Pedagogy
Questions from students are not simply queries: they index a latent critical consciousness. My teaching philosophy is thus centered on helping students analyze disciplinary reasoning on its own terms. In particular, I approach economic pedagogy as critical systemic analysis. My goal is to equip students to understand the internal logic of economic reasoning, not as a collection of facts, but as a framework for diagnosing the fault lines and unrealized dimensions of our current systems.
My effectiveness in this critical, discussion-focused approach is consistently validated by student evaluations in courses. I routinely receive scores near the maximum of 5.0 for clarity, engagement, and fostering a supportive learning environment, often exceeding departmental and campus benchmarks. Courses taught include Political Economy, Introductory Microeconomics and Macroeconomics, and International Economy.
Student Reviews
Students report that I have helped them move beyond rote learning to deep, critical engagement with the material:
"Ananya really cared about us learning the larger ideas behind political economy and encouraged us to question the textbook answers we have been presented with before."
"Ananya is a very engaging instructor. She did an amazing job at stimulating student participation during discussions while explaining the material in a very productive and inspiring way."
"She always fostered student participation and active discussion."
"One of my favorite teachers/instructors I've ever had."
"She is very relatable and explain things extremely well."
"She helped clear up confusion in several concepts. She was engaging in her teaching of various economic theories."
Research
My research interests lie at the intersection of political economy, philosophy, and aesthetics. My current research traces how economic models function not only as analytic tools but as aesthetic forms that encode vibrant contradictions. In particular, I anchor my account of modeling as an aesthetic practice in the canonical use of Robinson Crusoe in economic pedagogy—treating this canonization as a site where problems of modern subjecthood and legibility are unwittingly staged. Broadly, I engage the history of economic thought to see how economics disavows the conditions of its own possibility.
The homologies between my art practice, pedagogy, and research lie in confronting (self)contradiction and immanence. Out in the so-called real world, my organizing support has helped found and/or operationalize arts collectives. The hope is to attend to the state of the world through these interconnected practices and learn to collectively reconstruct our self-understanding as protean creators.