Navigating our way: A compass for popular educators

Kotze, Astrid von; Walters, Shirley; Luckett, Thembi

doi:10.1080/02660830.2016.1155850

Cited by 15 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…Despite the sample size, our results cannot be generalizable, since nation-related samples are not generalizable. Second, while liberal adult education could be empowering, its emancipatory benefits are questionable, since an empowered self can fail to use its empowerment to help others through collective change (Von Kotze et al, 2016). In fact, many critical educational gerontology studies have reported occasions where even critical education did not fully lead to emancipation (see, for example, Formosa, 2012;Formosa & Galea, 2020;Nye, 1998).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Putting educational gerontology principles to the test: a quantitative confirmation of the empowering benefits of liberal arts courses

Hachem

Manninen

2020

Educational Gerontology

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The humanist and critical principles of educational gerontology attribute different goals to education in later life. Self-Actualization is the goal of humanist educational gerontology, while empowerment, emancipation, and social change are the goals of critical educational gerontology. Liberal arts education is dominant in later-life learning. Both the humanist and the critical philosophies of learning in older age claim that this type of education is not empowering. Empowerment is a contested concept that has been defined through a set of constructs ranging from psychological capacities to attitudes and behaviors. In terms of capital, empowerment translates into gains in identity and social capital, operationalized in the variables agency and social and civic participation, respectively. The present study investigated the empowering potential of liberal arts courses using the BeLL survey data of 7,338 adult learners. Through a series of ANOVAs and a regression model, we found that age, gender, educational attainment, the number of courses, and changes in agency are significantly associated with changes in social and civic participation. We concluded that liberal arts education does empower adult learners, especially older adults, women, and individuals with lower educational attainment. Given that goal-related claims in the principles of educational gerontology have been empirically challenged, we recommend a new statement of principles that takes into account the latest developments in the field, as well as learners' agential capacities and the structural inequalities they face. Adult education is offered in a wide variety of settings, which have differing aims and content. Adult education for under-63-year-olds is predominantly vocational, yet non-vocational non-formal educational activities are also offered (Manninen, 2017). Here, UNESCO distinguishes between three types of adult education: literacy and basic skills; continuing education and professional development (vocational skills); and liberal, popular, and community education, with an emphasis on active citizenship skills (UIL, 2019). Older adult education is a fast-growing subfield in adult education (Formosa, 2000) that mainly provides the latter type education, consisting of liberal arts and other non-vocational courses (Findsen & Formosa, 2011). Liberal arts are often defined as the opposite of vocational adult education (Manninen, 2017), a type of learning aimed at self-fulfillment achieved through courses in arts, modern languages, philosophy, crafts, sports, and sciences (Rogers, 1996). In relation to the principles of educational gerontology, liberal arts courses pose an interesting puzzle. Educational gerontology embeds two philosophical strands, which provide polarized perceptions of older adult learning. From a critical perspective (Formosa, 2011; Glendenning & Battersby,

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Putting educational gerontology principles to the test: a quantitative confirmation of the empowering benefits of liberal arts courses

Hachem

Manninen

2020

Educational Gerontology

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“…There are intersections between popular education and emancipatory education when understanding education as a tool for change. Popular education or non-formal initiatives of education often develop when groups are excluded from formal education systems, where movements take it upon themselves to become educators (von Kotze, Walters & Luckett 2016). Popular educators often emphasise the pedagogy used in popular education as different from the pedagogy used in formal education systems.…”

Section: Formative and Mobilising Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Party Education as Mobilisation : Framing education in Swedish and Spanish political parties of the left

Hult

2023

Linköping Studies in Behavioural Science

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This dissertation aims to contribute knowledge of how five movement-related left parties in Sweden and Spain formulate education for their members. By analysing (i) the Swedish Social Democratic Workers' Party, (ii) the Swedish Left Party, (iii) the Spanish Social Democratic Workers' Party, (iv) the Spanish United Left and (v) the Spanish Podemos, the study interprets how organised educational activities are formulated and motivated with the aim to instigate member engagement. The analysis builds on interviews with leading party representatives and study leaders, study and course materials, and other official documents, which steer how the parties organise their education. With a framing perspective as a theoretical itinerary, the study emphasises parties' education as a setting where meaning is formulated to initiate collective action.The four included papers stress and discuss how educational material is formulated and how the parties perceive and motivate organised party education. Papers 1 and 2 analyse text materials and shows how educational materials establish narratives that invites the members to become active in the parties. Even though the educational narrative is welcoming, the study materials also reinforce frames of how to be schooled into becoming an ideal party member. Papers 3 and 4 study interview materials and suggest that member education is interpreted as something that strengthens parties' movement relations, provides useful training, opens up a space for political reflection, and constructs a feeling of community within the parties.The dissertation emphasises that these five movement-related left parties perceive their educational activities as settings that create relations between the party and its members. Applying the framing perspective to the understudied educational practices that transpire in parties contributes to deepening the theoretical understanding of how education can be formulated in relation to its bearing on creating collective identities.

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“…Like Paulo Freire's praxis, educational activists, at best, combine sound theoretical and ethical reflection with empathetic critical action. Popular education, which is rooted in the radical tradition of adult education and grounded in the philosophy of Paulo Freire, is overtly political, concerned with people's experiences, and orientated towards action (von Kotze et al, 2016). Its purpose is the collective production of "really useful knowledge" which is tested when translated into action.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While feminist popular education is embedded within socio-economic and environmental contexts, it was only during the drought of 2017/18 that I began to focus more intentionally on what the climate crisis means and to question how we as adult popular educators should respond. I wrote (Walters, 2018) of "the drought as my teacher", as we individually and collectively rethought our relationship to water. The crisis, as with many crises, heightened awareness of the inequalities in society and, in particular, of water injustice.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Making a Case for Ecofeminist Popular Education in Times of Covid-19

Walters¹,

Kotze²

2021

Self Cite

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Ecofeminism offers a framework that brings together patriarchy, capitalism, and the degradation of the environment, and helps to make sense of and address a world in desperate need of radical transformation. The Covid-19 pandemic has magnified existing fault lines of inequality, poverty, gender-based violence, and turbulence in the biosphere. This paper uses an ecofeminist lens to critically investigate the case of a woman’s health course that employs a popular education approach. As imbedded activist researchers, we question how the curriculum should change so that the knowledge generated really becomes useful for transformative action. Thus, the paper brings together popular education theory and ecofeminism. After an overview of ecofeminist principles, we introduce a case study to apply these principles. We conclude that elements which relate to the participants’ lives in immediate ways, like food security and water, are entry points for challenging the perception of Nature as a “thing” rather than as a complex interrelated ecosystem. We argue that ecofeminist principles have widespread relevance for popular education and its transformative impulses beyond Covid-19.

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Navigating our way: A compass for popular educators

Cited by 15 publications

References 12 publications

Putting educational gerontology principles to the test: a quantitative confirmation of the empowering benefits of liberal arts courses

Putting educational gerontology principles to the test: a quantitative confirmation of the empowering benefits of liberal arts courses

Party Education as Mobilisation : Framing education in Swedish and Spanish political parties of the left

Making a Case for Ecofeminist Popular Education in Times of Covid-19

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