Abstract

Classroom environments are not merely spaces of knowledge transmission but also arenas where social inequalities are reproduced or challenged. In India the divide between government and private schools is stark—not just in terms of infrastructure or pedagogy but in the subtle often unacknowledged realm of teacher bias. This paper explores how teacher attitudes and behaviors differ across government and private schools and how these biases affect student participation performance and self-esteem. Based on ethnographic observations and interviews conducted in Delhi Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra this study investigates the forms of bias—related to caste class language gender and academic performance—that shape the educational experience of children. The findings indicate that while bias exists in both sectors its manifestations and consequences are structurally different. In government schools biases are often linked to socio-economic marginalization and caste hierarchies whereas in priva