSPTA), Digvijaysingh Jadega, he said that the merging of

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 105 government schools will prompt a higher drop-out rate in the government schools at the primary level.” (Saini, Y., 2019) A major impetus for the migration from government to private schools has been the Article 12 (1) C in the RTE Act which provisions 25% reservation in private schools for children of low income backgrounds. Using this, many parents have shifted to private schools to offer better education to their children, often by faking their addresses, economic status or bribing officials. This reason was cited by six out of 8 government school teachers interviewed. (Tiwari B. & Rao, S., 2018) Hence, this Article needs to be revisited to curb the migration; this should perhaps even be scrapped as it seems the government is shedding their responsibility over to private schools to educate children, rather it should find ways to improve its own schools. One step could be to improve the monitoring system of attendance and effective teaching practices in schools. It is believed that the principal and teachers take their profession lightly in government schools because there’s no one to monitor them and there’s very little accountability. This sentiment was echoed by numerous stakeholders in Khambadkone, Karnataka and Almora, Uttarakhand. In order to resolve this issue, it is important for the school leaders and teachers to feel like their presence is valued by the administration. Regular visits during their work hours will not only ensure their presence through the element of surprise and consequences if they’re not present but more importantly will also make them feel they matter. A similar strategy was put in practice by the BEO of Dhauladevi Block, Uttarakhand. Within a few weeks, there was a sharp drop in absenteeism and greater cooperation and empathy between the administrators and school staff. Further, by making it mandatory for government employees to send their children to government schools, accountability would automatically increase as they would want their children to be well educated. Administrators, politicians and other decision makers would have a direct feedback of the quality of education as their children are beneficiaries of their policies and execution. Such an organic feedback system would ensure the entire ecosystem functions smoothly and effectively. Due to shortage of staff, teachers are often burdened with tasks outside the education domain which prevent them from adequately spending time teaching. In all the government schools I visited in Almora district, teachers complained of the frequent non-academic tasks given to them almost all year round. Therefore, the intervention would be to ensure the BEO’s office takes up these non-educational tasks, such as census work, election work, aadhar card making etc. The Dhauladevi block in Almora did just that which led to the increase in productivity and quality of teaching in all schools because

106 Azim Premji University the BEO identified this problem and resolved it by having the administrators perform those non-academic tasks. Importantly, it would be fair for the government to stop subsidising everything for private schools and instead invest those funds into their own schools. If private schools want to function their water, electricity etc. should be at regular rates. “Using public financing to subsidise private education providers is far from progressive.” (Global Campaign for Education, 2016) By channeling that same money into government schools they would be able to afford more teachers and even build model schools. Building model schools is an important step that should be taken by the government to highlight better teaching practices, infrastructure and quality education. This would also help change the perception. It should strive not only to have respected colleges and universities but also K-12 schools that are sought after like the IITs. Finally, government teachers would be pleased if they had the choice of not being transferred far from their home if they don’t wish to because that de- motivates teachers from joining government schools. Instead they flock in private schools for a significantly lower pay. This phenomenon was recounted during interviews with teachers in Sandeepan School, Khambadkone, a private school in Udupi District. Such migration may seem unlikely as government teachers are paid more and have permanent jobs. Nevertheless, if one accepts this account, some government school teachers migrate to private schools to remain close to their homes, then the government could analyse the benefits and drawbacks of a system where teachers opt to be on the transfer list and are incentivised through an increment in pay scale if they are transferred outside their hometown. Conclusion Low fee private schools can not be an alternative to government schools because that would imply that government schools need not exist if low-fee private schools already do. One of the roles of government schools is to provide free education to all so that every citizen can develop as mentioned in the Constitution “the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform.” (Constitution of India, pg. 25). Whereas low-fee private schools are not compelled to play this role. The aim of education in government schools is accountable to the public therefore it will always remain in resonance with the constitutional values and higher aims of life. On the contrary replacing them with low-fee private schools, the aims of education can easily be slipped to employability as is the case already in some schools. The diminishing number of students in government schools and the increasing enrolment in low-fee private schools has brought this debate to the fore.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 107 For example in Karnataka “According to a study conducted by Grassroots Research and Advocacy Movement (GRAAM) a Mysuru-based public policy research and advocacy initiative, the number of students studying in class 1 to 10 at government schools has come down by 9.96 lakh, down from 54.5 lakh in 2010-11 to 44.5 lakh in 2017-18. In comparison, the number of students in private institutions has gone up from 28.76 lakh in 2010-11 to 41.1 lakh in 2017-18.” (The Hindu, 2018) As argued in this paper, there is a positive contribution in the existence of both types of schools because both serve a purpose in the larger interest of society. However, the current state of affairs in government schools is a consequence of neglect at the policy levels and the lack of efficient organisation at the ground level. The failure at both levels has led to growing rates of dropout in government schools. In a review, Geeta Gandhi Kingdon analyses data and concludes, “the average number of pupils per small govt. school fell from 30.4 pupils in 2010 to 28 pupils in 2015. Pupil teacher ratio also fell from 15 to 12.7 between 2011 and 2015.” (Kingdon, G., 2017) Interventions need to be done at the policy level by providing English medium education from class 1, tweaking 12 (1) C of the RTE Act and not providing subsidies to private schools. Similarly, interventions would need to be implemented on the ground by building accountability in school staff, not burdening teachers with non academic tasks and optimising resources. The onset of liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation has influenced education greatly, it is time for the government to strive for an equilibrium where both, private and government schools, can co-exist effectively. The recent New Education Policy Draft circulated for suggestions and improvement, mentions the recognition of schools that don’t follow any Board; that includes alternative schools, home schooling etc. This recognition legitimises the experiments and innovation such educationists and practitioners are undertaking. In the section titled School Education in the New Education Policy Draft, 2019 under item 8f. an equilibrium for private schools to exist without the overbearing pressure of regulation is mentioned. “Private philanthropic schools must be encouraged and freed of regulatory overload; at the same time private operators who try to run schools as commercial enterprises will be stopped.” (NEP, 2019). Further in the same section item 3e. that deals with universalisation of education states “The requirements of the Right to Education Act will be made substantially less restrictive, while ensuring safety (physical and psychological), access and inclusion, the non-profit nature of schools, and minimum standards for learning outcomes. This is to

108 Azim Premji University allow for local variations and alternative models, while making it easier for governmental and non-governmental organizations to start a school.” (NEP, 2019). These items serve to highlight the stance in universalisation of education and also the legitimisation of alternative modes of learning and underlying the need for the existence of both public and private schools while ensuring neither promotes commercial activities. It is in this context that the arguments elucidated above are not only topical but can also inform policymakers so as to include the suggestions in the Draft of the New Education Policy, 2019.

References 1. Ackoff, R.L., Greenberg, D., 2008, pg. 5, Turning Learning Right Side Up: Putting Education Back on Track, Pearson Prentice Hall 2. Akshata, M., (March 2018), What is making children turn away from government schools. The Economic Times. Accessed on 31st July, 2019 3. Azim Premji Foundation, Research Group, (November 2018), School choice in low information environments: A study of perceptions and realities in four states. Field Studies in Education, Azim Premji Foundation 4. Chattopadhay, T and Roy, M., (May 18, 2017, pg3), Low-Fee Private Schools in India: The Emerging Fault Lines, Working Paper 233, National Center for the Study of Privatization in Education, Teachers College, Columbia University. https://ncspe.tc.columbia.edu/ working-papers/WP233.pdf 5. Constitution of India, Article 21-A, pg. 23 & 25, Government of India, Ministry of Human Resource and Development 6. Global Campaign for Education, Private Profit, Public Loss, (2016), Why the push for low-fee private schools is throwing quality education off track. 7. Härmä, J. (2010), School choice for the poor? The limits of marketisation of primary education in rural India. Consortium for Research on Educational Access, Transitions and Equity. University of Sussex, Centre for International Education, Sussex 8. Kingdon, G.G., The Private Schooling Phenomenon in India, 2017, IZA Institute of Labour Economics 9. Lall, M., (2005) pg. 4 The Challenges for India’s Education System, Chatham House 10. Mukherjee, P. (2013), Speech by the President of India Shri Pranab Mukherjee on the Occasion of Addressing the Students of Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education, Puducherry, 25th September, 2013 https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=99679 11. New Education Policy, (2019), Government of India, Ministry of Human Resource and Development 12. Rahman, M (2012, May 15), Language exodus reshapes India’s schools. The Guardian. Retrieved from www.theguardian.com: https://www.theguardian.com/education/2012/ may/15/india-schools-english

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 109 13. Ramchandran, V & Reddy, A.N., (2015), Status Report on Closure of Schools after RTE Act 2009, National Coalition for Education, New Delhi http://www.eruindia.org/files/ Status%20Report%20RTE%202016.pdf 14. Saini, Y., (2019), Gujarat government to take IIMA’s help to tackle resistance to school merging, Shiksha, November 29, 2019 https://www.shiksha.com/articles/gujarat-government- to-take-iima-s-help-to-tackle-resistance-to-school-merging-blogId-26379 15. Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education (SAICE), (2020), School website, https:/ www.saice.in/approach.php 16. Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 26, adopted in 1948. 17. Unpublished Research Report, Tiwari, B. & Rao, S., (2018), Growth of Private Schools in Rural Karnataka. Azim Premji University, Bangalore. [1]Integral Education: http://www.sriaurobindoinstitute.org/saioc/educational/integral_education

110 Azim Premji University CONTRIBUTION OF MARX & GANDHI IN EVOLUTION OF POST DEVELOPMENT NITYANAND THEORIES RAI

Abstract The article presents the emergence of Post Development ideas way back to Marx and Gandhi. Though Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels presented their ideas on Capitalism and its exploitation in the early phase of industrial revolution, they recognized that this phase will be ruthless but is a temporary phase and will be eventually overthrown by communism, while Gandhi who saw the industrialization at its peak in 1909 and criticized such way of development and predicted that there’s no looking back, if humanity follows the same path. Gandhi still had a hope that the traditional societies like India won’t be gripped by such form of modernization. Eventually, the post-development theorists like Ivan Illich, Ashish Nandi and Andre Gunder Frank professed that the world has now become highly unequal, homogenized and was in grip of capitalism. However, unlike Marx, Gandhi and subsequent Post-development theorists do not put their trust in a single solution for the entire world. Karl Marx saw the modern bourgeois led development as a natural progression from feudal society. According to him the “epoch of the bourgeoisie” has emerged due to class antagonisms of serfs and feudal lords of preceding feudal society. However, the class antagonism doesn’t fade away with the emergence of bourgeois society but gets consolidated. The clear class division between bourgeois- who control all the means of production and the proletarians- who don’t possess any means of production except the labour of their bodies creates a conducive situation for proletarian revolution (Marx & Engels, 1888). Marx realizes that modern capitalist society is exploiting raw material from the remotest corner of the world for their profit and is homogenising the world. This has been made possible due to the development of modern means of communication and transport. However, he projects this development as inevitable and necessary condition for the proletarian revolution. He predicts a revolution where proletarians of the entire world will come together as they will be able to identify the commonness among themselves and their common enemy i.e. bourgeois class. The proletarians will violently overthrow the bourgeois from their position of power and establish a proletarian led communist society which will mark the end of class antagonism (Marx & Engels, 1888)

Nityanand Rai pursuing M.A Development programme from Azim Premji University. His interest lies in exploring ideas at the interface of ecological sustainability and development.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 111 Like Hegel, Marx also saw history as a process of development which progresses to the better. Ideas of a theorist like Marx and Hegel form the basis of development theory that emerged post-Bretton Wood arrangement. However, the USA government wanted to use the idea of developmentalism in such a way that the spread of communism can be contained in newly decolonized nations. This was the reason that developmental theorist avoided acknowledging the theoretical base of development provided by Marx and others and prefer to equate developmentalism with modernism (Leys, 1996). The modernist theorist like Daniel Lerner emphasized the need for the development of the capitalist mode of the industrial economic system to promote material growth in traditional societies. According to them the traditional belief and practices are the main hindrance in the growth of the capitalist industrial economy (Lerner, 1999). The development theory put the responsibility for the economic growth of countries on specific states by using the instrument of macroeconomic policies. The international monetary agencies like USAID and the World Bank provided expert knowledge and financial support to the third world countries to modernize themselves and achieve industrial growth (Leys, 1996). However, by early 1970s the shortcomings of development theory got exposed. It not only failed in delivering the promised result of industrial development in third world countries but question against her intention behind homogenizing the world also started rising in the academic circle. The aggression of the US on Vietnam and her involvement against other communist ventures further exposed her intention of establishing absolute hegemony in the disguise of the humanitarian mission of development. These incidences combined with massive student uprising of the late 1960s gave prominence to post-structuralist and counter development theories like dependency theory and post-development theory to understand the situation of third world countries (Routray, 2015). The post-development theorists are critical of the very idea of ‘development’. According to them the idea of development is a post World War Two invention which has branded entire Global South or non-western countries as ‘underdeveloped’ at once (Ziai, 2012). The proponent of development emphasizes on the need of material progress in third world countries. However, the post-development theorists claim that it is a mechanism to create a western-centric world order where every country will be expected to follow the footsteps of industrialized capitalist countries by denouncing the countless way of livings embedded in their respective cultures. It will increase the demand for Western institutions, experts, technologies and products

112 Azim Premji University which will finally help in the economic expansion of only Western countries (Illich, Development as Planned Poverty, 1997). Modernization mission has not only acted as a moral ground for developmentalism but also for colonial imperialism. According to Ashish Nandy, military might and technological superiority were not as much responsible for the success of modern colonialism as its “ability to create secular hierarchies incompatible with the traditional order.” These hierarchies promised a just and equal world in which many critical minds of Europe and East put their faith. They believed that modern institutions brought by colonialism will infuse rationality and critical thinking spirit of the West into the Non-Western world (Nandi, 1997). This line of thinking was not different from the idea of Marx who saw history as a progression towards the betterment. Before the emergence of M.K Gandhi in world’s political sphere in early 20th century, there was a general agreement among both political leaders and scholars that the effect of colonial imperialism may be bad for the present but it is also creating a ground for the greater good which will be realized in future. Many Indians were in believe that British colonialism has brought a superior form of political and economic organization and the road to India’s salvation is in the direction of becoming more like their colonial masters (Nandi, 1997). Gandhi was among the first voices who challenged the ethical ground of colonialism i.e. modernisation and rejected the world view which celebrates homogeneity. Like Marx, he rationally analyzed the effect of capitalist industrial society which is always eager to exploit resources from the remotest corner of the world for profit. However, he rejected the idea of historical progression and belief that current exploitation will bring the cumulative benefit of an equal and just society to humanity in future. In his first published work that is Hind Swaraj, Gandhi warns that if we will set our hearts after machines, “we would become slaves and lose our moral fibre.” He suggests that “we should only do what we could with our hands and feet” (Gandhi, 1909). Gandhi prophesized the ill effects of the ‘civilization’ based on modern capitalist industrialization way back at the beginning of the 20th century. In Hind Swaraj, Gandhi warns against the institutions which are considered as modern emblems of development like railway, lawyers and doctors. According to him, these institutions are the basic reasons for the impoverishment of India and if “we do not wake up in time, we shall be ruined.” He claims that it is the railway which allowed Britishers to make the hold on India so strong. For doctors, he writes that they promote consumption and excessive attachment towards life even when a person is on death bed (Gandhi, 1909). Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 113 Post-Development theorist who emerged in the 1970s seems to draw a lot from the work of Gandhi. We can find astonishing similarities in the works of Ivan Illich, who is considered as one of the pioneers of Post-Development theory. Ivan Illich in his essay, Development as planned poverty seems to resonate with the ideas proposed by Gandhi. He claims that we have become prisoners of our institutions. According to him factories, news media, hospitals, government, and schools are like “prepackaged solutions” which capitalist industrialized nation sells to poor nations in the name of development. He argues that these “packaged deal” benefits only a thin section of the society at the cost of the majority. It creates ‘underdevelopment’ in third world country which is nothing but a state of mind by which the producers of this ‘underdevelopment’ that are western countries control the economy of third world countries for their own benefit. According to Illich, underdevelopment occurs when “mass needs are converted to the demand for new brands of packaged solutions which are forever beyond the reach of the majority” (Illich, Development as Planned Poverty, 1997). Illich illustrates his idea on modern medical establishment in his book, ‘Limits to Medicine: Medical Nemesis- The Expropriation of Health, in detail. The book opens with the sentence that, “the medical establishment has become a major threat to health.” In the book, he argues that modern hospitals have devoid people from their autonomy over their body, life, and death (Illich, Medical Nemesis: The Expropriation of Health, 1975). Like Gandhi in ‘Hind Swaraj’, Illich in his essay, ‘Development as planned poverty’ raises the question on the entire model of capitalist industrialized society. Apart from the modern medical system, transportation, government and newsmedia he also raises the question on the modern education system. Illich argues that schools indoctrinate the imagination of the entire population of a society to make society believe that formal education can be provided only under the institution of school. This “schooling” of imagination provides the moral ground to legalize the taxing of the entire population to educate children of the rich in society (Illich, Development as Planned Poverty, 1997). In his book ‘Deschooling Society’ Ivan Illich makes a strong attack on the modern education system. He argues that the modern education system doesn’t promote true learning and it is impossible to provide universal education through this system (Illich, Deschooling Society, 1983). Gandhi was also against the modern school system which promotes industrialization and urbanization. His long contemplation on alternative education consummates into his article in Harijan on 31 July 1937 as the Idea of Nai Talim. The Gandhian idea of education says that education and work are not separate. Modern schooling system alienates children from different

114 Azim Premji University productive work and is limited for preparing themselves for examinations (Gandhi, India of My Dreams, 1947). In conclusion, I will say that both Gandhi and Ivan Illich are highlighting the contradictions in the very structure of capitalist industrialized society and prophesying the self-destruction of this superstructure because of these contradictions. In prophesying this, both are close to Marx’s idea of capitalism but they are different in their solutions. While Marx sees capitalism as a natural evolution of civilization and wants change only in the ownership of means of production whereas post-development theorists like Gandhi and Illich consider capitalist industrialization unnatural and denounce the industrial mode of production and structuring of society which helps industrialization. Unlike Marx, they don’t advocate for single alternatives but multiple alternatives which will be rooted in the cultures of respective societies. References Frank, A. G. (1995). The Thesis of Capitalist Underdevelopment. In R. Ayres, Development Studies: An Introduction through Selected Readings (pp. 211-217). Greenwich University Press. Gandhi, M. (1909). Hind Swaraj and Other Writings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Gandhi, M. (1947). India of My Dreams. (R. Prabhu, Ed.) Ahmedabad: Navajivan Mudranalaya. Guha, R. (2013). Gandhi Before India. Penguin Books. Illich, I. (1983). Deschooling Society. New York: Harper Colophon. Illich, I. (1997). Development as Planned Poverty. In M. Rahnema, & V. Bawtree, The Post Development Studies Reader (pp. 94-102). New York: Zed Books. Illich, I. (1975). Medical Nemesis: The Expropriation of Health. London: Calder & Boyars. Lerner, D. (1999). The Passing of Traditional Society. In J. Timmons, & A. Hite, Modernization to Globalization: Perspective on Development and Social Change (pp. 119-133). Blackwell Publishers. Leys, C. (1996). The Rise and Fall of Development Theory. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. Marx, K., & Engels, F. (1888). The Communist Manifesto. Waiheke Island: Floating Press. Nandi, A. (1997). Colonization of Mind. In M. Rahnema, & V. Bawtree, The Post Development Reader (pp. 168-177). Zed Books. Routray, S. (2015). The Post-Development Impasse and the State in India. Third World Quarterly. Ziai, A. (2012). Post Development. Retrieved from Center for Inter American Studies: https://www. uni-bielefeld.de/(en)/cias/wiki/p_Post-Development.html

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 115

Notes

HARAAM KI BOTI TOPIC - FEMALE SARIYA ALI GENITAL MUTILATION

Abstract Haraam ki Boti, the title is inspired from the metaphorical understanding of the impious pinch of skin of a female’s clitoris which is sliced out at an early age of a girl child. This is a traditional practice in various communities across the world, which is widely understood as Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM(C). The paper is set in the context of the the practice of FGM to understand it deeper from the lenses of tradition and unveiling the layers of customary grip upon the practice. Identifying this, the aim of the paper is to collate some interventions which have been done to tackle FGM in communities, as a ray of hope. “I had been robbed of my basic feminine rights to sensuality, sexuality, and forever deprived of any clitoral sexual stimulation’’, a respondent (Taher, 2017). Having read such a statement of anger and pain, I could not resist digging deeper on the issue of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), a practice persistent globally in several local communities. This paper has been written to analyse the practice in terms of its meaning; origin; cultural connotations and beliefs; the need for intervention; contemporary and possible interventions; and, how long do we have to wait for this practice to die? In the course of writing this paper, there occurred an exploratory engagement with the subject of ‘beliefs, women and patriarchy’, as the rationales (discussed below) produced around FGM which are highly suppressive, male-cum-community centric and engages two types of women: i) women who not only comply with the traditional reasons, but are active in carrying forward the practice, ii) women who do not associate with the practice but are actively or passively forced to abide by the tradition. Some of the second type of women were either able to escape from becoming the victim or at least could save their daughters from experiencing the trauma. This paper thus also looks into the journey of collectives of such women as hope and fighters for changing the future.

Sariya Ali is a final-year student of M. A. Development at Azim Premji University. She holds a Bachelors in Philosophy from Miranda House, University of Delhi. She believes in independent thought and writing. She has keen interest in the domains of philosophy, sociology, human rights and education.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 119 What is Female Genital Mutilation and where does it come from? World Health Organization describes, “Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) refers to all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons’’ (WHO, 2018) . According to the World Health Organization’s latest update, over 200 million girls and women alive today have been cut in the Middle East, Africa and Asia (Ismail, et al., 2017). There are four types of FGM according to the ways it has been conducted. ‘’ In type 1, the prepuce (clitoral hood) is removed, sometimes along with part or all of the clitoris. In type 2, both the prepuce and the clitoris and part or all of the labia minora (inner vaginal lips) are removed. Type 3 (infibulation) involves the complete removal of the clitoris and labia minora, together with the inner surface of the labia majora. In this the raw edges of labia majora are stitched with leaving a small opening, by the insertion of a foreign body, to allow the passage of urine and menstrual blood. In the type 4, there are other practices like pricking, piercing, or incision of the clitoris and/or libia, etc.’’ (Dorkenoo, 1999). The prevalence of different types varies with regions and beliefs. The variation though does not hold significance, as it is the idea behind the practice which needs to be understood and dealt with. The idea behind the practice comes from an origin which is not known in absolute terms. But it is widely acknowledged that it predates both Christianity and Islam (Black & Debelle, 1995) cited in (Taher, 2017, p. 14). As per the literature, the ancient emergence of the practice held the contentions of reducing sexual pleasure by controlling the sexual behaviour of women; in some historicity it was done as a mark of maintaining virginity (Taher, 2017, p. 13), and there are several more justifications which are evidently female oppressive. The practice in many communities is believed to be a religious one, in fact compulsion, but no religious text propagates this. The historical basis holds a strong ‘communitarian validation’ of the custom which has survived over a long period of eras. With such a validation being built and legitimised, breaking it must be done in a convincing manner, in a way where the hammer hits the practice without offending the practitioners. But before getting into bringing it down, it is important to understand why there is a need to do so? What is the need for intervention and what are some attempts made? A 2008 United Nations interagency statement defines FGM as a violation of human rights, a form of discrimination on the basis of gender, and a form of violence against girls (Williams-Breault, 2018). If the practice is analysed from a broader perspective, then it is beyond human rights violation. This

120 Azim Premji University does not mean that the gravity of human rights violation is less, but this act holds a strong historical and philosophical perspective. As a procedure it is a 5-minute act of pinning down the body of a girl child, removing her underpants and slicing off the clitoris skin. This process can be looked at from multiple perspectives. FGM is an absolute act of child abuse which involves attacking the private part of the body and forcing the child into pain. In a documentary made by Priya Goswami “A Pinch of Skin’’, women of Bohra community (a small Gujarati Muslim community which practices FGM) are captured, who have shared some grave childhood memories of undergoing the procedure. A lot of women still remember the pain of their little selves of 7 years old. It evidently is a traumatic experience, after which in many cases urination becomes a painful and fearful act (Goswami, 2012). Interestingly if seen from Michel Foucault’s perspective of “disciplining of the body’’ (Federici, 2004), then FGM is an actor in reducing the female body to merely a piece of flesh. The ideologies held for FGM have a strong element of eliminating sexual ambiguity and is seen as “purification’’ of female body for marriage and childbirth. The justifications are also to an extent of FGM as an act of making the body completely feminine, which then comfortably places women in a subordinate position to male, giving the men the exclusive power of supremacy. This is symbolised by cutting the clitoris, which is believed to be the equivalent of penis (Andro & Lesclingand, 2016, p.g 221). If seen from finer lenses, the details of these ideologies speak volumes of patriarchy. The objective of alienating the women from her right to experience herself wholly reduces her merely to a body meant to provide sexual leverage to the husband and produce children. From the view of critics of capitalism FGM fits fine into Barbara’s description “Her vagina, used for his pleasures, was the gateway to the womb, which was his place of capital investment -- the capital investment being the sex-act and the resulting child -- the accumulated surplus’’ (Federici, 2004, p. 61). The perspectives vary regionally and culturally but the core argument remains that the practice is highly dehumanising for the fact of treating the body of a human being as a mere piece of flesh. It is undeniable that the whole practice nowhere involves ‘consent’. FGM is a violation of right to health, one’s right over its own body and also of right to life. All the communitarian justifications are medically irrelevant and can be challenged from multiple perspectives. However, no matter how important it is to abolish this global practice, it is equally crucial to remember about the social credibility it holds. The fact that it is carried by the elder women of the community only reflects the strong acceptance of FGM. Thus, scraping out the activity cannot be done by any forcible implementation but has to be driven socially from within the community. There have been attempts of medicalisation of the procedure

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 121 in few communities but in 1993 the World Medical Association along with International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics strongly disapproved of medicalisation (Taher, 2017, p. 16). This is very sensible because of the fact that medicalisation is not a solution to the debilitating ideologies the practice holds. Such resistance was upheld with the fact that medicalisation may turn the procedure to be done under professional assistance and is safe medically. But this doesn’t hit the rod at the right place, as the intentionality of curbing the sexuality of a woman would not be even nearly challenged. An intervention done in Sudan hypothesised changing social norms as a key step in behaviour change. The model of the intervention holds a strong reliance on social dialogue and providing role models showing that uncut girls are socially acceptable. The name of the intervention is ‘Saleema’ which is a title to be held by every uncut girl, which refers to being ‘whole and God given.’ The intervention done has some consistent aims of tracing the change in social norms and the knowledge and impact of Saleema. All of this is done by collecting people’s responses about Saleema in different regions of Sudan. This expands awareness about the dark sides of FGM and mobilises support towards abandoning the practice (Evans et al., 2019). The intervention evidently attempts to bring about a change from within the community which is a slow process in itself, but important is the fact that a voice against the practice has been intended. A similar intervention exists in India, which has a similar philosophy of bringing the change from within the community. The Indian Story The ideological Indian story behind FGM is very much identical to the reasons stated above. It is practiced knowingly in a small Shia Muslim community of Gujarat named the Bohra community. This is a close-knit community which has its own principles of beliefs and faiths and has a community head titled ‘Sayyedna’. The Sayyedna is no less than a lord for all the community members and each and everything is done only after his allowance. Geographically, the members of the Bohra community are spread across the globe, but a high concentration is found in Gujarat. The roots of Bohras are found back to Egypt, Yemen and the Indian Subcontinent (“The Dawoodi Bohras: About the Bohras”, n.d.). The Bohras are well known for their discipline and principles and their focus and dedication towards their professional commitments. In fact, the community members have attained a lot of significant positions in international networks. But the community even after being quite progressive holds an infamous tradition which carries a strong cultural hold and validation from the Sayyedna. Probably, this is the only community in India which actively practices FGM. The pinch

122 Azim Premji University of skin which is sliced is generally believed to be ‘Haraam ki Boti’ (impious piece of skin) (Goswami, 2012). The community ingrains the faith in Islamic teachings, however, FGM does not come through Quranic revelations. The reasons and explanations for the ritual are in the similar line to the ones stated above. FGM in India can be charged under various laws like IPC section 326 (causing grievous hurt); under section 3 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO Act) that addresses penetrative sexual assault by any person on any child, inter alia defines it as insertion of any object into the vagina of the girl; National Policy for Children, 2013; and The Goa Children’s Act, 2003 (“LCWRI & Speak Out on FGM”, n. d). Regardless of all these, the community does not reflect upon the tradition in terms of law, as the essence lies in their cultural belief. Sahiyo, an organisation born in 2015 with five women coming together who discovered concerns in the ritual. The group includes a social worker, a researcher, two filmmakers, and a journalist (“Sahiyo: History”, 2018). Sahiyo has made a conscious effort in building a dialogue around FGM. The intervention aims at eradicating the practice of FGM from the community, but the plan has an understanding that it is a slow process. Even though violence against women must be met at priority basis, but the organisation understands the essentiality of having a multi-sectoral intervention, coordinated at both grassroots and political level, for having a successful intervention. Taking up this approach, the intervention attempts to incorporate cultural, religious, human rights and health perspectives. It is only after understanding the in- depth association the community holds with a ritual, can awareness be spread against it. Sahiyo has been able to mobilise and involve women from within the community to come out with their experiences and thoughts about FGM. One of the most consistent activities which the organisation conducts every year since 2017 on a bi-monthly or quarterly basis is ‘Thaal pe Charcha’, which involves men and women of the community coming together and sharing lunch while discussing their stories and views around the practice. This has built confidence in the members and has extended their support to the work of the organisation in a way that more community members, especially women, have identified a comfortable space to come out and share. This sharing is important as otherwise, the survivors keep shut in the name of culture and tradition. After almost more than three years of Sahiyo’s work, sincere efforts have been made toward building a “collaborative, coordinated movement that prioritise education and outreach on FGM, and engages faith leaders, survivor, community members, teachers, service providers and law enforcement.’’ (Taher, 2017).

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 123 How do I see it? From an outsider’s view, reading about the practice has been painful for me and has left me outraged. For the depth of reduction of women to just a piece of body is a disturbing thought. The two interventions mentioned in the paper are highly reflective of the importance of the change which can’t be enforced and must come from within the community. As it is rightly said, “It is important to understand how people involved in a program understand the program and its outcomes,’’ (Krishnamurty, 2012, p. 75) and for the same reason consistency and patience are very important for any intervention working around FGM. An encouraging tone which the two interventions hold is the fact that they have been able to identify people from the community who do not agree with the practice. This determined tracing and bringing along the women and men of the communities to talk about and against the practice has been a significant discourse in creating a platform cum safe space for more and more people to join the battle and propose a stringent stand against the practice. Sahiyo has even proposed an aimed petition of eradicating the practice by 2030 (Sahiyo, 2018) joining hands with the global aim of eradicating the practice by 2030 as a part of UN SDGs. But such an assured change can only be promised by the members of the community, thus, interventions as discussed above and many others across the globe hit the iron with the tool of community building. The intervention requires the energy of the people to come together, have a sensitive and engaging dialogue and mobilise more and more members to join in the solidarity. Eradication of FGM practically is way longer a journey than just theorising about it. Also, the effectiveness cannot be profoundly judged because it is a practice which takes place behind the curtains. Thus, it is only when the community feels intrinsically against the practice, can there be an end to it. Although there are collectives like Lawyers Collective Women’s Rights Initiative, Speak Out on FGM, etc., which are actively working towards bringing the practice under strict jurisdiction which intend to provide an active response to the reportage of FGM cases. However, all the legal framework can only be effective when there is conscious outcry from within the community. In conclusion, having read the social and cultural aspects, the interventions and the legalities, we see that the practice, though it doesn’t have a rational weight, yet has its tentacles encapsulated amongst the practitioners deeply. It is definitely a matter of several years to see this practice die out. It is to be appreciated that quite a number of women of the practicing communities have started speaking out as well as standing against it. Till then, it is a journey down a long way, till we see all women liberated from the inhuman practice of female genital mutilation.

124 Azim Premji University References Andro, A & Lesclingand, M (2016) ‘Female Genital Mutilation: Overview and Current Knowledge’, Population (English Edition, 2000), Vol. 71, No. 2, pp. 216-273, 275, 277-296, Institut National d'Etudes Démographiques Black, J.A, Debelle G.D (1995) Female Genital Mutilation in Britain. BMJ, 310:1590. Dorkenoo, E. (1999). Combating Female Genital Mutilation: An Agenda for the Next Decade. Women's Studies Quarterly, Vol. 27, No. 1/2, 87-97. Evans WD, Donahue C, Snider J, Bedri N, Elhussein TA, Elamin SA (2019) The Saleema initiative in Sudan to abandon female genital mutilation: Outcomes and dose response effects PLoS One 14(3): e0213380. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0213380 Federici, S. (2004). Caliban and the Witch. USA: Autonomedia. Goswami, P. (Director). (2012). A Pinch of Skin [Motion Picture]. Available at : https://vimeo. com/154202003 (accessed 17th April 2019) Ismail, S.A, Abbas, A.M, Habib, D, Morsy, H, Saleh, M.A & Bahloul, M (2017) 'Effect of female genital mutilation/cutting; types I and II on sexual function: case- controlled study' Reproductive Health, 14:108, pg. 1-6 Krishnamurty, L. (2012). Scenes from and Expanding Universe: Personal Journeys. In Cartographies of Empowerment: The story of Mahila Samakhya (pp. 75-104). Edited by Ramachandran, V & Jandhyala, K, New Delhi: Zubaan.

LCWRI & Speak Out on FGM (n. d.) Female Genital Mutilation: Guide to Eliminating the FGM practice in India. Retrieved from: https://docplayer.net/63556067-Female-genital-mutilation.html Sahiyo. (2018). Retrieved from Sahiyo: https://sahiyo.com/ (accessed 5th May 2019) Taher, M. (2017). Understanding Female Genital Cutting in the Dawoodi Bohra Community: An Exploratory Survey. Sahiyo. Retrieved from https://sahiyo.files.wordpress.com/2019/05/sahiyo_ report_final-5.21.19.pdf (accessed on 13th April 2020) The Dawoodi Bohras: About the Bohras. (n.d.). Retrieved from The Dawoodi Bohras: https:// www.thedawoodibohras.com/ (accessed 5th May 2019) WHO. (2018, January 31). Female Genital Mutilation. Retrieved from World Health Organization: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/female-genital-mutilation Williams-Breault, B. D. (2018). Eradicating Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting: Human Rights- Based Approaches of Legislation, Education and Community based Empowerment. Health and Human Rights , Vol. 20, No. 2, Special Section: Human Rights and The Social Determinants of Health, 223-234.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 125

Classics Revisited

BOOK REVIEW OF RITUJA MITRA LIVESTOCK AND LIVELIHOODS

Livestock and Livelihoods: The Indian Context by Nitya Sambamurthi Ghotge gives a holistic view on the importance of the livestock and its linkages with ecological, sociological and economic practices. The interrelations presented in the book give a vivid idea of how livestock sustains livelihood for different communities who are dependent on it. Ghotge gives narratives in historical order of how domestication of animals came into practice and divergent processes like the livestock farming revolution contributed to increasing the population of the animals. The latter half of the book presents the need for reorientation of the policies and providing a better framework for bolstering local breeds and breeding systems. The book is pertinent for those interested in understanding livestock’s role in strengthening agriculture, society and India’s diverse geography to maintain an ecological balance. It allows the readers to make linkages between the two sections of the book. The first half adopts an introductory approach to help readers to know the basics of livestock in India. It brings out different areas into the picture viz. a historical preview of care and livestock management, rearing patterns according to geographical locations, indigenous breeds depending on habitats, local food availability in the area, and types of communities involved. Ghotge provides a contrasting picture in the second half which shows the change in livestock care and management after colonization, with different government policies coming into the scene for economic development. The linkage between the two sections of the book helps to understand the gap whether the new policies will help in achieving sustainable development or if the traditional practices of rearing and care were a better intervention for the subject of livestock. The book presents several survey reports by ANTHRA wherein Ghotge is one of the directors. The main argument laid out in the book is to know the progression of Indian livestock economy from early invasions and British colonization to the post- independence governance of livestock. The author justifies the argument

Rituja Mitra currently pursuing M.A Development Batch 2018-2020. She has worked as a Public Relation executive and holds a Masters in Corporate Communications as well. Her interests lie in Understanding socio-ecological perspectives in Development and also learning about traditional wisdom and practices of different communities.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 129 with evidence that shows how livestock has become a subject of only economic gains rather than a subject of subsistence for the communities dependent on it. Ghotge compares the modern realm of livestock with traditional practices and new policies that have excluded people in decision making for their animals. The book mostly ponders on detailing the different patterns of livestock rearing according to the subcontinent's agro-ecological zones. The detail covers different communities, their agricultural choices, and different breeds of livestock. This idea of presentation makes the book a good read for beginners in livestock education. Two types of livelihood patterns were taken into account in the book: a.) Forest-Based and b.) Crop Based. The presentation is mostly descriptive intended to make the readers to get acquainted with these systems (pg. 9-32). Livestock and livelihood starts with the history of the domestication of animals. It briefly mentions various invasions in classical times which were mostly due to search for fresh pastures. Also, the book reminisces finely on India’s history of taking care of animals who were considered as a representation of wealth and symbolized power and domination. The example of chess as a game gives an idea of how animals were considered in the royal court and also the mention of several ancient texts describing how animals were taken care of (pg. 32-34). The intricacies of the caste and other sociological aspects are dealt with in the book (pg. 8, 26 & 52) but the effects of the gap because of caste divide in livestock rearing are presented without explaining the benefits or the problems of such a divide. The author writes about Ahirs and Yadavs rearing cows but she doesn’t mention “how animals confer identity and status with particular social subgroups and is a problematic socio-political aspect in India. For instance, donkeys are kept only by lower castes. Kumhars, camels and sheep by Raika, while chicken is kept by Adivasis. Pig keeping is socially unacceptable for higher castes. Only goats are largely “neutral” animals from a social perspective” (Rollefson, 2005). Apart from caste, gender is another important vertical that the book aptly mentions. The author is right in bringing out the contribution of women in livestock-rearing activities. However, the book does not reflect on policies where ‘women’s work in animal rearing activities is undercounted in standard labour force surveys. Despite changes in concepts and definitions over the years, the NSSO’s Employment and Unemployment Surveys (EUS) do not adequately capture this economic activity undertaken by women’ (Madhura and Usami, 2016).

130 Azim Premji University Also, ‘the current scenario presented by Dr. Ghotge about tribal communities’ who are dependent on forests and livestock rearing for livelihood seemed to be more romantic (pg. 5-6) and their actual condition of hardship is not addressed in this book. For instance, Rollefson in her book points out that tribal “Raika community which developed Nari, Sanchori and Sirohi goats are still backward and have never received any official recognition” and they are struggling to save their livelihood. (Rollefson, 2005). Coming to the latter part, under the head ‘Traditional Practices in Animal Rearing’ the author mentions the need for fodder for the livestock and how India’s agro-ecological zones provide nutrition. Ghotge nicely compares how grasslands have become ecologically sensitive and the palatable species for livestock have declined. She also puts forth how commercial crops and mono-crop culture have ruined traditional practices. One of the chapters also deals with traditional animal housing patterns that were more humane and gave animals considerable space. Consider the Koti Banal Architecture of Uttarakhand known for its earthquake resistance as an illustration of traditional animal housing wherein the ground floor was kept only for the livestock, both humans and animals stayed in the same house (O. C. Handa, 2009). If we look at the modern animal setup (farms, poultry) it is mostly congested and stuffed with too many animals are kept within the same space leaving no space in between (Arney, 2012) Traditional breeding practices cover most of the book addressing how the ‘process of natural selection’ (pg. 35) was kept in mind by ancient herders. The practices give an outline of how even semi-domesticated animals like yaks and mithun were raised. The author gives a brief on the traditional method but the narrative doesn’t include how these traditional methods have been sidelined and why there is a need for reorientation for the same. For instance: “Yaks have adapted to high altitudes, but not to human-made lines on the map. As wars and conflicts have led to the closing of borders, the yaks are suffering from inbreeding due to lack of availability of new yak germplasmthis has resulted in using the same bull within the herds. Yaks are now prone to diseases and have led to the deterioration of their population”. (Ahmad, 2016b) While comparing modern interventions with traditional breeding techniques the author presents the boon of colonization by stating “Not everything the British colonizers did was damaging or detrimental. To their credit, they set up veterinary colleges, various research stations” (pg.66). But the politics behind setting up these institutions is not presented in the book. A report presented in Medical History of British India shows that these institutions were set up to benefit the military before the First World War. Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 131 The animals then were used as transport also: “The veterinary colleges formed part of a wider, ideologically motivated attempt to replace Hindu veterinary science ('mrgayurveda') with Western veterinary science. Undermining indigenous science allowed Indians to be portrayed as children, in terms of scientific achievements, which helped to justify British paternalistic, authoritarian rule” (Medical History of British India, 2007). In the second half of the book, Ghotge presents her opinions on ‘Reorienting Ourselves’ (pg. 108). She underlines the problems which farmers face which are low quality of animals, less credit, unavailability of fodder, diseases affecting animals and credit schemes, etc. But while justifying the argument of the need for planning with people, the evidence only focused on health and medicines in all the categories of reorienting policy, alternative medicines, reorienting curricula and research. In the previous chapter ‘It must not end: Towards an Alternative Policy’ (pg. 100) she explores some of the problems of the farmers. It would have been an easy read if the ‘problems’ were listed first and the ‘solutions’ later. In the chapter ‘Framework for an Alternative Policy’, almost every important aspect of livestock management and development has been mentioned but the problem of decrease in livestock’s population (“India’s livestock population declines by 3.33% in 7 years”, 2014) and the factors responsible are not explicitly covered. The reasons for the decline in livestock probably could be the shift in occupation as modern education and lucrative jobs to secure life (Ahmad, 2016a). Also, the task of livestock rearing is a cumbersome process that the current generation doesn’t like to take up. Several organizations like The Green People are addressing the issue by conducting goat swayamvaras to increase the gene pool and attracting more tourists with the new concept of watching Goats marriages and is also helping the villagers to retain their practices of livestock rearing (Prabhu, 2018) The author has touched different domains of history, sociology and geographical patterns in the book but the impact of climate change on livestock’s adaptation has not been discussed. “As the world demand for animal protein will rise as the population and real incomes increase and the eating habits will change. Therefore, animal production plays and will continue to play a key role in the food supply. High ambient temperatures augment the efforts to dissipate body heat, increasing respiration rate, body temperature, and consumption of water and a decline in feed intake of livestock. Thereby, declining the population of livestock (Sejian, 2015)”. Ghotge herself being a veterinarian presents a broad picture on livestock rearing. She takes the position of a sociologist, policy analyst, and ecologist

132 Azim Premji University while writing Livestock and Livelihoods. She tries to show how India’s relationship with its animals has changed over the years; she asserts this with numerous examples to show that earlier the relationship was mostly dependent on multiple factors that were beyond economic gains. She further asserts how in earlier days the care of animals was not just rendering veterinary services during diseases. Humans had a lot of affection towards their domesticated animals and had knowledge that was naturally available in their geographical space. The book could have become more interesting if the author would have compared traditional practices with modern practices and their sustainability, for instance traditional housing vs. modern infrastructure for livestock (e. g. the Koti Banal architecture mentioned above; modern poultry system); or traditional vs. modern yak breeding. This comparison would have justified her argument of “preserving the environment and the diversity within would lead us on a development path which is more humane, ultimately more sustainable and viable” (pg. 100).

References Ahmad, O. (2016a, August 18). Consider the Yak. Retrieved from The Third Pole Net: https:// www.thethirdpole.net/en/2016/08/18/consider-the-yak/ Ahmad, O. (2016b, Aug 20). The three factors that are threatening yaks in the Himalayas. Retrieved from Scroll.in: https://scroll.in/article/814338/the-three-factors-that-are-threatening- yaks-in-the-himalayas Arney, David Chris and Andres Aland. “44 Contemporary Issues in Farm Animal Housing and Management : Cattle Housing and Welfare.” (2012). India’s livestock population declines by 3.33% in 7 years. (2014, September 5). Retrieved from Livemint: https://www.livemint.com/Politics/bMC7svMIAJg2uF4h0Hw9lL/Indias-livestock- population-declines-by-333-in-7-years.html S. Madhura, and Y. Usami, (2016), "Women's Role in the Livestock Economy," Review of Agrarian Studies, vol. 6, no. 2, available at http://ras.org.in/697c22e48e9cb0207d3e5d7560c971f6 Medical History of British India. (2007). Retrieved from National Library of Scotland, India Papers Collection: https://digital.nls.uk/indiapapers/veterinary.html Handa. O.C. (2009). Himalayan Traditional Architecture. New Delhi: Rupa. Prabhu, V. (2018, March 19). ‘Bakri Swayamvar’ : A Ritual Of Match Making For Goats In Uttarakhand Attracts Tourists From All Over. Retrieved from VoxSpace: https://www. voxspace.in/2018/03/19/bakri-swayamvar/ Rollefson, I. K. (2005). Indigenous Breeds, Local Communities. Sadri, Rajasthan: Lokhit Pashu Palak Sansthan. Sejian, V. (2015). Climate change impact on Livestock: Adaptation and Mitigation. Springer India.

Students’ Journal of Education and Development | Issue 06 133

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94140 Azim Premji University • Use endnotes rather than footnotes. The location of endnotes within the text should be indicated by superscript numbers. For sources which have insufficient details to be included in the Reference, use endnotes (such as interviews, some media sources, some Internet sources). See the following for style and punctuation in References.

Books • Wordsworth, William (1967): Lyrical Ballads (London: Oxford University Press). • Watson, S and K Gibson, ed. (1995): Postmodern Cities and Spaces (London: MacmillanPress)

Contributions to Books • Elson, D (1996): “Appraising Recent Developments in the World Market for Nimble Fingers” in Chhachhi and R Pittin(ed) Confronting State, Capital and Patriarchy (Basingstoke and London: Macmillan Press) 35– 55. Journal and Other Articles Helleiner, Eric (2006): “Reinterpreting Bretton Woods: International Development and the Neglected Origins of Embedded Liberalism”, Development and Change, 37(5): 943– 67. Poniewozik, James (2000): “TV Makes a Too-Close Call”, Time 20 Nov: 70– 71.

Conference papers • Doyle, Brian (2002): “Howling Like Dogs: Metaphorical Language in Psalm 59.” Paper presented at the annual international meeting for the Society of Biblical Literature, Berlin, Germany, 19– 22 June. Unpublished dissertations and theses • Graban, Tarez Samra (2006): “Towards a Feminine Ironic: Understanding Irony in the Oppositional Discourse of Women from the Early Modern and Modern Periods,” Dissertation, Purdue University.

Students’Students’ JournalJournal ofof EducationEducation andand DevelopmentDevelopment || IssueIssue 0605 14195 • Stolley, Karl (2002): “Towards a Conception of Religion as a Discursive Formation: Implications for Postmodern Composition Theory”, PhD thesis, Madras University.

Online Resources Always indicate the date that the source was accessed, as online resources are frequently updated or removed.

Website Felluga, Dino(2003): Guide to Literary and Critical Theory, 28 November, Purdue University, Viewed on 10 May 2006 (http://www.cla.purdue.edu/ english/theory).

Page on a website “Caret.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia, 28 April 2006, Viewed on 10 May 2006 (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Caret&oldid=157510440).

Article in a web magazine Bernstein, Mark (2002): “10 Tips on Writing The Living Web.” A List Apart: For People Who Make Websites. No 149 (16 Aug). Viewed on 4 May 2006 (http://alistapart.com/articles/ writeliving).

96142 Azim Premji University

Students’ Journal of Education and Development is published by Azim Premji University, Bangalore, India as an annual publication. Azim 3UHPML 8QLYHUVLW\ KDV D FOHDU VRFLDO SXUSRVH q WR PDNH VLJQLoFDQW contributions towards a just, equitable, humane and sustainable society. The University aspires to do this through the development of talent and the creation of knowledge which can facilitate systemic change in education and allied areas of development. The roots of Azim Premji University lie in the learning and experience of nearly two decades of work in elementary education by Azim Premji Foundation. It is the direct result of a purposeful philanthropic initiative. In furtherance of Azim Premji University’s mission, Students’ Journal of Education and Development aims to serve as a forum where academic excellence within the university’s students’ community can be promoted. The journal’s goal is to provide an open space for students of Azim Premji University working in the domains of education and development to sustain critical engagements and dialogues regarding relevant issues and debates in these areas. It aims to promote interdisciplinary and UHpHFWLYHZRUNWKDWFDQDLGFXUUHQWDQGIXWXUHSUDFWLFHVDQGHQJDJHPHQWV of students of these social science domains. It is an initiative led by the students of Azim Premji University, and plans to primarily publish the work of its students and alumni; though contributions from students working in these areas in other universities are also welcome. The journal is edited and published by students in consultation with faculty and follows a double-blind review process. Discussions and responses to published articles are welcome. All communications to the journal should be sent at the following email address: [email protected] The content of this journal is licensed under Creative Commons, Attribution- Non Commercial-NoDerivs CC BY-NC-ND.

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