Challenging times: a contribution to the history of ‘Education, decolonisation and international development at the Institute of Education (London)’

Abstract

This article contributes to a preliminary historical and decolonial analysis of teaching and research in the field of education and international development at the UCL Institute of Education. The preliminary analysis, published as ‘Education, decolonisation and international development at the Institute of Education (London): a historical analysis’ by Elaine Unterhalter and Laila Kadiwal, appeared in the Special 120th Anniversary Issue of London Review of Education. That article and our response to it focus on the work of the Centre for Education and International Development, and its preceding organisational forms from 1927 onwards. In a responsive critique, we consider the evidence, methods, analysis and conclusions offered by Unterhalter and Kadiwal and identify a wide range of additional material on curriculum, staff, students and international partnerships that will be of value to future historians. Contemporary decolonial analysis is important for interpreting the history and for the future positioning of the Centre for Education and International Development, and the wider field of study. We conclude by identifying challenges for ongoing work in this area.