Lawrence Meda
Zayed University, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
medalawrence@gmail.com
Universities in South Africa came to a standstill in 2016 because of students’ protests in the quest for a decolonized curriculum. The University of Technology in South Africa under investigation was forced to close when students’ demands for a decolonized curriculum intensified. The higher education institution (HEI) is now challenged to come up with a guideline on decolonizing the curriculum in the event that students make similar demands again. the purpose of the study reported was to explore students’ perspectives about decolonizing the curriculum. The study was done using a qualitative case study and Rawls’ theory of justice as a theoretical framework. Ten student representatives were purposively selected to participate in semi-structured interviews and complete open-ended questionnaires. The data was analyzed using content analysis. It was found that students’ perspectives about decolonization were distinct, congruent and unambiguous. They were not advocating for the eradication of Western knowledge in the curriculum, but rather for decentring it.
Relevant Links: https://www.zu.ac.ae/main/en/colleges/colleges/__college_of_education/faculty_and_staff/_profiles/Lawrence_Meda.aspx