Decolonization by

Prompt

alyssalyons1 — 2023-09-26 17:58:09 UTC

For this week's prompt, choose one of the following questions to respond to (and be sure to include at least two readings to support your response from this unit).

1. Debate whether it is possible to decolonize education. Please remember that the premise is that formal education as we know it is directly traceable to settler colonialism.

2. Explore and imagine what a decolonized education might look like. This can be a decolonized classroom or even a decolonized school (or no school at all!)

Ana Maria Morel Diallo

2023-10-15 15:55:28 UTC

I chose to respond to question one.
No it is impossible to decolonize education because the education system is formatted in a way that member's of a board assign a specific curriculum to be follow among schools throughout the United States. Even though teachers are allowed to teach it in ways they feel that they can have their students understand it, it's still part of the history of settler colonialism. In the article "Decolonization is not a metaphor", stated that any form of using the term decolonization without the repatriation of indigenous land and life isn't the work decolonization. Which is the same as the education being taught to students about a certain history of someone native land or native history being told what the person wants them to hear and understand. It can be actually facts or false information from the person. How would you know the length of the truth of the information if you don't fully know the truth. For instance, we know about history based on what was told to us in school or by our family that has experience in their life growing up. This article is a good example of how it is directly traceable to settler colonialism because of the invasion of the native lands. and the education that was forced for them to forget their native language. In the article, "Decolonizing the Classroom: Lessons in Multicultural Education", is an example of the banking method, which is depositing' information into students rather than drawing out knowledge from individual students or creating inquisitive beings with a thirst for knowledge. Due to the fact the author is the student that comes from the country and has experienced the proper way of saying the word Liechee, Mr. Anderson the teacher wasn't acknowledging it. Due to the fact that Mr. Anderson has been to China and was the teacher it was his way and no other way to pronounce the word. As the students in Mr. Anderson's class were always on the outside looking in, he and the textbooks were the sole authorities.

Decolonization of Education - Justin Briones

2023-10-16 23:51:01 UTC

In my perspective and based on the readings, I do not believe that it is possible to decolonize education. Through this statement I will use America as an example. American education has a habit of glossing over certain chapters of their history, especially their conquest of the land that Indigenous people once held. In this aspect they do not even uphold the belief of any repatriation towards the people. "Decolonization is not a metaphor," gives a significant example of how repatriation is not even considered as a way of either addressing or acknowledging a settler's conquest of land. Without repatriation there is no decolonization. Due to the nature of settlers, the control of education and historical context is in question. The United States has designed their education system not only to stress more control over the populace, but also misleads us into believing that the, "American Way," is just and good. Another example of how education cannot be decolonized is through the article, "Decolonizing the Classroom: Lessons in Multicultural Education." There are often teachers who have difficulty discerning education from their own belief or perspective of a culture. In this case, the author discusses their teacher Mr. Anderson and his perspective on the Chinese culture's pronunciation of lychee. In the article it is described that the professor who was white, did not want to hear the actual pronunciation of lychee and instead made it seem his way is the right way despite the student having a direct culture towards the lychee fruit. In order to decolonize a classroom, teachers themselves have hold the idea that they themselves are still students and when hearing history of another's culture they need to listen. This is not the case with most American classrooms, who instead incorporate a, "all-knowing," ideology of education. Education as a whole is taught through bias lenses depending on the subject at hand. History and culture, depending on if the educator has spent time in the country that is being taught, will have both a more open-minded curriculum, rather than close-minded one of those who learned from an American made textbook. Regardless, circumstances towards decolonization are not something that America is looking towards as a serious factor despite the cries of reformation of education. Instead, America still follows the archaic ways of expansion.

Donell Moss-Padlet 5

2023-10-17 00:45:38 UTC

My response to question 1 is that it is possible to decoloninize education, it happens in several of events. Look at today's society , from then til now education used to be taking serious within a household to the first step in a public school building. even in the recent film ( A Rabbit's foot ) it showed a lot of decolonization. white people kidnap people from there own native family in order to brian washed them in order to make put of their colonialism, which is similar to a saying divide and conquer. An another article that represents is ( Decolonizing the classroom: lessons of multicultural education ) it was stating that her teacher was de-valuing her as a student and telling her that she was pronouncing the fruit word lychee wrong but this whole time she was actually pronouncing how she was taught and raised. I had to get my real multicultural education on the down low, outside of classes like Mr. Anderson’s. I went to Garfield High School, located in Seattle’s historically African American neighborhood, the Central District. Garfield has been known for many years as Seattle’s “black high school,” and back in the 1970s there was a strong Black Panther Party presence both in the neighborhood and in the school itself. Garfield, always a basketball powerhouse, also boasts a rich connection to African American culture and music, with names like Quincy Jones and Jimi Hendrix still haunting the hallways.

For my response to question 2, decolonized education is when a classroom is separated by race and also stripped from their nationalities, culture and also stripped from there identification. trying to brain wash them into somebody their not especially forcing them to learn about a language or another way that deems normality. basically , wiping off a race and starting a new one which is basically divide and conquer.

Decolonization of Education

anthonyphillips570 — 2023-10-18 16:21:08 UTC

It is hard to say if something that is in place that proves to be inefficient for citizens as education has and the whole construction of it. I would like to look at it like viewing the college vote; what is it and who finally decides. I would like to say you can re-structure a failed system with a new and vibrant one the one in which we are striving to improve today and if that could be accomplished? I feel you can remove it from the system as we know it. Some people have been successful in whitewashing their heritage and that is and was a big feat to be done. Now, we may not be able to put black into anyone, but we can remove a bad educational model with a new one that generations would never think came from colonial settlers as we do today. If today we are witness to gender change, LGBTQ, and intersectionality agenda's that are all replacing a system we once knew so I believe we can hey the mountaintop will not look the same for us all in the future.

Eliana Martinez Padlet 5

2023-10-18 23:35:06 UTC

I think it is possible to decolonize education, but it would be very difficult and it would require lots of reform everywhere else. I think it is just harder to do. Not only would it require history to be taught in a different point of view than what it normally is. In "The Wrecthed Earth", it was mentioned that decolonization would be "violent", which is a perfect description of this statement. I agree that is would be violent because any time someone in power is in a position to lose it, there is usually lots of pushback. I still believe it is possible, it would just require more effort.

Nicole Carter

2023-10-21 04:06:54 UTC

When I think of decolonize education, I think of a person walking around the world blind folded without a clue of where they are going. I think it possible but not really ethical. Decolonizing education means changing the known, usually people are not receptive to change. I think since the end of time, people have followed routines and habits from prior generations. Yes, things will change with time but not as much as if you really decolonize or enforce new education settings. People are usually creatures of habit. I think when people start putting education into their own hands that when Havick begins. In the movie follow the rabbit proof fence is a prime example of decolonized education that went wrong. Here were these innocent tribe children being took from their land to be taught what the white man thought was a better way of learning, but what really made it a better way of learning. I pretty sure the children would have learned just fine in their original homeland. People have they own belief and was of learning if it has worked for centuries, why change it. Overall if you change the way people have been learning, the new might just seem like their learning a foreign language.

Teiranni

2023-10-22 13:47:27 UTC

I chose question 1. I do believe that it is possible to decolonize education. Decolonization involves reflecting on the structure of schools and the role it plays in a larger society. Will everyone be pleased? Of course not. If we look around the world around us, everything is changing. How we once saw things such as gender, what families "should" look like (a mom and dad) and so forth , has all changed. Then its possible to decolonize education. But does society want to? I think its important to understand that that decolonization is the process of undoing colonization. Its confronting and challenging the colonization practices that are still prevalent today in an educational context. Real history needs to be taught in classrooms and not leaving out important facts about others who weren't Europeans. In the article "Decolonizing the Classroom" the author spoke about how in his classroom with a certain teacher, his culture, and his experiences didn't matter. His teacher was white and in the teachers eyes, he was the superior so what he said and what the textbooks said , was correct. He didn't allow the students to share their experiences and allow for dialogue. Teaching in this matter created a classroom environment where the white students were misinformed and the students of color felt under attack. When its all said and done, curriculum is the most important aspect of decolonization of education. Decolonization education looks like validating students experiences, valuing culture in the classroom, and providing a more individualized approach rather than a one size fits all.

Decolonization; Sherman Elliott

2023-10-22 18:35:02 UTC

Decolonization education would upset the "Status Quo", what we perceive to be the :Norm". It will open the door to hypocritic criticism, structureless environments, and quite frankly a meaningless life. "Decolonialization classroom" is itself a contradictory statement. It would have an enormous trickle down effect more earth shattering than the ATOMIC BOMB, in that it'll ultimately have an enormous negative effect the stock-exchange and the world's economy, not to mention the sanctity of our Democratic government and policies.

Veronica Estefany- Decolonization o

veronicaestefany25 — 2023-11-02 02:41:27 UTC

I chose question 2, a decolonized education would be all about making learning fair and inclusive for everyone. In this type of education, we would study many different cultures and not just the ones that come from a few countries. We would also speak and learn in various languages, not just one or two. The curriculum would teach us to be fair, kind, and to stand up against racism. Learning would connect with our communities and our heritage. We would also learn important things from Indigenous peoples, like taking care of the Earth. Schools would be more flexible, and teachers and students would work together as partners. This education would also recognize the bad things that happened in history, like colonization and slavery, and try to make things better. Plus, we would learn about feelings and how to be happy and healthy. Tests would not be the most important thing; instead, we'd show what we know in different ways, and we'd learn and grow a lot.

Kevin Casado #5

2023-11-03 13:54:16 UTC

I believe that it is possible to decolonize education in practice but not in theory. In theory education means to be taught, whether it is formal school, cooking class, karate etc. However the way education is practiced and the way it manifests itself in what is known as traditional school is where it goes wrong. The system of education in NYC is bias depending on social class, location and economical status. To decolonize education would mean to attack the systems and institutions that perpetuate social class, racism, and discrimination in other forms. It is not something that is easy and it is a process that has long been started. Movements such as the Civil Rights movement and cases such as Brown vs Board of Ed. are all steps that have been taken into decolonizing education and making it more equitable. Decolonizing can turn violent such as Frantz Fanon suggests but in the fight for equity the violence has typically came from the people already in power as a way to deter the group that is trying to decolonize.

A decolonized school and class can look many different ways. In my opinion a decolonized school would be one that gives autonomy to teachers and not confine them to working in a system that is not beneficial to the kids. This does not mean that if a more "traditional" way is more efficient in a particular classroom it should be banned. Also the lessons would include more perspectives, people from all different backgrounds that contributed to history besides the typical white men.

Padlet#5

cristalaperez — 2023-11-10 09:03:23 UTC

I would like to imagine how a decolonized education might look like. When I think of a decolonized education classroom, I think of the curriculum that is being taught. In the reading Decolonizing the classroom: Lessons in Multicultural Education, we get to hear Wayne Au stories of his multicultural education. When I think of a decolonized education I also think of decolonized educators/teachers. In the reading, Mr. Anderson to me wasn't yet decolonized. When talking about different cultures, communities or diversity, he didn't want to be contradicted. To me this shows a teacher who doesn't want to learn or change. when trying to have a decolonized mind, you have to relearn and reshape what you had previously learned. This means changing and reevaluating in the process. Mr. Anderson did not want to change his way of thinking. A quote that stood out to me was " Mr. Anderson’s negative example is that multicultural education should seek to draw on the knowledge, perspectives, and voices of the actual communities being studied." This is important because if you aren't willing to learn and gain new perspectives than you're not ready to have a decolonized system. Later in the reading Wayne said that Mr. Andersons Class "miseducated" him and his class about the real world. This is because the lessons didn't really teach about true multicultural education compared to his other teacher.

In "Decolonization is not a metaphor" something that stood out to me was native American youths being taught in English only schools. When trying to decolonize education we most also decolonized the system that is run by settler colonialism. Teaching native kids in a language that isn't part of their culture tells us all we need to know about the role that settler colonialism has in education. It tells us that They aren't providing these indigenous communities a meaningful education. When trying to decolonized education, based on this reading I would start with being more inclusive to its students. Starting with having a multilingual classrooms and teachers. Hiring staff that aren't "temporary " and that would actually take the time to learn and educate themselves about the population of students that they are teaching.

Decolonization Padlet #5

estefrodriguez19 — 2023-11-27 02:15:43 UTC

When we decolonize education we are basically removing all that has been thought within the education "historical background" of subject thought throughout all these years in the system. There will be freedom for students to acquire the throne for control in what they wish to be thought, how money should be handled.

Imagine giving the authority to someone who is not educated enough in the system to take over control? It would turn into a complete distraction to other things that have to be fixed, poverty, wars, drugs...

Padlet 5- Nicole Alvarado

nicolealvarado2002 — 2023-12-19 00:24:38 UTC

In a Democratic society that glorifies liberation and individuality, there is an extensive resemblance to colonialism. It is not possible to decolonize education. America’s foundation prioritizes primitive ideologies. The education system is a facilitator for colonialist ambitions. From censoring textbooks to unilingualism, there is a systemic framework for employing extractivism. Mr. Andersons demonstrates the backlash against multicultural education. Au indicates, “As students in Mr. Anderson’s class, we were always on the outside looking in, and he and the textbooks were the sole authorities.” Essentially, the instructor instilled a biased viewpoint in students, devaluing the ethnic/racial identities of individuals. Imagine if all educators were like Mr. Anderson. Students wouldn’t be receptive to the essence of diversity. In turn, it would enable social reproduction. Bigelow’s essay asserts that language prevalent in society echoes colonialist principles. The term “pipeline” classifies students as mindless souls that need authority. Institutions operate through a power dynamic. A hierarchy that mirrors a constant need for despotism as a strategy to maintain order. Control over the curriculum to ensure students remain in a loophole of alienating cultural roots and assimilating to the American way of life.

A sketch of a decolonized school would be inclusive to every diaspora in the country. The innovative curriculum will prioritize educating students with authentic material rather than a superficial one.

sdennehy1797 — 2023-12-19 02:51:09 UTC

1) I think we are on our way to decolonize school. We are seeing more and more families choosing different types of schooling for their children because many don't like or agree with traditional schooling. It is becoming more mainstream to homeschool children. Other schooling philosophies are becoming more popular such as Waldorf and Montessori. Some families have even taken up "unschooling" which is a newer type of schooling where the child is entirely in charge of their learning. Its advertised as a new adventure every day. All of these different ways of schooling have the potential to decolonize education. All of these forms of schooling give the child and family more power over what they learn and how. Colonization is meant to keep you where you are and make you a follower.

2) I feel a decolonized education system would look more like unschooling. It would focus on children living in the "real world" by interacting with the world around them. They would be given the opportunity to learn how to care for crops and animals, see how math is helpful in everyday life, and become functioning members of society sooner but at the same time in their own way and at their own pace.

Cecilia Guzman Martinez

2023-12-22 01:48:51 UTC

In order to decolonize education we have to change many different aspect in the school system. Decolonized education must use different systems, which include respectful, rights-based and consent-based for everyone. Have an inclusive curricula and point of view on themes that does not exclude any race, religion or culture. In the article "Decolonization is not a metaphor" it talks about, "The pursuit of worker rights (and rights to work) and minoritized people’s rights in a settler colonial context can appear to be anti-capitalist, but this pursuit is nonetheless largely pro-colonial." Having someone else's culture and beliefs be put on someone else and force them to follow. That's what school in the USA are doing with kids now in days. One way we can prevent that would be having the children and family decide what is best for them to learn, and have a say in what they read and learn about in school. Some subjects tough in school could make someone feel uncomfortable or upset and that's something that we can improve. Another thing that could change could be the having no time frame work for work or school days, and make it work for everyone in school. In the article, "Let's stop using metaphors that celebrate extraction and colonialism" states, "hese word pictures reflect the world we live in, but they also confine our imaginations to what exists. And our metaphorical language can justify the unjustifiable." It is talking about the way society has effected the way people talk and communicate with one another. In school people/kids are taught how to speak and how to pronounce words and what terms are normalized in todays society for them to fit in one day. Kids should be allowed to speak the words they want and language they want to learn in. We have been tough in English classroom setting but maybe in a decolonized education world schools can be taught in languages that the kids are comfortable and speak at home.

Monay Butler

2023-12-23 12:59:20 UTC

1) No I do not think it is possible to decolonize education at this point in time. I think we have spent so many years accepting what is believed to be the traditional way of educating that it will be difficult to change what people are familiar with. Also, we live in a world were people are not receptive to change and would not be willing to accept education any way but the traditional way. In the reading "Decolonizing the Classroom: Lessons in Multicultural Education" the author Wayne Au states, "Mr. Anderson was contemptuous of student knowledge and he disregarded the importance of building from kids' lives and prior experiences." This example explains how some educators would not be will not be willing to have a decolonized classroom that creates an environment that is equal and inclusive to both the students and teachers.

Jayden Stephens

2023-12-26 22:20:16 UTC

Creating opportunities for students to share different views and opinions is a way of decolonizing education that can be done. Contrary to what many people think, multicultural education is not less rigorous but rather focuses more on critical analysis than memory. This helps in addressing the gap in knowledge left by Eurocentricism hence enabling a better understanding of history and society. Despite the fact that it faces opposition, multicultural education must be promoted because it is one of the best ways through which classrooms racism can be combated, respect can be fostered and better understanding of each other can be achieved. Allowing every teacher to take up this method will ensure a holistic learning environment for all children.