NORRAG Blog Series: Decolonising Data

The Decolonising Data Blog series is invested in hearing from a diverse range of scholars exploring how coloniality is implicated in the project of datafication, specifically in the contexts of education policy and international development.  The current scholarship on decolonising education data engages largely with issues of representation in curriculum. In this series we would like to expand the focus and engage in a productive and focused dialogue on how contemporary data and datafication projects could be decolonised in the realms of EdTech, international assessments and international development, addressing issues such as surveillance and data harvesting. This, we believe, will require a reconsideration of the epistemologies and practices of conceptualising the producing, sharing and storing of education data.

Call for contributions

NORRAG welcomes contributions from a wide range of experts, including those from education policy, practice and research. In particular, we welcome contributions from experts from the Global South whose perspectives must be centred in these discussions. Contributions may respond to one of our Thematic Priorities:

• Decolonising International Assessment and International Development Data: There is an increasingly evident need for more inclusive approaches to assessments that consider cultural sensitivity and equity while involving local communities in the design of curricula and education targets. We welcome perspective that enable routes to shifting the conversation away from ranking and comparative analytical methods to a more human-centered design approach that considers student needs and marginalized voices.
• Decolonising EdTech: With the striking creep of largely privatised EdTech, especially post the pandemic, there is an urgent need to decolonise EdTech and create a more equitable educational landscape.  We welcome scholars to address questions of lack of trust and transparency, techno-solutionism, anglo-centrism in linguistic and cultural content, digital neocolonialism, privacy concerns, marketization of education, and the digital divide through the lens of decolonisation.  

To contribute to the series, please contact NORRAG at blog@norrag.org.

Find below the most recent posts in the Decolonising Data Blog Series

Read about the Decolonising Data Summit here.