1. Kay Chapman Plymouth Institute of Education
Reflections on using a postcolonial theoretical framework to analyse geography education in international schools in Sri Lanka
Kay Chapman
Plymouth Institute of Education

2. Teaching an English Geography Curriculum in Sri Lanka: who is the Other?
What kind of geography knowledge is produced in geography classrooms in British international schools in Sri Lanka? Whose geography is it? What kinds of differences are constructed and how in geography classrooms in British international schools in Sri Lanka?

3. Sri Lanka
“Sri Lanka’s education one of, if not the most, accessible in the developing world” (Little 2011: 502)
Inequalities - ethnic group, family income, age, gender and location affect school attendance for 5-14 year olds (Arunatilake 2006)
British English (and therefore education in the medium of British
English) is a marker of the elite in Sri Lankan society, being valued as social capital by those able to access this kind of education and recognised by those who cannot
afford such opportunities. (Bernaisch 2012)

4. Postcolonial theory applied to education
a way of thinking about relations with the Other (different groups) in a way that allows dialogue without the historical cultural inequalities of colonialism.
“a discursive orientation that focuses on the instability of signification and the intimate relationship between the production of knowledge and power that is sceptical of grand narratives of progress and emancipation…”
(Andreotti 2011: 14)

5. Postcolonial analytical framework: “Third space” (Bhabha 1994)
Geography
Curriculum
School
Pupils
Teacher – SL/Ex-pat.

6. Postcolonial analytical framework: key themes or lines of investigation within third space
KP knowledge/power relations knowledge construction; putting cultural/geographical representation of the Other into practice IA interaction; agency over signification conditions of cultural interaction EP Positioning of the Educator knowledge construction; reflexivity; unlearning; ethical relation with Other

7. Third space Geography Knowledge & Power Interaction & Agency
Curriculum
School
Pupils
Teacher – SL/Ex-pat.
Third space
Knowledge & Power
Interaction &
Agency
Position of the Educator

8. KP
Sri Lankan teachers subaltern
Ex-pat teacher culturally superior IA
Inequality in interactions between Ex-pat teacher and Sri Lankan teachers and between Ex-pat teacher and Pupils
Mimicry; Fixity EP
Unequal (unethical?) relationships with the Other (Sri Lankan teachers)
Acceptance of ethnocentric,
Western epistemology and superiority

9. Questions and directions
What kind of geography knowledge is produced in geography classrooms in British international schools in Sri Lanka? Whose geography is it?
What kinds of differences are constructed and how in geography classrooms in British international schools in Sri Lanka?
Who is the Other?

10. References
Andreotti, V. (2011) Actionable Postcolonial Theory in Education. New York: Palgrave MacMillan
Arunatilake, N. (2006) ‘Education participation in Sri Lanka – why all are not in school.’ International Journal of Educational Research. 45:
Ball, S.J. & Bowe, R. (1992) ‘Subject departments and the ‘implementation’ of national curriculum policy: an overview of the issues.’ Journal of Curriculum Studies. 24:2,
Bernaisch, T. (2012) ‘Attitudes towards Englishes in Sri Lanka.’ World Englishes, 31:3,
Bhabha, H. (1994) The Location of Culture. Oxon: Routledge
Butt, G. and Lambert, D. (2014) ‘International perspectives on the future of geography education: an analysis of national curricula and standards.’ International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 23:1, 1-12
Little, A.W. (2011) Education policy reform in Sri Lanka: the double edged sword of political will. Journal of Education Policy, 26:4,
Said, E.W. (1978) Orientalism. London: Penguin
Spivak, G. (2010) ‘Can the Subaltern Speak?’ (revised) In Morris, R. C. (ed) (2010) Can the Subaltern Speak? Reflections on the history of an idea. New York: Columbia University Press
Tilakaratna, G. (2014) Social Protection and the MDGs in Sri Lanka: Implications for the Post-2015 Agenda. Occasional Paper 12. Southern Voice on the Post-MDG International Development Goals. Available at postmdg.org (accessed 6/2/2015)