Citizenship Education and Embodied ways of Knowing: What can be learned from the voices of Ghanaian youth in schooling and education?

This article examines Ghanaian youth voices about issues of personal and moral character development through the teachings of local embodied ways of knowing and how such ways of knowing further inform our understanding of discipline and the socialization of Ghanaian youth to become responsible citizens.  We briefly explore the theoretical and methodological underpinnings of researching moral character development, the question of discipline and the relations to youth and citizenship responsibilities through youth voices. We argue youth voices show complex understandings of embodied ways of knowing relating to questions of citizenry, discipline, character, moral, and respect.  The paper hence offers insights toward reforms needed in educational delivery (teaching, learning and instruction), as well as values of education to address the question of youth voice, decolonization, discipline, and embodied ways of knowing, so as to enhance the possibilities of coming to know citizenry, character, moral and community

Reframing anti-colonial theory for the diasporic context

In teaching and dialoguing with students and colleagues we have on a number of occasions had to grapple with questions such as: What is the ‘anti-colonial’? How is this different from a ‘post-colonial’ approach? And how are we to articulate an anti-colonial prism as a way of thinking and making sense of current colonial relations and procedures of colonization? These are tough questions complicated by the apparent mainstream privileging and intellectual affection for the “post-colonial” over “anti-colonial”. This paper is purposively written to provoke a debate as a contestation of ideas of the current ‘post’ context. We are calling for a nuanced reading of what constitutes an intellectual subversive politics in the ongoing project of decolonization for both colonized and dominant bodies. We ask our readers to consider the possibilities of a counter theoretical narrative or conception of the present in ways that make theoretical sense of the everyday world of the colonized, racialized, oppressed and the Indigene. We bring a politicized reading to the present as a moment of practice, to claim and reclaim our understandings of identity in the present with implications for how we theorise a Diasporic identity. We challenge the intellectual seduction to equally flatten notions of identity and relations as simply fluid, in flux or something to be complicated/contested. We believe there is something that must not be lost in reclaiming past powerful notions regarding particularly the marginalized understandings of their identities for the present. Thus we revive anti-colonial discourse, building on early anticolonial thinking and practice. We are bringing a particular reading of the ‘colonial’ that is relevant to the present in which both nations, states and communities, as well as bodies and identities are engaged as still colonized and resisting the colonial encounter.peer-reviewe

Beyond the Rhetoric: Moving from Exclusion, Reaching for Inclusion in Canadian Schools

This article is informed by the findings of a three-year research study in Ontario schools in order to understand the factors and forces that make for students' engagement and disengagement in schools. Although research has sought to understand the processes that contribute to some students feeling a sense of marginality and disconnectedness in their schools, we have also paid attention to exemplary practices of inclusive schooling in educational settings. Specifically, in this article we examine educational practices that engender exclusion or inclusion, particularly of racially marginalized students in Euro-American or Canadian contexts. We develop an analysis that uncovers the connection between "inclusionary and exclusionary" practices of schooling. "Inclusivity" moves beyond mere classroom presence of minorities or superficial attempts at multiculturalism: students may feel disempowered and therefore excluded as far as actual classroom practices are concerned (e.g., teaching, sharing knowledge). Moving from exclusion means identifying students' own narrative accounts of marginality and subordination that result in feeling left out. Reading for inclusion means interrogating strategies initiated by schools, students, educators, parents, and local communities to counteract the marginalization of disadvantaged and racial minority youths. Our aim in this article is to use available research information to encourage the wider application of effective inclusive practices to improve learning outcomes for all youth.Cet article repose sur les résultats d'une étude qui s'est déroulée sur trois ans dans des écoles en Ontario et qui avait comme objectif de comprendre les facteurs et les enjeux qui font en sorte que les étudiants sont impliqués ou pas dans leur école. Alors que les chercheurs ont tenté de saisir les processus qui contribuent au sentiment qu'ont certains étudiants d'être marginalisés et désengagés dans leur école, ils ont également porté leur attention sur les pratiques exemplaires d'écoles intégratrices dans des milieux pédagogiques. Plus précisément, dans cet article, les auteurs se penchent sur les pratiques pédagogiques qui créent l'exclusion ou l'inclusion, notamment d'étudiants marginalisés en cause de leur race dans des contextes euroaméricain ou canadien. Ils poursuivent une analyse qui révèle le lien entre des pratiques d'enseignement "inclusifs" et ceux qui sont "exclusifs". L'inclusivité va au-delà de la simple présence en salle de classe de minorités ou des démarches superficielles tendant vers le multiculturalisme qui peuvent laisser les étudiants avec le sentiment d'être tenus à l'écart du pouvoir et donc exclus quant aux pratiques en salle de classe (par exemple, l'enseignement, le partage de connaissances). Pour mettre fin à l'exclusion, il faut tenir compte des récits descriptifs que font les étudiants de leur marginalité et de leur subordination, ainsi que des sentiments d'être exclus qui en résultent. Pour encourager l'inclusion, il faut analyser les stratégies mises de l'avant par les écoles, les étudiants, les enseignants, les parents et les communautés pour faire contrepoids à la marginalisation des jeunes qui sont défavorisés ou membres d'une minorité ethnique. Le but des auteurs est de profiter des résultats de recherches pour encourager une application plus répandue de démarches efficaces d'inclusion et améliorer l'apprentissage de tous les jeunes

School Reforms in Ontario: The "Marketization of Education" and the Resulting Silence on Equity

Market dynamics have begun to entrench themselves in educational systems around the world. Although this phenomenon has been addressed in several recent writings (Ball, 1993; Dehli, 1996; Gerwitz, Ball, & Bowe, 1995; Kenway, 1993; Robertson, 1995), few have incorporated a critical antiracist framework. As noted by Dehli (1996) the encroachment of market forms, relations, and concepts into educational sites usually results in the marginalization and muting of other dimensions of schooling. Using an integrative antiracist perspective that is informed by the findings of an ongoing study of inclusive schooling in Ontario (Dei et al, 1996), this article critically examines these ongoing reforms in a Canadian context, specifically in relation to the recent reforms in Ontario's educational system. We draw on knowledge about race and difference to argue for serious questioning of these reforms and their impact on socially disadvantaged groups. In doing so, the article asserts that current trends are leading toward the " Marketisation of education" (Ball, 1993; Gerwitz et al., 1995; Kenway, 1993) in Ontario, and that the harmful consequences of this shift will be felt most severely in relation to issues of equity and access in education. Through the rhetoric of cost-effectiveness and bureaucratic efficiency, the "official" agenda for educational change shifts focus away from equity considerations in schooling to those of capital, market forces, and big business. The article interrogates the rhetoric of reform and calls for equity to be placed at the centre of educational change. In conclusion we suggest new ways of examining and addressing genuine educational options in Canadian contexts.La dynamique de marché a commencé à s'inscrire dans les systèmes d'éducation de par le monde. Alors qu'on a beaucoup écrit sur ce phénomène récemment (Bail, 1993; Dehli, 1996; Gerwitz, Bail, & Bowe, 1995; Kenway, 1993; Robertson, 1995), peu d'auteurs ont incorporé un cadre de travail antiraciste dans leur analyse. Comme Dehli (1996) l'a noté, l'empiétement des formes, des relations et des concepts du marché sur les sites éducationnels entraîne habituellement la marginalisation et la mise à l'écart d'autres dimensions de la scolarité. Adoptant une perspective antiraciste integrative reposant sur les résultats d'une étude continue de l'école inclusive en Ontario (Dei et al, 1996), cet article étudie d'un oeil critique les réformes en cours dans un contexte canadien, plus particulièrement par rapport aux réformes récentes dans le système d'éducation en Ontario. Nous puisons dans des connaissances sur la race et les différences pour appuyer nos arguments qui proposent une sérieuse remise en question de ces réformes et leur impact sur les groupes socialement défavorisés. Nous affirmons ainsi que les tendances actuelles mènent à la "Commercialisation de l'éducation" (Bail, 1993; Gerwitz et al, 1995; Kenway, 1993) en Ontario, et que les conséquences néfastes de ce changement se feront surtout sentir dans les questions d'équité et d'accès en matière d'éducation. Par le biais du discours sur la rentabilisation et l'efficacité administrative, les projets "officiels"/l'agenda officiel visant aux cliangements pédagogiques se distancienl des considérations d'équité pour se rapprocher de celles gouvernées par le capital, les forces du marché et les grandes entreprises. Cet article remet en question le discours des réformes et propose que l'équité constitue la base sur laquelle les changements pédagogiques seront formulés. La conclusion présente de nouvelles façons d'aborder et d'étudier les options réelles en matière d'éducation dans divers contextes canadiens

Examination of Traditional Medicine and Herbal Pharmacology and the Implications for Teaching and Education: A Ghanaian Case Study

This article presents the preliminary findings of a pilot study of the practice, uses, and effectiveness of traditional medicine in Ghana. Based on in-depth interviews with local key practitioners and users of traditional medicine, the article points to some of the educational significance of local cultural knowledge on the environment and the relevance of such knowledge for science education in Ghana. In the discussion the authors briefly highlight general themes relating to local understandings of traditional medicine, the distinctions between traditional and plant medicine, contestations between traditional medicine and orthodox medicine, local conceptions of health and a healthy individual, the economics of health, and the lessons of science and public education. Although the findings of the study are preliminary, the article argues that much is to be gained for educational purposes through the critical study of traditional medicine, particularly in terms of the promotion of science and community education in Ghana

Integrating Local Cultural Knowledge as Formal and Informal Education for Young African Learners: A Ghanian Case Study

This paper is about schooling, education and socialization in Africa with a focus on the pedagogic and instructional relevance of local cultural resource knowledge such as the teachings of Indigenous proverbs. Using Ghanaian case material, the paper examines how Indigenous cultural knowledges inform the education and socialization of youth and suggest ways for rethinking schooling and education in African contexts. Among the teachings of Indigenous proverbs highlighted are knowings about self and community, development of self-worth and character, importance of social discipline and collective social responsibility. The discussion also addresses the challenges of integrating local cultural knowledges as part of the formal education of young learners. Cet article cherche à comprendre les processus de scolarité, d‘éducation et de socialisation en Afrique en se concentrant spécialement sur la pédagogie des connaissances culturelles locales telles que l‘enseignement des proverbes autochtones. Cet article examine comment les connaissances culturelles locales informent l‘éducation et les processus de socialisation des jeunes et suggère de ce fait une remise en question de la scolarité et de l‘éducation dans les contextes africains. Parmi les proverbes autochtones enseignés, certains font référence au développement personnel du soi et à la notion de communauté, à l‘amour propre et à la dignité, à l‘importance de la discipline sociale et à la responsabilité collective sociale. En conclusion, cet article discute également des défis auxquels il faut faire face quand il est question d‘intégrer les connaissances culturelles locales dans la formation officielle des jeunes apprenants

Cosmopolitanism or Multiculturalism? Towards an Anti-Colonial Reading

Using Multiculturalism as an entry point, the paper interrogates conventional ideas and themes of Cosmopolitanism from an anti-racist and anti-colonial read. The discussion is informed by how the anti-racist and anti-colonial lens has shaped an understanding of multiculturalism and its convergences and divergences with Cosmopolitanism. My goal is to advance a rethinking' cosmopolitanism' from an Indigenist anti-colonial democratic lens highlighting a philosophy of educational practice geared towards new educational futurities for particularly [but not exclusively] Black, Indigenous and racialized bodies in the school system. It is argued that cosmopolitanism is about Land and relationships. This offers possibilities of learning from the ‘geographies of schooling’. The pedagogies of the Land, for example, require examining the narratives and encounters taking place in these 'geographies of schooling' to unravel colonial structures of education and ways we validate contending or competing for multiple knowledges for decolonizing and anti-colonizing education. In the context of the cosmopolitan, institutions like schools, as carceral projects, must acknowledge that anti-Black racism is ‘pervasive throughout the system’ and not simply assert rhetorically that 'anti-Black racism has no place in our school'! Critical educators in their practice of teaching training and preparation, must be able to name institutional silences, erasures, negligence, and complicities around race, anti-Black racism, and Indigeneity in order to create inclusive learning communities and schools as ‘working communities’

Dei, George J. Sefa, Revisiting the Question of the Indigenous, pp 291-309 in Joao M Paraskeva and Shirley R. Steinberg, eds., Curriculum: Decanonizing the Field. New York: Peter Lang, 2016.

Challenges the notion of universal knowledge as a basis for curriculum content; makes the case for incorporating a variety of indigenous knowledges into the curriculum; posits an indigenous discursive framework

Un panorama histórico de la aplicación del concepto de raza en la práctica social

 Traducción del artículo “An Historical Overview of the Applicaction of the Race Concept in Social Practice”. En: Agnes Calliste y George J. Sefa Dei, eds. Anti-racist Feminism. Critical Race and Gender Studies. Canada: Fernwood, 2000.Traducción por Gabriela Castellanos, autorizada por Fernwood Publishing, Halifax, Canadá