Established in August 2023, the AEWG developed out of the previous Department of Politics Decolonial Working Group into a Cross-Department Working Group with a remit extending beyond the School of Histories, Languages, and Cultures. The working group comprises a team of like-minded academics across the School of History, Languages, and Culture, the School of Law and Social Justice, the School of Life Sciences, and the School of Environmental Sciences.
The Working Group is dedicated to a collective interest in research on anti-colonial pedagogy in higher education. Here ‘anti-colonial’ refers to the ideology and practices of resisting empire, constituting a nonconforming anti-imperial inheritance from activists and intellectuals outside the university and the United Kingdom (Gopal, 2020).
As part of its study, the AEWG set out to produce (1) four forums of anticolonial discussion within and outside the university, and (2) one collective output of a policy document.
This document titled An appeal to Anti-colonial education at the University of Liverpool is a research-based policy document that exemplifies the efforts of University of Liverpool educators to pursue teaching and teaching-related administration that facilitates an education informed by the possibilities generated by anti-colonial solidarities within and outside the University of Liverpool.
Download An appeal to Anti-colonial education at the University of Liverpool policy paper.
From October 2023 to May 2024, the AEWG organised the following events to collect qualitative data from participants observation and anonymised interviews, completed in line with the University of Liverpool’s research ethics policies and procedures:
Open on-campus Introduction meeting with Anti-colonial Education Working Group
(South Campus Teaching Hub; Day Event, 18/10/2023)
This two-hour meeting would bring together academics (e.g., staff and students) to discuss the basics of anti-colonial education and how this pedagogic approach can improve high-quality quality teaching and student outcomes in higher education. The first hour was focused on staff experiences with cross-departmental efforts to decolonise the curriculum.
The second hour was dedicated to break-out group activities focused on gathering ideas concerning on how anti-colonial education can be brought into teaching in a manner that addresses present challenges to confront structural inequalities in teaching and curriculum development.
Off-campus workshop with community partner collaboration with Local Expert Speaker (Janaya Pickett)
(The Kuumba Imani Millennium Centre; Day Event, 22/11/2023)
This four-hour workshop brought together academics based at the University of Liverpool and representatives of community organisations addressing issues of equitable education access in the Toxteth community.
This workshop focused on the idea of fair community partnerships between the L8 community and the University of Liverpool and how educators could pursue teaching in a manner that is more conscious of and dutiful towards the communities in the university’s immediate surroundings.
Part one of this event consisted of a presentation by the local speaker, Janaya Pickett, on the topic of anticolonial action in Liverpool in the context of the Dorothy Kuya Archive. Janaya Pickett is a local historian, writer and an MRes student at the University of Liverpool researching post-war black Liverpool.
Part two was a feedback session discussing community organisation attendees’ different experiences with teaching initiatives based at the University of Liverpool and reflecting on the impact this has had in the L8.
Part three was dedicated to break-out group discussions on how teaching practices and curriculum development at the University of Liverpool can be more reciprocally informed by community engagement; considering what anti-colonial commitments academics could assist community partners in encouraging the University of Liverpool to address.
Open on-campus Lecture with External Expert Speaker (Dr Sara Salem)
(Rendall Building, 03/05/2024)
This two-hour event brought together academics from across the University of Liverpool to discuss the basics of anti-colonial education and how this pedagogic approach can improve high-quality quality teaching and student outcomes in higher education.
The first hour was dedicated to a presentation by external speaker Dr Sara Salem. Dr Sara Salem is an Associate Professor in Sociology at the London School of Economics. Her research interests include postcolonial studies, Marxist theory, and global histories of anti-colonialism.
Publication of 'An appeal to Anti-colonial education at the University of Liverpool'
The AEWG’s fourth and final event is the launch of its report on October 15, 2024, discussing and summarising its findings from conducting these past events, transcribing interviews, and engaging in conversations with community activist organisations, teaching, and administrative staff.
The AEWG’s report can be downloaded here: An appeal to Anti-colonial education at the University of Liverpool
This document can be offered as a tool for future educators interested in learning about practical challenges, opportunities, and realisations of addressing colonial legacies and anti-racism in higher education at the University of Liverpool.