The question of difference (Part one of three): Two stories

Postcard from God – I Yes, I do feel like a visitor, a tourist in this world that I once made. I rarely talk, except to ask the way, distrusting my interpreters, tired out by the babble of what they do not say. I walk around through battered streets, distinctly lost, looking for landmarks from another, promised past. Here, in… Read more »

Supreme Court Ruling on Aadhaar and Right to Education Admissions in Karnataka

On 26th September 2018, the Supreme Court upheld the use of Aadhaar for availing any government benefit or subsidy but made the use of Aadhaar non-mandatory for the purpose of education for those in the age-group of 6-14 years. Prior to this ruling, a number of government departments had made Aadhaar mandatory for availing education and related benefits, which had… Read more »

The identity of woman

. . . I have been standing all my life in the    direct path of a battery of signals the most accurately transmitted most untranslatable language in the universe I am a galactic cloud so deep      so invo- luted that a light wave could take 15 years to travel through me       And has taken      I am an instrument in the shape of… Read more »

Locating key debates in Early Childhood Care and Education: insights from Indian scholarship

As part of our ongoing research to generate contextually-relevant understandings of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) in India we interviewed 11 specialists with extensive research experience in the country.[1]  Broadly, their expertise is situated in childhood studies, early years education and development, psychology, sociology, special educational needs, and language and literacy. Our conversations reflected on their research experience across… Read more »

International Women’s Day 2019

On the occasion of International Women’s Day this year, we would like to raise the issue of Girls’ Education.  With nearly 40% of adolescent girls not being in any educational institution, we cannot even dream of soon becoming a developed and evolved nation where we can pride ourselves with values of equality and freedom that we have enshrined in our constitution…. Read more »

Doing gender

Doing gender[1] Recently, I chanced upon old photographs of my fieldwork for my dissertation. They were innocuously marked in a folder called ‘Fieldwork’, and turned up when I searched for my field notes. As I was looking through these pictures, I realised that I feel privileged to do the work that I do. I am a feminist sociologist by training,… Read more »

Rethinking learning assessments: insights from a study on the status of education in tribal districts in Maharashtra

In recent years, national and international assessments have received a lot of attention, largely due to concerns over the quality of education systems and their outcomes. Tests such as Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) have been publicised in the hope of pushing countries to competitively reform their education systems. However, these tests critically lack… Read more »

The Many Faces of Participatory Methodologies

At our recently concluded annual seminar, Prof. Rajagopalan, of the International Institute of Information Technology, Bangalore (IIIT-B), mentioned that the idea of “participative approaches” has gained currency within development work and literature. Stating this, he pointed to how participatory approaches are  seen as the panacea for all ills that plague development-related work. A significant point he drew all our attention… Read more »

The Problem of Researchers’ Discretion in Propensity Score Matching

In an impact evaluation study, researchers attempt to estimate the average treatment effects due to exposure to a programme or treatment, by comparing outcomes for treatment and control (non-treated) groups which are randomly assigned (Randomized Controlled Trials – RCT). Average Treatment Effect (ATE) is the difference between the average outcomes between the individuals/units assigned to the treatment and control. The… Read more »