Abstract
Formed through a violent rupture on religious grounds in 1947, Pakistan remains an ethnically and religiously diverse country. Yet due to massive processes of Islamisation, over the years, religion is now immersed in the politics, economy and educational discourse in the country. Previous research has focused on how state-sponsored textbooks and curriculum play an instrumental role in purporting the dominant religious narrative of the state and constructing an image of the ‘self’ and the ‘other’ on predominantly religious lines. Yet, there is limited research on the role of religion in the classrooms, on teachers’ voices and on the involvement of religion in the daily atmosphere of the schools. This study attempts to fill this gap by investigating and exploring the role of religion in everyday schooling in Pakistan. The research employs qualitative case studies of five schools in Lahore, Pakistan using classroom observations and semi structured interviews. Data shows how narratives in the classrooms linked the dominant religion with the nation in three ways- by relating to the political ideology behind Pakistan’s formation, by linking with the transnational notion of “Muslim Brotherhood” and by engendering reverence towards the Pakistani military. This study focuses on how the politicisation of religion seeps into educational discourses and are enacted by teachers irrespective of accompanying textbook content.
Presenters
Laraib NiazPost Doctoral Research Associate, Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
Religion, Islam, Politics, Education, Classroom Discourses, National Identity
