Into India Extension Activity 5

Extension Activities

CHAPTER 5: FAMILIES AND FAIRYTALES

Students investigate the nature of family life in India, the role of women within the family and the way Indian marriages come about. They then look at the Hindi movie industry and the introduction of Pay TV to India. The chapter concludes with an exploration of current and future issues of importance to Indian teenagers.

To explore additional ideas and resources for using this chapter of Into India, click on one of the following:

Teaching and Learning Activities | SOSE Profile | WWW Links | Annotated Bibliography

Teaching and Learning Activities

Here are some additional teaching and learning activities related to this chapter.

Investigation 1: The Changing Role of Women
This Investigation is supported by the 'Dreams, Mothers-in-law and Videotapes' section of the Into India video.

Discussion Topic: Individualism and Marriage
After studying Resources 9, 11 and 12 (pp. 177-179), and viewing 'Dreams, Mothers-in-law and Videotapes', students should have some knowledge of various views about 'arranged' and 'love' marriages. Activity 16 (p. 180) suggests a class debate on this topic. It would be useful, however, for students to do some preparatory work first.

Discuss with students the following exchange between two students in 'Dreams, Mothers-in-law and Videotapes'. They are discussing the fact that the divorce rate is higher in Western countries than in India.

First student: 'As long as there are more of love marriages there are bound to be more of divorces.'
Second student: 'It's not related to the love marriages; it's more due to the attitude of the Western people. They're very, very individualistic. That's what I feel.'

The following questions can be used to organise the discussion:

What does the student mean by 'individualistic'?
How true is it that Australians are individualistic?
What evidence is there in the video that Indian society is less individualistic than Australian society?
Why might India, where marriages are predominantly 'arranged', have a lower divorce rate than Australia? (Look for a range of answers.)
What social functions might be served by 'arranged' marriages?
What social functions might be served by 'love' marriages?

Finally, if the wider perspective has not already arisen, point out that patterns of marriage are part of a larger social environment. It makes little sense to talk about introducing widespread 'arranged' marriages in Australia. Ask students to take account of this in their debating and remember that the topic is essentially abstract.

Investigation 2: Love! Love! Love! - Hindi Movies vs Cable TV
This Investigation is supported by the 'Dreams, Mothers-in-law and Videotapes' section of the Into India video.

A Summary of Views About Pay TV
Have students read Resources 4-7 (pp. 186-188) and show the part of 'Dreams, Mothers-in-law and Videotapes' in which views about Pay TV are expressed. (It is to be found near the beginning of the video, after images of satellite dishes are seen.)

Ask students to prepare a table such as the following. The first two columns should be point-form summaries of the views of the various people. The third column should express the wants or needs that might be behind their views. (For example, Mrs Misra could be said to want Indians to follow what she believes are traditional ways.)

Positive views about Pay TV Negative views about Pay TV Wants or needs

Mr Sharma (video and Resource 5)

Hari Raj (video)

Tabbu (video)

Mr and Mrs Baig (video)

Mr and Mrs Baig's daughter (video)

The woman talking about smoking (video)

The school student (video)

Rupert Murdoch (Resource 4)

Mrs Misra (Resource 6)

AR Dass (Resource 7)

Share and discuss responses, encouraging students to evaluate the information in the completed table. Conclude the exercise by setting students a writing task in which they express their own opinions about positive and negative effects of Pay TV in India.

Investigation 3: Teenagers in India
This Investigation is supported by the 'Dreams, Mothers-in-law and Videotapes' section of the Into India video.

Writing Task: Changing Values
This chapter has, in large part, been concerned with change in Indian society. A suitable concluding writing task would be:

'Define some important changes occurring in Indian society today. Give your opinion about the positive and negative aspects of each change. Compare the changes with those you see occurring in Australia.'

SOSE Profile Strands and Outcomes

This chapter provides opportunities for students to achieve learning outcomes at levels four to seven within the following strands and strand organisers specified in Studies of society and environment-a curriculum profile for Australian schools.

Strand Strand organisers

Time, continuity and change

Understanding the past
Time and change
Interpretations and perspectives

Culture

Cultural cohesion and diversity
Personal, group and cultural identity

Resources

Use of resources
People and work

Natural and social systems

Political and legal systems

Investigation, communication and participation

All strand organisers

A full listing of student outcomes can be found on p. 196 of Into India. Teachers are advised to consult their State or Territory curriculum documents for ways in which the activities and intended outcomes may be adapted to locally developed criteria.

WWW Links

India Profile
http://www.meadev.nic.in/info/info.htm
Extensive information about India's culture, economy, sports, social issues and media, as well as useful further links.

AskAsia
http://www.askasia.org/
Developed to support studies of Asia in American schools and published by the Asia Society. Offers access to lesson plans, such as 'Gandhi speaks through clothing', which traces Gandhi's life through a set of photographs. Also has cultural information, games, activities and a variety of links. 'Adult-Free Zone' provided for students. About 10 schools in India listed. Also facility for 'Keypals Club International', for students 8-16 years old.

India News Online
http://www.indianewsonline.com/
Provides links to many Indian publications, from daily newspapers to film, fashion and health magazines.

The India Today Group
http://www.india-today.com/
Publishers of India Today, one of India's leading magazines of news and current affairs. Includes current articles from India Today and a variety of other magazines published by the Group.

Manushi
http://free.freespeech.org/manushi/
Manushi: a journal about women and society sees itself as 'playing a catalytic role towards making our society more just and humane'. Editor, Madhu Kishwar, is seen in the Into India video. Site carries articles from recent issues of Manushi, a 'gallery' of older articles and an interview with the editor.

Kamat's Potpourri - Women of India
http://www.kamat.com/kalranga/women/
Interesting articles about both historical and contemporary women and women's issues in India.

Bibliography

Student Materials
Access Asia: Secondary teaching and learning units 1996, Curriculum Corporation, Carlton, Victoria.
Includes a unit of work, 'Images of Asia', which deals with images of contemporary India.

In search of the future 1994, (55 minute video), Film Australia, Lindfield NSW.
One of a series of documentaries on the lives of people in various Asian countries. The Surkheras are a noble but impoverished Hindu family, hindered by their caste as they try to cope with modernisation. Available from Film Australia, PO Box 46, Lindfield NSW 2070.

Reference Materials
Bumiller, E. 1990, May you be the mother of a hundred sons: a journey among the women of India, Penguin Books, New Delhi.
American journalist, Elizabeth Bumiller, meets a variety of Indian women.

Jhabvala, Ruth Prawer 1980, Householder, Penguin, Harmondsworth.

Jung, Anees 1987, Unveiling India: a woman's journey, Penguin Books, New Delhi.
Personal stories from women in many parts of India.

Kishwar, Madhu (ed.) Manushi: a journal about women and society, New Delhi.
Masnushi sees itself as 'playing a catalytic role towards making our society more just and humane'. Editor, Madhu Kishwar, is seen in the Into India video.

Kumar, Radha 1993, The history of doing: an illustrated account of movements for women's rights and feminism in India, 1800-1990, Verso, London.
A detailed history, with many photographs.

Lannoy, R. 1971, The speaking tree, Oxford University Press, London.
A broad and important study of Indian culture and society.

McDonald, H. 1997, 'Midnight's daughters', Sydney Morning Herald, 9 August.
The Walkley Award winning article. A personal story of poor Rajasthani women in New Delhi.

Mehta, G. 1997, Snakes and ladders: a view of modern India, Random House, London.
A series of essays by the well-known Indian writer and social commentator. Wide-ranging and includes pieces about culture, politics, economic change and the film industry. Would be suitable for some middle-secondary students.

Naipaul, V. S. 1991, India: a million mutinies now, Minerva, London.

Naqvi, J. 1987, The eid moon, Hodja Educational Resources Cooperative Ltd.

Seth, Vikram 1993, A suitable boy, Phoenix House, London.
A modern classic novel. Issues of caste and class are faced by a young, middle-class Indian woman of marriageable age.

Srinivas, M. N. 1976, The remembered village, University of California Press, Berkeley.
The well-known scholar's readable description of life in an Indian village.

Tully, M. 1992, No fullstops in India, Penguin Books, New Delhi.
The experiences and perceptive observations of the former BBC India correspondent.

Wolpert, S. 1991, India, University of California Press, Berkeley.

Curriculum Corporation and the University of Melbourne