Date of Award
2025
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Master of Philosophy in Education (MPhil Ed.)
First Advisor
Dr Fozia Parveen
Department
Institute for Educational Development, Karachi
Abstract
This study examines how Pakistan Studies textbooks in Sindh construct national identity through the representation and exclusion of the Hindu community. It also explores the potential of eco-citizenship as a framework for nurturing shared identity. The study draws on data from Pakistan Studies textbooks for secondary and higher secondary classes, as well as semi-structured interviews with policymakers, public intellectuals and experts, teachers, students, Hindu community members, and civil society representatives. The combination of textual and experiential data enabled the research to interpret both the production of knowledge and lived experiences.
Using a triangulated approach that integrates Critical Discourse Analysis (Fairclough, 1995; van Dijk, 1998; Wodak & Meyer, 2015), quantitative lexical analysis, and multi-stakeholder interviews, the research investigates how ideology operates through textual patterns, silences, and interpretive practices. The findings reveal that textbooks naturalize the coupling of religion and nationhood, marginalizing civic and plural identities. Interviews with stakeholders indicate that while exclusion remains structurally embedded, interpretive spaces for inclusion persist through critical reflection and civic engagement.
Drawing on Apple’s (2019) concept of official knowledge and eco-citizenship theories (Dobson, 2003; Meltzer & Baldwin, 2012), the study argues that shared ecological vulnerability provides a common ground to reimagine belonging beyond inherited boundaries of faith and identity. It proposes eco-citizenship as a pathway for developing inclusive curricula that nurture coexistence and a collective sense of responsibility toward both people and the planet.
First Page
1
Last Page
173
Recommended Citation
Ali, A.
(2025). Representation of Hindus in Pakistan Studies textbook: Identity, exclusion, and pathways to inclusive textbooks through eco-citizenship integration in Sindh, Pakistan. , 1-173.
Available at:
https://ecommons.aku.edu/etd_pk_ied_mphil/131