Experiencing caste in higher education: Everyday pedagogic contexts and silenced conflicts
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.6092/issn.1825-8670/19392Keywords:
Higher education, Dalit-Bahujan, Caste, Language, MarginalizationAbstract
This study engages with the experiences of Dalit-Bahujan (oppressed social castes) students at a higher education institution in India. Drawing from interview-based data, it explores the students’ narratives to map their educational experiences, taking the medium of instruction as a case in point. The study aims to deepen understanding of the intersection of caste and curricular-pedagogic context of higher education and its relation to knowledge production in institutional contexts. The findings highlight a significant gap between the socio-economic backgrounds of Dalit-Bahujan students and the institutional and pedagogical structures, processes, and discourses they encounter. Based on these findings, the study further examines the framing of marginality at the intersection of caste, language and background of Dalit-Bahujan students. The lack of institutional support often relegates Dalit-Bahujan students to the margins within higher education institutions, not only excluding the disadvantaged social groups but also impinging upon the democratisation of knowledge production. We conclude that the question of medium of knowledge production necessitates a critical examination of which lives and voices are included in curricular and pedagogic processes.
References
Advani, S. (2009). Schooling and National Imagination: Education, English and the Indian Market. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. https://academic.oup.com/book/9242
Azam, M., & Blom, A. (2009). Progress in participation in tertiary education in India from 1993 to 2004. Journal of Educational Planning and Administration, 23(2), 125–167. http://www.niepa.ac.in/download/Publications/JEPA_(15%20years)/JEPA%202009_Vol-23%20(1-4)/JEPA_APR-2009-VOL23_2%20Final.pdf
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2019). Reflecting on reflexive thematic analysis. Qualitative Research in Sports, Exercise and Health, 11(4), 589–597. https://doi.org/10.1080/2159676X.2019.1628806
Creswell, J. W. (2007). Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design: Choosing Among Five Approaches. New York: Sage.
Delpit, L. (1988). The silenced dialogue: Power and pedagogy in educating other people’s children. Harvard Educational Review, 58(3), 280–298. https://doi.org/10.17763/haer.58.3.c43481778r528qw4
Denzin, N. K., & Lincoln, Y. S. (2008). Collecting and interpreting qualitative materials. New York: Sage. https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/collecting-and-interpreting-qualitative-materials/book237870
Desai, S., & Kulkarni, V. (2008). Changing educational inequalities in India in the context of affirmative action. Demography, 45(2), 245–270. https://doi.org/10.1353/dem.0.0001
Dey, S. (2022). Decoding loafers’ college: Social exclusion and critical pedagogic possibilities. Journal of Education, 204(1), 211–215. https://doi.org/10.1177/00220574221101817
Freire, P. (2000). Pedagogy of the oppressed (30th anniversary ed.). New York: Continuum. https://www.worldcat.org/title/Pedagogy-of-the-oppressed/oclc/43929806
Graddol, D. (2000). The Future of English?: A Guide to Forecasting the Popularity of the English Language in the 21st Century. London: British Council. https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/sites/teacheng/files/pub_learning-elt-future.pdf
Guru, G. (2000). Dalits from margins to margins. India International Centre Quarterly, 27(2), 111–116. https://www.jstor.org/stable/23005493
Guru, G. (2012). Egalitariansim and the social sciences in India. In G. Guru, & S. Sarukkai (Eds.), The cracked mirror: An Indian debate on experience and theory (pp. 9–28). New Delhi: Oxford University Delhi.
Hammersley, M. (2013). What is qualitative research? London: Bloomsbury. https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/what-is-qualitative-research-9781849666091/
Ilame, V. R. (2020). The English language as an instrument of Dalit emancipation. International Journal of English Literature and Social Sciences, 5(4), 998–1002. https://ijels.com/upload_document/issue_files/25IJELS-107202035-TheEnglish.pdf
Ilaiah, K. (1996). Productive labour, consciousness and history: The Dalitbahujan alternative. In S. Amin & D. Chakrabarty (Eds.), Subaltern Studies IX: Writings on South Asian History and Society (pp. 165–200). New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
Jayaram, N. (1993). The language question in higher education: trends and issues. Higher Education, 26(1), 93–114. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01575108
Kabeer, N. (2000). Social exclusion, poverty and discrimination: Towards an analytical framework. IDS Bulletin, 31(4), 83–97. https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/43539813.pdf
Karthikeyan, D. (March 16, 2017). JNU student suicide: Subtle and overt discrimination haunting young Dalits in Indian colleges. Firstpost. Retrieved April 17, 2023 from https://www.firstpost.com/india/jnu-student-suicide-subtle-and-overt-discrimination-haunting-young-dalits-in-indian-colleges-3337346.html.
Komanapalli, V., & Rao, D. (2020). The mental health impact of caste and structural inequalities in higher education in India. Transcultural Psychiatry, 58(3), 392–403. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1363461520963862
Kumar, D. (2021). Journey with rural identity and linguicism. CASTE: A Global Journal on Social Exclusion. 2(1), 202–218.
Kumar, K. (1996). Learning from conflicts. Hyderabad: Orient Longman. https://orientblackswan.com/details?id=9788125008118
Kumar, V. (2016). Discrimination on campuses of higher learning: A perspective from below. Economic & Political Weekly, 51(6), 12–15. https://www.jstor.org/stable/44004345
Lum, K. (2019). The dalit closet: Managing dalit identity at an elite university in India. Journal of Critical Education Policy Studies, 17(1), 120–161. http://www.jceps.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/17-1-4.pdf
Mahapatra, S., & Mishra, S. (2019). Articulating identities- the role of English language education in Indian universities. Teaching in Higher Education, 24(3), 346–60. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2018.1547277
Mathew, L. (2022). English linguistic imperialism from below: Moral aspirations and social mobility. India: Multilingual Matters. https://www.multilingual-matters.com/page/detail/English-Linguistic-Imperialism-from-Below/?k=9781788929134
Maurya, R. K. (2018). In their own voices: Experiences of dalit students in higher education institutions. International Journal of Multicultural Education, 20(3), 17–38. https://doi.org/10.18251/ijme.v20i3.1627
Ministry of Education. (2020). National Education Policy 2020. Government of India. Retrieved March 19, 2022 from https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/NEP_Final_English_0.pdf.
Ministry of Education. (2022). All India Survey on Higher Education Report 2020–21. Department of Higher Education, Government of India. Retrieved September 12, 2022 from https://aishe.gov.in/aishe/gotoAisheReports.
Morrison, E. W., & Milliken, F. J. (2000). Organizational silence: A barrier to change and development in a pluralistic world. Academy of Management Review, 25(4), 706–725. https://doi.org/10.2307/259200
Nag, S. (2019). Taalim ki ladai: Ucch shiksha mein samajik bahishkran ke vividh roop. Pathshala Bheetar Aur Bahar, 3, 66–9. https://azimpremjiuniversity.edu.in/publications/2019/magazine/pathshala-bheetar-aur-bahar-issue-3
Nag, S. (2023). Linguistic human rights and higher education: Reflections from India. In T. Skutnabb-Kangas, & R. Phillipson (Eds.), The Handbook of Linguistic Human Rights (pp. 413–426). New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/book/10.1002/9781119753926
Omvedt, G. (November 09, 2006). Why dalits want English. The Times of India Retrieved March 12, 2022 from https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/edit-page/why-dalits-want-english/articleshow/372570.cms.
Ovichegan, S. K. (2014). Social exclusion, social inclusion and ‘passing’: The experiences of dalit students at one elite Indian university. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 18(4), 359–378. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2013.777129
Pathania, G. J., & Tierney, W. G. (2018). An ethnography of caste and class at an Indian university: Creating capital. Tertiary Education and Management, 24(3), 221–231. https://doi.org/10.1080/13583883.2018.1439998
Perlow, L. A., & Repenning, N. P. (2009). The dynamics of silencing conflict. Research in Organizational Behaviour, 29, 195–223. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.riob.2009.06.007
Rao, S. (2013). Structural exclusion in everyday institutional life: Labelling of stigmatized groups in an IIT. In G. Nambissan and S. Rao (Eds.), Sociology of Education in India: Changing Contours and Emerging Concerns (pp. 199–223). New Delhi: Oxford University Press. https://global.oup.com/academic/product/sociology-of-education-in-india-9780198082866?cc=in&lang=en&
Rathod, B. (2021). Dalit academic experiences: Stigma, social reproduction and systematic exclusion in Indian higher education [Doctoral dissertation. Graduate School of Massachusetts Amherst]. University of Massachusetts Amherst. https://doi.org/10.7275/20123461
Roth, G., & Kleiner, A. (1999). Car Launch: The Human Side of Managing Change. New York: Oxford University Press. https://global.oup.com/academsic/product/car-launch-9780195177985?lang=en&cc=se
Sabharwal, N. S., & Malish, C. M. (2017). Equalising access to higher education in India. CPRHE Policy Brief, 1, 1–5. New Delhi: Centre for Policy Research in Higher Education, National University of Educational Planning and Administration.
Sabharwal, N. S., & Malish, C. M. (2018). Student diversity and social inclusion: An empirical analysis of higher education institutions in India. CPRHE Research Papers, 10, 1–119. New Delhi: Centre for Policy Research in Higher Education, National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration. http://cprhe.niepa.ac.in/sites/default/files/Report-Files/Synthesis%20Research%20Report.pdf
Sandelowski, M. (2004). Using Qualitative Research. Qualitative Health Research. 14(10), 1366–1386. doi:10.1177/1049732304269672
Sharma, G. (2021). Schooling and aspirations in the urban margins: Ethnography of education in the Indian context. Oxon and New York: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003028017
Shepherd, K. I. (2022, April 13). For Shudras and Adivasis to have a shot at a better life, English language education is essential. Times of India. Retrieved September 23, 2022 from https://scroll.in/article/1021539/for-shudhras-and-adivasis-to-have-a-shot-at-a-better-life-english-language-education-is-essential.
Singh, A. K. (2013). Defying the odds: The triumph and tragedies of dalit and adivasi students in higher education. In S. Deshpande & U. Zacharias (Eds.), Beyond inclusion: The practice of equal access in Indian higher education (pp. 174–204). India and Oxon: Routledge. https://www.routledge.com/Beyond-Inclusion-The-Practice-of-Equal-Access-in-Indian-Higher-Education/Deshpande-Zacharias/p/book/9781138660342
Subramanian, A. (2019). The caste of merit: Engineering education in India. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674987883
Sukumar, N. (2008). Living a concept: Semiotics of everyday exclusion. Economic and Political Weekly, 15, 14–17. https://www.epw.in/journal/2008/46/commentary/living-concept-semiotics-everyday-exclusion.html
Sukumar, N. (2023). Caste discrimination and exclusion in Indian universities. Oxon and New York: Routledge. https://www.routledge.com/Caste-Discrimination-and-Exclusion-in-Indian-Universities-A-Critical-Reflection/Sukumar/p/book/9780367556891
Thorat, S. (January 26, 2016). Discrimination on the campus.” The Hindu. Retrieved November 18, 2023 from https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/Rohith-Vemula-suicide-Dalit-and-higher-education-Discrimination-on-the-campus/article62116029.ece.
Tilak, J. B. G. (2015). How inclusive is higher education in India? Social Change, 45(2), 185–223. https://doi.org/10.1177/0049085715574178
Tschurenev, J. (2018). Inequality, difference, and politics of education for all. South Asian Chronicle, 8, 1–19. https://www.iaaw.hu-berlin.de/de/region/suedasien/publikationen/sachronik/01-focus-tschurenev-jana-inequality-difference-and.pdf
Valmiki, O. (2003). Joothan. A Dalit’s Life, translated by A. Prabha Mukherjee. Kolkata: Samya. http://cup.columbia.edu/book/joothan/9780231129725
Varghese, N. V., Sabharwal, N.S., & Malish, C. M. (2019). Equity and inclusion in higher education in India. CPRHE Research Papers, 12, 1–40. New Delhi: Centre for Policy Research in Higher Education, National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration. http://cprhe.niepa.ac.in/sites/default/files/Report-Files/CPRHE-Research%20Paper-12_Equity%20and%20Inclusion%20in%20Higher%20Education.pdf
Vemula, R. (2016, January 19). My birth is my fatal accident: Full text of Dalit student Rohith’s suicide letter. Indian Express. Retrieved December 20, 2022 from https://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/dalit-student-suicide-full-text-of-suicide-letter-hyderabad/.
Young, I. M. (1990). Justice and the politics of difference. New Jersey, USA: Princeton University Press. https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691235165/justice-and-the-politics-of-difference
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Karan, Gunjan Sharma
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
