Recognition as reparation : a participatory approach to (mis)recognition and decolonisation in South African higher education

Abstract

In this paper, I present narratives drawn from a participatory research project in which students contributed to the everyday work of decolonising higher education. As part of the scholarly and activist impetus for decolonising South African universities, the narratives draw attention to patterns of misrecognition in undergraduate student experiences. The first part of the paper outlines an intersectional approach to student experiences, to illustrate how binaries underpin epistemologies, pedagogy, and relationships at the university. In the final section, I outline principles drawn from student narratives that can be used reframe student recognition as part of the broader process of decolonising South Africa higher education.