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Education as the Practice of Freedom? : Troubling spaces in the Neoliberal University
112th Annual Meeting of the Association of American Geographers
San Francisco, CA
March 29 – April 2, 2016
Session Organizers: Erin Sanders-McDonagh (Middlesex University, UK) Carole Davis (Middlesex University, UK), Danielle Hidalgo (California State University, Chico), Rodolfo Leyva (Middlesex University)
In her groundbreaking feminist pedagogic text, Teaching to Transgress, bell hooks tells us that her experiences of the feminist classroom – as a space where she as a student could raise critical questions about pedagogic approaches and challenge teaching practices – was an important step in her own understanding of education as a practice of freedom. She maintains that the ‘small acceptance [from teachers] of critical interrogation was a crucial challenge inviting us as students to think seriously about pedagogy in relation to the practice of freedom’ (hooks, 1994:6). In Teaching to Transgress, hooks offers new ways to think about radical ‘engaged’ pedagogies and highlights the importance of teachers who are able to transform curriculums by taking risks – often by initiating difficult conversations about gender, race and class, and allowing space for dialogue and discussion. hooks argues that opening up pedagogic spaces and taking risks facilitates meaningful and transformative learning, ultimately making teaching a practice of resistance.
In the contemporary Neoliberal University, and in direct conflict with transformative curriculums and pedagogies that require students to engage with difficult subjects or challenging issues, professors are being increasingly pushed towards sanitizing curricula as part of broader managerial strategies aimed at improving satisfaction ratings and corresponding enrolment figures in order to stay competitive in the higher education market. There is a concern amongst many academics that these managerial strategies will result in the curtailment of academic freedom, as administrators increasingly police classrooms to ensure that 'safe spaces' are being created. In some cases this has resulted in professors in the US and UK being reprimanded or even fired for not creating a safe enough classroom. Additionally, as a result of the increased administrative monitoring, key topics that we can frame as highly provocative (e.g. pornography, FGM, abortion, terrorism), may be watered down, if not left out of the curriculum altogether. Indeed, there is a rise in reports of professors being asked by administrators to provide 'trigger warnings' when covering sensitive topics, or to avoid certain topics altogether. However, discussing difficult topics requires some degree of risk and discomfort - engaged pedagogic approaches encourage debate and disagreement and it often through these uncomfortable emotions that transformation and meaningful learning takes place.
Inspired by the works of Paulo Friere and bell hooks, who provide radical and engaged approaches that challenge the status quo and seek to empower and transform students - this session invites papers that consider the ways in which the curtailment of academic freedom and the increasing management of ‘safe spaces’ are impacting on teaching practices, student engagement and learning experiences for educators within Higher Education. We are interested in papers that consider how educators are practically managing teaching ‘difficult’ topics within the Neoliberal University, and in exploring student reactions to different pedagogic approaches in different contexts.
We invite proposals that engage with a variety of topics, both theoretical and empirically-focussed. Possible questions for exploration might include, but are certainly not limited to, the following:
1) To what extent does the Neoliberal University allow for spaces of transgression in relation to teaching ‘difficult’ subjects or using ‘transgressive’ pedagogies (e.g. radical/critical/feminist)?
2) Can students in the Neoliberal University still be empowered and inspired? How do critical/feminist/intersectional pedagogic approaches in classroom spaces impact student experiences in the Neoliberal University?
3) What challenges do educators face when teaching on topics that might cause tension for students (e.g. issues related to sex/sexuality, race, religion, femininities/masculinities – or ‘hot topics’ such as abortion, sex work, pornography, terrorism)?
4) What impact does the increased policing and monitoring of learning environments have on students or educators?
5) How do educators create new spaces to introduce ‘difficult' ideas? (e.g. social media platforms– can social media or online platforms offer alternative ways of engaging students around ‘difficult issues’?
6) Are there modes of assessment or specific teaching/pedagogic tools that can be used to facilitate more transformative learning?
If you would like to participate please send a 250 word abstract by Friday October 23rd to [log in to unmask]
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