Faculty

One writes history as a historian and engages in political polemic as a citizen, and the one does not exclude the other. Yes, the two roles may sometimes overlap or become confused, but this need not be made into a big deal. It is less a theoretical problem than a practical one, which practical measures can sort out.

- E.P. Thompson

The History undergraduate programme at Azim Premji University boasts of a highly accomplished and experienced faculty, trained both in India and abroad. Approaching History from different disciplinary trajectories, theoretical perspectives and methods, regional expertise, and life experiences, members of the faculty are passionate teachers and active researchers, who are also committed to taking their professional practice beyond its conventional habitat into the wider social world.

The History programme offers a departure from the typical ways in which the subject is taught in school, where the rote learning of historical facts is often privileged. Instead, we invite students to ask questions about the past, examine evidence, and think critically about how histories are constructed and understood.

In the first two years of coursework, classroom pedagogy is mainly rooted in lectures and discussions, but with the active encouragement of student participation and collaboration. As students come to their third and fourth-year courses, they will begin undertaking small, independent research projects on a theme of their choice. Through this, as well as other on-site engagements carried on outside the classroom, students learn the practice of doing history, which is a central curricular objective of the four-year undergraduate programme in History at Azim Premji University.