They know they are not the experts –- they have come to university to be taught by the experts. Decolonising the Science Curriculum We formed a departmental working group in 2019 to look at what decolonising the curriculum means for us, and how we can use this approach to improve our teaching and research. There is also pressure across the curriculum. A report, commissioned by the Office for Students, has recommended that universities should “decolonise” the curriculum to end the dominance of western values … These kinds of curriculum change are highly complex and contested but are being tackled in many disciplines. He utilises his personal experience of education in the UK as a pupil, teacher and secondary school senior leader. Very few of today’s “wicked” problems can be solved through one perspective or one method of investigation. One of the most significant educational problems relating to gaps in the curriculum is the lack of representation of black and minority ethnic groups, and their histories and achievements within the UK. The key ingredient in achieving this change is the student voice. x��K�d�q��}�Z�K��z�:u�;K6pe�������RI������CB2�C��ά|DF�;"��p���N������ϗ��|�.���~�?���~��ߟ���O���? This is understandable – statues fall, fees fall but curricula don’t “fall”. The statue was the flash point around which students organised themselves under the banners of #RhodesMustFall, #FeesMustFall and drove a national – later international – debate about decolonisation and structural change in universities. Decolonising the curriculum: Southern interrogations of time, place and knowledge . Four members of staff from the University of Liverpool will answer questions related to decolonising the curriculum. Decolonising the curriculum. But I found that they recur again and again. It's naïve to assume educators haven't thought about ethnocentricity and diversity in the curriculum, says David Russell. This is commonly referred to as the colonisation of the curriculum. It is highly plausible that such a connection exists, because among other things, decolonising the curriculum entails re-evaluating what counts as canonical knowledge and sound methodology, and simply also recognising all the other cultures, civilisations and knowledges that exist. Philosophy 56, no. In the 14 months since the statue was removed, there has been a great deal of debate about “decolonising the curriculum” but very little change. The extent to which academics are unaware of their “rank” and its potential harmful consequences on students will nullify everything else that’s done. On the other, it is transformative as it is about centering the voices, agency and power of Black learners, teachers, ways of knowing and cultures in learning and pedagogy. A space to share various types of articles and writings on and around the subject of decolonising the curriculum. If students’ input is valued, the overall quality of the curriculum will be strengthened. On the one hand, it is about recognizing and dismantling how coloniality shapes knowledge and academia. Pran Patel looks at the school curriculum in the UK. This challenge has received very little attention in the recent debates on “decolonising”. It is the way in which the curriculum at every point – from who gets admitted, who thrives, who survives, who fails – mirrors back the historical and current unequal distribution of educational resources in the broader society. Decolonising the Curriculum University of Johannesburg: In 2016, colleagues at the University of Johannesburg invited me to join their discussion about decolonizing the curriculum. Every member of staff need to be involved in that process, and students should be engaged with it too. In April 2015 a statue of colonialist Cecil John Rhodes was removed from the University of Cape Town’s campus in South Africa. Again, this kind of debate happens best in individual disciplines – though it can be precipitated by external events, as has been the case in Economics. Secondly, is it fit for the rapidly changing world into which graduates of these degrees move into? 216 (1981): 161-179. We understand decolonising as an on-going process that involves unravelling our assumptions about curricula, critically examining its content and forms, and imagining new ways of learning together. We’ll be collaborating with teachers Neema Begum and Rima Saini. Students argued that they need to have a voice or a say in curriculum matters that affect them. Leading universities around the world and in some cases entire national systems are courageously revamping their undergraduate curricula to address these changes of demography and the future world of work. "The question of African philosophy." 14:50 – 15:30 Decolonising Research and Academic Skills – Sara Ewing (Goldsmiths, University of London) 15.30 – 15.40 Tea break 15.40 – 16.40 Lightning Talks 2 The curriculum – and particularly its assessment systems – serve to reproduce society’s broader inequalities. An award that celebrates groups that have been actively promoting equality, diversity and inclusivity through their projects. Current reading lists (largely including my own) suggest this is predominantly restricted to white, Western men. Americans never tire of tales in which their freedom-loving forefathers took a stand against British tyranny and asserted their right to independence. For this reason, one could argue that this is the most important item on the agenda. He makes a useful distinction between inserting these new inputs into an existing largely unchanged curriculum versus a more radical rethinking of how the subject is taught. 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