Aspirations have gained significant attention within educational anthropology and yet the effects (and affects) of the imperative to aspire that undergird educational projects have been underexamined. This paper argues that aspirations within the context of material depravity often produce immaterial precarity, which I index as affective states of…

This theoretical research article delves into the necessity of embracing digital pedagogy as a transformative force for girls' education in contemporary India. This study is grounded in three main objectives: (1) assessing the current state of girls' education in India, (2) exploring the potential benefits of digital pedagogy, and (3)…

In common conception, art is often confined to a painting, sculpture, architecture or performance; we maintain however that what enables any art or artistic practice to become aesthetic is human experience. Arts and aesthetic practices are integral to the everyday lives of the indigenous Sabar tribes of India, particularly, in ascertaining Sabar…

Grounded in two collaborative interpretive studies--one with women in India who were survivors of domestic violence, and another with queer youth and youth of color in the Midwest who were survivors of sexual assault--this paper argues that there is a hidden curriculum of violence. This curriculum of violence can be traced through affective…

This paper explains the concepts of Affirmative Action (AA) and Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) and the policies developed in post-Apartheid South Africa. It compares it to similar policies adopted in different contexts in Malaysia, India and the U.S.A. It explains and critiques the South African policies on AA and BEE, its history since 1994 and…

This article argues that the concept and practice of "self-organized learning", as pioneered by Sugata Mitra (and his team) in the "Hole-in-the-Wall" experiments (1999-2005) that inspired the novel "Q & A" (2006) and the resulting movie, "Slumdog millionaire" (2008) bear direct, but not uncritical…

After reviewing the history and objectives of higher education briefly, the article suggests that teachers and managers in autonomous colleges have to give special emphasis to a new system of teaching and evaluation involving Syllabus Revision, Distribution of Course Formats in the very first class meeting, Monitoring of Lab and Library…

Creation of knowledge workers holds key for success of a country. Unfortunately, many of the countries though having chain of human resources yet are unable to transform human resources to their advantage as they face multiple challenges like poverty, poor economy, poor infrastructure, limited access to education and inadequate technological…

While women have made many advances, their inferior status to men continues to be a global phenomenon. At a time of unprecedented economic growth, India is experiencing a dramatic intensification of violence against women and the majority of girls are still not getting equal educational opportunity. In one of the most important steps for the…

This paper explores how literacy learning can support women's empowerment and the development of greater equality, benefitting not only individual women, but families, communities and economies too. It describes and reflects upon some of the most promising approaches to developing literacy and learning for women, who form the majority of the…

"The Engaged University" is a comprehensive empirical account of the global civic engagement movement in higher education. In universities around the world, something extraordinary is underway. Mobilizing their human and intellectual resources, institutions of higher education are directly tackling community problems--combating poverty,…

Can economic ties positively influence social relations and actions? If so, how does this influence operate? Microfinance programs, which provide credit through a group-based lending strategy, provide the ideal setting for exploring these questions. This article examines whether structuring socially isolated women into peer-groups for an…

Adopting policies of decentralization has become more or less a universal fashion among governments. Institutional redesigning as regard to affirmative state is favored by the political left and right in capitalist democracies. However, their arguments revolve around the decision-making powers of ordinary citizens. Some academics argue that the…