Disrupting the Discourse: Towards a Disruptive Pedagogy

The Higher Education Sector in the United Kingdom (UK) is currently being taken to task regarding structural inequality and unfair outcomes for student learners from non-white backgrounds, also referred to as the degree-awarding gap. How do we disrupt the narrative concerning race and, more specifically, as part of our learning, teaching and assessment practices? Using Critical Race Theory, a project, ‘Disrupt the Discourse,’ an initiative launched in 2021, is a small-scale case study piloting the application of the aforementioned theory as part of learning and teaching in a Higher Education Institution based in London. The project explored issues of curriculum design and assessment practices in response to the issue of the degree awarding gap. The initiative explicitly explores uncomfortable conversations about race as part of learning and teaching practice and, by working with a team of antiracist scholars, a curriculum framework and digital toolkit were created to explore the lived experiences of students and staff. This infographic depicts the journey towards a ‘Disruptive Pedagogy.’ The feedback from academics was that this initiative was instrumental in re-considering education as a vehicle for social justice through assessment practices, curriculum content and pedagogy as part of learning and teaching practice.