Decolonising initial teacher education in South African universities: More than an event

Abstract

Calls for the decolonisation of university curricula have been central to the demands of the South African student movements since they first gained prominence during 2015. In this paper, we examine this debate by examining teacher education at universities as a way of understanding what future school teachers are exposed to and consequently learners. Defining decolonisation as a process of expanding imaginations, and drawing on a meta-analysis of teacher education curricula, and interviews with teacher education lecturers, at five South African universities, the paper examines the kinds of intellectuals and intellectual debates to which student teachers are being exposed, how teacher educators understand the factors underlying their curriculum decisions, and the broader institutional and policy dynamics that impact on efforts to rethink curricula.