Ecosophy and Educational Research for the Anthropocene


Book Description

Problematizing the aims of education in the Anthropocene, this text illustrates the value of relational psychoanalytic theory in the study and practice of education amidst the climate crisis. Illustrating how dominant educational theory fails to acknowledge climate precarity and the consequences of living beyond the Earth’s carrying capacity, Ecosophy and Educational Research for the Anthropocene calls for a reorientation of scholarship to decentre the human subject. The author discusses the evolution of intersubjective psychoanalysis to make a case for a turn to relational and psychoanalytically informed educational research. Chapters foreground areas for educational researchers to consider in pursuing intersubjective inquiries into the affective dimensions of curriculum and pedagogy to foster an emergence of eco-attunement and ecosophical educational research (EER). By framing an ecosophical approach, this book enables educational leaders, researchers and educators to fulfil their responsibility to engage in educational praxis which is contextually responsive, relationally attuned and recognizant that we cannot be studied apart from our connections to the planet.




Teaching in the Anthropocene


Book Description

This new critical volume presents various perspectives on teaching and teacher education in the face of the global climate crisis, environmental degradation, and social injustice. Teaching in the Anthropocene calls for a reorientation of the aims of teaching so that we might imagine multiple futures in which children, youths, and families can thrive amid a myriad of challenges related to the earth’s decreasing habitability. Referring to the uncertainty of the time in which we live and teach, the term Anthropocene is used to acknowledge anthropogenic contributions to the climate crisis and to consider and reflect on the emotional responses to adverse climate events. The text begins with the editors’ discussion of this contested term and then moves on to make the case that we must decentre anthropocentric models in teacher education praxis. The four thematic parts include chapters on the challenges to teacher education practice and praxis, affective dimensions of teaching in the face of the global crisis, relational pedagogies in the Anthropocene, and ways to ignite the empathic imaginations of tomorrow’s teachers. Together the authors discuss new theoretical eco-orientations and describe innovative pedagogies that create opportunities for students and teachers to live in greater harmony with the more-than-human world. This incredibly timely volume will be essential to pre- and in-service teachers and teacher educators. FEATURES: - Offers critical reflections on anthropocentrism from multiple perspectives in education, including continuing education, educational organization, K–12, post-secondary, and more - Includes accounts that not only deconstruct the disavowal of the climate crisis in schools but also articulate an ecosophical approach to education - Features discussion prompts in each chapter to enhance student engagement with the material




Education as Human Knowledge in the Anthropocene


Book Description

This book examines the concepts of the Anthropocene and globalisation in our society and the changes that these are bringing about in education and human learning. The book argues that there needs to be reflexive approach to issues that affect the fate of the planet and the future of humans, brought about by an education that looks to the future. Wulf argues that a change in education and socialization can only succeed based on an understanding of previous educational ideas, and considers the significance of Confucianism and spiritual education that emerged in the East. The book traces key educational ideas throughout history to show how education and human knowledge are closely linked, highlighting the need for us to pay careful attention to repetition, mimesis and the imagination in learning. It shows how a future-oriented education must engage with issues of peace and violence, global citizenship and sustainable development. This timely and compelling book will be of great interest to researchers, academics and students in the fields of philosophy of education, the history and anthropology of education, sustainability education and global citizenship education




Engaging with Environmental Education through the Language Arts


Book Description

This creative volume demonstrates the urgent importance of engaging students cognitively and affectively with the climate crisis and environmental education, underpinning the vital role the language arts play in expanding this engagement for a better future. Moving beyond the basic modalities of English, chapters written by an internationally diverse group of contributors advocate for the integration of language arts with environmental education through broad representation of creative subdisciplines: drama, visual literacy, philosophy, poetry, student voice and more. These subdisciplines are explored to suggest the context in which environmental degradation, forest ecologies, carbon literacy and indigenous knowledges are taught, further helping students to develop a comprehensive view of how they can effect change. Ultimately, the book makes a compelling argument by emphasising the significance of interdisciplinary learning in fostering a holistic understanding of environmental issues. This volume will appeal to scholars, researchers and postgraduate students in the field of environmental and sustainability education, English and literacy/language arts and teacher education more broadly. Undergraduate students, policymakers, environmental educators and curriculum designers may also benefit from this volume.




Rethinking Education in Light of Global Challenges


Book Description

Rethinking Education in Light of Global Challenges discusses challenges to education in Scandinavian welfare states due to global trends like migration, neoliberal strategies, and the exploitation of nature. This anthology comprises case studies, theoretical articles, and reflective studies, grouped under the headings of Culture, Society, and the Anthropocene. This book directly addresses three interrelated global events and their implications for education as seen from Scandinavian perspectives: migration flows, increased cultural diversity, and (post)nationalism; the erosion of the welfare state and the global rise of neoliberalism; and the Anthropocene and environmental challenges arising in the wake of the global exploitation of natural ecosystems. In case studies, theoretical articles, and reflective studies, researchers from Nordic countries explore how education, education policy, and educational thinking in these countries are affected by these global trends, bringing to the fore the different roles education can play in addressing the various issues and different ways of reimagining education. This authoritative volume will be of great interest to researchers, academics, and students in the fields of sociology of education, migration and education, environmental education, and educational politics.




Justice and Equity in Climate Change Education


Book Description

This volume looks at the ways in which climate change education relates to broader ideas of justice, equity, and social transformation, and ultimately calls for a rapid response to the need for climate education reform. Highlighting the role of climate change in exacerbating existing societal injustices, this text explores the ethical and social dimensions of climate change education, including identity, agency, and societal structure, and in doing so problematizes climate change education as an equity concern. Chapters present empirical analysis, underpinned by a theoretical framework, and case studies which provide critical insights for the design of learning environments, curricula, and everyday climate change-related learning in schools. This text will benefit researchers, academics, educators, and policymakers with an interest in science education, social justice studies, and environmental sociology more broadly. Those specifically interested in climate education, curriculum studies, and climate adaption will also benefit from this book.




Re/centring Lives and Lived Experience in Education


Book Description

Through critical, qualitative, creative, and arts-integrated approaches, this collection explores the co-curricular capacity of lived experience to re/centre human being in education.




Queering Gender, Sexuality, and Becoming-Human in Qing Dynasty Zhiguai


Book Description

This book offers queer readings of Chinese Qing Dynasty zhiguai, ‘strange tales’, a genre featuring supernatural characters and events. In a unique approach interweaving Chinese philosophies alongside critical theories, this book explores tales which speak to contemporary debates around identity and power. Depictions of porous boundaries between humans and animals, transformations between genders, diverse sexualities, and contextually unusual masculinities and femininities, lend such tales to queer readings. Unlike previous scholarship on characters as allegorical figures or stories as morality tales, this book draws on queer theory, animal studies, feminism, and Deleuzian philosophy, to explore the ‘strange’ and its potential for social critique. Examining such tales enriches the scope of historic queer world literatures, offering culturally situated stories of relationships, desires, and ways of being, that both speak to and challenge contemporary debates.




Education as the Practice of Eco-Social-Cultural Change


Book Description

The current ecological crisis is the consequence of entrenched attitudes, discourses and behaviours in human societies worldwide, fostered and reinforced through modern educational traditions, processes and institutions. This book envisions a radical transformation of education to focus on the mutual flourishing of human societies with the rest of life on Earth. In part, the authors suggest approaching this as a problem of systemic design, incorporating principles that challenge and undermine key premises of the Capitalocene—the socio-economic-political landscape sustaining the current educational regime. Tracing the implications of this transition, they review core assumptions of modern Western culture that need to shift, and identify a wide range of relevant capacities and practices grouped under four complementary educator “stances” for eco-social-cultural change.




Education, the Anthropocene, and Deleuze/Guattari


Book Description

This book puts forward a radical, unorthodox thesis with respect to the Anthropocene, the philosophy of Deleuze/Guattari and education. This book analyses the Anthropocene for its unconscious drives and develops a parallel mode of education and social change.