Name
Geographies of Gender in Action: Non-Hierarchical Teamwork and the Ongoing Relevance of Feminist Pedagogies for Social Change
Date & Time
Wednesday, May 21, 2025, 1:00 PM - 1:15 PM
Description

Feminist pedagogies emphasize collaboration, reflexivity, and non-hierarchical knowledge production. The intention of feminist geographies is not just to describe and discuss, but to change social structures that perpetuate dualistic constructs of separation, competition and othering. This presentation describes how feminist pedagogies employed in a non-hierarchal team-based classroom project created an engaged and transformative learning experience for students in a third-year Geographies of Gender course at Thompson Rivers University. Student survey responses and focus group discussions demonstrated that the course cultivated a sense of collective responsibility, supported the co-creation of knowledge, and motivated the students to pursue social change initiatives through a collectively created group project. Students described an emergent ethos of care, positional awareness and accountability, highlighting the transformative potential of feminist pedagogical approaches. By centering process over outcome and embracing flexibility, this study underscores the ongoing relevance – even dire need – of feminist pedagogies in the classroom as the fostering of equitable, caring, learning environments can translate into broader social change efforts.

Location Name
Nicol (NI) 3020
Session Type
Oral Presentation
Abstract ID
157
Speaker Name
Robin Westland
Speaker Organization
Thompson Rivers University
Session Name
CS108-A Feminist Geographies in Transdisciplinary Dialogue