Imperial designs, post-colonial replications: class and power at Cathedral and John Connon School in Bombay

Abstract

Utilizing a framework which employs symbolic capital and post-colonial analysis, this paper examines the cultural meanings of English-language education at Cathedral and John Connon School in Bombay, India. The central question this article seeks to address is how power is replicated through education and, more specifically, the ways in which formerly British colonial systems of education are maintained as markers of success and prestige in urban India. This research draws upon intensive participant observation and interviews with teachers, students and parents at Cathedral and John Connon School in Bombay, as well as upon the extensive academic literature on English-language education in India. The discussion of how the politics of language and class intersect in education is divided into three topic areas: class and access to English-language education; the rural/urban divide; and the implications of English as an agent of global hegemony.