De-colonising Educational Practices and Gender Dynamics

In the past century, community engagement has been part of a stand-alone forced assimilation plan, where indigenous knowledge and heritage has been rejected and suppressed in higher and tertiary institutions of education leading to decentralization and colonisation of knowledge. Due to historical institutional mistrust, misconceptions and lack of resources, the concept of community engagement continues to be received with mixed reactions across tertiary institutions. Coloniality continue to be observed not just in community engagement practices but also in the manner in which gender disparities are handled at doctorate level. In Zimbabwe, there has been a huge movement of women into the academic space. While this space was once dominated by men, the creation of policies that promote gender equality have seen an escalation in the involvement of women not just in institutions of higher learning but specifically in the doctorate academic levels. This has created discourse in scholarship. This book stands at the intersection of decolonisation and gender disparities in higher and tertiary institutions particularly in developing countries of Southern Africa.

Autorentext

A Dra. Emelder M. Tagutanazvo é Ecologista Social e professora de Ecologia Social no Departamento de Desenvolvimento Comunitário da Universidade do Zimbabué. Trabalhou como consultora de investigação sobre género e água em instituições de investigação internacionais como o International Water Management Institute (IWMI), a WaterNet e o CASS.