Pedagogies and the Power of Protest for Equitable, and Inclusive Bangladeshi society: A Case of Secondary Schools

• In Event: Fostering Agency and Resistance in Out-Of-School and At-Risk Children Claim their Right to Education through Alternative and Innovative Education Programs

Proposal

While the total enrolment of girls in secondary schools in Bangladesh in 2022 was slightly higher than for boys (4,877,073 of the 8,889,674 enrolled were girls), only 60 percent of the girls enrolled were able to complete their high school in 2022. Previous studies identified several individual and community-level factors such as poverty, child labor, child marriage, lack of motivation, poor quality education, absenteeism, and dropping out of school. Eve-teasing - a form of sexual harassment, and cultural taboos around the menstrual period and lack of menstrual hygiene are highly prevalent in secondary schools in Bangladesh, and are viewed to be linked to school absenteeism, child marriage, and girls consequently dropping out, usually without any option of returning to school. However, we do not have sufficient evidence to clearly understand the mechanisms and conditions under which they work, including how they interact with school and classroom practices and pedagogies in use. There has been no research on how the ways in which schools operate and the pedagogical practices influence and shape girls’ capacities to act against eve-teasing, challenge social and cultural norms or systemic injustices, and foster positive societal change.
This study examines the effect of student, teachers and community-level educational interventions aimed at raising awareness about child marriage, menstrual hygiene and eve-teasing/sexual harassment to reduce absenteeism, learning loss and school dropout in four high schools that cater to urban slums of Dhaka. Additionally, this study explores how the education system and institutions incorporate diverse perspectives, voices and topics related to child marriage, sexual harassment and adolescent health into the curriculum and classroom, and nurture new generations enabling them to analyze power dynamics, articulate their viewpoints, raise marginalized voices, challenge oppressive systems and envision collective actions for positive change through pedagogical practices such as debates, collaborative problem-solving, critical thinking, inclusive learning and participatory environments.
We use data from a quasi-experimental study on grade VI-VIII students in four secondary schools in Dhaka city. The participants of the study include several girls from marginalized backgrounds who have experienced at least once a type of eve-teasing/sexual harassment, embarrassment about menstruation or being at risk of being married as a child. Qualitative data was collected using analyses of textbook contents, oral testimonies of teachers, in-depth interviews with students, and focus group discussions with parents.
The presentation will discuss the potential implications of our intervention to empower students to raise their voices and raise awareness against social and cultural odds such as child marriage, eve-teasing and taboos around menstruation. It will discuss the links between school and classroom pedagogical practices and the development of capacities of students to be informed and socially conscious citizens who are equipped with a sense of agency and empathy to address the challenges they face and act for an equitable society.

Author

• Juwel Rana, South Asian Institute for Social Transformation (SAIST)