Centering embodied learning in anti-oppressive pedagogy

Abstract

Academia has traditionally valued cognition and intellectual processes, eschewing the significance of other bodily domains involved in teaching, learning, and theorizing. Grounding the analysis in our experiences as diversely positioned academics, we argue that embodied teaching and theorizing provide a unique means of delivering material consistent with the aims of social justice education, while simultaneously challenging neoliberal paradigms. Acknowledging both students' and faculty members' discomfort and/or resistance to embodied approaches, this analysis contributes to discussions about critical approaches to dismantling neoliberalism and developing an alternative framework of understanding through which conventional paradigms of thought may be challenged.

Keywords:

• anti-oppression pedagogy
• embodied learning
• neo-liberalism
• racialized faculty

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. It is beyond the scope of this paper to highlight the various ways that neoliberalism frames teaching practice. For further discussion on this topic please refer to Shahjahan (2014a), Osei-Kofi (2012), and Lugo-lugo (2012).