Description
Politics and the Act of Organic Pedagogy. My PhD research is an investigation into the learning that takes places within social movements. I am looking specifically at anti-capitalist movements with an educational ethos, this has led to case studies from Occupy and various pedagogical initiatives against global capital right to the University of Lincoln. My study aims to understand how education can work as a popular pursuit and how both informal, organic learning and organisational initiatives leading to potential changes within our society. This work has been interdisciplinary due to my starting point as an education researcher, since starting my PhD study I have had to become well versed in political theory, social movement theory and activism in addition to my previous understanding of educational theory, sociology and philosophy. This approach has benefitted my work greatly as it has meant that I have been able to glean a holistic understanding of the political and moral reasons for the type of pedagogy and informal education that has been adopted within these movements. Therefore, instead of making assumption about why and how this type of pedagogy has developed I can understand from multiple perspectives the decisions and organic development, whilst analysing the pedagogy from an educational philosophy and sociology perspective. The findings from this research, because of the interdisciplinary conduct, have indicated education is a force for political change when the creative imagination is allowed to flourish in a political and insurgent public space particularly. Many of the people interviewed felt that their whole life has been fundamentally changed through their engagement in an organic education with the aim of critical awareness. Interdisciplinary study in education would benefit the field as it helps to critically understand education as a political act and therefore educators and educational establishments as spaces of radical possibility and learners as change agents.| Period | 5 Mar 2014 |
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| Event type | Conference |
| Location | Manchester, United KingdomShow on map |
Keywords
- Pedagogy
- interdiscipinarity
- Education
- Research methods