Decolonialisation of the mind: an educational-philosophical perspective

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Abstract

The conversation about decolonialisation in general, which has been taking place since the sixties of the previous century, has recently increased in intensity, especially in the context of education. The increased intensity of the conversation can be observed in four different parts of the world: (1) in countries where the colonial powers withdrew from the sixties of the previous century but left behind a strong and inescapable colonial heritage, such as South Africa; (2) in the former colonising countries themselves; (3) in countries where the colonists have flowed in in such large numbers since the 1400s that they currently form the largest part of the population by far, such as Canada, Mexico or Brazil; (4) and the countries of South-Eastern Europe that were subject to colonisation by surrounding great powers almost throughout their history.

The questions researched with a view to writing this article were: What can be understood by the expression “colonialisation of the mind” (coloniality), and what educational-philosophical light can be shed on it in order to promote the decolonialisation of the mind?

The question can be asked whether a senior white cisgender male educationalist may dare to look for answers to the problematic questions posed above. According to some, such a person is not qualified to make statements about the decolonialisation of education and teaching and learning, especially because he was one of the formerly privileged under the colonial and, in South Africa, especially the apartheid regime. I nevertheless decided to take on this project for three reasons. First, I possess sufficient empathy to be moved by the plight of those who were harmed by colonisation and apartheid in the past. Secondly, I am an eighth-generation descendant of European ancestors and regard myself as a native citizen of this country who has cast in his lot completely with all the other citizens of the country. When I undertook this project, I had to work through the possibilities and privileges of my own positioning as a South African. Thirdly, I view the research that led to this article as an opportunity to use my expertise as an educational philosopher.

The article is set out in the following parts: In the first section I focus on theorising the phenomenon known as “the colonialisation of the mind”, also referred to as “coloniality”. In the sections that follow I focus on the educational-philosophical aspects of this phenomenon; and lastly, I venture some thoughts about how South Africans, and also people elsewhere in the world who are still struggling with the colonialisation of the mind, may overcome this problem. As education (teaching and learning) should obviously fulfil an indispensable role in this strategy, an important part of the article is devoted to the place and role of educational teaching and learning in the battle against the colonialisation of the mind.

“Colonialisation of the mind” refers to the after-effects of the colonial heritage in various cultural forms, practices, history and knowledge structures. This term refers to a mentality that has formed and still continues in the thinking of the formerly (and currently still) colonised. It refers to the way in which people’s thoughts, beliefs and actions are determined by the prevailing colonial discourse. Sometimes it is referred to as an identity that is unconsciously interpellated in different ways.

The colonial and apartheid past caused a lot of pain for and among the formerly colonised, to such an extent that some writers claim that the black scholar in South Africa could be regarded as a pariah because of his or her inability to work and belong in the South African context. Others refer to the “continuous subjugation” of the black man in South Africa. The same kind of emotional pain is also experienced in the so-called New World. Some observers believe that the process of the decolonialisation of the Global South is currently also strongly curbed by what can be regarded as a second wave of colonisation, that is, the demands that come from especially the side of the Global North in relation to the direct and indirect demands and interference of Western neoliberal imperial powers.

The core problem with the colonialisation of the mind or coloniality is that it renders the formerly colonised “invisible”, and their voices “inaudible”. The invisibility and inaudibility of those who experience colonialisation of their mind are described in the following words: They “do not exist” in society; they “disappeared”; they became “the other”; they were “extinguished”; the settler does not notice them – which makes the settler “subjectless”; and the oppressive forces in society make them “despicable”, “replaceable” and “situated on the outer fringes of ‘being’ or existing”. Their past shapes and determines their conception of personal being, their sense of belonging and their cultural, political and social thought patterns.

As a subject philosopher, the educational philosopher’s scientific toolbox is equipped with all the tools with which the professional philosopher does his or her work. In this article these are the tools with which the discourse about the decolonialisation of the mind through education (educational teaching and learning) is analysed and understood. However, the main interest of the educational philosopher is pedagogical in nature.

The formerly colonised experience their own onticity as that of “people without being” (people without essence). They also see themselves as the absent, people on the periphery of society. In addition to this, the colonial social order still applies in most cases. This leads – also due to the acceptance and application of neoliberal or neocapitalist values – to all kinds of inequalities and asymmetric relationships in society. Because of their colonialisation of the mind (coloniality), they still tend to think in universally abstract Western ways in relation to categorisation, classification and taxonomisation. They are still subjected to the lingering colonial logic and practices, and especially the colonial fountains of power from which they emerged.

Those who are still struggling with the colonialisation of the mind (coloniality), both former colonisers and colonised, should take the ethical responsibility upon themselves to extricate themselves from it. They should stop constantly seeing themselves as the victims of coloniality and take responsibility for their own mental state and future. Doing so requires those still suffering from coloniality to adopt a kind of trans-ontological ethic (i.e., trying to rise above the limitations of the colonial onto-cosmo-epistemological way of thinking) and to think anew about their place in society, how they see social justice and how they can claim their rights as people in society.

If the problem of coloniality is to be counteracted and eliminated by means of post- or decolonial education, it is important also to take into account how culture and power relations work in society, and what the internal colonialisation of the mind looks like. The decolonialisation of the mind requires a decolonial turn characterised by deeper forms of self-reflection and the consideration of both conscious and unconscious thought processes, desires, identification and connections. The educator should abandon the Eurocentric theory of knowledge and start thinking about the interests of those on the fringes of society. Education (and, therefore, also educational teaching and learning) must be about transformation (change) in the learner. Education should be aimed at bringing the human being to becoming a “new being”. In education, therefore, it is not about mere teaching and learning, but also about active and critical interaction with the surrounding world. Along this way they must be led to the liberation of their mind.

This new way of thinking entails that the educator (e.g., the teacher) will think about his or her own geopolitical position in society and that of each individual learner being educated in his or her unique circumstances and who is struggling with the colonialisation of the mind, with coloniality. By doing so, one should gain deeper insight into how colonialisation has shaped the reality around us. Only when this has happened can new discourses regarding colonialisation be launched.

This investigation has shown that the ongoing coloniality of the previously colonised is a complicated issue, one that cannot be easily counteracted. It has many facets, including political and pedagogical ones. In this article I have focused on only one of the many pedagogical aspects – the educational-philosophical aspect.

Keywords: coloniality; colonialisation; decolonialisation; education; liberation of the mind; teaching and learning