Tebeje Molla
Deakin University, School of Education, Faculty Member
- Deakin University, Research for Educational Impact, Faculty Memberadd
- Social Justice in Education, Political economy of higher education, Sociology of Knowledge, Critical Discourse Analysis, Development Studies, Psychoanalysis, and 121 moreCapability Approach, Critical Theory, Neoliberalism, Sociology of Education, Ethiopia, Higher Education Policy, Policy Analysis/Policy Studies, Bourdieu, Sociology, Higher Education, Qualitative Research, Social Justice, Knowledge Economy, Critical Race Theory, Philosophy, History, Political Science, Social Sciences, Artificial Intelligence, Public Policy, Ethics, Political Philosophy, Research Methodology, Critical Realism, Women and Gender Studies, Ethiopian Studies, Poverty Reduction Strategies, World Bank, Employability, Australia, TAFE, Black African and Refugee Issues, Transformative Learning, Refugee Studies, Social Capital, Cultural Capital, Early Childhood Education, Teachers' professional development, African Diaspora, Student equity in Higher education, Educational Inequality, Frame Analysis, Teachers Practices, professional recognition, Teacher Research, Doctoral education, Industry 4.0, The Fourth Industrial Revolution, Interpretive policy analysis, Policy Sociology, Public Policy Analysis, Education Policy, Adult Education, Lifelong Learning, Recognition of Prior Learning, Phenomenology, Teacher Education, Historical Thinking, Knowledge intensive Development, Symbolic Power, Pierre Bourdieu and symbolic violence, Gender, Policy Process, Inequality, Neoliberal Policy Agenda, Research Capacity Building, Equity and Social Justice in Higher Education, Human Development, Critical Frame Analysis, Ghana, Pierre Bourdieu, Metaphor, Sub-Saharan Africa, African Union, Mentoring, Professional Learning Community, Teacher professional development, Pre-service Teacher Confidence, Educational Equity and Justice, Sociology of Professions, Professionalization, Languages and Linguistics, Globalization, Teaching of Foreign Languages, Professional Learning, School Leadership, Race and Racism, Educational Inequalities (class; race; gender etc), Australian Education Policy, Gender Studies, Doctoral graduate employability, Professionalism, Deliberation, Critical Reflection, Elitism, Meritocracy, Social Inequality, Education (Social Policy), International Development, Ethnicity, Educational Measurement and Evaluation; Academic Achievement, Habitus, Race and Ethnicity, Secondary Education, Mobility, Elites, Refugee Education, Education Reform, Social Imaginaries, Culturally Responsive Teaching and Learning, Australian Studies, Racial and ethnic discrimination, Moral Panic, Othering, African Migrations, Social Inclusion, Cultural Heritage, Refugees and Forced Migration Studies, Ethnic and Racial Studies, Anti-Racism, and Race and Educationedit
- Tebeje Molla is an educational sociologist. His research focuses on understanding (a) educational inequality and poli... moreTebeje Molla is an educational sociologist. His research focuses on understanding (a) educational inequality and policy responses, (b) transnational education policy processes, (c) education and human development, and (d) research graduate employability.edit
In the last four decades, Australia has resettled thousands of African refugees. As a visibly different minoritised group, Black African youth are often represented as disengaged, dangerous, and undesirable. Even so, rarely are generative... more
In the last four decades, Australia has resettled thousands of African refugees. As a visibly different minoritised group, Black African youth are often represented as disengaged, dangerous, and undesirable. Even so, rarely are generative mechanisms that negatively affect the life-courses of the youth critically examined. Drawing on a wide range of theoretical resources, policy reviews, longitudinal statistical data, and in-depth interviews, this book reports on the educational attainment and integration outcomes of African heritage Australian youth from refugee backgrounds. The book also identifies intersectional factors of educational disadvantage, analyses equity provisions, and outlines policy ideas for improved educational attainment and integration of refugee youth. It is unique in its scope and focus and contributes to knowledge in African Australian studies.
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This book focuses on higher education in Ethiopia, analysing persisting inequalities and policy responses against the backdrop of the extensive expansion and reform that the system has experienced in recent years. Drawing on empirical... more
This book focuses on higher education in Ethiopia, analysing persisting inequalities and policy responses against the backdrop of the extensive expansion and reform that the system has experienced in recent years. Drawing on empirical data generated through interviews, policy reviews and focus-group discussions, it explicates factors of structural inequality ranging from neoliberal policy orientations to repressive gender culture and geo-political peripherality.
In a departure from conventional studies that consider policy a response to social problems, the book takes a critical perspective to show the constitutive role of policy, and explains how the representation of the problem of social inequality undermines equity policy outcomes in Ethiopian higher education. Not only does the book problematise the framing of the problem of inequality in the system, it also outlines strategies for designing transformative equity instruments. In explaining structural factors of inequality and equity provisions, the book productively combines sociological concepts with historical accounts and political economy insights.
Given the increased economic optimism associated with higher education in sub-Saharan Africa and the neoliberal ideals underpinning much of the restructuring of the system in the region, this is a timely and important contribution that sheds light on the social justice implications and consequences of such changes. It offers fresh accounts of largely neglected qualitative cases of inequality, making it a valuable read for students and researchers in the areas of Ethiopian education policy studies, international and comparative education, and international development.
In a departure from conventional studies that consider policy a response to social problems, the book takes a critical perspective to show the constitutive role of policy, and explains how the representation of the problem of social inequality undermines equity policy outcomes in Ethiopian higher education. Not only does the book problematise the framing of the problem of inequality in the system, it also outlines strategies for designing transformative equity instruments. In explaining structural factors of inequality and equity provisions, the book productively combines sociological concepts with historical accounts and political economy insights.
Given the increased economic optimism associated with higher education in sub-Saharan Africa and the neoliberal ideals underpinning much of the restructuring of the system in the region, this is a timely and important contribution that sheds light on the social justice implications and consequences of such changes. It offers fresh accounts of largely neglected qualitative cases of inequality, making it a valuable read for students and researchers in the areas of Ethiopian education policy studies, international and comparative education, and international development.
Research Interests: International Development, Higher Education, Ethiopian Studies, Education (Social Policy), Capability Approach, and 8 morePierre Bourdieu, Ethiopia, Public Policy Analysis, Comparative and International Development Education, Social Inequality, Educational Inequality, Gender inequality, and Critical Policy Analysis In Education
This paper presents findings from a study investigating the engagement of migrant and refugee parents in supporting the distance education of their children amidst the Covid-19 lockdowns in Australia. While existing research has... more
This paper presents findings from a study investigating the engagement of migrant and refugee parents in supporting the distance education of their children amidst the Covid-19 lockdowns in Australia. While existing research has extensively addressed challenges within online education during the Covid-19 pandemic, there is a dearth of research examining the opportunities afforded to migrant and refugee parents. In pursuit of this, 20 migrant and refugee parents participated in individual interviews as part of the data collection process. The transcribed data underwent thematic analysis, drawing on the frameworks proposed by Foucault (1972, 1975, 1982) and Deleuze (2001), to scrutinise how the imposed structure of lockdowns has informed parents' educational and social opportunities. The findings suggest that parents' opportunities encompass improving their English language skills, helping their children to develop their mother tongue skills, familiarising themselves with school subjects, understanding how the education system works in Australia and strengthening their knowledge about improving their relationships with their children. The paper also discusses how the education system can prepare parents to educate their children more effectively in the future, while their education can promise a more inclusive education system.
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Este artigo reflete sobre o que significa fazer sociologia crítica das políticas na mudança de contextos teóricos, empíricos e metodológicos da educação. Concentramos nossas lentes analíticas em duas considerações principais. Em primeiro... more
Este artigo reflete sobre o que significa fazer sociologia crítica das políticas na mudança de contextos teóricos, empíricos e metodológicos da educação. Concentramos nossas lentes analíticas em duas considerações principais. Em primeiro lugar, refletimos sobre a política da criticidade, examinando
diferentes afirmações e debates sobre o que significa fazer pesquisa crítica e ser um pesquisador crítico da política educacional, prestando atenção especial a como os sociólogos das políticas posicionam seu trabalho
em relação ao poder da elite e às redes de políticas. Em segundo lugar, apoiamo-nos sobre essas bases para considerar a tendência de pesquisar mobilidades dentro da sociologia crítica das políticas, de modo a
argumentar que a pesquisa “siga a política” contemporânea corre o risco de orientar os pesquisadores para os problemas e as agendas já estabelecidas por agentes políticos de elite e organizações, enquanto obscurece
as forças não tão móveis que continuam a definir as políticas e as práticas educacionais. Também levantamos questões sobre as redes de elite e os níveis privilegiados de recursos normalmente necessários para conduzir
esse tipo de pesquisa. Em conclusão, convidamos a uma discussão mais aprofundada sobre a política de produção de conhecimento e os desafios para os sociólogos das políticas que buscam ser críticos em contextos de mudança.
diferentes afirmações e debates sobre o que significa fazer pesquisa crítica e ser um pesquisador crítico da política educacional, prestando atenção especial a como os sociólogos das políticas posicionam seu trabalho
em relação ao poder da elite e às redes de políticas. Em segundo lugar, apoiamo-nos sobre essas bases para considerar a tendência de pesquisar mobilidades dentro da sociologia crítica das políticas, de modo a
argumentar que a pesquisa “siga a política” contemporânea corre o risco de orientar os pesquisadores para os problemas e as agendas já estabelecidas por agentes políticos de elite e organizações, enquanto obscurece
as forças não tão móveis que continuam a definir as políticas e as práticas educacionais. Também levantamos questões sobre as redes de elite e os níveis privilegiados de recursos normalmente necessários para conduzir
esse tipo de pesquisa. Em conclusão, convidamos a uma discussão mais aprofundada sobre a política de produção de conhecimento e os desafios para os sociólogos das políticas que buscam ser críticos em contextos de mudança.
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The past decade has seen increased attention paid to the ethical complexities of educational research undertaken in sensitive or 'fragile' settings, where trauma, marginalisation and socio-political precarity are prevalent. Yet, despite... more
The past decade has seen increased attention paid to the ethical complexities of educational research undertaken in sensitive or 'fragile' settings, where trauma, marginalisation and socio-political precarity are prevalent. Yet, despite increased awareness of micro-ethical issues encountered in the field, there is limited research that engages with these issues from the perspective of higher degree research (HDR) students, and few studies that focus on supervisory practices to promote micro-ethical reflexivity. Here, we draw on interviews with HDR students and supervisors researching in the fragile context of forced migration and related settings of conflict and crisis, exploring issues of gendered violence, sexuality, cultural and linguistic marginalisation, and mental and physical well-being, to explore their experiences with micro-ethical complexities in fieldwork. We consider student and supervisor sense of preparedness to engage reflexively with micro-ethical challenges and identify key supports for navigating ethics-related dilemmas. Importantly, in exploring gaps in extant supports, we consider issues of individual, collective and institutional responsibility regarding HDR student and supervisor engagement with micro-ethics, posing key questions about duty of care for novice researchers working in fragile or sensitive contexts. K E Y W O R D S doctoral studies, ethics-in-practice, fragile contexts, micro-ethics This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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With the global increase in forcibly displaced populations, understanding and improving educational opportunities and outcomes for refugee youth is of paramount importance. This scoping review focuses on understanding the extent and... more
With the global increase in forcibly displaced populations, understanding and improving educational opportunities and outcomes for refugee youth is of paramount importance. This scoping review focuses on understanding the extent and nature of evidence related to school engagement among refugee parents and students. The review's scope was limited to peer-reviewed articles published in English between 2015 and 2023. The review reveals insights into research contexts, methodological and theoretical approaches, empirical interests, and key findings on enablers of and barriers to school engagement. Additionally, the paper identifies three significant themes requiring attention in future research: inconsistent framing of central themes, the prevalence of deficit accounts regarding refugee parents and students, and omissions concerning critical aspects of school engagement.
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With the rise of excessive nationalism in traditionally liberal democratic societies, those identified as ethnoculturally 'Other' are often seen as threats to national values and security. Responding to racial Othering requires clarity... more
With the rise of excessive nationalism in traditionally liberal democratic societies, those identified as ethnoculturally 'Other' are often seen as threats to national values and security. Responding to racial Othering requires clarity about the problem and its structural roots. The first section of this paper defines racial Othering. The second section presents the historical, politicoeconomic, socio-cultural, and psycho-cognitive roots of racial Othering. The third section of the paper names examples of anti-racist responses to racism from below. It calls for demystifying the social origins of racial categories, challenging wilful ignorance of racism, and discomforting discriminatory dispositions. In closing, the paper reiterates the key points, argues why anti-racist movements need to be galvanised, and cautions against an inflated use of racism in such activities.
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The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant educational disruption globally. When the pandemic forced schools to switch to emergency home-schooling, parental engagement in education became more critical. Some parents found home-schooling as... more
The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant educational disruption globally. When the pandemic forced schools to switch to emergency home-schooling, parental engagement in education became more critical. Some parents found home-schooling as an opportunity to form stronger relationships with their children. Others acquired an enhanced insight into their children's schoolwork. However, the emerging literature shows that, as not all parents were equally positioned to support their children's learning at home, emergency home-schooling has resulted in a significant learning loss. Guided by the concept of capital interaction, this article reports on a qualitative case study that investigated the experiences of 20 migrant parents in Victoria, Australia. A thematic analysis of the data reveals challenges associated with parental self-efficacy, financial hardship, language and technological barriers, time constraints, and disengagement and exhaustion. Remote learning may return in the future, and we must prepare for such disruption by improving equitable access to education delivered online and at home. To this end, the paper outlines some policy ideas.
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Racialised and culturally distinct refugee groups increasingly face hostilities and negative representations in countries of resettlment. The experience of African refugee youth in Australia illustrates this general trend. This paper... more
Racialised and culturally distinct refugee groups increasingly face hostilities and negative representations in countries of resettlment. The experience of African refugee youth in Australia illustrates this general trend. This paper explores how racial Othering discourse seriously undermines the group’s wellbeing. The article concentrates in particular on two aspects of relational wellbeing, the capacity to move in public without fear or shame and the ability to feel a sense of belonging to the place where one lives in. Theoretically, the paper draws together work on wellbeing from a capability approach and relational perspective with interdisciplinary literature on racial Othering. Empirically, the paper demonstrates the pervasive culture of racial Othering through media identifications of African youth with criminality and gang violence and illustrates impacts on young people’s wellbeing through data from interviews with African refugee youth. The youth’s accounts show how it feels to be a problem and what it means not to belong.
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The issues that social researchers study and policymakers address are partly determined by how they think about the world around them. Their view of the social world often depends on their position within it. What their research reveals... more
The issues that social researchers study and policymakers address are partly determined by how they think about the world around them. Their view of the social world often depends on their position within it. What their research reveals and their policies propose are, in part, a reflection of where they choose to look and how they interpret the world they identify. The result can be a myopic view of the social and a distorted explanation of how social relations work. In this paper, we argue the need to widen the aperture of the lens that social researchers and policymakers use to investigate and ameliorate educational disadvantage. In particular, in matters of education equity, beyond measuring opportunities and outcomes of target groups, we argue the need to consider the substantiveness of opportunities as well as the subjective conditions and objective contexts that mediate how people transform their resources into outcomes. Drawing on the work of both Bourdieu and Sen, we propose an expanded evaluative framework that outlines five spaces for assessing educational disadvantage: position and disposition, capital interaction, capability expansion, conversion ability, and conditioned choices.
Research Interests: Education, Education Policy, Capability Approach, Pierre Bourdieu, Equity and Social Justice in Higher Education, and 5 moreEducation of Disadvantaged Groups, Pierre Bourdieu; Forms of capital and theory of social mobility, Education of Disadvantaged Young People, CAPABILITY APPROACH AND EDUCATION, and Disadvantages
Crisis makes bold policy actions possible. In responding to socioeconomic and technological ruptures, policymakers create new imaginaries or revitalise existing ones. With the Australian Government's Job-Ready Graduates (JRG) reform... more
Crisis makes bold policy actions possible. In responding to socioeconomic and technological ruptures, policymakers create new imaginaries or revitalise existing ones. With the Australian Government's Job-Ready Graduates (JRG) reform during the COVID-19 pandemic as an empirical case, this paper shows how crisis instrumentalism and policy imaginaries intersect to effect swift policy changes. Drawing on a thematic analysis of key documents that constitute the JRG reform, we highlight three findings. First, the reformers used a new crisis context to repackage pre-existing policy agendas. Second, in justifying the timeliness of the reform, rather than constructing new imaginaries, the Government reactivated old neoliberal visions of society and the economy. Finally, the reform agendas are characterised by reductionist accounts of the value of university education, a nativist view of the future workforce, and the omissions of key issues: research training, social justice, and the urgency of decarbonising the economy. We close the paper by arguing that crisis makes swift reform possible to the extent that key actors can mobilise new or pre-existing policy imaginaries.
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While the impacts of COVID-19 on higher education are still unfolding, it is clear that the disruption caused by the pandemic has provided a warrant to re-consider existing teaching and learning practices. We provide a reading on whether... more
While the impacts of COVID-19 on higher education are still unfolding, it is clear that the disruption caused by the pandemic has provided a warrant to re-consider existing teaching and learning practices. We provide a reading on whether existing teaching and learning practices should be retained or whether new practices can and should emerge through the lens of culturally and linguistically diverse migrant and refugee (CALDMR) students. These students already experienced significant educational disadvantage before the pandemic moved teaching and learning online. Drawing on findings from an Australian study that explores the experiences of both university students and staff, we question whether these experiences offer hope for what bell hooks calls engaged pedagogy – as a form of university teaching and learning that is more caring, more student-centred and collaborative, and more exciting.
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Since the mid-1980s, Australia has resettled thousands of African refugees. This paper focuses on the racialization of youth violence and the damage it sustains on refugee-background young Africans. The discussion proceeds in two... more
Since the mid-1980s, Australia has resettled thousands of African refugees. This paper focuses on the racialization of youth violence and the damage it sustains on refugee-background young Africans. The discussion proceeds in two interrelated stages. In the first stage, to understand the representation of African youth in the public sphere, the paper reviews the relevant literature, media headlines, and political commentaries. In so doing, it establishes that the continual framing of African youth as dangerous and violence-prone by conservative politicians and media outlets amounts to racial moral panic. In the second stage, guided by narrative research methodology, a small group of young Africans were invited to reflect on their everyday life under racialized frames. Accounts of the youth are presented under four themes: the presumption of guilt, emotional ill-being, opportunity hoarding, and the permanence of otherness. It is argued that, if left unaddressed, the racialization of youth violence can diminish the integration outcomes of African youth.
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African refugee youth and young adults live at the intersections of many structural barriers, including xenophobia, racism, and misogyny. In this conceptual paper, we present considerations for education scholars who seek to conduct... more
African refugee youth and young adults live at the intersections of many structural barriers, including xenophobia, racism, and misogyny. In this conceptual paper, we present considerations for education scholars who seek to conduct research with and about African refugee postsecondary students. We start with a discussion of the discourse of Othering and racial stigma against Black-African people in high income countries. Next, we discuss the need for intersectional analysis in research by focusing on how gendered racism positions African women refugees as particularly vulnerable in higher education institutions. Then, we proceed to a discussion of how cultural heritage presents us with a counternarrative to xenophobic discourse. At each point, we present a set of critical questions that serve as a conceptual springboard for researchers that are exploring more deeply the issues that affect refugee youth and their education. Through this work, we implore researchers to engage with/in these communities in ways that are resistant to Othering.
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For forcibly displaced people, high educational attainment is economically and socially empowering. Using experiences of African refugee youth in Australia as an empirical case and drawing on the capability approach to social justice,... more
For forcibly displaced people, high educational attainment is economically and socially empowering. Using experiences of African refugee youth in Australia as an empirical case and drawing on the capability approach to social justice, this paper aims to assess the substantiveness of education opportunities of refugees. Qualitative data were generated through policy review and semi-structured interviews. The analysis shows that not only are refugees invisible in equity policies, but educational inequality is also framed homogeneously as a lack of access. The restrictive framing disregards differences in people’s ability to convert resources into valuable outcomes. Specifically, the paper identifies four overlooked factors of educational inequality among African refugee youth: early disadvantage, limited navigational capacity, adaptive preferences, and racial stereotypes. Without an expansive view of disadvantage, it is hardly possible to break the link between marginal social position and low educational attainment of refugees.
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For young people, the end of secondary school represents a critical transition point. This article aims at understanding how schools support a particular group of disadvantaged students to transition into education, training, or... more
For young people, the end of secondary school represents a critical transition point. This article aims at understanding how schools support a particular group of disadvantaged students to transition into education, training, or employment. Drawing on a life-course perspective and with refugee-background African students as an empirical focus, this qualitative case study documents career support practices in nine government schools in the State of Victoria. The findings show that schools provide transition opportunities that support African students to envision their post-school educational and career trajectories. The arrangements include career planning, alternative pathways, and employment of community engagement officers. However, there are persisting challenges that impede this group of students from fully benefiting from these arrangements. The main barriers identified here are academic disengagement, doxic aspirations, misconceptions about qualifications, and low self-efficacy. The article also argues that the persistence of these challenges is attributable at least in part to such overlooked factors of engagement as institutional practices, student agency, and home environment.
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This article reflects on what doing critical policy sociology means in shifting theoretical, empirical and methodological contexts of education. We focus our analytical lens on two primary considerations. First, we reflect on the politics... more
This article reflects on what doing critical policy sociology means in shifting theoretical, empirical and methodological contexts of education. We focus our analytical lens on two primary considerations. First, we reflect on the politics of criticality, examining differing claims and debates about what it means to do critical research and be a critical researcher of education policy, paying particular attention to how critical policy sociologists position their work in relation to elite power and policy networks. Second, we build on these foundations to consider the trend towards researching mobilities within critical policy sociology, arguing that contemporary ‘follow the policy’ research risks orienting researchers to the problems and agendas already established by elite policy agents and organisations, while obscuring the not-so-mobile forces that continue to define education policy and practice. We also raise questions about the elite networks and privileged levels of resourcing typically required to conduct this kind of research. In conclusion, we invite further discussion on the politics of knowledge production and challenges for policy sociologists seeking to be critical in shifting contexts.
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This paper presents an overview of critical policy scholarship (CPS) in education. Historically, policy research has been dominated by what is commonly referred to as the policy science tradition, which is positivist in its philosophical... more
This paper presents an overview of critical policy scholarship (CPS) in education. Historically, policy research has been dominated by what is commonly referred to as the policy science tradition, which is positivist in its philosophical stance and instrumentalist in its purpose-it focuses on producing knowledge relevant for policy decisions. However, with the rise of interpretive social inquiry in the 1970s and against the backdrop of unique political developments in the 1980s, CPS emerged as an alternative policy research perspective. This review discusses the scope and foci of CPS in education under four themes: methodological assumptions, interdisciplinary roots, enduring analytical goals, and emerging empirical contexts. Implications of the prevalence of inequality, Big Data and digital panopticon for educational policymaking and policy research are also briefly discussed. The paper concludes that although its foci of analysis have shifted considerably in the last four decades, analytical interest and tools of CPS remain largely unchanged.
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For refugees, education provides life-changing opportunities, including tools for effective social integration. This study explores higher education (HE) participation among refugee-background African youth in Australia. Drawing on policy... more
For refugees, education provides life-changing opportunities, including tools for effective social integration. This study explores higher education (HE) participation among refugee-background African youth in Australia. Drawing on policy review, national HE statistics and population census data, and using theoretical insights from critical sociology and a capability approach to social justice, the article (a) maps trends of HE participation, and (b) sheds light on policy silences and alternatives. The findings show that only one in ten refugee-background African youth (aged 18–30) transitioned to HE within the first five years of their arrival. The group also lagged well behind the general population in terms of undergraduate course completion. In light of these concerns, the article calls for expanding the educational capabilities of the refugee youth, specifically highlighting the need for policy recognition, early intervention, and substantive opportunities that can be converted into valued outcomes.
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Promoting teacher professionalisation has become a key policy agenda in Australia and internationally. Professional learning is often invoked as a means to achieve this goal. In this paper, drawing on findings of a series of studies we... more
Promoting teacher professionalisation has become a key policy agenda in Australia and internationally. Professional learning is often invoked as a means to achieve this goal. In this paper, drawing on findings of a series of studies we conducted on the topic in the Early Childhood Education and Care sector, and guided by a range of theoretical tools, we propose a three-step cyclical approach to understanding, assessing and promoting teacher professional learning. The first step introduces spaces of assessment of teacher professional functioning. The second step outlines the core elements of transformative teacher professional learning. The third step highlights two interrelated aspects of teacher professional capabilities: confidence and agency. This work has been guided by the research question: How can teacher professionalisation be understood, assessed and advanced? In closing, we briefly state the implications of the findings for policy and practice.
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National equity policy debates in education are often driven by issues of disadvantage, opportunity, and achievement. However, little is known about how a disadvantaged position mediates people’s ability to transform opportunities into... more
National equity policy debates in education are often driven by issues of disadvantage, opportunity, and achievement. However, little is known about how a disadvantaged position mediates people’s ability to transform opportunities into valuable achievements. Using African refugees in Australia as an empirical case, and drawing on a mixed method of research, this paper aims to address this knowledge gap. The main sources of data were policy documents, population census reports, and national higher education statistics. The findings highlight limitations with existing higher education equity policies in Australia and the extent to which African refugees have benefited from generic equity programs. In making sense of the data, the paper develops a new conceptual model by innovatively synthesizing the capability approach to social justice and a theory of social reproduction. The model offers an analytical lens to understand the dialectical interplay between objective contexts and subjective conditions that mediate substantive opportunity, conversion ability, and educational choice of the refugee youth.
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Measured in per capita terms, Australia has one of the most generous refugee resettlement programs in the world. This paper investigates the extent to which refugee status is recognized as a category of disadvantage in Australian higher... more
Measured in per capita terms, Australia has one of the most generous refugee resettlement programs in the world. This paper investigates the extent to which refugee status is recognized as a category of disadvantage in Australian higher education. Drawing on a scalar view of policy work and Fraser’s notion of misframing, the paper assesses the policy visibility of humanitarian entrants. It compares sectoral equity provisions with national and institutional arrangements that target refugees. The findings reveal scalar misalignments. That is, although national educational and multicultural initiatives recognize refugee status as a category of disadvantage, refugees remain hidden from the sectoral policy view. However, in translating sectoral policies, many universities have managed to maintain a balance between compliant enactment of equity strategies and responsive adjustment of equity targets. The paper also highlights instances of policy misframing – equity provisions that target refugees are characterized by issue omissions and deficit accounts. It is further argued that the convergence of scalar misalignment and policy misframing constitutes a structural factor of disadvantage that inhibits higher education participation of refugees. For Australia to fully integrate humanitarian entrants, there is an urgent need for a streamlined policy response to the educational needs and aspirations of the group.
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Drawing on the capability approach to human development and Bourdieuan reflexive sociology, this paper explores the interplay of teacher agency and professional practice. The paper names five facets of teacher agency. It shows that... more
Drawing on the capability approach to human development and Bourdieuan reflexive sociology, this paper explores the interplay of teacher agency and professional practice. The paper names five facets of teacher agency. It shows that teachers with a strong sense of agency actively seek learning opportunities—inquisitive agency; think effortfully about their beliefs and practices—deliberative agency; demand to be valued and respected for their professional work—recognitive agency; are committed to addressing educational disadvantages—responsive agency; and act ethically and make morally justifiable decisions—moral agency. Professional learning experiences that problematise practice and context of practice are proposed as an instrument for building teacher agency.
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A policy problem is a discursive construction, and the way in which the problem is framed determines both the nature of the policy responses and the possibility of resolving it. In this paper, drawing on critical frame analysis, we... more
A policy problem is a discursive construction, and the way in which the problem is framed determines both the nature of the policy responses and the possibility of resolving it. In this paper, drawing on critical frame analysis, we examined three major equity policies in the Australian early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector. In mapping out framing and reasoning devices of the policies, our analytical interest is to highlight the representation of inequality as a problem and unmask underlying assumptions of the equity responses. The findings show that disadvantage in Australia’s ECEC sector has been framed as a lack of access, limited navigational capacity and cultural exclusion; and the framings are underpinned by economic, educational and social rationales. The analysis also reveals problematic categories, issue-omissions and conceptual shifts within the texts. The paper draws practical implications of the frame contradictions and silences.
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The World Bank uses a combination of financial and non-financial aid to influence educational reform in aid-recipient countries. Drawing on an interpretive policy analysis methodology and using Pierre Bourdieu's concept of symbolic power... more
The World Bank uses a combination of financial and non-financial aid to influence educational reform in aid-recipient countries. Drawing on an interpretive policy analysis methodology and using Pierre Bourdieu's concept of symbolic power as a 'thinking tool', this article aims to shed light on the Bank's non-financial pathways of policy influence in the Ethiopian higher education policy space. Specifically, it identifies knowledge-based policy regulatory instruments of the Bank, including sector reviews, advisory activities, analytical reports and learning events. The key argument is that in order to understand the full extent of donor power in national education policy fields in sub-Saharan Africa, it is imperative to problematize less visible discursive means of policy imposition.
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The issue of continuing professional learning for educators in the early childhood education and care sector is in the spotlight in Australia due to the government's reform agenda, which seeks to professionalize the workforce. In an... more
The issue of continuing professional learning for educators in the early childhood education and care sector is in the spotlight in Australia due to the government's reform agenda, which seeks to professionalize the workforce. In an effort to ensure quality programmes are on offer for all children, educators are expected to upskill. The assumption is that quality learning opportunities for children are aligned with a more skilled and capable workforce. This is problematic due to the diversity of the early childhood education and care workforce and its ability to convert professionalization opportunities into achievements. The focus of this article is a study that problematized the alignment of professional attributes valued in the policy space and in the field of practice to understand educator agency, a key element of professional capability. Once this alignment is known, professional learning experiences can be tailored to better support the professionalization of these educators.
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Understanding the intersection of capital and capability in capabilities for education extends the informational bases to examine the conditions that give rise to educational disadvantage (or advantage) at an institutional level (e.g.... more
Understanding the intersection of capital and capability in capabilities for education extends the informational bases to examine the conditions that give rise to educational disadvantage (or advantage) at an institutional level (e.g. school systems and schools structure), and at the individual level (for example, students, teachers, and principals). As Sen envisions, capabilities for education cannot be understood unless we examine both the derivation of opportunities as well as processes of education, because student’s experiences of the processes in schools shape their perception of opportunities for education as much as the actual opportunities themselves, and how they might then pursue future opportunities.
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Access to educational opportunities is instrumental for social integration of refugee youth. This paper reports on a qualitative case study of educational aspirations and experiences of refugee-background African youth (RAY) in Melbourne,... more
Access to educational opportunities is instrumental for social integration of refugee youth. This paper reports on a qualitative case study of educational aspirations and experiences of refugee-background African youth (RAY) in Melbourne, Australia. Guided by a capability approach to social justice, in-depth interviews were conducted with two groups of RAY: those who have transitioned to higher education (HE), and those who have not transitioned to HE after completing high school. The findings show that: (a) RAY share a firm belief in the value of HE; (b) but they are differently positioned to convert opportunities into achievements – e.g. only the refugee youth with high levels of navigational capacity take advantage of the available flexible pathways to HE; (c) the stress of racism pervades the educational experiences of both groups; and (d) some African refugee youth have shown a considerable level of resilience in that, despite the challenges of racism, a history of disrupted educational trajectories and a lack of scholarly resources at home, they have transitioned to and thrived in HE. In light of these findings, the paper draws some implications for equity policies and practices.
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This paper claims a central role for school leaders (principals or head-teachers) in the enactment of social justice policy in schools, who act as key agents or ‘gate keepers’ for what counts as social justice in their contexts of... more
This paper claims a central role for school leaders (principals or head-teachers) in the enactment of social justice policy in schools, who act as key agents or ‘gate keepers’ for what counts as social justice in their contexts of practice. Social justice means different things in different contexts depending on where leaders – who use policy as an opportunity to advance what they think is achievable within the limits of available resources – are positioned in the field and how that defines their stances. Drawing on qualitative data generated through in-depth interviews with ten secondary school principals in two Australian cities, the paper analyses the engagement of school leaders with nationally prescribed equity-related policies. Our analysis shows that, depending on the institutional ethos and resources of schools and their own social justice dispositions, school leaders tend to take different stances towards nationally defined equity agendas. Their responses range from compliance to compromise to contest. The paper suggests that doing social justice in schools can never be unilateral, as policy documents suppose, but is characterised by context-informed policy translation, mediated by a range of interactive forces and interests.
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The established link between quality early childhood programs and positive child trajectories has led to the professionalization of the early childhood workforce in Australia. Attention has concentrated on the upgrading of qualifications... more
The established link between quality early childhood programs and positive child trajectories has led to the professionalization of the early childhood workforce in Australia. Attention has concentrated on the upgrading of qualifications and opportunities for professional learning. This paper focuses on exploring teacher professional learning, positioning it as a reflective practice. It considers teacher dispositions, moments of disjuncture and how these influence teacher learning. Theoretically, the paper is informed by Bourdieu’s concepts of habitus and reflexivity; Mezirow’s theory of transformative learning; and Boler and Zembylas’s notion of pedagogy of discomfort. The data are drawn from a statewide mentoring project for newly graduated early childhood teachers in Victoria, Australia. The findings suggest that for teacher professional learning to be transformative, the process must be informed by a pedagogy of discomfort thereby considering the interplay of teachers’ professional dispositions, experiences of disjuncture, and acts of deliberation.
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Guided by a freedom-based assessment of human development, this paper questions the compatibility of knowledge economy optimism and the authoritarian political order that prevailed in Ethiopia since the mid-2000s. It shows how the... more
Guided by a freedom-based assessment of human development, this paper questions the compatibility of knowledge economy optimism and the authoritarian political order that prevailed in Ethiopia since the mid-2000s. It shows how the knowledge economy discourse has played a positive role in widening access to higher education; briefly summarizes assumptions of the ‘developmental state’ orientation endorsed by the ruling elite; and explains why the repressive political order has undermined the nation’s human development agenda. Synthesizing empirical policy accounts and normative arguments, the paper highlights intricate relationships between knowledge, freedom and development. It concludes that both the neoliberal vision of freedom and the developmental state account of democracy do not fully appreciate the importance of substantive freedom as an essence of a democratic political order.
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This article explores factors contributing to unequal patterns of access to languages other than English (LOTE) in Australian universities. A critical analysis of qualitative and quantitative data generated through interviews, surveys and... more
This article explores factors contributing to unequal patterns of access to languages other than English (LOTE) in Australian universities. A critical analysis of qualitative and quantitative data generated through interviews, surveys and document analysis reveals that underrepresentation in LOTE courses in Australian universities is attributable to: (a) unequal access to LOTE learning areas at the school level; (b) low tertiary entrance scores that do not grant access to elite universities that offer broad LOTE course options; (c) differential prior international learning experiences that inform dispositions towards intercultural competence, including proficiency in LOTE; and (d) limited provision of LOTE courses in regional university campuses. We conclude that access to foreign language courses in Australian universities is not equitable, and in the context of globalisation opportunities, this poses a risk of reproducing social disadvantage alongside other structural factors such as socio-economic status and regional background.
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What does being a professional early childhood educator entail? This paper aims to address this question. Starting from the early 2000s, there has been increased attention to workforce professionalization in the early childhood education... more
What does being a professional early childhood educator entail? This paper aims to address this question. Starting from the early 2000s, there has been increased attention to workforce professionalization in the early childhood education and care sector across OECD nations. Against the backdrop of recent early childhood workforce professionalization initiatives in Australia, and drawing on the Capability Approach to human development as an analytical framework, in this paper, we identify five evaluative spaces for assessing professional functionings: expertise, deliberation, recognition, responsiveness and integrity. We also argue that understanding what educators are actually able to be and do in their professional practices vis-à-vis policy expectations is instrumental in (a) identifying areas of professional learning needs, and (b) devising transformative learning experiences.
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This paper explores the Australian Government’s ‘Universal Access’ policy in the early childhood education sector. Using data from selected policy texts, and drawing on interpretive policy analysis, the paper specifically examines... more
This paper explores the Australian Government’s ‘Universal Access’ policy in the early childhood education sector. Using data from selected policy texts, and drawing on interpretive policy analysis, the paper specifically examines rationales underlying the Universal Access agenda and instruments put in place to operationalize it and problematizes the framing of the equity agenda. The findings show that economic, educational and social goals inform the policy initiative; and targeted funding, teacher professionalization and performance monitoring serve as instruments in the enactment of the initiatives. A closer analysis of the texts also reveals that the Universal Access agenda is characterized by discursive shifts in the framing of equity goals, issue-omissions, contradictions of agendas, and inconsistencies of categories of disadvantage.
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Framing professional learning as a social practice underscores the interplay between subjective meaning systems and objective conditions of the social space where learning occurs. Drawing on Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of social practice,... more
Framing professional learning as a social practice underscores the interplay between subjective meaning systems and objective conditions of the social space where learning occurs. Drawing on Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of social practice, and methodologically guided by critical realism, the paper identifies what constitutes effective teacher professional learning through mentoring. The empirical focus of the paper is an Early Childhood teacher mentoring programme in the state of Victoria, Australia. The findings show that: (a) relevant circumstances that make teacher professional learning a necessity are associated with individual aspirations and systemic requirements; (b) collegial relationships and critical deliberation constitute meaningful learning experiences; and (c) teacher learning takes place in the domains of professional dispositions, pedagogical knowledge and social capital. The implication is that in designing professional development programmes such as mentoring, it is important to take teachers’ contexts of practice into account; conceptualise learning as a socially situated practice; and recognise the value of teachers’ lived experiences as a locus of deliberation and learning.
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In Australia, as is the case in other advanced economies around the world, the Early Childhood workforce is in the process of ‘skilling up’ to meet government demands related to quality service provision. This paper sets out to identify... more
In Australia, as is the case in other advanced economies around the world, the Early Childhood workforce is in the process of ‘skilling up’ to meet government demands related to quality service provision. This paper sets out to identify what constitutes effective teacher professional learning through mentoring. Guided by critical realism and social practice as theoretical perspectives, the paper uses data drawn from the State-wide Professional Mentoring Program for Early Childhood Teachers (2011–2014), Victoria, Australia. The findings identify four C’s essential to effective professional learning – Context: the association between individual aspirations and systemic requirements; Collegiality: the positioning and importance of collegial relationships; Criticality: critical deliberation in ‘safe’ learning environments; and Change: recognition that teacher learning takes place in the domains of professional dispositions, pedagogical knowledge and social capital. These findings point to the need to consider teachers’ contexts of practice in the design of professional development programs such as mentoring, and to conceptualise learning as a socially situated practice rather than a detached pedagogic event.
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This paper illustrates the role of professional learning in building teacher confidence, and explicates how confidence relates to professional capital. It reports on data from the Victorian State-wide Professional Mentoring Program for... more
This paper illustrates the role of professional learning in building teacher confidence, and explicates how confidence relates to professional capital. It reports on data from the Victorian State-wide Professional Mentoring Program for Early Childhood Teachers (2011–2014), and focuses on the experiences of both new to the profession and professionally isolated early childhood teachers and their more experienced early childhood teacher mentors who participated in this purposely designed program. The findings show that participants' gains in confidence are aligned with expansions in professional capital encompassing the acquisition of knowledge and skills (human capital), participation in networks of collaborative learning communities (social capital), and the ability to exercise professional agency (decisional capital). We conclude that teacher confidence is a function – and a constitutive feature – of teacher professional capital, and that professional learning through mentoring is one way of building this vital professional attribute. Theoretical insights and empirical evidence on this intricate interconnection have strong implications for policy and practice.
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Africa is being re-imagined as a knowledge economy, and higher education (HE) systems have been propelled into the centre of national economic plans and strategies. This paper provides an analysis of four recent major initiatives directed... more
Africa is being re-imagined as a knowledge economy, and higher education (HE) systems have been propelled into the centre of national economic plans and strategies. This paper provides an analysis of four recent major initiatives directed to the revitalisation of HE in sub-Saharan Africa: the Pan African University (2010), the Africa Higher Education Centers of Excellence Project (2014), The Kigali Communiqué on Higher Education for Science, Technology and Innovation (2014), and the Dakar Declaration and Action Plan on Revitalising Higher Education for Africa’s Future (2015). Guided by critical frame analysis, we examined assumptions and expectations of these regionally/globally structured HE development agendas. The findings show that, while there is a convergence of thinking on the promise for economic transformation held by invigorated HE sectors in Africa, there are uncritically adopted premises about how this transformation is to be achieved. In particular, we find that the promise held out for economic transformation through HE is at risk of failing through the inadequate contextualisation of global policy orthodoxies to African conditions, and that some of the premises about the nature and scale of the economic transformation required to make the re- imagined Africa a reality need to be reconsidered.
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This article investigates the social justice dispositions of teachers and principals in secondary schools as inferred from their metaphoric expressions. Drawing on a Bourdieuian account of disposition, our focus is the use of metaphor as... more
This article investigates the social justice dispositions of teachers and principals in secondary schools as inferred from their metaphoric expressions. Drawing on a Bourdieuian account of disposition, our focus is the use of metaphor as a methodological tool to identify and reveal these otherwise latent forces within our data. Our analysis shows evidence of redistributive, recognitive and activist conceptions of social justice. We argue that these three social justice dispositions may be insufficient to meaningfully address persisting inequalities in the school system and that a capability-based social justice disposition – absent in our data – is needed. We conclude by highlighting that: social justice dispositions can change; a valid interpretation of metaphors requires ‘contextual stabilization’; and metaphors for social justice are differently constructed in different contexts, influenced by the different social, cultural and material conditions of schools.
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After decades of decline, African higher education is now arguably in a new era of revival. With the prevalence of knowledge economy discourse, national governments in Africa and their development partners have increasingly aligned higher... more
After decades of decline, African higher education is now arguably in a new era of revival. With the prevalence of knowledge economy discourse, national governments in Africa and their development partners have increasingly aligned higher education with poverty reduction plans and strategies. Research capacity has become a critical development issue; and widening participation to doctoral education is seen as an instrument for enhancing this capacity. Against this backdrop, this paper presents a review of emerging initiatives and policies that have some bearing on the PhD in select sub-Saharan African nations, namely Ethiopia, Ghana and South Africa. The findings show a shared optimism about the economic value of higher education, and explicate divergences and convergences in the framing of problems and policy responses related to doctoral education across the three nations. In the conclusion we reflect on challenges and policy omissions in the pursuit of the African PhD.
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The prevalent knowledge economy discourse has direct implications for higher education policies and practices. It is expected that the higher education sector supports national economic competitiveness mainly through promoting scientific... more
The prevalent knowledge economy discourse has direct implications for higher education policies and practices. It is expected that the higher education sector supports national economic competitiveness mainly through promoting scientific research, supporting technological transfer and innovation, and producing ‘knowledge workers’ such as higher degree by research graduates. However in the context of changing work requirements and fast paced technological progress, the ‘skills gap’ between the labour market needs and the actual attributes of graduates has emerged as a tangible concern. This paper explores the issue of research graduate employability in Australia. Drawing on critical frame analysis, the paper particularly problematises the way research graduate employability has been framed in relevant policy texts, and shows what issues are excluded from the policy agenda and why. By way of demonstrating exclusions from the current debate on doctoral graduates’ skills and employability, we briefly report on new data on the level of industry-engagement of research students at one large Australian university to argue that assumptions about the need to ‘fix’ the skills deficit of graduates have excluded from view high levels of industry engagement.
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Primarily developed as an alternative to narrow measures of well-being such as utility and resources, Amartya Sen’s capability approach places strong emphasis on people’s substantive opportunities. As a broad normative framework, the... more
Primarily developed as an alternative to narrow measures of well-being such as utility and resources, Amartya Sen’s capability approach places strong emphasis on people’s substantive opportunities. As a broad normative framework, the capability approach has become a valuable tool for understanding and evaluating social arrangements (e.g. education policies and development programmes) in terms of individuals’ effective freedoms to achieve valuable beings and doings. This paper explores the recent emergence of ‘capability’ in Australian education policy, specifically in the Australia in the Asian Century White Paper. We explore capability as a framing device and reveal how its various meanings are at odds with the scholarly literature, specifically Sen’s conception of capability and its implications for social justice in and through education. The analysis shows that the social justice intent of a capability approach appears to be overtaken in the White Paper by an emphasis on outcomes, performance and functionings that seek to serve the nation’s economic interests more than the interests of students, especially the disadvantaged.
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Higher education has been assigned new global importance. It is now the vehicle of choice for nations seeking to increase their competitiveness in an expanding knowledge economy. In developing nations, higher education has also been... more
Higher education has been assigned new global importance. It is now the vehicle of choice for nations seeking to increase their competitiveness in an expanding knowledge economy. In developing nations, higher education has also been linked to goals to reduce poverty, under the influence of transnational aid agencies such as the World Bank and its knowledge-driven poverty reduction strategies. Drawing on Amartya Sen’s capability approach to development, this paper argues that this instrumentalization of higher education produces narrow conceptions of development, poverty and knowledge, and an unfounded optimism in ‘knowledge for skills’. The site for this analysis is the development and rapid expansion of Ethiopia’s higher education system, with its antecedents in a centuries-old religious education system but with more recent beginnings in the 1950s and, since the 1990s, under the influence of the World Bank. At stake are opportunity and process freedoms and the deprivation of capability (i.e. poverty) resulting from the constraint of these, evident in the nation’s higher education system. The paper concludes that without concerted efforts to redress injustices and to protect and expand people’s freedom, Ethiopian higher education has little to contribute to national socio-economic transformation agendas. pp. 110–132
Keywords: Ethiopia; higher education; freedom; capability; Amartya Sen; poverty reduction; World Bank
Keywords: Ethiopia; higher education; freedom; capability; Amartya Sen; poverty reduction; World Bank
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Under the influence of external policy pressure of donors such as the World Bank, higher education (HE) in Ethiopia has witnessed a series of institutional and system-wide reforms. This article reviews selected policy documents to show... more
Under the influence of external policy pressure of donors such as the World Bank, higher education (HE) in Ethiopia has witnessed a series of institutional and system-wide reforms. This article reviews selected policy documents to show key neo-liberal policy agendas endorsed in the reforms and explicate how they have affected social equity in the subsystem. The analysis shows that HE reforms in Ethiopia, primarily framed by concerns of economic efficiency, have constrained social equity in two important ways. First, at a discursive level, the problem of inequality is represented as a lack of access and a disadvantage in the human capital formation of the nation. Second, the drive for greater efficiency and reduced costs in the educational provision embedded in the reforms are inconsistent with the need for financial and political commitments required to benefit marginalised members of the society through relevant equity instruments. If the equity policy provisions should be instrumental in ensuring participation, retention and successful completion and thereby supporting the social mobility of disadvantaged groups, they need to draw on a broad social justice perspective.
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A feature of HE reform discourse is the tendency to construct the rationale for reform in terms of averting calamity and risk. We refer to this risk talk as ‘crisis discourse’. This study examines the formulation of PhD crisis discourse... more
A feature of HE reform discourse is the tendency to construct the rationale for reform in terms of averting calamity and risk. We refer to this risk talk as ‘crisis discourse’. This study examines the formulation of PhD crisis discourse internationally and in Australia. We find that a key feature of PhD crisis discourse is that universities are producing too many graduates for too few academic jobs; and graduates lack skills that enable them to be productive in jobs outside academia. In Australia, the discourse has shifted from one dominated by efficiency concerns from the late 1990s to the present focus on graduate skills and employability. The policy solution to the efficiency crisis in the Australian PhD resulted in system-wide changes in research training funding focused on increased efficiency. The current unemployability discourse has as yet prompted isolated institutional responses, the introduction of new PhD programs or re-badging existing offerings as pro-skills development offerings. Following an examination of three Australian institutional responses, we conclude that the crisis discourse signals tensions surrounding the PhD: should achievement in doctoral education be measured by outcomes in intellectual excellence or the responsiveness of qualification to the current needs and priorities of society?
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[by Tebeje Molla & Trevor Gale] The revitalization of Ethiopian higher education (HE) has been underway since the early 2000s. As well as the economic optimism evident in the ‘knowledge-driven poverty... more
[by Tebeje Molla & Trevor Gale]
The revitalization of Ethiopian higher education (HE) has been underway since the early 2000s. As well as the economic optimism evident in the ‘knowledge-driven poverty reduction’ discourse, social equity goals underscore the reform and expansion of the system. Notwithstanding the widening participation and the equity policy provisions put in place, the problem of inequality has persisted along the lines of ethnicity, gender, rurality and socio-economic background. This paper reviews major equity policy instruments and highlights the enduring inequalities in Ethiopian HE. It argues that this persistence is related in part to the ways in which the problem is represented in policy, and that redressing the problem necessitates framing inequality as capability deprivation rather than as issues of access and disparities in enrolment.
The revitalization of Ethiopian higher education (HE) has been underway since the early 2000s. As well as the economic optimism evident in the ‘knowledge-driven poverty reduction’ discourse, social equity goals underscore the reform and expansion of the system. Notwithstanding the widening participation and the equity policy provisions put in place, the problem of inequality has persisted along the lines of ethnicity, gender, rurality and socio-economic background. This paper reviews major equity policy instruments and highlights the enduring inequalities in Ethiopian HE. It argues that this persistence is related in part to the ways in which the problem is represented in policy, and that redressing the problem necessitates framing inequality as capability deprivation rather than as issues of access and disparities in enrolment.
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"In the context of low-income countries, the role of donors in public policymaking is of great importance. Donors use a combination of lending and non-lending instruments as pathways of influence to shape policy directions in... more
"In the context of low-income countries, the role of donors in public policymaking is of great importance. Donors use a combination of lending and non-lending instruments as pathways of influence to shape policy directions in aid-recipient countries. This paper reports some findings from a doctoral study on the role of the World Bank in the recent higher education (HE) policy reform process in Ethiopia. It focuses on the nature and impact of non-lending assistance by the Bank to the Ethiopian HE subsystem. Based on an interpretive policy analysis of sector reviews and advisory activities of the Bank, and selected national HE policy documents, the following findings are highlighted. First, as a ‘knowledge institution’, the World Bank produces, systematises and disseminates knowledge through policy advice, policy reports, analytical sector reviews, and thematic conferences and workshops. Second, knowledge aid from the Bank not only has a profound discursive effect on shaping Ethiopian HE policy reform priorities in accordance with its neoliberal educational agenda but also undermines the knowledge production capacity of the nation. The paper also argues that, for an effective education policy support, the Bank needs to shift its modality of engagement from knowledge aid to research capacity building.
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""""The higher education (HE) subsystem in Ethiopia has passed through a series of policy reforms in the last 10 years. Key reform areas ranged from improving quality and relevance of programmes to promoting equality in access to and... more
""""The higher education (HE) subsystem in Ethiopia has passed through a series of policy reforms in the last 10 years. Key reform areas ranged from improving quality and relevance of programmes to promoting equality in access to and success in HE. Despite the effort underway, gender inequality has remained a critical challenge in the subsystem. This makes it imperative to question the way in which the problem of gender inequality is framed in the equity policies and strategies put in place. This paper reports on the analysis of two policy documents from the Government of Ethiopia. Drawing on Carlo Bacchi's ‘what is the problem represented to be’ approach to critical policy analysis, the study reveals the inherent limitations in how the problem of gender inequality is understood and framed. The findings show that gender inequality has largely been equated with disparity in enrolment, and the policies are silent on structural impediments that underlie the problem. The drawbacks of the gender equity policy instruments are partly linked with the neoliberal policy elements endorsed in the reforms.
Keywords: equity; Ethiopia; gender; higher education; inequality; policy reform""
SPANISH VERSION
La educación superior (HE) el subsistema en Etiopía ha pasado a series of reformas de política en lo pasado 10 años. Las áreas de reforma de tecla se extendían de mejorar calidad y relación de programas a promover la igualdad en acceso para y éxito en él. A pesar del esfuerzo en marcha, la desigualdad de sexo se ha quedado un desafío crítico en el subsistema. Esto lo hace imperativo preguntar sobre la manera en la que el problema de la desigualdad de sexo es enmarcado en las políticas de patrimonio y las estrategias puesta in place. Este trabajo informa sobre el análisis de dos documentos de política del gobierno de Etiopía. Recurrir a el(la/los/las) de Carlo Bacchi "Qué es representado ser el problema" enfoque para el análisis de política crítico, el estudio revela las limitaciones inherentes en cómo el problema de la desigualdad de sexo es comprendido y enmarcado. Las conclusiones muestran que la desigualdad de sexo ha sido comparada con la disparidad en la matrícula en gran parte, y las políticas son silenciosas sobre los obstáculos estructurales que subyacen al problema. Las desventajas de los instrumentos de política de patrimonio de sexo son unidas en parte con la política de neoliberal que elementos aprobaron en las reformas.""
Keywords: equity; Ethiopia; gender; higher education; inequality; policy reform""
SPANISH VERSION
La educación superior (HE) el subsistema en Etiopía ha pasado a series of reformas de política en lo pasado 10 años. Las áreas de reforma de tecla se extendían de mejorar calidad y relación de programas a promover la igualdad en acceso para y éxito en él. A pesar del esfuerzo en marcha, la desigualdad de sexo se ha quedado un desafío crítico en el subsistema. Esto lo hace imperativo preguntar sobre la manera en la que el problema de la desigualdad de sexo es enmarcado en las políticas de patrimonio y las estrategias puesta in place. Este trabajo informa sobre el análisis de dos documentos de política del gobierno de Etiopía. Recurrir a el(la/los/las) de Carlo Bacchi "Qué es representado ser el problema" enfoque para el análisis de política crítico, el estudio revela las limitaciones inherentes en cómo el problema de la desigualdad de sexo es comprendido y enmarcado. Las conclusiones muestran que la desigualdad de sexo ha sido comparada con la disparidad en la matrícula en gran parte, y las políticas son silenciosas sobre los obstáculos estructurales que subyacen al problema. Las desventajas de los instrumentos de política de patrimonio de sexo son unidas en parte con la política de neoliberal que elementos aprobaron en las reformas.""
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Increasingly national policy processes are intersected with and affected by global policy actors and ideas. In aid-recipient countries such as Ethiopia, donors use financial and non-financial means to influence national policy decisions... more
Increasingly national policy processes are intersected with and affected by global policy actors and ideas. In aid-recipient countries such as Ethiopia, donors use financial and non-financial means to influence national policy decisions and directions. This paper is about the non-financial influence of the World Bank (WB) in the Ethiopian higher education policy reform. Using Pierre Bourdieu’s concept of symbolic power as a ‘thinking tool’, the paper aims to shed light on forms of symbolic capital that the Bank uses to generate a ‘misrecognisable’ form of power that regulates the HE policy process in Ethiopia. The findings show that the WB transforms its symbolic capital of recognition and legitimacy to establish a ‘shared misrecognition’ and thereby make its policy prescriptions implicit and hence acceptable to local policy agents. The Bank uses knowledge-based regulatory instruments to induce compliance to its neoliberal policy prescriptions. The paper therefore underscores the value of symbol power as an analytical framework to understand elusive but critical role of donors in policy processes of aid recipient countries.
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This chapter considers equity policies and their influence on the practice of educators and teachers working with the youngest members of society in Australia. Drawing on a review of selected policy documents, we highlight issue framings,... more
This chapter considers equity policies and their influence on the practice of educators and teachers working with the youngest members of society in Australia. Drawing on a review of selected policy documents, we highlight issue framings, contextual translation of equity agendas, and the homogenizing representation of the early childhood education and care workforce that influences policy enactment.
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In the context of ‘imported’ educational models, repressive political regimes, unaddressed structural factors of educational inequality, high adult illiteracy, poorly prepared university entrants, and under-qualified teaching staff, it is... more
In the context of ‘imported’ educational models, repressive political regimes, unaddressed structural factors of educational inequality, high adult illiteracy, poorly prepared university entrants, and under-qualified teaching staff, it is improbable that a HE system could make a meaningful contribution towards the knowledge-driven poverty reduction agenda. This is mainly because it is hard to get the ‘right’ knowledge that drives innovation, productivity, and growth and, under a state of fear and control, people’s creativity and active engagement in development processes is circumscribed. In the Ethiopian case, as the HE system has been built on poorly aligned imported models of curricular and pedagogic practices, learning and
knowledge creation have been detached from the rich cultural and social context—including the centuries-old traditional education systems of the country. This reliance
on imported models and expertise might have negatively affected the possibility of shaping the system with a particular national identity and building an intellectual community that could sense the closer context and produce, organize, and disseminate knowledge applicable to the real problems in the society.
knowledge creation have been detached from the rich cultural and social context—including the centuries-old traditional education systems of the country. This reliance
on imported models and expertise might have negatively affected the possibility of shaping the system with a particular national identity and building an intellectual community that could sense the closer context and produce, organize, and disseminate knowledge applicable to the real problems in the society.
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This chapter sheds light on the cultural citizenship of refugee-background Black Africans in Australia. Specifically, it elaborates on cultural citizenship as an analytical framework, outlines recent multicultural policy provisions in... more
This chapter sheds light on the cultural citizenship of refugee-background Black Africans in Australia. Specifically, it elaborates on cultural citizenship as an analytical framework, outlines recent multicultural policy provisions in Australia, and highlights how conservative politicians and media personalities racialize youth violence and stigmatize Black Africans as dangerous criminals. Then the chapter proceeds to explain why racialized moral panic undermines the integration of African refugees. It argues that public humiliation emasculates self-efficacy, leading to youth disengagement. Second, the deprivation of cultural citizenship diminishes refugee youth's sense of affiliation. Third, public racial disparagement reinforces interpersonal racial prejudice and discrimination. Fourth, racial stigmatization perpetuates socio-economic disadvantages of refugee communities, durably positioning them on the margin of society. In light of these points, it is argued that a claim for equal respect and dignifying representation is a demand for full citizenship.
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In the global context of increasing inequalities between advantaged and disadvantaged social groups, the role of education in achieving social justice has taken on new importance. In this chapter we consider two widely acclaimed books on... more
In the global context of increasing inequalities between advantaged and
disadvantaged social groups, the role of education in achieving social justice has taken on new importance. In this chapter we consider two widely acclaimed books on social inequality, namely: Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-first Century (2014) and Daniel Dorling’s Injustice: Why Inequality Persists (2010). We specifically focus on how the authors relate problems of social inequality with educational disadvantage, naming the relation in terms of meritocracy and elitism. We suggest that in the main, Piketty and Dorling hold to distributive accounts of educational disadvantage and to an income/wealth-based evaluation of social
inequality. We also argue that the informational basis of Piketty’s and Dorling’s evaluation excludes an appreciation of social justice as ‘recognition’ and thus excludes the importance of ‘epistemological equity’ and of ‘agency freedom’ in pursuing social justice in educational contexts, particularly in higher education. It is through these two foci on recognitive justice that we augment Piketty’s and Dorling’s distributive account.
disadvantaged social groups, the role of education in achieving social justice has taken on new importance. In this chapter we consider two widely acclaimed books on social inequality, namely: Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-first Century (2014) and Daniel Dorling’s Injustice: Why Inequality Persists (2010). We specifically focus on how the authors relate problems of social inequality with educational disadvantage, naming the relation in terms of meritocracy and elitism. We suggest that in the main, Piketty and Dorling hold to distributive accounts of educational disadvantage and to an income/wealth-based evaluation of social
inequality. We also argue that the informational basis of Piketty’s and Dorling’s evaluation excludes an appreciation of social justice as ‘recognition’ and thus excludes the importance of ‘epistemological equity’ and of ‘agency freedom’ in pursuing social justice in educational contexts, particularly in higher education. It is through these two foci on recognitive justice that we augment Piketty’s and Dorling’s distributive account.
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This chapter conceives of the ‘deliberative’ professional – partly in response and as a corrective to conceptions of the ‘deliberate’ professional – and argues that the development of this deliberativeness requires provocation. The... more
This chapter conceives of the ‘deliberative’ professional – partly in response and as a corrective to conceptions of the ‘deliberate’ professional – and argues that the development of this deliberativeness requires provocation. The chapter understands deliberation as a capability that informs the functioning of professionals, to deliberate (in thought) and to be deliberate (in action). Deliberative thought and deliberative action are theorised as dialectically related, with development of the first requiring an investment of time and the second, exposure to opportunities, and vice versa. Deliberative thought-action thus defines the deliberative professional, developed through challenge to deeply held beliefs and established practices evident within knowledge cultures and professional communities. At their most deliberative, professionals are ‘transformative’ in thought and deed, particularly in relation to social inequalities. Drawing on deliberately provocative techniques for data generation utilised in recent research on teaching professionals, the chapter argues that developing the deliberativeness characteristic of transformative professionals requires a ‘pedagogy of discomfort’, the particulars of which we name as ‘stimulated consciousness awakening’, ‘stimulated recall’ and ‘stimulated critique’. We conclude that while deliberative professionals are sorely needed in contemporary times, the conditions of these times means that the possibility of their development is greatly diminished.
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The policy analysis in this chapter reveals two major findings. First, the World Bank uses various instruments of discursive dissemination (e.g., research, consultancy, analytical reports and conferences) to induce compliance to its... more
The policy analysis in this chapter reveals two major findings. First, the World Bank uses various instruments of discursive dissemination (e.g., research, consultancy, analytical reports and conferences) to induce compliance to its neoliberal policy prescriptions. Second, in Ethiopia, these knowledge-based pathways of policy influence have had undesirable consequences: it has weakened the nation’s knowledge regime and it has established a condition of “shared misrecognition” to impositions, which has enabled the prescriptions to go unchallenged through the national policy process. Also, the Bank’s discursive influence on HE policy priorities and strategies has resulted in a misleading optimism about the “knowledge economy” meta-narrative.
Research Interests:
In the last ten years, Ethiopian higher education (HE) has witnessed an extensive expansion and system-wide restructuring. The changes in the system were primarily aimed at producing a suitably qualified workforce for the national human... more
In the last ten years, Ethiopian higher education (HE) has witnessed an extensive expansion and system-wide restructuring. The changes in the system were primarily aimed at producing a suitably qualified workforce for the national human resource development plan at the centre of the country’s poverty reduction programme and ensuring HE’s responsiveness to the nation’s economic needs. At a system level, the government has introduced a new HE proclamation that sets the legal framework for the reform process, and has aggressively invested in the establishment of new universities and institutes. Even so, when viewed from Trow’s (2006) categorisation, participation in Ethiopian HE is far from ‘mass’ and can more accurately be described as ‘elite’. Inequality in access to, and success in, HE remains a critical challenge. This chapter seeks to show why widening access does not necessarily translate into
equity.
equity.
Research Interests:
Through a critical examination of the relationship between ethnicity and learning dispositions, Watkins and Noble’s Disposed to Learn: Schooling, Ethnicity and the Scholarly Habitus provides insightful accounts on factors that affect... more
Through a critical examination of the relationship between ethnicity and learning dispositions, Watkins and Noble’s Disposed to Learn: Schooling, Ethnicity and the Scholarly Habitus provides insightful accounts on factors that affect educational achievement. The book sheds light on the complex social practices that produce differences in dispositions to learning, and challenges the simplistic assumption underpinning popular myths, statistical correlations and learning style research regarding the relationship between ethnic background and educational performance. The central argument of the book is that educational performance is influenced not by innate qualities associated with specific ethnic backgrounds but capacities developed through social practices enacted both at home and school.
Research Interests:
This research provides strong affirmation of the value of the Take a Break program for children and teacher participants from schools located in regions of social disadvantage. Participants were overwhelmingly positive about the various... more
This research provides strong affirmation of the value of the
Take a Break program for children and teacher participants
from schools located in regions of social disadvantage.
Participants were overwhelmingly positive about the various
ways in which the program overtly and intentionally enabled
children to be active, healthy, confident and respectful, but
there was also evidence of the ways in which these aims
were supported through the ‘everyday’ cultural and relational
practices of staff, leadership and volunteers.
Take a Break program for children and teacher participants
from schools located in regions of social disadvantage.
Participants were overwhelmingly positive about the various
ways in which the program overtly and intentionally enabled
children to be active, healthy, confident and respectful, but
there was also evidence of the ways in which these aims
were supported through the ‘everyday’ cultural and relational
practices of staff, leadership and volunteers.
Research Interests:
Globalization is now central to the mission of most Australian universities. The nature of institutional commitment to globalization takes many forms, including the establishment of off-shore campuses and the development of tailored... more
Globalization is now central to the mission of most Australian universities. The nature of institutional commitment to globalization takes many forms, including the establishment of off-shore campuses and the development of tailored interdisciplinary courses and subjects. Central to many university strategies are also the provision of languages other than English and the promotion of outbound mobility programs, in which students travel for offshore study that is typically tied to their course, or for internships or other experiential learning opportunities that may or may not receive academic credit. Language study and outbound mobility thus form twin pillars of globalization strategies, and are reflected in Australian Government policies such as the New Colombo Plan, the establishment of a target for 40 per cent of Year 12 students to study a foreign language, and the restriction on universities closing any course seen to involve a strategic language (Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2014).
Questions of student equity arise as globalization becomes integral to the university experience. For example, to what extent are all Australian students being afforded opportunities to access outbound mobility and language learning experiences? In particular, what barriers do students from regional and low socio-economic status (SES) backgrounds face, and how might these barriers be overcome? To address these questions of the relationship between student equity and globalization in universities, we conducted a mixed methods study that included: an analysis of relevant international and national literature; a national geo-demographic map of students enrolled in foreign languages and accessing outbound mobility experiences; a survey of university leaders; and a series of interviews with students across two universities.
By
Dr Andrew Harvey
Dr Sam Sellar
Dr Tebeje Molla
Dr Aspa Baroutsis
Mr Beni Cakitaki
Ms Jenna Tellefson
Mr Michael Luckman
Ms Giovanna Szalkowicz
Mr Matt Brett
Questions of student equity arise as globalization becomes integral to the university experience. For example, to what extent are all Australian students being afforded opportunities to access outbound mobility and language learning experiences? In particular, what barriers do students from regional and low socio-economic status (SES) backgrounds face, and how might these barriers be overcome? To address these questions of the relationship between student equity and globalization in universities, we conducted a mixed methods study that included: an analysis of relevant international and national literature; a national geo-demographic map of students enrolled in foreign languages and accessing outbound mobility experiences; a survey of university leaders; and a series of interviews with students across two universities.
By
Dr Andrew Harvey
Dr Sam Sellar
Dr Tebeje Molla
Dr Aspa Baroutsis
Mr Beni Cakitaki
Ms Jenna Tellefson
Mr Michael Luckman
Ms Giovanna Szalkowicz
Mr Matt Brett
Research Interests:
The emerging literature on home-schooling has mainly addressed the problems of local families, and not the migrants. When scholars discuss migrant families and remote learning, they tend to concentrate on issues such as gender roles or... more
The emerging literature on home-schooling has mainly addressed the problems of local families, and not the migrants. When scholars discuss migrant families and remote learning, they tend to concentrate on issues such as gender roles or inequalities in learning outcomes, not necessarily on the learning experiences of the students in migrant or refugee families. In response to this knowledge gap, the study set out to explore migrant parents’ experience of home-schooling during the Covid-19 pandemic. The findings highlight the challenges families encountered and the opportunities they took advantage of.
by Amin Zaini, Tebeje Molla, Hossein Shokouhi, and Ruth Arber
by Amin Zaini, Tebeje Molla, Hossein Shokouhi, and Ruth Arber
Research Interests:
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed vulnerabilities of educational systems in Australia and around the world. For universities, campus closures and a rapid shift to teaching and learning online — which we call emergency remote delivery... more
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed vulnerabilities of educational systems in Australia and around the world. For universities, campus closures and a rapid shift to teaching and learning online — which we call emergency remote delivery (ERD) to distinguish from planned online learning — has deepened inequalities in access to quality learning experiences. While the challenges created by COVID for universities and students have not yet fully unfolded, ERD has both created new, and magnified existing barriers for educational participation, as well as some unanticipated positive consequences for enhanced flexibility and more engaged learning. In particular, it has created new educational and social vulnerability for culturally and linguistically diverse migrant and/or refugee (CALDMR) communities. COVID has also exposed the stresses and difficulties for educators, student-facing support staff (SFSS; equity practitioners, student advisors, learning advisors, counsellors), and educational developers.
This research project draws on the expertise of a collective of interdisciplinary academics across Australia. Working with a steering group from the Refugee Education Special Interest Group, this study examines the equity-related challenges and opportunities of ERD for four groups of ‘stakeholders’: CALDMR students, university educators, ‘student-facing’ support staff, and educational developers. This research draws on data from a national, mixed- methods study involving 30 universities. It gathered data from 87 CALDMR university students who completed an online survey and 10 students who participated in a Photovoice exercise; 29 university educators who completed an online survey and eight who participated in semi-structured interview; 13 SFSS who participated in semi-structured interviews; and 19 educational developers who completed on online survey.
This research project draws on the expertise of a collective of interdisciplinary academics across Australia. Working with a steering group from the Refugee Education Special Interest Group, this study examines the equity-related challenges and opportunities of ERD for four groups of ‘stakeholders’: CALDMR students, university educators, ‘student-facing’ support staff, and educational developers. This research draws on data from a national, mixed- methods study involving 30 universities. It gathered data from 87 CALDMR university students who completed an online survey and 10 students who participated in a Photovoice exercise; 29 university educators who completed an online survey and eight who participated in semi-structured interview; 13 SFSS who participated in semi-structured interviews; and 19 educational developers who completed on online survey.
Research Interests:
Teachers’ work is necessarily interpersonal—it involves human connections and encounters. Pedagogy of recognition emphasises ‘relational proficiencies’ of teachers that enable them to 'create and maintain trustful and respectful... more
Teachers’ work is necessarily interpersonal—it involves human connections and encounters. Pedagogy of recognition emphasises ‘relational proficiencies’ of teachers that enable them to 'create and maintain trustful and respectful interpersonal relationships with students'. It encourages educators, within their spheres of influence, to recognise personal, relational, and institutional factors of educational disadvantage. This Guide outlines five principles of pedagogy of recognition:
• Deliberation
• Recognition
• Intercultural understanding
• Tactfulness and trauma sensitivity
• Radical empathy
• Deliberation
• Recognition
• Intercultural understanding
• Tactfulness and trauma sensitivity
• Radical empathy
Research Interests:
High educational attainment is an important factor for employment and social integration of refugee youth. Yet only about 10% of young people from the main countries of origin of African refugees go to university within five years of... more
High educational attainment is an important factor for employment and social integration of refugee youth. Yet only about 10% of young people from the main countries of origin of African refugees go to university within five years of arrival. That trend has not changed much in the past 25 years. This is a serious policy challenge. A lack of knowledge and skills means not only poor employment prospects but also high youth disengagement.
Research Interests:
Key Points from previous research reviewed in this report: • There are three main influences on students’ preferences for bachelor degrees and higher education (HE) institutions: (1) students’ families and communities, (2) the... more
Key Points from previous research reviewed in this report:
• There are three main influences on students’ preferences for bachelor degrees and higher education (HE) institutions: (1) students’ families and communities, (2) the socio-spatial location of schools and (3) school practices;
• Families and communities (i.e. cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds) shape what students understand to be important and feasible in their choices of bachelor degrees and institutions;
• A school’s socio-spatial location (i.e. school context) is indicative of the forms and levels of its cultural and socioeconomic resources. These are reflected in the patterns of students’ preferences;
• The influence of school practices (i.e. career advice, subject availability and engagement with HE) on students’ HE preferences depends on the type, size and social mix of the school.
• There are three main influences on students’ preferences for bachelor degrees and higher education (HE) institutions: (1) students’ families and communities, (2) the socio-spatial location of schools and (3) school practices;
• Families and communities (i.e. cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds) shape what students understand to be important and feasible in their choices of bachelor degrees and institutions;
• A school’s socio-spatial location (i.e. school context) is indicative of the forms and levels of its cultural and socioeconomic resources. These are reflected in the patterns of students’ preferences;
• The influence of school practices (i.e. career advice, subject availability and engagement with HE) on students’ HE preferences depends on the type, size and social mix of the school.
Research Interests:
This report on VET Providers, Associate and Bachelor Degrees, and Disadvantaged Learners,1 is derived from research commissioned by the National VET Equity Advisory Council (NVEAC) and conducted by researchers at Deakin University and the... more
This report on VET Providers, Associate and Bachelor Degrees, and Disadvantaged Learners,1 is derived from research commissioned by the National VET Equity Advisory Council (NVEAC) and conducted by researchers at Deakin University and the University of Ballarat. It is particularly concerned with the impact for disadvantaged learners of associate and bachelor degrees offered by vocational education and training (VET) providers.
The Australian Government and its agency – the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) – registers VET providers that also offer higher education (HE), as other private providers (OPPs) of HE, irrespective of whether or not they are public providers of VET (i.e. established by state/territory governments). In contrast, this report identifies three categories of VET providers of HE: private, public and ‘partnered’. The third category involves a blurring of boundaries between public and private providers, as well as between VET and HE provision. One effect of this partnering is that student equity agendas are often diminished and sometimes absent altogether from the operations of VET-provider associate and bachelor degrees. The same can also be said of these degrees offered by public and private VET providers.
The Australian Government and its agency – the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) – registers VET providers that also offer higher education (HE), as other private providers (OPPs) of HE, irrespective of whether or not they are public providers of VET (i.e. established by state/territory governments). In contrast, this report identifies three categories of VET providers of HE: private, public and ‘partnered’. The third category involves a blurring of boundaries between public and private providers, as well as between VET and HE provision. One effect of this partnering is that student equity agendas are often diminished and sometimes absent altogether from the operations of VET-provider associate and bachelor degrees. The same can also be said of these degrees offered by public and private VET providers.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Primarily developed as an alternative to narrow measures of well-being such as utility and resources, Amartya Sen’s capability approach places strong emphasis on people’s substantive opportunities. As a broad normative framework, the... more
Primarily developed as an alternative to narrow measures of well-being such as utility and resources, Amartya Sen’s capability approach places strong emphasis on people’s substantive opportunities. As a broad normative framework, the capability approach has become a valuable tool for understanding and evaluating social arrangements (e.g. education policies and development programmes) in terms of individuals’ effective freedoms to achieve valuable beings and doings. This paper explores the recent emergence of ‘capability’ in Australian education policy, specifically in the Australia in the Asian Century White Paper. We explore capability as a framing device and reveal how its various meanings are at odds with the scholarly literature, specifically Sen’s conception of capability and its implications for social justice in and through education. The analysis shows that the social justice intent of a capability approach appears to be overtaken in the White Paper by an emphasis on outcomes, performance and functionings that seek to serve the nation’s economic interests more than the interests of students, especially the disadvantaged.
Research Interests:
28 Tebeje Molla sources of historical knowledge. With this, also phenomenological enquiry, with difficulties and rewards of its own, was found to be an appropriate strategy to understand personal meaning and beliefs of the educator with... more
28 Tebeje Molla sources of historical knowledge. With this, also phenomenological enquiry, with difficulties and rewards of its own, was found to be an appropriate strategy to understand personal meaning and beliefs of the educator with regard to disciplinary ...
Research Interests:
This article investigates the social justice dispositions of teachers and principals in secondary schools as inferred from their metaphoric expressions. Drawing on a Bourdieuian account of disposition, our focus is the use of metaphor as... more
This article investigates the social justice dispositions of teachers and
principals in secondary schools as inferred from their metaphoric expressions.
Drawing on a Bourdieuian account of disposition, our focus is the use of
metaphor as a methodological tool to identify and reveal these otherwise
latent forces within our data. Our analysis shows evidence of redistributive,
recognitive and activist conceptions of social justice. We argue that these
three social justice dispositions may be insufficient to meaningfully address
persisting inequalities in the school system and that a capability-based
social justice disposition – absent in our data – is needed. We conclude by
highlighting that: social justice dispositions can change; a valid interpretation
of metaphors requires ‘contextual stabilization’; and metaphors for social
justice are differently constructed in different contexts, influenced by the
different social, cultural and material conditions of schools.
principals in secondary schools as inferred from their metaphoric expressions.
Drawing on a Bourdieuian account of disposition, our focus is the use of
metaphor as a methodological tool to identify and reveal these otherwise
latent forces within our data. Our analysis shows evidence of redistributive,
recognitive and activist conceptions of social justice. We argue that these
three social justice dispositions may be insufficient to meaningfully address
persisting inequalities in the school system and that a capability-based
social justice disposition – absent in our data – is needed. We conclude by
highlighting that: social justice dispositions can change; a valid interpretation
of metaphors requires ‘contextual stabilization’; and metaphors for social
justice are differently constructed in different contexts, influenced by the
different social, cultural and material conditions of schools.
Research Interests:
We are interested in the intersection of capital and capability in relation to educational opportunities, experiences and outcomes of individuals. That is, how might people’s ownership of capital (economic, cultural, social, symbolic)... more
We are interested in the intersection of capital and capability in relation to educational opportunities, experiences and outcomes of individuals. That is, how might people’s ownership of capital (economic, cultural, social, symbolic) shapes their opportunities or access to education, and their processes or participation and achievement in education? How might people’s education enable them to have the real choices and capabilities to improve their wellbeing and effectively pursue the kind of life that they value? We aim to examine how capital mediates capabilities for education, and capabilities through education. The first points to understanding the forms of capital that constitute educational disadvantage, and how these capital shape the opportunities for students to access schools and effective learning, as well as the processes in which students deploy these capital to negotiate schools, teachers, curriculum, and peers in their engagement in schools and uptake of learning offered.
Research Interests:
Teachers’ work is necessarily interpersonal—it involves human connections and encounters. Pedagogy of recognition emphasises ‘relational proficiencies’ of teachers that enable them to 'create and maintain trustful and respectful... more
Teachers’ work is necessarily interpersonal—it involves human connections and encounters. Pedagogy of recognition emphasises ‘relational proficiencies’ of teachers that enable them to 'create and maintain trustful and respectful interpersonal relationships with students'. It encourages educators, within their spheres of influence, to recognise personal, relational, and institutional factors of educational disadvantage. This Guide outlines five principles of pedagogy of recognition:
• Deliberation
• Recognition
• Intercultural understanding
• Tactfulness and trauma sensitivity
• Radical empathy
• Deliberation
• Recognition
• Intercultural understanding
• Tactfulness and trauma sensitivity
• Radical empathy