João Paraskeva
João M. Paraskeva is a Mozambican-born scholar and professor of education at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland. Paraskeva was born in Maputo, Mozambique, where he completed his elementary and high school education. He pursued higher studies at the Portuguese Catholic University and the University of Minho in Portugal. Paraskeva has held teaching positions at the University of Minho and in South Africa, Brazil, Spain, and Italy before moving to the United States. He also served as a Visiting Professor at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.[1]
Academic Contributions
[edit]Before Paraskeva's appointment at the University of Strathclyde, he held faculty positions at several universities, including the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, USA[2]. At the University of Strathclyde, Paraskeva is Professor in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies[3].
João Paraskeva belongs to leading educational researchers in educational and curriculum studies[4]. He is known for creating the Itinerant Curriculum Theory (ICT), which, in contrast to fixed or standardized views of education, emphasizes the fluidity and diversity of knowledge, suggesting that curriculum should be adaptable, open to diverse epistemologies, and sensitive to the unique cultural, historical, and political contexts of different communities[5]. As van Milders has stated, "Paraskeva offers a highly insightful contribution that attempts to fundamentally reshape the debates on curriculum"[6].
It has been argued that there is a need for Paraskeva’s (2011) Itinerant Curriculum Theory (ICT) in US public education as several reforms such as Race to the Top (RTTT), No Child Left Behind (NCLB), and Ever Child Succeeds Act (ECSA) have perpetuated "a process of colonizing the mind instead of creating a space for liberatory pedagogy and ICT in which identities, spiritualities, and knowledges would strengthen instead of facing erasure."[7]
Paraskeva's theory has also been used in postcolonial studies and global contexts since it challenges the Western knowledge system and speaks on behalf of the subaltern, and favors postcolonial reforms of education[8]. Throughout his work, Paraskeva has emphasized the importance of education as a tool for social change, advocating for policies and practices that promote equal opportunities, inclusion, and justice in schools and universities.[9]
Paraskeva has been critical of neoliberalism and globalization, driven by financial markets, which has led to widespread privatization and budget cuts in education, particularly affecting public services and collective bargaining. He has argued that education has shifted from a social to an economic good, resulting in increased privatization, student loans, and a redefinition of public education in a financialized world.[10]
It has been suggested that Paraskeva's political discourse shares similarities with the ideas of Noam Chomsky and Slavoj Žižek, both of whom are key figures in understanding the complexities and fragmentation of today's world.[11]
Publications
[edit]Paraskeva has authored numerous books and articles that explore critical issues in education. His book Curriculum Epistimicide: Towards an Itinerant Curriculum Theory won an AERA Book Award[12]. Some of his notable works include:
- Conflicts in Curriculum Theory: Challenging Hegemonic Epistemologies (2011)
- Transformative Researchers and Educators for Democracy: Dartmouth Dialogues (co-edited with Thad LaVallee) (2015)
- International Critical Pedagogy Reader (2015) (co-edited with Antonia Darder and Peter Mayo)
- Curriculum Epistemicide: Towards an Itinerant Curriculum Theory (2016)
- Curriculum: Decanonizing the Field (co-edited with Shirley Steinberg (2016)
- Towards a Just Curriculum Theory: The Epistemicide (2017) (ed.)
- Curriculum and the Generation of Utopia Interrogating the Current State of Critical Curriculum Theory (2020)
- Critical Transformative Educational Leadership and Policy Studies - A Reader: Discussions and Solutions from the Leading Voices in Education (2021) (ed.)
- The Curriculum: A New Comprehensive Reader (2023) (ed.)
- Critical Perspectives on the Denial of Caste in Educational Debate: Towards a Non-derivative Curriculum Reason (2023) (ed.).
- Itinerant Curriculum Theory: A Declaration of Epistemological Independence (2024)
References
[edit]- ^ Süssekind, Maria Luiza. (2014). Why Deterritorialized Curriculum? Transnational Curriculum Inquiry, 11(2), 67–75 http://nitinat.library.ubc.ca/ojs/index.php/tci
- ^ https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Joao-Paraskeva
- ^ Paraskeva, 2024, Itinerant Curriculum Theory: A Declaration of Epistemological Independence.
- ^ McLaren 2024, back cover text in Paraskheva, 2024, Itinerant Curriculum Theory: A Declaration of Epistemological Independence.
- ^ Paraskeva, 2024, Itinerant Curriculum Theory: A Declaration of Epistemological Independence.
- ^ https://marxandphilosophy.org.uk/reviews/8208_curriculum-epistemicide-review-by-lucas-van-milders/
- ^ Janson, E. & Silva, C. M. (2017). Journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Curriculum Studies, 12(1), 1–16. https://ojs.library.ubc.ca/index.php/jaaacs/article/view/189711
- ^ Paraskeva, J. (2018). Against the scandal: itinerant curriculum theory as subaltern momentum. Qualitative Research Journal, 18(2), pp. 128-143. https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/QRJ-D-18-00004/full/html; Suoranta, 2024, back cover text in Paraskheva, 2024, Itinerant Curriculum Theory: A Declaration of Epistemological Independence.
- ^ Paraskeva, 2016, Curriculum Epistemicide: Towards an Itinerant Curriculum Theory; Paraskeva, J. M. (2022). The generation of the utopia: Itinerant curriculum theory towards a ‘futurable future.’ Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 43(3), 347–366. https://doi.org/10.1080/01596306.2022.2030594
- ^ Peters, M. A., Besley, T., & Paraskeva, J. M. (2015). Global Financial Crisis and Educational Restructuring. Citizenship, Social and Economics Education, 14(1), 15-18. https://doi.org/10.1177/2047173415577884
- ^ Süssekind, Maria Luiza. (2014). Why Deterritorialized Curriculum? Transnational Curriculum Inquiry, 11(2), 67–75 http://nitinat.library.ubc.ca/ojs/index.php/tci
- ^ https://myersedpress.presswarehouse.com/browse/author/551d6b24-04bc-41fa-89c5-dd5734503e71/Joao-M-Paraskeva
External links
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