Abstract:
Textbooks are the primary knowledge hub or a resource for marginalized
children who lack access to commercially produced supplementary materials
or any other educational materials available in the mainstream market. These
textbooks given in the school play a huge role in shaping their perspectives
on culture, identity, and other consciousnesses that build their understanding
of society. When textbooks maintain an unbiased and inclusive approach,
they foster equitable learning. However, if the textbooks are biased and
favour the majority population and neglect the marginalized groups, then,
it is devoiding of meaningful relevance of content for these groups. Already,
the standardization of languages due to globalization has positioned English
as a dominant “killer language”. Likewise, these regional majority languages
in various Indian states are taking the same role by subjugating minority
languages and dialects. The primary victims, in this process of extinction, are
the tribal languages, immigrants’ languages, and dialects. This state is further
exacerbated by policies that lie only on paper. To understand whether the
textbooks are inclusive, this study critically examines the English textbooks
of Tamil Nadu State Board curricula and Central Board of State Education
curricula of grades 1- 10. The qualitative content analysis approach is used
to evaluate the textbook’s representation in terms of linguistic, cultural,
and history of tribal communities. The findings showed significant gaps in
representation, particularly in the Tamil Nadu State Board’s primary-level
textbooks (grades 1-3), where tribal identities are completely absent. Even
though Tamil Nadu is home to indigenous communities such as the Irula,
Kurumba, and others, their presence in the curriculum remains very rare.
Further doing a comparative analysis between state and central board
textbooks, it is found that there is a persistent underrepresentation of tribal
communities across both curricula. By ignoring this, we are perpetuating
systemic invisibility and cultural homogenization. The study concludes
by discussing the pedagogical and sociocultural impact of this exclusion,
particularly on mainstream students’ perceptions and marginalized students’
perceptions of India’s diversity.
