Interrupting the uneven transfer in critical theorising between Western and Eastern education : a study of pedagogies for the transnational knowledge exchange of critique and criticality

The presence of Asian-Australian teacher educators and Asian education research candidates in Australian universities might be assumed to have brought about substantial transformations the Western critical theorising. However, the emphasis tends towards expecting Asian-Australian teacher educators and Asian international research candidates to use, exclusively Euro-American critical theories, with little attention given to non-Western languages and forms of critique and criticality they might entail. This asymmetry in the local/global flows of critical theoretical knowledge poses problems Australia’s educational – intellectual and theoretical - engagement with Asia, where the homes of many of these people are. The thesis highlights much discussion of intellectual sharing of knowledge. This thesis provides an insight into and a basis for further analysis of Asian societies’ intellectual heritage. This is not a thesis pertaining to intellectual history of Asian intellectual societies or an analysis of Asian cultural knowledges. Rather the thesis explores how ‘other’ modes of critique can best be of value and exchanged in transnational or “global” educational settings. The West’s moving from its systemic intellectual positioning of ‘grand intellectual isolation’ from non-Western modes of criticality could facilitate engagement with substance of non-Western modes of critique and criticality. The principle focal point of this research lies on measures to influence and transform the Euro-American mindset of Australian teacher education through addressing the Western ‘exoticism’ (Sen, 2006) attached to non-Western modes of critique and criticality. Research by Singh and Han (2010; 2009) indicate that non-Western critical theoretical resources as having significant benefits to offer Australian teacher education. The ongoing reflections and tensions stimulated by this research are at the crux for an educational transformation needed to internationalise Australian teacher education. Further research is needed to go beyond the technicalities of pedagogical design to investigate and how to encourage and engage with the substance of non-Western critical traditions. This one-way flow of knowledge acts as a barrier to the transnational exchange of critique and criticality. Given these challenges, the research project reported in this thesis investigated the prospects for multidirectional pedagogies in educational research, research education and teacher education in Australia. This thesis makes a small but significant contribution in educational research about the presence of ‘other’ undetected knowledges in Australian universities. The study calls for the need to recognize and move beyond the Euro-American centric knowledge base for all