Sociology of Education

How are the issues that surround education and its practices related to social processes?

In this course, you examine education as a part of a larger set of interactions and trends, using a sociological perspective (both micro and macro views) to recognise that education is not merely a series of individual actions. We trace how larger events impact the self and its relationship with the world, using a comparative and historical approach. 

The course will train you into sociological thought and reflection, looking at the Indian social context to understand culture, inequality and empirical trends across societies. 

A key idea in the course is social stratification which looks at the class, status and caste structures of rural and urban India, with a special focus on ideas of meritocracy, social mobility and practices that challenge these. 

You will learn Marxist and Weberian perspectives, conflict and dependency theories and Gandhian and critical pedagogy.