Challenging Discriminatory Practices of Religious Socialization Among Adolescents : Critical Media Literacy and Pedagogies in Practice

'In this landmark work, Bhatia and Pathak-Shelat examine how adolescents are socialized as religious subjects in and through the major structures of governance ... Something truly remarkable about this media education framework is its relevance at the global level ... The book combines theory with praxis to reveal ways in which adolescents can identify resources for resistance within themselves and their immediate media environments.-Professor Sirkku Kotilainen, Tampere University, Finland This book examines how religion operates as an institution of governance and discipline in society. The authors unravel the ways in which adolescents are socialized into adhering to the dictates of their religious identities, which often translates into practices of micro-aggression enacted in and through their interaction with the 'religious other' in schools and classrooms. Through ethnographic immersion in villages in the Gujarat, the authors identify media as a powerful source through which the dominant ideology of religious discrimination is perpetuated among adolescents. Subsequently, a critical media education framework was developed in order to equip these young people with the critical skills needed to challenge power relations, with the goal being to identify resources for resistance within themselves and their immediate media environments. Using pedagogic techniques such as spatial and cultural mapping, content creation and applied theatre practices to create a reflective yet practical guide, the findings of this book can be applied to a wide range of socio-cultural contexts. Kiran Vinod Bhatia is a fellow at MICA, India. She is a media educator currently working with primary school students, and her research interests centre around critical pedagogy, youth studies and media education. She is currently pursuing her PhD in Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA. Manisha Pathak-Shelat is Professor in Communication and Digital Platforms and Strategies at MICA, India. She chairs the Center for Development Management and Communication at MICA, and edits the Journal of Creative Communication Foreword 7 Acknowledgements 13 Contents 14 List of Figures 15 List of Tables 17 1 Religion and Governmentality 18 Introduction 18 Formation of a Religious Subject: Governance and Conduct 19 Sites of Socialization 24 Critical Media Education: A Site for Counter-Conduct 28 Conclusion 29 References 30 2 Methods and Analysis 32 Introduction 32 Research Sites 34 Developing an Ethnographic Approach to Study the Communicative Ecologies of Adolescents 36 Communicative Ecology 37 Data Collection 39 References 43 3 Analytics of Governmentality and Formation of the Religious Subject 46 March 17, 2016 46 Governing at the Macro-Level 49 System of Governance 50 The Primary School 51 Media Ecologies and Representations 53 Micro-Politics and Practices of Religious Discrimination 55 References 58 4 Media Education as Counter-Conduct: Analyzing Fields of Visibility and Regimes of Knowledge 60 Introduction: Government and Freedom 60 Critical Media Education as Counter-Conduct 63 Resisting Conformity Through Critical Media Education 67 Analyzing Fields of Visibility 68 Reimagining Public Spaces Through Counter-Cultural Mapping 70 Reimagining Through Photo-Walks 71 Reimagining Personal Spaces Through Critical Presence and Thinking 78 Reimagining Educational Spaces Through the Creation of Body Maps 84 Analyzing Regimes of Truth–Knowledge 88 References 101 5 Media Education as Counter-Conduct: Developing Dialogic Practices and Analyzing Change in Subjectivities 105 Introduction 105 Dialogic Practices as the Technè of Self 106 Identity in Dialogue: Creating New Social Identities in Dialogue with the “Other” 108 Intersubjective Orientation: Analyzing How Reimagining Conditions of Possibility Can Create Fissures in Subjective Identities 114 Phase I 115 Phase II 119 Experiencing Change in Subjective Identities: Theater as a Mode of Active Engagement 124 The Making and Doing of Theater: Performing Alternate Identities 125 Performing Alterity: Reinvestigating Practices of Religious Discrimination Through Satire 128 Conclusion 134 References 139 6 Evaluating the Role of Critical Media Education in Mediating Counter-Conduct 143 Introduction 143 Evaluating Critical Media Education: Developing a Comprehensive Assessment Method 145 Phase I: Describing the Context—Media Teaching and Media Learning 147 Phase II: Assessing Affective Relationality Between Students and Avoiding Pitfalls of Critical Praxis 151 Conclusion 156 References 158 References 160 Index 172 'In this landmark work, Bhatia and Pathak-Shelat examine how adolescents are socialized as religious subjects in and through the major structures of governance... Something truly remarkable about this media education framework is its relevance at the global level... The book combines theory with praxis to reveal ways in which adolescents can identify resources for resistance within themselves and their immediate media environments. -Professor Sirkku Kotilainen, Tampere University, Finland This book examines how religion operates as an institution of governance and discipline in society. The authors unravel the ways in which adolescents are socialized into adhering to the dictates of their religious identities, which often translates into practices of micro-aggression enacted in and through their interaction with the 'religious other' in schools and classrooms. Through ethnographic immersion in villages in the Gujarat, the authors identify media as a powerful source through which the dominant ideology of religious discrimination is perpetuated among adolescents. Subsequently, a critical media education framework was developed in order to equip these young people with the critical skills needed to challenge power relations, with the goal being to identify resources for resistance within themselves and their immediate media environments. Using pedagogic techniques such as spatial and cultural mapping, content creation and applied theatre practices to create a reflective yet practical guide, the findings of this book can be applied to a wide range of socio-cultural contexts. Kiran Vinod Bhatia is a fellow at MICA, India. She is a media educator currently working with primary school students, and her research interests centre around critical pedagogy, youth studies and media education. She is currently pursuing her PhD in Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA. Manisha Pathak-Shelat is Professor in Communication and Digital Platforms and Strategies at MICA, India. She chairs the Center for Development Management and Communication at MICA, and edits the Journal of Creative Communication. Front Matter ....Pages i-xix Religion and Governmentality (Kiran Vinod Bhatia, Manisha Pathak-Shelat)....Pages 1-14 Methods and Analysis (Kiran Vinod Bhatia, Manisha Pathak-Shelat)....Pages 15-28 Analytics of Governmentality and Formation of the Religious Subject (Kiran Vinod Bhatia, Manisha Pathak-Shelat)....Pages 29-42 Media Education as Counter-Conduct: Analyzing Fields of Visibility and Regimes of Knowledge (Kiran Vinod Bhatia, Manisha Pathak-Shelat)....Pages 43-87 Media Education as Counter-Conduct: Developing Dialogic Practices and Analyzing Change in Subjectivities (Kiran Vinod Bhatia, Manisha Pathak-Shelat)....Pages 89-126 Evaluating the Role of Critical Media Education in Mediating Counter-Conduct (Kiran Vinod Bhatia, Manisha Pathak-Shelat)....Pages 127-143 Back Matter ....Pages 145-160