Workshop Descriptions (2010 Conference)
The Origins of Caste
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Presenter: Brian Didier
In this workshop, we will explore the origins of caste and review critically the evidence we have of social stratification in Indus Valley Civilization as well as in the Vedic period. Those of us who teach caste are invariably confronted with the issue of origins. We naturally turn to the Purusha myths and other Vedic period writings as evidence for the early origins of India’s caste system. And yet, such evidence has serious limitations and requires that teachers as well as students use such evidence carefully. What do these myths, laws and stories tell us about the realities of early Indian social life? Does the system of social stratification reflected in these early writing look anything like the caste system today? Participants are encouraged to bring their own knowledge and experiences.
Bio: [forthcoming]
Caste and Contemporary Politics
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Presenter: Don Johnson
This workshop will focus on caste in modern India and its relationship with democratic politics. We will briefly offer some background on the British strengthening of caste during colonial rule and Gandhi's and Ambedkar's policies on caste during the Nationalist movement. We will then focus on the Indian Constitution's attempt to use affirmative action as a way to provide more equality for the ex Untouchables. We will touch on the effects of the Mandall Commission Report and will than take up the relationship betweencaste and political mobilization with case studies on the Neo Buddhist movement, the rise of Dalit consciousness and the rise of such notables as Jagjivan Ram, the Bandit Queen and Mayawati.
Don Johnson is Professor Emeritus at New York University where he he served as Chair of Asian Studies for 20 years, and taught courses on Asian Studies, World History and Comparative Cultures. He is author of Multi-Culturalism: In the Curriculum, in the Disciplines and in the Society, co-author of Through Indian Eyes (five editions), Gods and God in Hinduism, Emperor Ashoka of India: What Makes a Ruler Legitimate, Gandhi and Mao: Alternate Paths to Nationalism and Development The Human Drama, a 4-volume world history text and Universal Religions in World History: Buddhism, Christianity and Islam. With his wife Jean, he was awarded the 2004 Association of Asian Studies Buchanan Prize for India: Contemporary and Historic Perspectives. He has also written many articles on Asia and teaching about Asia and was guest editor for two Education About Asia special issues on Asia in world history. In 2000 he served on the National Commission for Asia in the Schools, chaired by former North Carolina Governor Jim Hunt. Don lives in Deering New Hampshire where he served on the New Hampshire Social Studies Standards Committee, serves as speaker for the New Hampshire Humanities Council and as consultant to school districts interested in globalizing their curricula and infusing Asian Studies into their curriculum and continues to work on several writing projects.
SERVICE LEARNING: Taking Students to India: Offering a First-Hand Experience of Caste, Class, Community and Controlled Chaos
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Presenters:
Chris Kolovos, Belmont Hill School, MA;
Brad Nicholson, Peddie School, NJ;
Nathan Scott, SAGE Program, CO (moderator);
Amanda Wastrom, Noble & Greenough School, MA;
Tim Wesmiller, Archbishop Mitty School, CA
This workshop will consist of a panel presentation and discussion by teachers who have actually taken groups of students to India. Each presenter will discuss the focus of their trip, their practical experiences in India, student learning, and lessons learned. This will be followed by a general discussion with the audience, including considerable time for questions and observations from workshop attendees. While caste is not the specific focus of this workshop, a discussion of how to design a trip that isn't dominated by upper-caste perspectives on India will be included.
This workshop is offered as a counterpoint to the more theoretical discussions and presentations of caste in India. It will offer suggestions and best practices for designing, developing, and carrying out a student trip to India, including tips on what not to do! Workshop participants will receive copies of sample trip itineraries, travel resources, trip curricula, and suggestions for fundraising.
Bios: [forthcoming]
CASTE IN LITERATURE
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Presenter: Indu Chugani
[Morning] Two Views of Social Mobility: Winows and Untouchables in Indian Literature and Film
In this workshop, participants will explore caste in India during the 1930’s. We will look at the challenges of teaching about two groups of marginalized Indians, widows and untouchables, as each group began to gain legal support and social standing during this period of radical change in Indian history. By looking at excerpts from Raj Mulk Anand’s short novella Untouchable and Deepa Mehta’s film Water, participants will explore what gets illuminated by pairing the two groups of outcastes. Participants will also explore how the time periods from which each text emerged reflects the extent to which each artist can imagine social mobility in Indian society. Participants are encouraged, but not required, to read Anand’s novella prior to the conference. Copies of relevant passages will be distributed during the workshop.
[Afternoon] The Love Laws: Teaching caste in The God of Small Things and The Space Between Us to high school students
In this workshop, teachers will consider the implications of caste for teenagers in India now and identify/discuss key similarities and differences between caste and social class in India. The workshop is framed around how caste functions in two key texts, Arundhati Roy’s God of Small Things and Thriti Umrigar’s The Space Between Us.
Indu Chugani teaches middle and high school English at the Winsor School in Boston. Her academic interests include Indian and immigrant literature, both for children and adults. Through the span of her career, Indu has taught at both public and private schools in Atlanta, GA and in New England. Indu is a founding member of Educators for Teaching India and is an Associate at the Institute for Writing and Thinking at Bard College, where she teaches workshops for teachers on the Ramayana and on the multiple uses for writing in the classroom. Indu earned her M.A. from the Bread Loaf School of English and her B.S.Ed. from the University of Georgia.
CASTE IN MODERN INDIAN HISTORY/LITERATURE
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Designing an upper level course on India
Presenters: Tom Lamont, Patricia Lothrop
This workshop is for teachers who teach or are contemplating teaching a course that focuses on modern Indian history, modern Indian literature, or both. The workshop will address the nuts and bolts of creating such a course including how to "sell" the idea, how to find resources, and how to design a course that works for your students and for you. Since Indian history and Indian literature are fairly new areas of study at the high school level, the presenters welcome all participants to share ideas and expertise.
Tom Lamont, a teacher of modern Indian history at The Groton School, has taught a wide variety of history courses for the past 25 years. During his sabbatical last year, Tom taught at The Doon School, a 7-12 independent school 250 km northeast of Delhi. He is learning Hindi at Shishu Bharati, an Indian-American school, does not belong to a cricket club, likes Indian food, and cries during Bollywood movies.
Patricia Lothrop [bio forthcoming]
