Decolonising African University Knowledges, Volume 1 Voices on Diversity and Plurality

This timely work investigates the possibility of unyoking and decolonising African university knowledges from colonial relics. It claims that academics from socially, politically, and geographically underprivileged communities in the South need to have their voices heard outside of the global power structure. The book argues that African universities need a relevant curriculum that is related to the cultural and environmental experiences of diverse African learners in order to empower themselves and transform the world. It is written by African scholars and is based on theoretical and practical debates on the epistemological complexities affecting and afflicting diversity in higher education in Africa. It examines who are the primary custodians of African university knowledges, as well as how this relates to forms of exclusion affecting women, the differently abled, the rural poor, and ethnic minorities, as well as the significance of the Fourth Industrial Revolution in the future of African universities. The book takes an epistemological approach to university teaching and learning, addressing issues such as decolonization and identity, social closure and diversity disputes, and the obstacles that come with the neoliberal paradigm. The book will be necessary reading for academics, scholars, and postgraduate students in the fields of Sociology of Education, decolonising education, Inclusive Education, and Philosophy of Education, as it resonates with existing discourses.

List of Illustrations List of Abbreviations List of Contributors Chapter 1- Gender, disability and rurality: decoding the themes in the African university milieu Amasa P. Ndofirepi Chapter 2- Reflection on disability (and) educational justice in Africa’s structurally unjust society during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown Erasmus Masitera Chapter 3- Improving processes, practices and structures in South African higher education: Voices of students with disabilities Sibonokuhle Ndlovu Chapter 4- Social justice in higher education: a quest for equity, inclusion and epistemic access Tsediso Michael Makoelle Chapter 5- Decolonising African university teaching by unyoking Deaf culture from disability Martin Musengi Chapter 6- Theorising feminist voices in the curriculum in an African university Beatrice Akala Chapter 7- Knowledge democracy and feminist epistemic struggle in African universities Simon Vurayai Chapter 8- Globalisation and commodification of knowledge liberating women’s academic achievements from conventional global power hierarchies Zvisinei Moyo Chapter 9- The Place of Universities in Africa in the Global Information Society: A Critique J. Kundai Chingarande andClyton Dekeza Chapter 10- Gender, disability, rurality, and social injustice in the African university: Opportunities going forward Amasa P. Ndofirepi Afterword by Yusef Waghid Index

Amasa P. Ndofirepi holds a PhD in Philosophy of Education and is currently an Associate Professor of Philosophy and History of Education. He has extensive experience in teacher education, previously worked at various higher education institutions in Zimbabwe and South Africa and has research interests in higher education studies from a philosophical perspective. Felix Maringe is a Professor of Higher Education and Head of the School of Education at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa. He researches issues of social justice in the Internationalisation and Globalisation of Higher Education. Felix is widely published in refereed journals and has six books to his credit. Simon Vurayai is a post-doctoral research fellow at the University of Johannesburg in South Africa. He holds a PhD in Sociology of Education. He is also a lecturer in the Sociology of Education at Great Zimbabwe University. His research interests are gender studies, social justice, problems in education, sociology of knowledge, sociology of mass media, sociology of development and poverty Gloria Erima is a post-doctoral fellow at the department of Education and Curriculum Studies at the University of Johannesburg in South Africa. Her research interest is centred around issues of social justice in education. She obtained her PhD in Education Leadership and Management at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa.