Educational archaeology and the practice of utopian pedagogy

Abstract

This paper explores the idea, and some elements of the (potential) practice, of utopian pedagogy. It begins by outlining the general aims of 'utopian pedagogy' and notes the shift within contemporary writings away from the metaphor of the architect (armed with a utopian 'blueprint') towards that of the archaeologist. The ontological underpinnings of educational archaeology are discussed before attention turns to a critical examination of the pedagogical process of excavation. The key questions here are (to labour the metaphor) where to dig and how to identify a utopian find. The paper argues that, without a substantive normative vision to serve as a guide, utopian archaeology is conceptually flawed and practically ineffectual, romanticising an endlessly open process of exploration. The final section suggests that the fears associated with utopian architecture (authoritarian imposition, totalising closure) are misplaced and that drawing up a 'blueprint' should be the aim and responsibility of utopian pedagogy.

Livin’ in the future: Conceptualising the future of UK disability activism through utopian, retrotopian and heterotopian configurations

“…Constructive utopias instigate the move towards an alternative future by presenting specific designs and goals. 1 According to Webb (2017), utopia refers to both a vision to guide social movement activity and the embodied practices employed by activists to realise it. Utopias can remain at the abstract level, located within the imagination, or projected into the current material and discursive arrangements found within the social world.…”

“…When utopias are – to some extent – realised in the present they are known as ‘working utopias’ (Crossley 1999); often configured to the micro-level, they reflect aspirations that ought to be replicated on a broader, macro-level. This alludes to a prominent tension within utopian literature: utopias can be considered restrictive, totalising and a distraction to immediate social change (Graeber 2013); however, the absence of a utopian vision can lead to fragmented activism (Harvey 2000), the reproduction of existing injustices (Webb, 2017) and diminishing hope for a better future (Lewis 2013).…”

Epistemology of the Nakba in Israeli education

“…It should be noted that Rawls' thought experiment is a rather weak performance of imagination, for it assumes so much about the state in advance; primarily that establishing the existence of a state is presumed as the goal of political thinking. Stronger demonstrations of political imaginations should involve pedagogical designs aimed at 'utopian thinking' (Webb, 2017), in which 'substantive normative values involved in reimagining social and political forms' become tangible for students through 'directive teaching of possibly very specific and contextual knowledge and conceptual tools coming from a disciplinary perspective' (Bojesen & Suissa, 2019, p. 289).…”

Utopian pedagogy: possibilities and limitations Hope, Utopia and creativity in higher education: pedagogical tactics for alternative futures , by Craig Hammond, London, Bloomsbury, 2018, 207 pp., £28.99 (pbk) ISBN 978-1-3500-7972-4

“…Running with the archaeological metaphor, one might ask: how do we as educators know where to dig and how do we identify an archaeological find? These are important questions because not all experiences, desires, dreams and memories contain utopian traces or stories of redemptive possibility (see Webb, 2017). On what basis, then, does a teacher judge one set of experiences or desires to be full of possibility and another set not?…”