events

Course Objectives:

This course will introduce students to the basics of academic reading and writing in the social sciences with the understanding that reading and writing are interrelated skills. It will enable one to identify the central argument(s)and grasp the structure and content of academic texts. Students will understand the various elements and stages of writing, such as pre-writing, drafting, paraphrasing, summarizing, rewriting, etc. The use of citation and referencing style to indicate one’s writing sources will also be a vital component of the course.

WORKSHOP OUTLINE

Syllabus/Curriculum

a) techniques of reading

b) techniques of writing

c) formal conventions of academic texts (paraphrasing,quoting, citing, reviewing, etc.)

d) essentials of standard academic writing (abstract,proposal, literature review, referencing, etc.)

e) navigating academic publications (journals, blogs, etc.)

Teaching and Assessment

This course is meant to be interactive and practice-oriented. A participatory approach with an emphasis on in-class activities will be adopted. Exercises in comprehending, analyzing, synthesizing and evaluating academic texts will be integral to the teaching-learning process.

ASSIGNMENT 1: Students write an abstract of 300 wordson a topic of their choice. This abstract can later bedeveloped into a paper.

ASSIGNMENT 2: Students read an academic book andwrite a review of this book in 800 words.

Logistics

The course will be composed of four lectures (90 minutes each) per day across 4 days.

Course Fees: Rs. 4000
(Please note that scholarships are available for students who are financially constrained, please contact us)

Dates: 25, 27, 30 June and 4 July 2025

Time: 7- 8:30 pm IST

Target group: MA and PhD students in social sciences

Resource Persons

Dr. S. Irudaya Rajan

S. Irudaya Rajan is the Chair of the International Institute of Migration and Development (IIMAD), India, and a leading expert on migration and ageing. Previously a professor at the Centre for Development Studies (CDS), he headed the Research Unit on International Migration, funded by the erstwhile Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, Government of India (2006–2016). He is the founding Editor-in-Chief of Migration and Development (Sage), editor of the India Migration Report (IMR) and South Asia Migration
Report (Routledge), and serves on the editorial board of International Migration Review (Sage) as well as Lead Editor of the South-South Migration series (Springer). He has directed large-scale migration and ageing surveys across India, including the 2023 Kerala Migration Survey.

Dr. Rituparna Patgiri

Rituparna Patgiri is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Guwahati. Her research focuses on culture, food, media, gender, and pedagogy. She is the Co-founder of Doing Sociology, an academic blog promoting sociological engagement, and Associate Editor (South Asia) for Society (Springer Nature). She convenes the Ad Hoc Group 03 – Food, Culture and Society at the Indian Sociological Society and has published widely across academic and public platforms.
Patgiri is currently working on two co-edited volumes and a monograph.