Transnationalizing Indian education: Diasporic networks, politics and participation

Tukdeo, Shivali

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Description

Title

Transnationalizing Indian education: Diasporic networks, politics and participation

Author(s)

Tukdeo, Shivali

Issue Date

2011-01-21T22:52:49Z

Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)

Darder, Antonia

Doctoral Committee Chair(s)

Darder, Antonia

Committee Member(s)

• Peters, Michael A.
• Rizvi, Fazal
• Chandra, Shefali
• Koshy, Susan

Department of Study

Educational Policy Studies

Discipline

Educational Policy Studies

Degree Granting Institution

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Degree Name

Ph.D.

Degree Level

Dissertation

Keyword(s)

• Education policy
• India
• Development
• Non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
• Diaspora

Abstract

This dissertation examines the ways in which policy ideas in education are produced, legitimated and promoted through transnational networks. The relationship between India's education policy and its skilled diasporic networks is at the center of my inquiry. The entry of non-state actors and capital flows in Indian education provides a broader context to situate the three diasporic organizations I study: Asha for Education, Pratham-USA, and Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation. The three organizations are involved in supporting a range of educational initiatives in India. Surfaced after the period of post-1965 immigration act in general and the Immigration Reform and Control Act (1990) in particular, the space of skilled diasporic organizations is seen as an opportunity for knowledge transfer, economic development and transnational collaboration. Paying attention to the overarching contexts as well as specific advocacy issues supported by the diasporic groups, I analyze the politics and practices of networks through which the conversations about India’s education policy are taking place. The three organizations differ from each other in terms of their constituencies, the vision for education and their engagements with India-based groups. Yet, there are similarities in terms of the non-profit, NGO structures through which the organizations operate and the advocacy positions they take. The data show the ways in which the organizations construct a set of narratives around the idea of 'education reform' in India and how their social actions are shaped by three factors: Networked transnationalism, negotiation of identity, and the power of 'development' approach in education. My analysis pays attention to the interaction of multiple discourses that go on to create the transnational networks of education-action, intervention and advocacy. The diasporan 'solution' spaces link, collaborate, and draw ideas from international funding agencies, multilateral institutions, the Indian state, corporations, NGOs and think tanks. The advocacy ideas, as a result, are products of such multi-level influences.

Graduation Semester

2010-12

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© 2010 Shivali Tukdeo

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