Decolonising Education: Implications for Policy

Description

This talk outlines findings from a systematic thematic review of peer-reviewed research on decoloniality and decolonising the curriculum. We have carried out this review against the backdrop of recent historic events stemming from RhodesMustFall in 2015 to the subsequent spread and revitalization of the BlackLivesMatter movement in 2020 with the death of George Floyd. Our research is also timely given the recent statements by the former and current chiefs of Police Scotland (Sir Iain Livingstone and Jo Farrell respectively) affirming that the force is institutionally racist.


Dr. Navan Govender and Mr. Dustin Hosseini, educators at the University of Strathclyde and University of Glasgow respectively, lead this research. Navan is a Lecturer in Applied Language and Literacy Studies who specializes in qualitative research and pedagogy, focusing on areas such as critical applied linguistics, literacy studies, critical (multimodal) discourse analysis and queer/trans/feminist praxis and decolonial and anti-racist praxis among others. Dustin's doctoral work explores the intersections of decolonial thinking within pedagogy, academic and digital literacies, to create equitable curricula.

Given the study's short time frame, we applied a rigorous systematic review that identified 3585 publications distilled into 181 items for qualitative analysis. Of these, only 19 yielded empirical evidence and practical insights into decolonial approaches in curriculum, pedagogy, and educational policy. These 19 items were subjected to a thematic synthesis.

Gaps in the research highlight abundant theoretical knowledge production with little empirical research undertaken; there are especially few empirical studies that have been undertaken in Scotland. The studies that exist can inform further empirical research. While studies in decoloniality and education often intersect with anti-racist frameworks and can inform further research, new research and policies must highlight the distinctions between work on decolonising educational policies and practices, and those that are focused on equality, diversity and inclusion initiatives. Evaluative tools for analysing curricula exist and provide a basis for further empirical research on decolonising education. Further, key decolonial moves include demystifying history and colonial legacies, and terminology around decolonising education (e.g. decoloniality, decolonising education, coloniality and others).

Period	25 Aug 2023
Held at	Education Scotland, United Kingdom
Degree of Recognition	National