The Politics of Decolonizing Education in Settler Societies

• In Event: Roundtable Session 3
  In Roundtable Session: Decolonizing Education in Settler Colonial Nation-States

Abstract

As European settlers established societies in the Americas and the Pacific through colonization, Indigenous Peoples, languages and cultures were decimated. Decolonization is a multifaceted movement that contests colonization and seeks to address the harm done to Indigenous Peoples. Through individual and group interviews with 60 non-Indigenous and Indigenous educators this research shows how educators struggle to decolonize themselves and their communities in Aotearoa/New Zealand, the United States and Canada. Drawing from diverse definitions of decolonization, these educators employ various decolonizing strategies to promote Indigenous rights, languages and cultures as they seek to transform colonial structures and create better societies. Navigating complex political landscape within, and beyond, their communities these educators struggle with racism, stereotypes, government polices and limited funding.

Author

• Carolyn Stirling, University at Buffalo - SUNY