Aswathy Raveendran

Aswathy Raveendran

Designation: Reader

Areas of research interest:

• Science Technology Society and Environment Education 
• Biological sciences and Society   
• Feminist Science and Technology Studies
• Sexuality Education 

About me

My areas of research fall within the area of critical studies of science education which seeks to place STEM (science technology engineering and mathematics) Education within its broader sociopolitical context. I have a PhD in science education from the Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education in Science Technology and Society Education. My PhD work explored the higher secondary biology curriculum to understand how ethico-political concerns are reflected in it. More specifically, I examined value laden topics such as reproductive health in the class 12 biology textbooks and also explored how students discuss these topics in classroom discussions. After the completion of my doctoral work (in 2017), I worked for a brief period with the Sama Resource Group for Women and Health in New Delhi where I looked more closely at the new biotechnologies (especially genomics) from a feminist lens. From 2018-2021, I worked at the department of Humanities and Social Sciences, BITS Pilani Hyderabad Campus where I taught gender studies and science and technology studies. Currently my areas of interest are science technology and society education (with a focus on biological sciences) and gender and science. Please visit the critical biology studies webpage for more information on my research as well as information on a journal club that I am co-coordinating. Do email me (aswathy@hbcse.tifr.res.in) if you are interested in joining the journal club or discussing potential ideas for research.

Publications (Journals, Book Chapters):

• Raveendran, A. (2024). Current Trends and Directions in Socioscientific Issues Education Research. In George Noblit (Ed.), Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education. New York: Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.1848  
• Raveendran, A., & Bazzul, J. (2021). Socialized medicine has always been political: COVID-19, science and biopower in India. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 16(4), 995-1013.  
• Raveendran, A., & Srivastava, H. (2021). Science and Environment Education in the Times of the Anthropocene: Some Reflections from India. In Reimagining Science Education in the Anthropocene (pp. 201-213). Cham: Springer International Publishing. 
• Raveendran, A. (2021). Invoking the political in socioscientific issues: A study of Indian students' discussions on commercial surrogacy. Science Education, 105(1), 62-98.  
• Raveendran, A. (2019). Finding a critical voice. Critical Voices in Science Education Research: Narratives of Hope and Struggle. Springer Nature.p.27-36. Springer Nature.
• Raveendran, A. & Srivastava, H. (2019). Building consensus views or interrogating metanarratives? Musings on teaching the nature of science. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 14(3), 569-575.  
• Raveendran, A. & Chunawala, S. (2015). Values in science: making sense of biology doctoral students’ critical examination of a deterministic claim in a media article. Science Education. 99:4. p. 669-695..  
• Raveendran, A. & Chunawala, S. (2015). Reproducing Values: a feminist critique of a higher secondary biology textbook chapter on reproductive health. Indian Journal of Gender Studies. 2:2. p.194-218.  

Graduate courses

• Research Methodology: Qualitative methods in science and mathematics education (Monsoon, 2022 and Monsoon, 2024)
• Introduction to Feminist theory (Summer, 2023)
• Social Dimensions of Science and Technology education (Winter, 2022)
• Fieldwork Course (Monsoon, 2022, Monsoon, 2023, Monsoon, 2024)

 Commissioned reports

• Nadimpally, S., Raveendran, A. & Sivasubramanian, P. (2018). Of body and biotechnology:A gendered interrogation. New Delhi: Heinrich Boll Siftung.

 Recent Conference presentations

• Raveendran, A. 2023, August 28- September 1. Herstories as Histories: women scientists’ biographies as windows to understanding the nature and limits of science. ESERA 2023, Cappadocia, Turkey.
• Raveendran, A. 2023, September 6- September 11. Women scientists biographies: Windows to exploring the nature and limits of science. IAWS 2023, Trivandrum, India

Collaborations/Mentees

Sulochana R (2024- present) Thesis Supervisor

Charudatta Navare (2022-2023, Graduated) Thesis Co-Supervisor