Writing gender in: reflections on writing middle-school political science textbooks in India

Feminists regard schooling as a critical site where children are socialised to adopt gender-based identities, and where the process of internalisation of gender norms – begun within the home and community at the earliest stage of childhood – continues. This process makes gender identities, roles, and power relations appear ‘natural’ and normal. Within the realm of schooling, curricula and textbooks play a key role in the selection and transmission of ‘knowledge’ about gender issues – that is, information which is seen as objectively true and and valued as such by students, teachers, and wider society. In this article, we draw on our experiences of engaging with the mainstream elementary education system in India on curriculum and textbook development.