Matthew Wingfield and Mukisa Mujulizi presented a paper titled "Pedagogical power dynamics seen from the South: A case study of the Global Classroom for Democracy Innovation" at the 2023 South African Sociological Association (SASA) conference.

The paper's abstract reads as follows:

Critiques of the composition and impacts of global educational offerings have in recent years become animated by a range of scholars. As Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) seek to ‘internationalise’ their pedagogical offerings, often students from the ‘Global North’ and ‘Global South’ find themselves in globally diverse spaces. This became increasingly prevalent during the COVID-19 pandemic, with similarly-aligned online engagements becoming ubiquitous. This paper is based on an international Global Classroom with students from Stellenbosch University (South Africa), University of Toronto (Canada), and University West (Sweden), and others. We argue that while prevalent global power dynamics (in various forms) embedded in internationally collaborative sessions were intentionally engaged, there are a range of dynamics that emerge on different levels that need to be navigated (Boughey & Mckenna, 2021). Our investigation therefore, takes a multi-level approach in addressing global power dynamics. It is shown that without such an approach, engagements with power dynamics can be largely superficial, further stymieing productive and inclusive student engagement. This paper is based on two years of planning and managing the Global Classroom for Democracy Innovation (GCDI) project, and further supported by both qualitative and quantitative feedback from student participants.

Conference details:

Dates: Wednesday, 5th – Friday, 7th July 2023

Venue: University of Zululand Main Campus, KwaDlangezwa, South Africa

Theme: Sociologies from the Global South and Beyond: Teaching, Learning, Research and Social Engagement