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Studentz ‘n’ the University: Reflections on how academic staff interact with BAME students. Written by Dr Ryan Arthur,FHEA

Abstract: The inequalities in higher education reflect those in wider society. Broader social and political realities find their expression on campuses impacting the experiences and actions of staff and students (Universities UK & National Union of Students, 2019; Miller, 2016; Singh, 2011; Richardson, 2015).  This opinion piece will utilise the powerful theme of exclusion that reverberates throughout John Singleton’s Boyz n the Hood to frame the interaction between academic staff and Black and Minority Ethnic students.   Until very recently, it was an interaction that had received little coverage, let alone reflection.  However, the recent legislative and regulatory shifts in the UK prompted academic staff to reflect on the way they interact with their BME students (OfS, 2019; Universities UK & National Union of Students, 2019; Department of Education, 2018).  This piece speaks to these shifts as it seeks to understand if we care, show or know ‘about what’s goin’ on’ in our universities?

Studentz n the University: Reflections on how academic staff interact with BAME students.

This essay is inspired in part by the words John Singleton, the recently deceased filmmaker, placed into the mouth of the character ‘Doughboy’, ‘Either they don’t know, don’t show or don’t care about what’s goin’ on’ (Boyz n the Hood, 1991). These simple words, spoken by an individual that endured life on the periphery, depict the way our higher education institutions interact with its BAME students. This article reawakens several discussions from the 1990s that utilised Singleton’s Boyz n the Hood to relate to wider issues that impact black and brown communities (Nadell, 1995; Dyson, 1992; Collins, Collins & Radner, 1993; Doherty and Jones, 1991; Masood, 1996). Though Boyz n the Hood exudes several erroneous tropes that I as an adolescent could not appreciate, it does bring home the melancholy that exclusion fosters (Doherty & Jones, 1991).

Lamenting on the lack of media coverage of his brother’s death, Doughboy stated, ‘Either they don’t know, don’t show or don’t care about what’s goin’ on’ (Boyz n the Hood, 1991).  Despite the significance of Doughboy’s brother’s achievements, his passing was not acknowledged by the media.  His community was left to mourn and anguish in obscurity.   Tragically, Doughboy himself was murdered just two weeks later; Singleton poignantly filmed Doughboy vanishing, yet another unreported and invisible life lost.

Reflecting on this theme of invisibility, I would like to steer the conversation to BAME students who may see themselves as ‘invisible’ and unaccounted for in UK universities (Franklin and Boyd-Franklin, 2000). It is not uncommon to hear feelings of discomfort, isolation, suspecting that they are ‘unwanted’ or having a sense of not belonging (NUS, 2011; Miller, 2016). Students struck by such feelings may ponder about their universities, ‘Either they don’t know, don’t show or don’t care about what’s goin’ on’.

‘Either they don’t know…’

How could we not know the issues that affect our BAME students? Overwhelming evidence has been mounting since the 1990s (Singh, 2011). I would suggest that a subtle and disarming dissonance has lulled us into inaction; though we understand the broad themes that affect BME students, we overlook the immediate and present issues of BME students in our own classrooms (Miller, 2016; Singh, 2011). I would postulate that our overlooking stems from a lack of awareness of our own selves; to appreciate the issues that affect BME students, it is essential to know if our actions contributed to some of these issues (Cabrera, Franklin and Watson, 2016, Stevenson, 2012).  

This point dawned on me when I attended an education conference convened by a Russell Group university, a well-meaning and earnest academic asked the main panel how can I get to know the issues that affect BME students? A panellist brilliantly modified the question; how well do you know yourself? She continued to articulate that it was important for him to understand his ‘whiteness’ and directed him to a series of studies that unpacked whiteness.  

From my position in the audience, it appeared to be a clash of two worlds; the panellist’s redirection seemed to startle the well-meaning academic; this was not the quaint answer he sought. I’m assuming that he expected the panellist to detail avenues for BME students to express their grievances. Instead, the panellist placed the onus on the academic; judging from the panellist’s expression, her suggestion seemed entirely obvious to the point of exasperation.  Just as BME students constantly assess the implications of their otherness, so must we. All minorities are compelled to understand how they are perceived within their own spaces and in the spaces dominated by us. What the panellist asked the academic to do was what his BME students were compelled to do when they arrived in a space, not of their own.  

The sheer bafflement on the face of the academic was not the first time I experienced this bewilderment. A year prior, I walked into a lecturer’s predominantly BAME classroom to find that each student had a name card on their tables.  Continuing to use identifiers midway through the academic year indicated that the lecturer had failed to acknowledge his actions. I am confident that he meant no malice, his actions came out his unawareness of a prevailing belief in black and brown communities that some white people believe that they all act, think and look the same. Through using the identifiers for such a lengthy period, he inadvertently confirmed their perceptions; they were all just one mass of undifferentiated ‘others’. When this ‘revelation’ was put to the lecturer, a curious conversion ensued, after a moment of bemusement, two recognisable defences were mobilised (Kanjere, 2018).  Both defences often rear their heads when we are pushed to examine the implications of our actions; his initial stoic persona gave way to a real sense of vulnerability or fragility. He bemoaned that he could not help it if his unassuming and well-meaning actions were crudely misinterpreted. Our retreat to fragility is a protective measure to ensure our questionable practices leave the discussion intact. We can avoid the content of even the mildest critique by focusing on the ‘trauma’ that the critique causes. The second and perhaps the most formidable defence is the appeal to common sense and reasonableness. He argued that his actions were simply a means to get to know each of his students on a first – name basis, ‘how else are we meant to differentiate between the students?’ To recommend another course of action would be illogical and excessive, ‘the criticism is thus positioned as so unreasonable that it is unassimilable: it instead resides in the person of whoever has voiced it’ (Kanjere, 2018, p.7 -8). While we have these two defences at our disposal, we have every excuse to decide what we want to know.

  ‘Don’t show…’

Unfortunately, there is plenty of ‘show’. Show in the sense of a spectacle that starts at a particular time then ends abruptly. Its termination is often in conjunction with a new appointment or restructuring initiative, only to be brought back into existence repackaged with much fanfare. Individually, we don’t fare better. I see this in two matters, as part of our ‘show’, we are well-versed in ‘educationspeak’; we can talk at length about the tragedy of the award gap, facilitating student learning, enabling the student voice and meeting students where they are at, but our show is rarely acted out. Second, it is as if our show is broadcast within the watershed, so we use non-controversial and indirect language that obfuscates radical and direct action. ‘Diversity’, ‘difference’ and ‘inclusion’ are nice and acceptable umbrella terms that enable us to avoid more controversial ‘race talk’.  

‘Don’t care…’

I would like to think that we care about all our students. However, our care is mired by resource and time constraints that are often beyond our control (Powney, 2003). Our care is also hindered by our almost religious conception of the university (Biggs, 1999). A phrase I hear often is, ‘This is university!’ By this, we mean that students must adapt, we can’t change what we do too much. It is as if the university came down from the heavens fully formed and unblemished. From their inception, universities have adapted to their climate and demands of their stakeholders; why should this adaption come to an abrupt halt as large amounts of traditionally excluded students enter their halls?

This dogmatic notion of the academy mutes our concern for students who struggle to adapt.  Moreover, it puts the onus on the student and not the institution to adapt (Phillips, 2011; Singh, 2011; Miller, 2016). We place students in the deficit model rather than the institution. We refer to the gap between BAME students and their white counterparts as the ‘attainment gap’ and not the ‘award gap’. We critique student characteristics instead of our curriculum design. We have contracted out our caring to the university’s support services.  Perhaps the most troubling aspect is that we have become incredibly adept at focusing on everything except the institution; we focus on student’s positive outlook (Stevenson, 2012); their school performance (Stockfelt, 2017; Thiele, Singleton, Pope & Stanistreet, 2016); their homophily (Vaughan, Sanders, Crossley, O'Neill, & Wass, 2015); their indicators of struggling (Yates & James, 2006). For such reasons, care has been in short supply.

Epilouge

Reflecting on whether our universities know, show or care brings little joy. It is only made easier by the fact that I am not alone in my reflection. I have met many colleagues of every shade that work diligently to know, show and care for all their students. Observing their work reminds me of a touching moment in the closing scene of Boyz n the Hood; as Doughboy lamented the loss of his brother, Tre offered him the bittersweet consolation ‘you got one more brother left’ (Boyz n the Hood, 1991). Similarly, I have many brothers and sisters left.

Bibliography

Biggs, J. (1999). What the student does: teaching for enhanced learning, Higher Education Research & Development, 18(1), 57–75.

Collins, J., Collins, A. & Radner Dyson, H E. (1993). Cultural analysis of contemporary film: film theory goes to the movies. New York: Routledge.

Department for Education (2019) Universities Minister calls for greater improvement on access. Available at:<https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/universities-minister-calls-for-greater-improvement-on-access> (Accessed: 8 September 2019)

Doherty, T. & Jones, J. (1991). Two Takes on: BOYZ N THE HOOD. Cinéaste 18(4) 16-19

Dyson, M.E. (1992). Between Apocalypse and Redemption: John Singleton's Boyz N the Hood. Cultural Critique. 21 121-141

Franklin, A. & Boyd-Franklin, N. (2000). Invisibility Syndrome: A Clinical Model of the Effects of Racism on African-American Males. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry 70(1) 33-41

Richardson, J. (2015) The Under-attainment of Ethnic Minority Students in UK Higher Education: What we Know and What we Don’t Know. Journal of Further and Higher Education  39(2) <http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0309877X.2013.858680> accessed 8 September 2019

Kanjere, A. (2018). Defending race privilege on the Internet: how whiteness uses innocence discourse online. Information, Communication & Society,

Massood, P. (1996). Mapping the Hood: The Genealogy of City Space in "Boyz N the Hood" and "Menace II Society". Cinema Journal, 35(2) 85-97

Miller, M. (2016). The ethnicity attainment gap: literature review. Available at: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/polopoly_fs/1.661523!/file/BME_Attainment_Gap_Literature_Review_EXTERNAL_-_Miriam_Miller.pdf (Accessed 31 May 2019)

Nadell, J. (1995). Boyz N The Hood: a colonial analysis. Journal of Black Studies, 25(4) 447-464

NUS (2011). Race for Equality. London: NUS

Office for Students, (2019) Regulatory notice 1 Access and participation plan guidance. Available at: <https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/media/0bcce522-df4b-4517-a4fd-101c2468444a/regulatory-notice-1-access-and-participation-plan-guidance.pdf> (Accessed: 28 February 2019)

Singh, G. (2011) Black and minority ethnic (BME) students’ participation in higher education: improving retention and success. A synthesis of research evidence. York: HEA

Stevenson, J. (2012). Black and Minority Ethnic Student Degree Retention and Attainment. York: HEA

Stevenson, J. (2012). An Exploration of the Link between Minority Ethnic and White Students’ Degree Attainment and Views of Their Future ‘Possible Selves’. Higher Education Studies, 2(4), 103-113

Stockfelt, S. (2017). Ethnic variation in higher education participation amongst males in the UK: The mediating effects of attitudes and prior attainment. Studies in Higher Education. 43(11), 1895-1911

Singh, G. (2011). Black and minority ethnic (BME) students’ participation in higher

education: improving retention and success. A synthesis of research evidence.

Coventry: HEA

Phillips, C. (2011). Institutional racism and ethnic inequalities: an expanded multilevel framework. Journal of Social Policy, 40(1), 173 – 192.

Powney, J. (2013, September). Equalities and inequalities in academic staffing practices in higher education. Paper presented at British Educational Research Association Annual Conference, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh.

Thiele, T., Singleton, A., Pope, D. & Stanistreet, D. (2016). Predicting students' academic performance based on school and socio-demographic characteristics, Studies in Higher Education, 41:8, 1424-1446

Universities UK and National Union of Students (2019) Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic student attainment at universities: closing the gap. Available at:https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/policy-and-analysis/reports/Documents/2019/bame-student-attainment-uk-universities-closing-the-gap.pdf (Accessed: 15 Spectember 2019)

Vaughan, S., Sanders, T., Crossley, N., O'Neill, P. & Wass, V. (2015). Bridging the gap: The roles of social capital and ethnicity in medical student achievement.  Medical Education, 49(1), 114-23.

Yates, J., & James, D. (2006). Predicting the “strugglers”: a case-control study of students at Nottingham University Medical School. British Medical Journal, doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.38730.678310.63

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The Lone Wolf and Cub: A Learning Developer’s Nurture of Decolonial Pedagogy in a UK Higher Education Institution. Written by Dr Ryan Arthur,FHEA

First published in 1970, Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima’s Lone Wolf and Cub depicts the perilous journey of a swordsman and his three-year-old son (Pusateri, 2001).  Set in the Tokugawa period, Koike and Kojima’s manga offers the reader an apt metaphor for a learning developer’s journey of discovery. This journey seeks to go beyond the slogans and metaphors of the ‘decolonising the curriculum’ movement to understand how these very young and ‘cub-like’ decolonial pedagogies can be deployed by learning developers in British higher education institutes (HEIs). This will involve engaging with the decolonial literature to extract a definition, present a rationale, articulate principles and provide a tangible example.  This essay is significant because it seeks to contribute to the minuscule literature base of decolonial pedagogies in British HEIs.  More specifically, it offers a critical review of how decolonial pedagogies can be operationalised in the learning development sector.

Introduction

 This study utilises Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima’s gripping story of the Lone Wolf and Cub as a metaphor for an enlightening journey. As Giroux (1988, p.162) cites, ‘We are living out a story.  There is no way to live a storyless… life’.  This story adopts the funnel approach; it starts very broadly by looking at the parallels between Koike and Kojima’s manga and the subject at hand.  This will lead to a focus on the matter of decolonisation; though this study’s focus is on decolonial pedagogies, the broader theme of decolonisation informs and shapes the pedagogies.  Moving on, it is crucial that the author distinguishes between decolonial pedagogies from other pedagogies of disruption to give a better understanding of the field.  Funnelling down even further, the author seeks to move from pedagogies to pedagogy by specifying an approach.  The approach selected was the Critical Inquiry Approach, which prompted the development of six principles that will guide its usage.  Also, the focus on the Critical Inquiry Approach required a rationale and an explanation of its deployment in the Learning Development sector, all of which completes a ‘general to specific’ journey of discovery.  This study will commence with some parting thoughts about the practical usage of the Critical Inquiry Approach.

 Lone Wolf and the Cub

 First published in 1970, Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima’s Lone Wolf and Cub depicts the perilous journey of a swordsman and his three-year-old son. Set in the Tokugawa period, Koike and Kojima’s manga offers the reader an apt metaphor for not only a learning developer’s journey of discovery but also a metaphor for the nature of decolonisation itself.  Koike and Kojima were captivated by the American cinematic western (Pusateri, 2001).  Instead of just recreating what captivated them, the Japanese authors sought to repurpose the mythic West for their own mythic purposes (Pusateri, 2001).[1]  This repurposing of Western artefacts was not simply a matter of exchange, it was also a critique of those artefacts.

Moreover, parallels between decolonisation and the Lone Wolf and Cub can also be drawn from the violence of both. Lone Wolf, in its effort to establish itself as a ‘counter-myth’, is violent ‘at an unparalleled level of extremity and departure from realism’ (Pusateri, 2001, p. 88).  Likewise, decolonial projects are violent, as Sefa Dei and Simmons (2010, p. XVIII) stated in the Pedagogy of Fanon, ‘Decolonisation is violent and is a creative urgent necessity. Such violence has a cleansing force to rinse the oppressor detoxify the oppressed, and make both the oppressor and oppressed human again’.  However, it must noted that it is ‘not the violence of billy clubs, bullets, or bombs but the violence of ripping a plant out of the ground, roots and all, the violence of plowing the earth to make it receptive to new seeds (Fujino et al., 2018 p. 71).  Lastly, Lone Wolf is a difficult read, there are many problematic themes and unsavoury sections.  Correspondingly, decolonial projects do not hold any illusions of universal and utopian ideals, ‘it is a paradigm that harbors an element of unpredictability and uncertainty’ (Mendieta, 2003, p. 159). Smith (1999, p. 186) pointed to the ‘real-life ‘dirtiness’ of political projects, or what Fanon and other anti-colonial writers would regard as the violence entailed in struggles for freedom’.  

 Decolonisation

 The broader notion of decolonisation rests on the assumption that British Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are sites where the transmission and production of knowledge are wholly embedded in Eurocentric epistemologies that are ‘presented’ as objective and universal (Cupples and Grosfoguel, 2018; Domínguez, 2019).  It is argued that the fetishisation of Eurocentric ways of thinking, knowing and researching has prevented ‘a broader recognition and appreciation’ of an epistemic, ontological and cultural plurality (Domínguez, 2019. p. 49).  This has been referred to as the ‘hubris of the zero point’ which renders alternative epistemologies as subaltern (Castro-Gómez, 2020; Domínguez, 2019).  

In a direct challenge to the ‘zero point’, decolonial projects seek to deconstruct dominant Eurocentric forms of intellectual production and transmission whilst promote the pluralisation of the knowledge field (Zembylas, 2018; Mignolo, 2007; Domínguez, 2019).  Such projects have a long history; (Mignolo and Escobar, 2013, p116) notes, ‘Decolonisation is an idea that is probably as old as colonisation itself.  But it only becomes a project in the twentieth century’ (Mignolo, 2007; Stanek, 2019).

It is worth briefly discussing the emergence of the project or what is also referred to as the ‘decolonial turn’, given that it birthed and continues to shape manifestations of decolonial pedagogies (Jansen, 2019).  Moreover, we can view the almost ‘funnel’ form of the decolonial discourse that started very broad; with each phase, finetuning itself to address specific issues of the HE sector.  Beginning broadly, the decolonial discourse began with the ‘decolonial turn’ which represented the shift from the acceptance of inferiority to the assumption of the position of a questioner; ‘It is a position that entails not only a scepticism of the a priori superiority of Europe but also radical doubt about the lack of the full humanity of the colonised’ (Maldonado-Torres, 2017). This position was largely established with Dubois’ question in 1903; How does it feel to be a problem (Du Bois, 1999; Gordon, 2000)?  More specific answers to this question were forthcoming in the landmark texts of the mid-twentieth century; Aimé Césaire’s Discourse on Colonialism, Albert Memmi’s Colonizer and the Colonized and Frantz Fanon’s the Wretched of the Earth.  Amid the physical presence of colonial forces, these texts depicted the devasting effects of colonisation.  However, decolonial projects did not cease with the withdrawal of colonial troops, in fact, ‘postcolonial’ scholarship penetrated deeper to reveal the cultural effects of colonisation; Edward Said’s Orientalism, Homi Bhaba’s Location of Culture and Gaytri Spivak’s celebrated essay Can the Subaltern Speak.  Delving further, Latin American scholarship, Santiago Castro-Gomez (2020), Anibal Quijano (2000), Nelson Maldonado-Torres (2007) and Walter Mignolo (2013), moved us closer to issues around the decolonisation of epistemologies and ontologies; through their notions of ‘coloniality’ and ‘decoloniality’, our attention was drawn to the way in which knowledge is categorised, produced, controlled, legitimised and delegitimised.  Finally, the last phase that took us directly to the door of university curricula was initiated by South African scholarship (Jansen, 1998; Mamdani,1998; Mbembe, 2001).  With the end of the oppressive and racist apartheid system, South African scholars observed curricula, which remained mostly Eurocentric and reinforced white and Western dominance and privilege (le Grange, 2016; Heleta, 2016; Jansen, 2019). At the time of writing, the bulk of scholarship emanates from and is influenced by the Rainbow Nation.

Decolonial Pedagogies

 The use of the above texts to inform decolonial pedagogies is promising for several reasons.  First, the texts overwhelmingly emanate from the Global South, ensuring that the ‘fuel’ of decolonial pedagogies influences the ‘direction’ of decolonial pedagogies.  As we shall discuss later, this cannot be said about other ‘pedagogies of disruption’ (Zembylas, 2018).  What is also remarkable is that these texts are ‘talking’ to each other, each discussion building on the last and seeking to find a way to repurpose each other’s ideas. Second, the broad range of literature that shapes decolonial pedagogies offer unique perspectives that differentiates decolonial pedagogies from other pedagogies.  Their uniqueness may enable us to address the broad range of challenges facing HEIs (UUK and NUS, 2019; Thomas, 2001).  Domínguez reminds us that, ‘These are challenging times’ which require us to be ‘innovative’ to improve the quality of teaching and learning (Domínguez, 2019, p.48).  Third, the ethos of the decolonial literature counteracts the deficit model assigned to students who are not from ‘traditional’ backgrounds and fail to meet the ‘success’ criteria (Nyoni, 2019; Dirth and Adams, 2019; Thomas, 2001; Hockings, 2010; Bamber and Tett, 2008; Bamber, 2008); instead, there is a recognition of the value and viability of diverse experiences.  Moreover, it relocates pathology from inside individuals to the cultural and institutional context (Dirth and Adams, 2019).  Fourth, these texts engaged and benefited from the European canon. However, they reformulated and extended paradigms so that they could apply it to their concrete, lived experiences (Bulhan, 1995).

 Distinguishing the Field of Decolonial Pedagogies

 From the 2010s, there appears to be a body of literature that was concerned with the ‘ease’ in which the language of decolonisation had been ‘superficially appropriated’ into education and other social sciences (Tuck and Yang, 2012, p.2; Jansen, 2019; Zembylas, 2018).  Examples range from Sweeting’s cautious approach of using of Radical Constructivism to decolonise epistemologies (Sweeting, 2018); Baron’s ‘gumbo mix’ of various pedagogies (Baron, 2018); Richardson’s critique of Margonis’ use of Rousseau and Heidegger to develop his ontological attitude towards decolonial projects (Richardson, 2012); Monzo and critical pedagogue Mclaren’s efforts to unite decoloniality and Marxism, ‘decolonial Marxism’, arguably produced ‘Marxism-lite’ (Monzo and McLaren, 2014).

Thus, scholars have worked diligently to maintain the ‘purity’ of the decolonial discourse (Jansen, 2019).  Out of this diligence, scholars sought to distinguish decolonial pedagogies from critical pedagogy.  Considering that the latter is arguably the most prolific umbrella counter-tradition used in HE, it is not difficult to see why scholars have sought to place decolonial pedagogies under the critical pedagogy umbrella.   Nonetheless, it is worthwhile exploring this ‘push back’ to not only give us a better understanding of the field of decolonial pedagogies but also to direct us towards key principles that distinguish decolonial pedagogies from other pedagogies.[2]  

Broadly speaking, critical pedagogy, as popularised by Freire, is the cultivation of critical consciousness through the application of critical theory to the field of education.  From the outset, we can identify some semblance of a non-alignment between critical pedagogy and decolonial scholarship; Freire’s central text, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, was seen as a response to Fanon’s Wretched of the Earth (Tuck and Yang, 2012; Walsh, 2015; Jain and Meyer, 2018).  By response, it was less of a refutation, more of a refinement. Freire’s ‘timid’ referencing of Fanon understates the immense influence that Fanon had on Freire (Taylor, 1993; Jain and Meyer, 2018; Caribbean Philosophical Association, 2011).  Taylor mentions that significant aspects of Freire’s pedagogy were appropriated from Fanon (Taylor, 1993; Jain and Meyer, 2018; Caribbean Philosophical Association, 2011).

Nonetheless, the non-alignment between critical pedagogy and decolonial pedagogies is observed in three contested issues.  First, Freire and his critical allies situate most of the work of liberation in the minds of the oppressed whereas decolonial projects position the work of liberation in the structures of colonisation (Zembylas, 2018; Tuck and Yang, 2012; Batacharya and Wong, 2018)   Tuck and Yang (2012, p. 19) argue that the less controversial mental activity of ‘conscientization’ had subsumed the more uncomfortable task of ‘disruptive’ decolonial events; ‘the  experience of teaching and learning to be critical of… colonialism can be so powerful it can feel like it is indeed making change’ (emphasis added).[3]  

Second, the Eurocentricity of critical pedagogy has troubled many decolonial educators (Deutscher, and Lafont, 2017, p202).  Though critical pedagogy is a ‘counter-tradition’ it is still a tradition reflecting European dispositions (Luke and Gore, 1992; Ellsworth, 1989; Zembylas, 2018).  In contrast, decolonial literature either ‘edits’ European epistemologies and ontologies to reflect the lived experiences of the people under the yoke of colonialism or it draws from its own well (Bulhan, 1995; Richardson, 2012). This is not necessarily the case with critical pedagogies; this was best explained by Catherine Walsh, who discarded critical pedagogies in favour of decolonial pedagogies, ‘Still, critical pedagogy in its theoretical formulations thought and paradigmatic assumptions, a Western, anthropocentric, and largely Marxist-informed endeavour’ (Walsh, 2015, p13).  Similarly, Margonis (2003, p145) noted that despite Freire’s intention to overthrow the colonial heritage, he essentially prescribed the ‘teaching of Eurocentric perspectives’. Also, Allen questions whether the focus on European thinkers to critique Eurocentrism reifies the very concept that they claim to be criticising; ‘Mining the insights of European thinkers’ leads us to a kind of decolonisation from within, when what is needed is a more radical decolonisation from without’ (emphasis added) (Deutscher, and Lafont, 2017, p202). Simply put, ‘The master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house’ (Lorde, 1984, p.112).[4]

Critical pedagogy’s ‘white gaze’ has created distance from women and people of colour; many were ‘leery…  of its blindness to coloniality as modernity’s underside’ (Walsh, 2015, p14). It has been noted that ‘pedagogies, postures and views —often regarded as deriving from Freirean approaches’—have worked to obscure and negate the methodological standpoints, practices, processes and approaches of feminists, theorists of colour and indigenous peoples’ (Ellsworth, 1989, p. 305; Smith, 1999; Yoon, 2005; Walsh, 2015).[5]  

The third issue is that critical pedagogies’ categorising approach is problematic for decolonial scholarship.   Jansen (2009), an authority on decolonisation but not a friend, puts forward an intriguing observation about critical pedagogies, that sharply differs from decolonial pedagogies; the former receive and construct the world as divided; black/white, oppressors/oppressed, master/slave, and power/freedom and ‘then take sides’ to free the oppressed. In doing so, critical educators irresponsibly see themselves as ‘floating’ above the moral, ideological, and political messiness of real classrooms – ‘encasing itself in a language of certainty, abstraction and universalism’ (Jansen, 2009).[6]

No such claim is made in decolonial scholarship; instead, acknowledging and embracing one’s positionality is crucial. The ‘suicides’ demanded by critical pedagogy are regarded as simplistic and unrealistic; Ellsworth (1989) is deeply suspicious that relatively privileged educators’ cannot unproblematically enter solidarity with students of different ethnicities or gender orientations than themselves’; ‘I as a professor could never know about the experiences, oppressions, and understandings of other participants in the class.  A recognition, contrary to all Western ways of knowing… that there are fundamental things each of us cannot know’ (Ellsworth, 1989, p. 153).[7]  

All three of these issues are attempts to place some distance between critical and decolonial pedagogies. However, these issues have not been embraced by all parties; at a feedback session, an attendee regarded these issues as ‘strawman arguments’.  The attendee was not alone in his observation; he was pre-empted by Giroux, who retorted to Ellsworth and others that they ‘succumbed to the familiar academic strategy of dismissing others through the use of strawman tactics and excessive simplifications’ (Giroux and Robbins, 2016).  Problematically, in the same section, Giroux continues to critique Ellsworth’s character, of which the author has no desire to reiterate (Giroux and Robbins, 2016).  

The repudiation of ‘strawman tactics and excessive simplifications’ seem to be based on the assumption that critical pedagogy has evolved; its evolution was achieved through its ‘serious integration’ and welcoming of post-structural and feminist theories of identity, power, subjectivity and culture, neo - Marxist articulations, critical race theories and postcolonial theories (McLaren and Kincheloe, 2007).  However, such an eclectic integration prompts several questions; does the continuous incorporation of ideas and critique take away from the initial pedagogy?  How should we regard the initial conception, if it has been constantly ‘eaten away’ by waves of critique?  Similarly, Mignolo (2011, p.11) asks: ‘What should critical theory aim to be when the damnés de la terre are brought into the picture? Azumah interprets this to mean, ‘to incorporate race, gender and nature into the conceptual and political frame of critical theory would require its substantive transformation’ (Bhambra, Gebrial, and Nişancıoğlu, 2018, p.307).  Moreover, it doesn’t seem that feminist and decolonial scholarship have been notified that their concerns with critical pedagogy have been adequately addressed (Darder, 2003, p. 16 – 20; Batacharya and Wong, 2018).  

Perhaps there has been some degree of simplification and strawman construction.  The practice of critical pedagogy is too varied; critical pedagogues have continuously observed that they have seen a wide variety of pleasing and displeasing practices in the classroom (Darder, 2003; Giroux, 1988; Giroux and Robbins, 2016).  Thus, the critique against critical pedagogy may have succumbed to the Weberian notion of the ‘ideal type’ in order to conceptualise certain characteristics of critical pedagogy.  Also, the simplification may be due the possibility that much was ‘lost in translation’; Darda (2003, p. 17) opened his Critical Pedagogy Reader with the admission that the often convoluted, dense and Frankfurtesque’ language’ of critical pedagogy has been a ‘serious point of contention’ in which critical pedagogues have been asked to ‘rethink the direction of the work and reconsider alternatives and approaches to the articulation of theoretical concerns’.

Taking a step back from the debate, the author observes that there is considerable agreement between pedagogies; the chief difference seems to be one of intensity. This can be traced back to Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed and Fanon’s Wretched of the Earth in which the former was charged with ‘swerving safely around it’ (Morgan, p159).  This is seen in several themes, for example, though they both advocate that ‘decolonising the mind’ or the ‘cultivation of critical consciousness’ is a crucial first step to lead to tangible action, decolonial pedagogies are typified by direct action (Tuck and Yang, 2012).   Anecdotally, many of us came to know about decolonisation through the various passionate student campaigns, whereas, our first encounters with critical pedagogy may have been in more banal and erudite situations (Pillay, 2016; Begum and Saini, 2018).  Also, both pedagogies appreciated that engagement with the Eurocentric canon is problematic. However, decolonial pedagogies are distinguished by their attempts to subvert the canon and look for alternatives, whilst the reference list of the leading critical pedagogues reveal their moderation (Ellsworth, 1989; Smith, 1999; Yoon, 2005; Walsh, 2015).  

The lack of intensity of critical pedagogy is often attributed to the overwhelming ‘white maleness’ and the ‘link to Marxist analysis and classical European philosophical roots’, which moderated pedagogues to ‘explicitly treat questions of subordinate cultures from the specific location of racialised population themselves’ (Darda, 2003, p. 17).  Broadly, this observation was manifested in Freire’s last two publications (Walsh, 2015; Caribbean Philosophical Association, 2011). In his later years, Walsh accompanied Freire to the US in which his ‘whiteness’ was brought face to face with US racial politics to the extent that his ‘class-based focus seemed somehow out of place’ (Walsh, 2015; Caribbean Philosophical Association, 2011). Spurred by his meetings with racialised groups, Freire engaged much more with Fanon in his later years which lead him to intensify the link between ‘decolonisation and (re) humanisation’ (Walsh, 2015; Caribbean Philosophical Association, 2011). Allowing Fanon (1961, p. 6) to have the last words on the debate between decolonial and critical pedagogies, he succinctly states, ‘Challenging the colonial world is not a rational confrontation of viewpoints. It is not a discourse on the universal, but the impassioned claim by the colonised that their world is fundamentally different’.

 From Decolonial Pedagogies to Decolonial Pedagogy

 Moving on from the broad view of decolonial scholarship, this section will select the most appropriate decolonial pedagogical approach to implement in British HEIs.  There are at least six different approaches (Jansen, 2017; Ammon, 2017); as these conceptions are discussed, it is essential not to read them too rigidly, there is significant overlap.  Out of these six approaches identified in the literature, there are three approaches that are not entirely relevant to British higher education context as they relate to indigenous knowledge and practices (Jansen, 2017; Ammon, 2017).  Such a small number of approaches are due to the context-specific nature of the decolonial discourse.  The discourse is unified by the notion that no approach provides ‘an eternal philosophical foundation or universal and neutral knowledge transcendent of historical horizons, cultural conditions and social struggles’ (Rabaka, 2010, p. 20).  

The first of three is referred to as the ‘additive-inclusive approach’ (Jansen, 2017; Ammon, 2017).  This approach asserts that the current Eurocentric cannons are valuable but insists that new knowledge should be recognised and added to the settled curricula. However, this approach remains problematic because it can be considered ‘window dressing’ in the sense that conventional authors and concepts are left as the canon, ‘undisturbed in many ways, and all non-canonical theory occupies a secondary place in the imaginations of both students and instructors’ (Philipose, 2007).  Similarly, Dominguez (2019, p. 51; Paris and Alim, 2017) points out that inclusion of alternative voices is ‘often peripheral, positioning multicultural content as outright appropriation, or merely stepping-stones towards the ‘real’ content of the western canon’.

The second approach is assimilationist; that is, it doesn’t seek to separate knowledge into neat binaries like ‘us’ and ‘them’; ‘the Global South’ and ‘the Global North’; European and Non–European.  Instead, it views ‘our knowledges, in likeness to our human existences, as intertwined’ (Jansen, 2017; Ammon, 2017).  Implementing this approach can be construed as a disservice to learners.  Muddling intellectual traditions together may make it difficult for traditions to be treated with their proper respect and consideration of their particularities, whether European or non–European (Jansen, 2019).  Building on this point, feminist Philipose (2007) argued why it is essential that we dedicate time to engage with each tradition; ‘Without comprehending the ideas that shape us in our political locations, we are without the necessary language to challenge and disrupt the continued institutionalisation of traditional concepts and ideals’.

This leads us to the critical inquiry approach (Jansen, 2017; Ammon, 2017); this concept advocates the empowerment of students to engage with canonical knowledges by critical questioning; where did this knowledge come from? In whose interest does this knowledge serve?  What does it include and leave out?  Whose lived experiences is this depicting?  How can I utilise this knowledge to understand and map my lived experience?  This approach was selected because each tradition is given ‘earthly’ attention, compelling students to confront ‘uncomfortable’ issues about the development and implications of Eurocentric traditions.  Moreover, students play a lead role in creating new knowledge as they interrogate traditional canons aided by voices of dissent (Jansen, 2017; Ammon, 2017).

 Principles of Critical Inquiry Approach

 This section will formulate six core principles that will guide the practice of the Critical Inquiry Approach. Singh (2015, p. 379) explains the importance of this formulation,

All pedagogic discourses promote certain rules or principles of power with which they select and organise knowledge for pedagogic purposes. Even the most ‘noble’ pedagogic discourses aim at shaping communication and controlling pedagogic relations according to certain principles, so there is always an element of regulation or control in what is selected as valid knowledge.

These principles came out of a review of the decolonial literature that had a specific focus on teaching and learning. The author extracted the main themes from a largely empirical literature base of which there was minimal disagreement.

1.    Positionality: The appreciation and articulation of the social and political context that creates our identities (Schmidt, 2019; Ellsworth, 1989; Sefa Dei and Simmons, 2010; Harvey and Russell-Mundine; 2019; Tuck and Yang, 2012; Begum and Saini, 2018; Donelson, 2018).

2.    Explicit Purpose: The learning experience should be based on consent and intent in order to honour the diversity of lived experiences of the student body (Nyoni, 2019; Begum and Saini, 2018; Jansen, 2019; Donelson, 2018)

3.    Dialogical: Holding a dialogue and developing ‘meaning-making’ from shared experiences and readings. (Schmidt, 2019; Jansen, 2019; Walsh, 2015; Boonzaier and van Niekerk, 2019)

4.    Concern of the psychosocial wellbeing:  Decolonial projects should be imbued with empathy and respect to uplift students. (Domínguez, 2019; Jansen, 2019; Bhambra, Gebrial, and Nişancıoğlu, 2018)

5.    Theorising one’s lived experience: Building theory is central to the decolonial project, rather than just rely on critique, it is imperative that something is put forward that reflects the lived experiences of students (Schmidt, 2019; Bhambra, Gebrial, and Nişancıoğlu, 2018; Jansen, 2019; Donelson, 2018).

6.    Interrogation of the taught programme: A decolonising approach is one that confronts ‘traditional claims of the educational system’s neutrality, objectivity, and colorblindness’ (Jansen, 2019; Zembylas, M. 2018b; Harvey and Russell-Mundine; 2019; Decolonising SOAS Working Group, 2018; Moncrieffe, Asare, Dunford, 2019)

As these principles came together, the social constructivist approach offered the appropriate ‘housing’.  Such housing appears to foster ‘the active role played by the learner as he or she acquires new concepts and procedures’ (Lester, Stone and Stelling, 1999, p. 2).  Commonly, deployed as an engine for self-efficacy[8], this teaching approach supports the Critical Inquiry Approach by placing an emphasis on students to derive their own solutions to problems, interactively with the facilitator and peers, instead of just accepting information as a ‘passive participant’ (De Wet, 2017; Lester, Stone and Stelling, 1999).  Arguably, for such reasons, the social constructivist approach appears to be the most prevalent within the decolonial discourse (De Wet, 2017; Howard-Wagner, Kutay and Riley, 2012; Stewart, 2009).  However, the author remains cautious when invoking this European tradition, Sweeting (2018, p.326 - 327) also trod carefully, ‘There is reason to proceed cautiously, especially given that radical constructivism is itself located within Western thought, albeit as a form of counter-tradition’.  He went on further to provide some advice of which the author has taken heed; the engagement with social constructivism ‘must not be treated as ends in themselves but as ways to open up further questions’ (Sweeting, 2018, p.326 – 327).  In order to enable students to become ‘social constructivist’ learners, it is essential to consider the author’s current sector.

Employing the Critical Inquiry Approach in the Learning Development Sector

With the selection of the Critical Inquiry Approach selected, it’s important to reify this conversation by looking at its potential use in my current role at London Metropolitan University (LMU).  The work I do at LMU is described as ‘learning development’ (LD); coined in the 1990s, LD was defined as ‘a field of practice concerned with how students learn and how they make sense of academic conventions’ (Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, 2020; Hartley et al., 2011; Hilsdon, 2018)

The LD literature has yet to engage with the decolonial literature.  The absence is curious given its student-focused ethos and that much of the HE’s ‘supporting cast’ have attempted to grapple with decolonial concepts (Crilly, 2019; Pimblott, 2020).  With the decolonial agenda gathering pace, neutrality is becoming less of an option, particularly given the LD’s problematic practice of the improvement of ‘study skills’ and ‘academic socialisation’ (Lea, 2016; Lea 2006; Lea, 1998).  First, ‘study skills’ represents the transmission a set of atomised skills that students must learn to ‘fix’ problems with student learning, that is often treated as a pathology (Lea, 2016).  Second, ‘academic socialisation’ is the unquestioning induction of students into a new ‘culture’ of the academy (Lea, 2016). Both practices may entail getting working-class students of color to speak and write more like middle-class White ones (Paris, and Alim, 2014).  Also, Dominguez (2019) sees this as the ‘core of coloniality’ in which the essence of teaching is stripped down to transmitting mimicry.  

 Tackling our complicity in the colonisation process is not the only reason to connect LD with decolonial pedagogies or more specifically, the Critical Inquiry Approach.  There is already a significant literature base in LD that could be built upon and enhanced with the decolonial literature.  The Critical Inquiry Approach complements the ‘academic literacies’ approach (Lea, 2016; Lea 2006; Lea, 1998).  An academic literacies approach foregrounds the institutional nature of what’ counts’ as knowledge by looking through the prism of meaning-making, identity, power and authority (Lea, 2016; Lea 2006)  Such an approach invites students to read between the lines; instead of focusing on what disciplines ‘are’, and teaching mimicry to students, there is an insistence on paying close attention to uncovering what disciplines actually ‘do’ and how they shape student’s thinking and the academy’s production of knowledge (Lillis, Harrington, Lea, and Mitchell, 2016; Lea, 2016; Lea 2006).

 There are comforting signs within the academic literacies approach that would welcome a much closer union with decolonial pedagogies.  The academic literacies draw a significant amount of its substance from South African scholarship, the current incubator of decolonial pedagogies.  Though the former may not specifically mention the latter, the pervasiveness of the decolonial project has seemingly permeated their work (Jacobs, 2013; Duckworth, and Ade-Ojo, 2015; Coleman, 2012).  Second, academic literacies maintain a similar ‘plasticity’ to decolonial pedagogies, in fact, the architects of the former explicitly encourage the expansion of the ‘lens’ to explore new developments in HE (Lea, 2016).

Another positive sign that the Critical Inquiry Approach is at home in LD is that LD is often practised between the ‘cracks’ of HEIs.  Though there has long been a move to embed LD into the core curriculum, a significant proportion of LD takes place the ‘cracks’ between student’s classroom time and student’s free time.  These ‘cracks’, lunchtime workshops, inductions, enrichment and transitional events, offer meaningful spaces for meaningful engagement in which decolonial pedagogies can be implemented.  As Walsh (2015) contended, ‘The cracks become the place and space from which action, militancy, resistance, insurgence, transgression and/as pedagogization are advanced, alliances are built and the otherwise is invented, created and constructed’.  As attendance is voluntary, these spaces are not constrained by rigid assessment criteria or mapped to an evaluative framework.  Correspondingly, Le Grange argues that the voluntary space is fitting for decolonial projects because ‘decolonisation is not something that should be imposed because then it would be driven by negative power of potestas’.  If it imposed, it is ‘in all likelihood itself become colonising’ (Jansen, 2019, p.42).

Rationale

The Critical Inquiry Approach is best suited for adults entering higher education. This is because Mezirow saw that children’s learning is socialisation; adults, on the other hand, need to acquire ‘new meaning perspectives’ (Jarvis, Holford, and Griffin, 2003).  Though the rigidity of his categorisation is rather sharp, broadly, it is in ‘adulthood that we develop a more critical worldview as we seek ways to better understand our world’ (Taylor, 2008, p. 5).  

More specifically, the Decolonising SOAS Working Group (2018) focuses on the rationale of enhancing institutional practice.  While Le Grange (Jansen, 2019) centred on the rationale to ‘affect’ the student body.  Regarding institutional practice, the Working Group (2008, p. 1) saw it as a means to be ‘responsive to the problems of colonial and racialised privilege and discrimination’. Directing attention to the ‘student experience’, Le grange noted that the university is the optimum site to dispel the illusion that Eurocentric knowledge is universal.   Students often enter university believing that their disciplines are transparent, ‘untouched by the geo-political configuration of the world’ (Castro-Gomez, 2005)  Thus, it is vital for students to engage with the notion that knowledge is rarely neutral; opening up a discourse about who produces knowledge, what type of knowledge is produced and valued, the context it is produced in and what knowledge is left out is crucial to contest the neutrality of the canons that students encounter (Jansen, 2019).  Through this approach, a psychosocial transformation occurs, which allows students to gain a ‘critical’ feel for the game (Jansen, 2019; Mignolo, 2009; Quijano, 2000; Castro-Gomez, 2005). 

Conclusion

Following Le grange (Jansen, 2019) who ended his chapter with a section titled 'some parting thoughts in lieu of a conclusion', the author does not 'really wish to conclude and sum up, rounding off the arguments so as to dump it in a nutshell for the reader'.  Following suit, the author would like to leave the reading with some parting thoughts about the obstacles of employing Critical Inquiry Analysis.  First, there appears to be only two critiques of decolonial pedagogies (Jansen, 2019; Vickers, 2019).  Both of which are very mild, in order for decolonial pedagogies to refine themselves and become more robust, they need more sustained and sterner opposition, as Christian (1987, p. 63) noted, ‘Writing disappears unless there is a response to it’. Second, the Critical Inquiry Analysis should be harnessed by individuals that work within LD, it cannot be left to teaching staff alone who face ‘a painful and frustrating increase in the bureaucratization’ of their work and ‘neoliberal policy pressures that undermine and undercut’ their role, both of which have produced ‘compliance officers’ (Mirra, and Morrell, 2011; Begum and Saini, 2018; Li and Hu, 2016; Rust, Price, and O'Donovan 2003). This not to say that individuals that work within LD are without similar pressures (Hilsdon, 2018; Hartley et al., 2011).  However, unlike teaching staff, our role is imbued with a specific focus on how students learn and how they make sense of academic conventions; this provides slightly more scope to hold sessions that do not necessarily conform to a rigid set of assessment criteria (Hilsdon, 2018). Third, employing this pedagogy runs the risk of a ‘violent’ backlash from members of staff, interrogating the canon and by extension ‘whiteness’ is a ‘violent’ activity, which in turn prompts ‘violence’ even within so-called progressive teaching circles (Mignolo, 2009).  There is a deep almost spiritual connection to the canon; there are many individuals within the Academy that work within the spirit of Bloom’s words ‘Without the canon, we cease to think’ (Pine, 2014, p.70 - 72).  Any interrogation of such sacred objects will not go unnoticed or unpunished.  I have experienced this violence by just discussing the possibility of Critical Inquiry Analysis. Thus, I ask myself, is it worth it?

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[1] Koike and Kojima came out of a tradition that replaced the frontier of the United States with the Tokugawa Period and the symbol of the gun with the samurai sword (Pusateri, 2001: Slotkin, 1992).  

[2] Given decolonial scholarship’s understandable apprehension of canonicity, our only means of identifying a collection of principles is through the triggering of the decolonial defence mechanisms.

[3] Their scathing critique maintains that ‘Freire’s philosophies’ have inspired educators to use ‘decolonization’ as a metaphor for ‘internal decolonization’ rationally leading to ‘the solution of decolonizing one’s mind and the rest will follow’ (Tuck and Yang, 2012; Batacharya and Wong, 2018; Shih, 2018).  Conscientization alone, is not sufficient to be the central vehicle for emancipation; it is an important first step, but it is just a step (Tuck and Yang, 2012; Batacharya and Wong, 2018; Shih, 2018; Ellsworth, 1989; Luke and Gore, 1992).  

[4] Unsurprisingly, the well which nourished critical pedagogy was never going to provide to the sufficient nutrients that would speak to the lived experiences of those on the ‘underside’; as Edward Said observed, ‘Frankfurt School critical theory, despite its seminal insights into the relationships between domination, modern society, and the opportunities for redemption through art as critique, is stunningly silent on racist theory, anti-imperialist resistance, and oppositional practice in the empire’ (Said, 1994, p.336).

[5] Ellsworth (1989, p305), a former devote to critical pedagogy, explains how this might occur; critical pedagogues’ insistence on rational deliberation over their truth considering competing claims compels students to subject themselves to the ‘logics of rationalism and scientism which have been predicated on and made possible through the exclusion of socially-constructed irrationally ‘others’’.  As a result, critical pedagogues unwittingly collude with the oppressor in keeping ‘the oppressed occupied with the master’s concerns’ (Ellsworth, 2005, p. 305; Lorde, 1984).

[6] This ‘floater’ has committed ‘class – suicide’ and ‘race suicide’.[6]  They have ‘cleansed’ themselves of all inclinations in order to commit themselves to standing in solidarity with their students in their educational and political struggles… they must soak themselves in their students’ culture and worldviews’ (Freire,1993, p. 20; Freire and Faundez, 1989, p. 46; Margonis, 2003).  This category of the ‘teacher’ is steeped in the thoroughly Eurocentric concept of the ‘committed intellectual’ who stands among the oppressed (Bartocci, Betti, Guerraggio and Lucchetti, 2011, p. 157; Conner, 2014, p. 44; Abdi, 2012; Yoon, 2005; Monzo and Maclaren, 2014).

[7] She continues, ‘No teacher is free of these learned and internalized oppressions. Nor are accounts of one group’s suffering and struggle immune from reproducing narratives oppressive to another’s (Ellsworth, 1989, p. 307).  Decolonising pedagogies recognises and works within the messiness; it remains ‘deeply humanist’ dismantling any binary divisions that do not accurately depict the ‘messiness’ of the classroom and wider society (Ellsworth 1989; Yoon 2005; Zembylas 2013; Katz and Spero, 2015; Albrecht-Crane, 2005). Moreover, decolonial pedagogies recognises the symbiotic ‘trauma’ of colonialization on ‘oppressed’ and the ‘oppressor’ (Wane and Todd, 2018; Fanon, 1968).   From Dubois’ ‘decolonial turn’, this has been a constant in the literature (Wane and Todd, 2018). For example, Fanon, who treated victims and perpetrators of torture as a psychiatrist working for French colonial forces in Algeria, famously stated, ‘For Europe, for ourselves and for humanity, comrades, we must turn over a new leaf, we must work out new concepts, and try to set afoot a new man’ (emphasis added) (Fanon, 1968, p. 315).

[8] Defined as the belief in one’s capabilities to execute the courses of action required to manage prospective situations (Bandura, 1995, p. 2).

[exchangehe]

The Academic Mentor as Translator Written by Dr Ryan Arthur,FHEA

Abstract

Academic culture is not evenly accessed or experienced (Spurling, 1990; Mirza, 1995; Read, Archer and Leathwood, 2003; Semper and Blasco, 2018; UUK and NUS, 2019). This opinion piece will liken the author's previous academic mentor role to a translator of institutional culture. Within this role, the author sought to demystify the university experience by providing academic support and guidance to student mentees (Smith, 2014; Naismith and Livingstone, 2017). Mentoring students throughout the pre- and post-assessment phases prompted the author's consideration of several dilemmas (Stevenson, 2013; Scager et al., 2017). The significance of this essay lies in the framing of academic support in the era of access and participation plans (UUK and NUS, 2019; Department of Education, 2019; Office for Students, 2019). Though the title of the author's role may differ from other occupations engaged in learning development, the experiences and dilemmas remain the same (Hartley et al., 2011; Hilsdon, 2018).

Introduction

“Translation is not a matter of words only; it is a matter of making intelligible a whole culture"                                                                                                      (da Cunha, 2010)

The above quote epitomises the role of the academic mentor (AM); the AM essentially 'translates' the requirements of the institution to the student mentee. This essay will commence with a very broad discussion of the AM's translator role. This will be followed by an exploration of the AM's translation remit in the pre – and post-assessment phases. The pre-assessment phase refers to the AM's transfer of knowledge that enables students to complete assignments successfully. In contrast, the post-assessment phase refers to any activity after the submission of assignments. Looking at these phases provides an excellent vantage point to observe the AM's translation work. Subsequently, there will be a brief reflection on the dilemmas of the translator role. This essay is significant because it seeks to conceptualise the largely unresearched and under-theorised work of student-facing academic mentors (Naismith and Livingstone, 2017).

Academic Mentoring

In the literature, academic mentoring can refer to a staff-facing role in which experienced academics support the professional development of their less experienced colleagues (Budge, 2006; Sorcinelli and Yun, 2007; Darwin and Palmer, 2009; Carmel and Paul, 2015; Schmidt and Faber, 2016). It can also refer to 'peer mentoring' in which older students are charged with the responsibility of mentoring younger students in a bid to increase self-esteem and establish specific academic goals (Budge, 2006; Terrion and Leonard, 2007; Smith, 2014). However, in the context of this opinion piece, academic mentoring is a fusion of the approaches above. The academic mentor is an experienced and qualified member of the university's academic staff that imparts knowledge, provides support and offers guidance to a student protégé on academic matters (Naismith and Livingstone, 2017; Eby et al., 2013). Mentoring has become increasingly important in higher education (HE) to facilitate integration into the culture of an institution and is regarded as a pivotal support mechanism to the success of students outcomes (Naismith and Livingstone, 2017; Foster et al., 2015; Santora et al., 2013)

Due to the contextualised nature of academic mentoring, it is important to discuss how it was implemented in the author's previous mentoring role in a post-1992 London university (Naismith and Livingstone, 2017).  Though the concept of academic mentoring may inspire notions of a blend between pastoral and academic support, the author's previous role inclined towards the latter; activities were centred on providing students with support throughout the assessment process, whereas other departments serviced their pastoral needs. The author's previous role was situated within the learning development sector; in the sense that it was 'concerned with how students learn and how they make sense of academic conventions' (Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, 2020; Hartley et al., 2011; Hilsdon, 2018). The scenarios of a typical learning developer's role envisioned by Hilsdon in the opening pages of his edited book faithfully depict the author's past mentoring role (Hartley et al., 2011).

The mentoring role was carried out in the 'access and participation' climate in which higher education providers (HEPs) were required by the Office for Students (OfS) to be more strategically focused in providing support to their students (Singh, 2011; Department of Education, 2019; Office for Students, 2019; Office for Students, 2020). Such a climate has made it difficult for HEPs to direct blame to poor schooling and broader social inequalities; 'disadvantaged students will always do less well in their degrees' (Office for Students, 2020). The new climate that HEIs must acclimate to insists that if students from disadvantaged backgrounds are given support, they can end up performing just as well as, if not better than, their more privileged counterparts (Office for Students, 2020; Gorard and Siddiqui, 2019). With this in view, the task of translation has become increasingly important.

Translation

Upon entry, many students who were traditionally excluded from higher education encounter an immense institution, shrouded in mystery (Read, Archer and Leathwood, 2003; Mirza, 1995; Grant, 1997).  AMs seek to demystify the university by providing academic support and guidance (Lee, 2013; Naismith and Livingstone, 2017). In a sense, the academic mentor 'translates' the demands of the institution to the student body. The author could do this because he was 'bilingual'; on the one hand, he was able to recall his' native language' of initial fears, anxieties and bewilderment, on the other hand, through years of learning and teaching in HEIs, the AM acquired the 'institutional language', which he imparted to his mentee (Naismith and Livingstone, 2017; Foster et al., 2015; Santora et al., 2013; Lee. 2013). This is not to say that translation was 'one way', regardless of the topic, each student brought their previous knowledge, beliefs and attitudes to the discussion, translation involved communication between both parties to co-construct meaning (Ritchie, 2015; Jones, 2018).

The author has employed the analogy of 'translation' as opposed to 'interpretation' because the former has the connotation of asynchronous text-based communication, while the latter implies synchronous speech-based interactions (O'Hagan and Ashworth, 2002). The translation work of AMs is primarily concerned with the interpretation of asynchronous text-based communication text (assessment guidelines, feedback, lecture notes and criterion assessment grids).  

Moreover, when the analogy of translation is used, the author refers to 'paraphrasing' or 'translation with latitude' (Weyland, 1999; Schulte and Biguenet, 1992). This is where the exact meaning is kept in view, but the conversation between the mentor and the mentee will focus much more on the 'meaning' of the requirements in which issues may be minimised, amplified or qualified. Such selective translation avoids placing the full weight of the institution on the student's shoulders. A full translation may overwhelm the student; instead, what is needed is a prioritised and skilful rendering of the requirements (Weyland, 1999; Schulte and Biguenet, 1992).

'Paraphrasing' is in contrast to 'metaphrasing' or 'word for word' translation (Weyland, 1999; Schulte and Biguenet, 1992). Metaphrasing is not an effective approach for the AM.  It does not enrich students with any new understanding; the mentor merely duplicates what initially confused the students. Also, metaphrasing does not allow us to read between the lines to reveal the 'hidden curriculum' (Rowntree, 1987; Cotton, Winter and Bailey, 2013; Boud, 1995). The term 'hidden curriculum' is widely-used but covers a broad range of definitions; in the context of this essay, I will use it to describe the 'shadowy, ill-defined and amorphous nature of that which is implicit and embedded in educational experiences in contrast with the formal statements about curricula and the surface features of educational interaction' (Sambell & McDowell, 1998, p391 - 392; Cotton, Winter and Bailey, 2013). This 'shadowy' world is most recognisable in the pre- and post-assessment phases (Rowntree, 1987; Cotton, Winter and Bailey, 2013; Boud, 1995). Thus, the subsequent section will focus on these two aspects.

Pre – Assessment Translation

The first aspect of translation refers to AMs preparing students, in group and one-one sessions, for an upcoming assessment. The request for help is often prompted by a prior assessment that laid bare the students' misinterpretation of assessment guidelines. Commentators have observed that students tend to find assessment standards and criteria difficult to comprehend and that some aspects of their lecturers' expectations about assessment are difficult to articulate, hence 'hidden' (Orr, 2007; O'Donovan, Price, and Rust 2008; Lia and Hu, 2016). Many factors interrupt the transmission of assessment instruction; regarding the teaching staff, there may be issues with their pace of instruction, lack of scaffolding, minimal teaching experience, fluctuating assessment landscape, unfounded assumptions, lack of congruence between members of staff (O'Donovan, Price and Rust, 2004; Equality Challenge Unit and Higher Education Academy, 2016). Regarding the student body, absence, unfamiliarity with a particular writing genre and unawareness of the 'hidden' norms and conventions are cases in point (Higher Education Academy, 2013; Equality Challenge Unit and Higher Education Academy, 2016).  

Amid this communication breakdown, the AM intercedes to become a 'middle person' in the communication between teaching staff and the students. It must be noted that translating from the middle is not reflective of the critical pedagogy perspective in which presentation of seemingly neutral assessment requirements must be uncovered if they are to be critically addressed (Friere, 2017; Apple, 1990; Semper and Blasco, 2018). The motives of pre-assessment translation are far more modest; instead, it is merely a means to enunciate 'hidden' matters that are so taken for granted by lecturers that they are rarely given any attention (Gair and Mullins, 2001; Semper and Blasco, 2018). Even if lecturers had the desire to give such matters the attention they deserve, the transmission of implicit knowledge through continuous observation and practice is too resource-intensive and no longer viable given the reduction in resources and the growth of the student population (Li and Hu, 2016; Rust, Price, and O'Donovan 2003).

To bring these ideas to the fore, the author will provide their experience of pre-assessment translation, intersecting the experience with relevant commentary. Reacting to prior mediocre grades or the expectation of such, teaching staff would often request the services of an AM to 'walk' students through the assignment criteria in a classroom setting. This can be linked to broader notions of the 'culture of performativity' in which teaching is viewed as a response to a perceived deficit, which leads to short-term reactive responses; rather than 'proactive, thoughtful, research and disciplinary-based developments' (Jarvis, 2016).  While it may have been more fruitful to be part of a more thought-out intervention, whatever route allows learning developers to engage with the student body within a normalised space is an appreciated opportunity (McWilliams and Allan, 2014).  Once inside this space, the translation process begins by explicitly rejecting the 'transmission model' in favour of a 'dialogic model' (Li and Hu, 2016; Ajjawia and Boud, 2018).  This dialogic interaction was not a conversation but instead a guided and purposeful dialogue in which students and the author co-constructed meaning from exemplar assignments that met the assessment criteria (Li and Hu, 2016; Ajjawia and Boud, 2018).  Carefully placed prompts in the dialogue were established to give the translation process a more 'organic feel' that would lead to 'both stronger confidence and better performance in completing assignments' (Li and Hu, 2016, p2; Rust, Price, and O'Donovan 2003)

Post – Assessment Translation

The second aspect of translation involves the AM's translation of the teaching staff's written feedback.  Until the 1980s, very little research had been carried out to understand how students perceive tutors' written comments (Ziv, 1982; Sommers, 1982; Lee, 2013).  This is intriguing, given that this area of translation is significant because the lowest scores received by the National Student Survey (NSS) are often in the area of feedback (Higher Education Academy, 2013).  Students have experienced significant problems with understanding and addressing their feedback (Higher Education Academy, 2013). Correspondingly, staff were confounded by the lack of attention paid to feedback (Higher Education Academy, 2013).  Such a scenario is problematic because written feedback provides a 'mode of communication between the tutor and individual student that is unlikely or rarely likely to take place in the everyday classroom' (Lee, 2013, p. 11; Hyland and Hyland, 2001, p. 185).

Intersecting the experience of the author with relevant commentary, this piece turns its attention to the nature of post-assessment translation.  Students often requested a one-one appointment to make sense of their written feedback; in this regard, Sutton and Gill (2010) noted that deciphering feedback comments were described by students as akin to 'learning a foreign language' (Ajjawia and Boud, 2018).  Though a portion of the conversation involved a direct conversion of the teacher's comments to make them understandable to the student, a significant amount of 'latitude' was employed to foster the latter's self-regulation. The author needed to become 'creative' in this area, given that the majority of written feedback comments are at the level of task, in the sense that feedback was chiefly concerned with how well the task was performed or understood rather than fostering students' self-regulatory behaviours (Ajjawia and Boud, 2018; Arts, Jaspers, and Joosten-ten Brinke 2016; Lee, 2013; Glover and Brown 2006; Orsmond and Merry 2011; Hattie and Timperley 2007).  This was principally achieved by repurposing retrospective feedback ('You did not include the required introduction!') towards a 'feedforward' approach ('In future, it is good practice to include an introduction that gives the focus of the essay) (Higher Education Association, 2013; Lee, 2013).

Without such contextual translation in the pre- and post-assessment phases, even the most carefully worded guidance can hold little meaning for students (Maclellan, 2001; Hussey and Smith, 2002; O'Donovan, Price and Rust, 2004).

Dilemmas in Translation

There are four significant dilemmas that the author faced in his translation work. Differing from a 'problem' that can be solved, a 'dilemma' cannot be fully resolved without leaving some residue (Scager et al., 2017).  First, the quality of the author's translation was dependent on the quality of the teaching staff's instruction.  For example, it was not always possible to interpret feedback or assignment guidelines if they were poorly worded or provided minimal instruction (Lee, 2013). On occasion, this placed the author in a precarious situation in which he was faced with the choice of withholding support for a period or run the risk of providing erroneous translations.  This dilemma laid bare the problem of the academic staff not always being on the 'same page'. McWilliams and Alan's study (2014, p. 12) on embedding academic literacy skills saw this as 'one of the most challenging aspects of our work'.  

 A second dilemma is, are we socialising students away from their innate creativity towards a very narrow and rigid conception of a 'good student'?  On the one hand, it appeared to be a partnership; the discussions between a student and the author were framed by the needs of the former.  Also, the discussions appear to be a negotiation of meanings drawn from our knowledge and experiences.  However, this was counterbalanced by the push towards of conformity through the author's translation work; this notion is best explained by Lea and Street's educational research into student writing which uncovered three approaches: 'study skills'; 'academic socialisation'; and 'academic literacies' (Lea and Street, 1998; Lea and Street, 2006).  It would seem that the author's translation work did not move beyond the first two approaches; the transmission of a set of atomised skills that students must learn to 'fix' problems with their learning and the unquestioning induction of students into a new 'culture' of the academy (Lea and Street, 1998; Lea and Street, 2006). Inadvertently, both practices centre on how to get working-class students to write more like middle-class ones (Paris and Alim, 2014).  The author cannot confidently state that he was able to employ the third approach, 'academic literacies', in an explicit and sustained manner.   An academic literacies approach engages with what' counts' as knowledge by looking through the prism of meaning-making, identity, power and authority (Lillis et al., 2015; Lea, 2016). Such an approach invites students to read between the lines; instead of focusing on what disciplines 'are', there is an insistence on paying close attention to uncovering what disciplines actually 'do' and how they shape student's thinking (Lillis et al., 2015; Lea, 2016). Mirroring his fellow learning developers, the author's development activities were increasingly shaped by 'contingent approaches' that reflected local management priorities, constraining attempts to contest and expose meaning (Hartley et al., 2011).

The third dilemma involved the amount of translation that the author withheld or provided.  Throughout the translation process, the author had to remain conscious that he was not overly supporting the student to the detriment of their independent learning.  An essential component of enhancing self-efficacy is traversing through challenging periods.  Excessive support could hinder their journey of learning.  Studies have shown the need for students to face difficult challenges to stimulate learning (Noble and Childers, 2008; Weiss 2003; Scager et al., 2012).  Though teaching staff did offer opportunities to discuss assignment briefs and feedback, for many reasons, students did not always take advantage of these opportunities (Ramsden, 1992; Voss et al., 2007; Kandiko and Mawer 2013; Semper and Blasco, 2018).  As a result, the AM was increasingly accessed to translate assignment briefs and feedback. Faced with such demands, there remains a constant concern about what to withhold and what to provide.

The last and the most pertinent dilemma in the era of access and participation is the concern of whether my previous 'fire-fighting' role supported an institution that did not offer sufficient student support itself, but still accepted students whose educational experience could not adequately prepare them for the demands of higher education (Stevenson, 2011).  Was my role the equivalent of a 'bandage' placed on an ailing system?  As one of the few members of staff with a sole focus on supporting students, we could not faithfully meet the ever-growing demand of students that needed our support.  Yet, our services were heavily advertised to those inside and outside of the university.  Perusing through the university's prospectuses and access and participation plans of the last two years, you would be forgiven to believe that our impact and numbers were substantial.  However, upon entry to the university, you would soon discover that our services were severely limited.

 Conclusion

Following LeGrange (Jansen, 2019) who ended his chapter with a section titled 'some parting thoughts in lieu of a conclusion', the author does not 'really wish to conclude and sum up, rounding off the arguments so as to dump it in a nutshell for the reader'.  It is essential that discussions about how we view our work and the dilemmas that we encounter continue well beyond the closing words of this article.

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Interactive Learning with Lego

Patrick Mulneran (04.02.2020)

Reconstructing Reality:

“That’s what the Lego exercise is about, it’s creating a reconstruction of reality so that people can go through it and think about what they are doing.”

 Using Lego in HE:

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