Higher Education, Decolonization and the Pursuit of Ecojustice - place for two to three PhD Candidates

Field of Research: Decoloniality and Decolonizing (Higher) Education

There are plural meanings for decolonization and decoloniality, partly varying on ones’ understanding of colonialism. Decolonial scholars assert that all forms of colonialism have resulted in the denigration and decimation of knowledge (de Sousa Santos, 2013; Mignolo, 2018; Mbembe, 2021).  Decolonization aims to redress colonial legacy in processes which are “contextual, relational, practice-based and lived” (Walsh, 2018). In education and research, it seeks to analyse, critique, and disrupt sedimented and codified colonial practices and draw from plural ideas, social practices, histories, identities, and beliefs in knowledge production in pursuit of ‘epistemic justice’. What does/would it mean for universities to be open to epistemic diversity and how does context matter? I would like to supervise theoretical- and/or empirical research that focusses on what happens when educators and learners rethink and enact decolonization of the academic curriculum and its institutional structures.  

- How are colonial legacy and decoloniality signified and enacted in (local) higher education? (could be a comparative study)

- What are key dimensions of (humanistic) pedagogies of decoloniality?

- How do university staff and - students understand (and perform) decoloniality in education and decolonizing curriculum? 

- How do decolonizing university curriculum in the Global South (choose actual context) and the Global North (choose actual context) compare?

- How does decolonial scholarship simultaneously engage with a global academic community and their local community/society?

1 external PhD candidate

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Field of Research: Humanistic Education in the Anthropocene

Independence and autonomy have been fundamental values of humanism. However, in the Anthropocene, humanists are challenged to reconsider their anthropocentrism. The ideal of the autonomous human makes way for interconnectedness in complex and entangled ecological processes (Latour, 2017) Connolly (2017) speaks of “entangled humanism”. UNESCO (2020) suggests that the current conditions require a “complete paradigm shift: from learning about the world in order to act upon it, to learning to become with the world around us.” 

The Anthropocene does not just challenge fundamental values of humanism, it also poses new questions for humanistic education. What do pedagogies that cultivate new sensitivities and generate relational opportunities to engage with life in the Anthropocene involve? Drawing on the expertise of members of our Department, we are interested in supervising theoretical and/or empirical research that focuses on education and pedagogy in the Anthropocene, with particular attention to its implications for humanistic education.

- How are notions of humanism and flourishing shifting in the Anthropocene and how do ideals of interconnectedness and interdependency relate to humanistic values in Education?  

- What forms of moral and citizenship education would best equip students to flourish in the Anthropocene?

- How are Anthropocentric challenges conceptualized and acted upon by teachers and learners in (higher) (humanistic) education, and what barriers and opportunities do they identity in transitioning to Anthropocene-centred teaching and learning?   

- How do transdisciplinary collaborations between art, science and lived experiences in education (Latour’s Ateliers for example) (aim to) foster new ways of learning in the Anthropocene?

1 external PhD candidate

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Field of Research: Well-being through Educational Technologies  

Latest innovations in technology, especially deep learning, emotional and generative AI, are being seen as highly influential tools for human well-being. On the hand they hold the promise of deeper immersion, personalized, adaptive learning, and emotional regulation. On the other hand, research has shown technology to be detrimental for human well-being, with dangers ranging from physical inactivity, emotional isolation, to attention and sleep disorders and even addition. The aim of this project is to investigate how technologies can be imagined to meet the goals of well-being. A key aim is to explore empirical encounters between technology and well-being such as in the use of wrist bands that monitor moods and heart-rates, affective tutoring systems within schools or other such interfaces.    

What possibilities of flourishing, care, and inclusion are created via technology and digital mediums? How does digital media, that relies primarily on quantification of human experience, interact with the pursuit of meaningful education? What, if at all, are the affordances for community, relationality, and social ethics in the pursuits of well-being via digital media? 

1 external PhD candidate

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