Decolonizing the Syllabus

Centre for Learning and Teaching

Decolonizing the Syllabus

This session is part of the Decolonization Workshop Series.

This four-part series invites faculty members, instructors, and teaching assistants to reflect on what it means to take a decolonial approach to teaching and learning. Drawing on Eve Tuck and K. Wayne Yang鈥檚 reminder that 鈥渄ecolonization is not a metaphor,鈥� the series distinguishes decolonization from Indigenization and inclusion, and explores how colonial legacies continue to shape higher education. Together, we will consider how to reimagine virtual and in-person classroom participation, assessment practices, and our broader academic contexts in ways that are more just, relational, and responsive.

Tuesday, November 25
1:30鈥�3 p.m.
Online
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This interactive workshop invites participants to take a fresh look at the syllabus as a living document rather than a fixed contract. Colonial legacies are often embedded in course design and curriculum structures, shaping what counts as valid knowledge, whose voices are prioritized, and how learning is evaluated. Together, we will critically examine how choices about readings, course guidelines, assignments, and grading structures can reproduce coloniality.

Through a collaborative Decolonizing the Syllabus workshop, we will reimagine how a syllabus can:

Be seen as a living document.
Create space for diverse voices and epistemologies.
Encourage decolonizing learning environments.
Examine dominant norms embedded in course design and evaluation.

The session emphasizes a co-creative approach where participants explore the syllabus together with others, sharing strategies, and reflecting on what it means to approach the syllabus through a decolonial lens.

Facilitator

Ezgi Ozyonum, PhD (she/her)
Educational Developer (Student Development)

*Please note that the B400 classroom is in the basement of the Killam Library. We are aware of, and apologize for, the accessibility barriers associated with this room. If you require the use of an elevator to reach this room, one of the CLT staff will have to access the elevator with you, using their key card. Please let us know in advance so that we can facilitate a smooth and timely transition to the basement.

We also ask that participants be respectful of those with significant allergies and avoid wearing perfume, aftershave, cologne, and highly scented hairspray, soaps, lotions, and shampoos.