Bringing Back the ‘Classroom’: Feminist Pedagogy in a Sociology Classroom

Abstract

The article interlinks sociology and classrooms through the lens of teaching gender studies. It argues that to address the challenges of teaching gender studies to students of sociology at a university department, of a state university, it has to be placed within the complex terrain of classrooms. It states that while there is a discussion on the challenges of framing feminist pedagogy and teaching gender studies in India, there is inadequate engagement with the issue of; one, the changing nature of the classroom and its relevance and impact in the structuring of the disciplinary theories, methodologies and pedagogy and two, the challenges of operationalising feminist pedagogy within classrooms.

The Familiar and the Self: Reflections from Teaching Sociology Online in India

“…It is shaped by one's ethnicity, gender, caste, class, regional and religious backgrounds. How these categories impact the self has been much talked about in sociological scholarship in the Indian context-particularly caste and gender (Chaudhuri, 2002;Chari Wagh 2021;Kumar, 2016;Rayaprol 2011;Rege, 2003;Uberoi, 1989Uberoi, -1990. Since both the classrooms that are my sites of interrogation are women's colleges, the gendered self has been easier to navigate.…”

“…Another prominent challenge that has plagued teaching Sociology in India is the question of how to use theories, concepts and methodological tools that have mostly emerged in the West. This is particularly evident when teaching issues of caste and gender (Chari Wagh, 2021;Chaudhuri, 2002;Kumar, 2016;Rayaprol, 2011;Uberoi, 1989Uberoi, -1990. Hence, scholars have called for adopting a reflexive approach that is rooted in feminist scholarship to understand this crisis (Rege, 2003).…”

Interrogating Privilege: An Autoethnographic Pedagogical Exercise

“…For many students, degrees are important 'capital' that could be used in the market to negotiate gainful employment. For them, such engagement does not seem relevant, as it does not provide them with marketable skills, but puts them in a position where they have to question the very idea of 'skills' (Chari, 2022). In such cases addressing the systemic nature of privilege may seem extremely daunting.…”

“…But for such an exercise the teacher and the students have to work together to make the classroom space a safe one, where one could share their experiences of both privilege and marginality as a process of critical self-reflection. As argued in Chari (2022), the dynamic between the teacher and students, the sense of comfort present in the classroom, one needs the combined efforts of both the teacher and the student to make the classroom space vibrant and free, where experiences, reflections and opinions are shared with dignity and difference of views are respected and engaged with. It is crucial that students and teachers recognise that this classroom is a safe space.…”

“…Teaching gender studies for more than a decade has increasingly pushed me to initiate a self-reflexive journey of doing, practicing and being a feminist sociologist. Engaging with questions of power within classrooms, such as between students, teachers and students, supervisors and graduate students over the years, is addressed in my work on the process of mentoring (Chari, 2018); the challenges of teaching gender to students of sociology (Chari, 2022) and in the collaborative work with Masters students in engaging relationship between teachers and students (Banerjee et al, 2022). 1 In exploring these issues, the idea of privileges as enjoyed by the teacher did emerge constantly in the discussions with students, peers and scholars.…”