Situating Ourselves and Reflecting on Decolonization

Take a moment to self reflect and think deeply about your learnings on this topic. To help you consider your own positionality, try to situate yourself on the following continuum:

Pedagogical continuum: 1. I have not begun 2. I am starting 3. I am implementing 4. I am implementing continually

We appreciate you taking the time to think deeply about your own positionality on the continuum. Awareness is critical in questioning what types of knowledges are privileged in your discipline and within the classroom.

Regardless of where you situate yourself, awareness itself "lacks political substance and is sociologically naïve" (Dominelli, 1998, p.13). Awareness without legitimate action contributes to silence and inactivity about tangible impacts of racism and oppression.

Explore this topic further with these two articles on decolonizing pedagogies in social work:
- Decolonizing the pedagogy and practice of international social work by Dr. Narda Razack
- Aboriginal Social Work Education in Canada: Decolonizing Pedagogy for the Seventh Generation by Dr. Raven Sinclair