Practicing Feminist Pedagogical Approach in Pakistani Literature Classroom: Possibilities and Challenges

Abstract

The current pedagogical approaches prevalent in Pakistan are largely teachercentered which do not encourage students as active learners in the teachinglearning processes. The current study attempts to explore the effectiveness of
feminist pedagogical approach for the enhancement of critical skills of
students of literature by utilizing contemporary Pakistani Anglophone fiction
as a pedagogical tool. The novels selected for the current study include Bapsi
Sidhwa’s Ice-Candy Man and Kamila Shamsie’s Broken Verses. The feminist
pedagogical approach emphasizes the active participation of the learners, and
the revision of the entire teaching-learning paradigm from a feminist
standpoint. Furthermore, it also insists on the inclusion of marginal
perspectives as a significant means of knowledge – making through
interaction, collaboration, and negotiation (hooks, 1994; Weiler, 1988; Gore
1991; Mohanty, 1991). Using feminist pedagogical approach’s conceptual
framework, a mixed-method approach comprising of a quantitative and
qualitative phase was used for the current study. Four normally distributed
classes of BS (English) and MA, (English) in the Department of English, Female
Campus (IIUI) were selected for the current study. A pretest, posttest design
was used, and the students of the experimental groups were taught according
to feminist pedagogical approach whereas the students of the control groups
were taught according to the traditional lecture method for a period of three
months. The results of the pretest posttest of the experimental groups and the
control groups were analyzed using t-test to measure the impact of the
treatment. The students were also assigned reflective journals for the entire
treatment period and at the end of the experiment, semi-structured interviews
were conducted to further understand the impact of feminist pedagogical
approach. Findings of the pretest posttest data and students’ reflective journals
and interviews show that the experimental groups performed better than the
control groups, in terms of enhanced critical skills, increased collaboration,
improved relationship with the teacher and increased respect for diverse perspectives. Henceforth, this paper argues that feminist pedagogical
approach as an alternative instructional model can become an important
means to develop critical skills of young learners and make them agents of
positive social transformation.