Sociology of Education in India Changing Contours and Emerging Concerns

Despite the massive expansion of the education system in contemporary India, inequalities of opportunity continue to be visible at all stages. This volume maps the journey of the discipline of Sociology of Education (SoE) in India over the past five decades. Original contributions based on primary research, critically examine the emerging theoretical and methodological concerns that need to be addressed in the sociological study of education. How do poverty, structural inequalities, cultural diversity, and identities influence learning? How will the broader sociological tools available tackle with the impending crisis in the educational system? Can SoE claim its arrival within the field of sociology? This volume takes a step in the direction towards seeking answers to these questions. It is the first collective appraisal of the trajectory of SoE since initial efforts, which were made in the 1960s. It is an attempt at filling the gap that exists in the availability of basic reading material on this subject in India.

Geetha B. Nambissan is Professor, Zakir Husain Centre for Educational Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.

Srinivasa Rao is Associate Professor, Zakir Husain Centre for Educational Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.

Acknowledgements
List of Abbreviations
Introduction: Sociology of Education in India-Trajectory, Location, and Concerns (Geetha B. Nambissan and S. Srinivasa Rao)
PART I: DISCIPLINARY TRAJECTORIES AND INSTITUTIONAL DOMAIN
1. Sociology of Education in India: An Autobiographical Account (Suma Chitnis)
2. Sociology of Education and Sociology in India: Disciplinary Boundaries and Institutional Spaces (Karuna Chanana)
3. Soft Disciplines and Hard Battles (Padma M. Sarangapani)
4. Opening Up the Black Box? Sociologists and the Study of Schooling in India (Geetha B. Nambissan)
5. The Sociology of Educational Inequality in India: A Critique and a New Research Agenda (Padma Velaskar)
6. Does Education Really Change Society? Theoretical Reflections on a Case Study (Amman Madan)
PART II: CONTEMPORARY CONCERNS AND EMERGING DISCOURSES
7. Gender, Childhood, and Work in the Nation: Voices and Encounters in an Indian School (Nandini Manjrekar)
8. Caste and Social Discrimination: Nature, Forms, and Consequences in Education (G.G. Wankhede)
9. Structural Exclusion in Everyday Institutional Life: Labelling of Stigmatized Groups in an IIT (S. Srinivasa Rao)
10. Controlling Minds, Disciplining Bodies: Life inside a Madrasa (Arshad Alam)
11. Reproduction of Indigenous Knowledge in Plural Cultures: Ayurveda Education in Contemporary India (Leena Abraham)
Notes on Contributors