[close] In the process of analysing the reconstructions of knowledge in curriculum and teaching against the background of social reality, this book addresses a crucial question: does education legitimize the established patterns of socio-economic relationships or is it supportive of change? Kumar critically evaluates content analysis and uses symbolic interactionism as a theoretical perspective to study pedagogical communication. The improved methodology is used in four studies: the first deals with language readers in two countries; the second a history lesson on ancient India; the third examines literacy primers prepared under an international programme; and the fourth deals with development communication through television. [close]