Celebrating India’s independence with culturally inclusive curricula
In 2022, India marked 75 years of independence. While both India and the UK have changed dramatically since 1947, many teaching and assessment materials had not. British Council India partnered with us to explore how each country represented the other in curricula and textbooks.
As part of its 75th anniversary programme, British Council India celebrated cultural connections through art, music and drama events across 21 cities. Together, we asked a related question: were teaching materials helping students understand contemporary life in both countries?
Were classrooms reflecting modern India and the UK?
Together with consultants at Skyrocket Education, we set up a comparative multi-method study to understand:
- how well India was represented in UK curricula and vice versa
- what form that representation took…
- and how well it captured diversity and contemporary life.
As part of the study, we analysed:
37 curriculum documents and textbooks from Delhi, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, England and Scotland
4,187 pages from 3,752 textbooks
the views of 35 English teachers in India
20 UK primary reading books featuring Indian representation.
Looking beyond stereotypes
We used Yuen’s Cultural Framework (2011) to analyse the representation of cultural diversities in educational materials. This included studying products (like books); daily practises, traditional perspectives, and people who shape a culture – in this case, teachers.
We also compared poetry, prose and drama to see if representation changed across different teaching texts. And we looked at different historical eras to see how they were covered, too.
Many textbooks still portrayed India and the UK through historical stereotypes
We found that representation was often rooted in the past. Most texts featured content from before 1947, and 61% focused on life before 1858.
As a result, UK materials often presented India through themes of poverty and underdevelopment. Indian materials frequently relied on colonial-era imagery and stereotypes.
Representation also lacked balance and diversity:
- males appeared more often than females
- children were underrepresented
- learners saw limited examples of different professions and socio-economic backgrounds
- UK textbooks rarely explored Indian cultural perspectives or everyday practices.
In short, many teaching materials no longer reflected the societies they aimed to represent. Opportunities to promote inclusion, cultural understanding and shared heritage were being missed.
Turning research into practical guidance
We developed recommendations for curriculum developers, textbook authors and policymakers.
In the UK, we also created a primary reading list of 20 books that reflect contemporary Indian life and culture. Each title includes guidance to help teachers start meaningful classroom discussions about identity, culture and representation.
British Council India is already using the findings to support conversations about curriculum reform in India and Scotland.
