Danny Wildemeersch
Biographic Data
| ID | 1548416 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Danny Wildemeersch |
| GIVEN NAMES | Danny |
| FAMILY NAME | Wildemeersch |
| SIGNATURE | WILDEMEERSCH D |
| AFFILIATIONS | KU Leuven |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-8122-2892 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 30 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 52 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 30 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1991 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
The paradox of exclusion through inclusion
In our contribution we investigate firstly the general discussion on inclusion in education that had its origins in educational reform movements and in special needs education policies and practices. In line with this, we describe the growing interest in international organizations, resulting into varied attempts on national and local levels to create equal opportunities for all, with particular attention for students with special needs. We furth…
No time to waste? Dealing with ‘urgency’ in environmental and sustainability education
In this article, we explore how and why the concept of rhythm is crucial to understand how environmental and sustainability education (ESE) may deal with the urgency of taking action regarding climate change. Many activists consider sustainability educators as important allies in this struggle. Our argument is that ESE has a different role and responsibility. Both activism and education can be important allies; however, they operate in different …
Young sustainability activists as public educators
In recent years we have seen increasing youth activism on climate and other sustainability issues. This paper presents a theoretical framework for further research on young sustainability activists as public educators. The point of departure is taken in Latour’s argumentation concerning the need to create new attachments to the Earth. In line with this, we highlight the importance of aesthetics and experiences conceived as integrated sense-percep…
Learning in times of crisis
The COVID-19 pandemic that has hit the world on an unprecedented scale, in spite of repeated early warnings Crises in general are said to be opportunities to reconsider what has been taken for granted for a long time. The pandemic will probably be looked back upon as a historic moment, 'one that could be seen either as an important turning point for humanity or as a huge missed opportunity, a milestone in the story of our deterioration and misman…
Adult education and migration
RELA is a refereed academic journal produced by the European Society for Research on the Education of Adults (ESREA). It aims to create a forum for dialogue across European adult education as a field of research. World wide contributions are welcomed which are deemed by the editors to further debate and discussions
Adult education and the formation of citizens
status: Published
Adult education and the formation of citizens
Hovering on the periphery? ‘Decolonising’ writing for academic journals
In this Forum, we are creating a space to challenge not only the dominance of English in academic journals, but also ‘metropolitan’ genres of scholarly writing and discourse, and, indeed, the ways in which particular knowledges continue to retain their dominance and to be privileged. We are inviting readers to reflect on how academic writing continues to be ‘colonised’, by problematising it and seeking to ‘decolonise’ it in,order to ‘decentre kno…
Lessons from the South
Between 1998 and 2011, we coordinated three consecutive research projects in three different provinces of Northern Vietnam. The projects aimed at improving the living conditions of various ethnic minorities in these areas. We focused on poverty alleviation, water management, and nature conservation. In all cases, there was a close collaboration between Vietnamese and Belgian researchers. The participation of the local population was an important …
Opening spaces of conversation
The arrival of newcomers in our societies ‘impinges upon us’ (Peter Jarvis). Adult and continuing education are invited to take a stance. In response to this, I explore how relevant citizenship education for and with newcomers can be conceived of. In the first place, I explore how the arrival of newcomers triggers ambivalent reactions between fear and hope. Next, I present different concepts of responsible citizenship as a response to these ambiv…
Silence – a matter of public concern
The paper analyses the contribution of critical pedagogy to the reflection on environmental and sustainability education. It links this reflection to a case of a Flemish/Belgian citizen movement that sensitizes the public for the issue of silence, through various educational and community-based practices. These practices inspired the author to try and find out how the narrative of the organisation could be framed in terms of critical pedagogy. He…
From formal to non-formal
The Confessing Society
As the title suggests, the book is inspired by Foucault’s reading of the world we live in today, particularly the world of scientifically driven practices of welfare provision such as health care, ...
Adult and community education in complex societies
In this contribution, I explore how critical pedagogical perspectives can inspire adult and community education practices. The central argument is that today, in contrast with the heydays of emancipatory practices and theories, the classical critical approaches need reconsideration. The paper explores how these approaches sometimes have a stultifying effect on the participants in practice. In line with the French philosopher Rancière, a perspecti…
Community forests as heterotopia. The case of the Mu community forest – Ngoc Son – Ngo Luong Nature Reserve, Vietnam
This paper examines issues of culture and power in regard to the Mu sacred forest, Vietnam, a community forest. The research uses Foucault’s notion of ‘heterotopia’ as a heuristic tool to interpret forest management. It appears that the Mu sacred forest can be understood as a space of ‘self reflective construction’, but also a space that might dissolve, destabilize, interrupt and suspend power. The moment of power suspension frees people from the…
Diverse cities
In 1996 UNESCO published the report of the International Commission on Education for the Twenty-first Century. In the introduction Jacques Delors, the chairman of this commission, writes that exact
Imagining pedagogy in public space
This paper reports on a research project completed with graduate students of the adult-education programme at the Leuven University in Flanders, Belgium. The research focused on cultural policies and practices in urban contexts that try to facilitate the learning of democratic citizenship in non-formal settings. In the first part we introduce some theoretical notions regarding the relationship between artistic practices in public spaces and pedag…
Stories of/on citizenship education
In this article we elaborate a case where citizens were encouraged to discuss an environmental policy plan within seven focus groups. In line with this experience, we raise two questions about the deliberation process we tried to support. First, how to understand the importance of narratives as sources of civic learning? Second, how can a narrative understanding of civic education challenge current practices of citizen participation? Our answers …
Issues of citizenship
This paper explores how the report Learning through Life exemplifies the dominant policy discourse on lifelong learning emphasizing strongly individual social mobility. The paper explores further how this functionalist and reductionist turn in (adult) education has come about and how concepts of democratic citizenship and education may create new perspectives on how to deal with important challenges of society today
Intercultural education and curricular diversification
Thirteen Ecuadorian indigenous nationalities follow the Intercultural Bilingual Education Model in Ecuador (MOSEIB). This paper analyses the present situation of MOSEIB, the challenges to it and future prospects. First, in order to understand how MOSEIB today has relieved the intercultural tensions of the past it is necessary to look at the history of Ecuadorian education. Second, in order to explore the particular characteristics of the MOSEIB m…
Hosting Foreign Students in European Universities
Europe intends to establish the European Area of Higher Education by 2010 and further enhance the attractiveness and competitiveness of its higher education as compared to other parts of the world. The Bologna process indicates the course of harmonization in the area of higher education throughout Europe. The restructuring of higher education system in European countries, especially the introduction of the Bachelor-Master model, has facilitated t…
Unemployed Youth and Social Exclusion in Europe
This book confronts readers with questions emerging from the 'gap' between EU aspirations to reduce youth unemployment without increasing social exclusion - and what is actually happening in practice. Aimed at a diverse readership, it is based on a three year European Union (EU) project into education, training, guidance and employment (ETG) programmes for young adults across six countries. Insights are grounded in the lives and stories of disadv…
The validity and reliability of focus groups as a research method in adult education
The article examines the theory and practice of focus groups in adult education research. Three theoretical positions are described: radical hermeneutic, moderate interpretative and pragmatic realistic position trying to bridge the gap with positivist research. This last position has been chosen as the departure point for a further analysis of the focus group elements, which relate to validity and reliability. The research examines four European …
Constructing a research methodology to develop models for work-related learning
This study describes an iteractive research method by which empirically validated models of work-related learning were constructed. Theoretical models were elaborated and practical experiments conducted in seven stages. A shift occurred during the research process regarding the practical goal, the underlying theoretical propositions, and the methodological instruments used. This shift, from an empirical-analytical to a more constructivist approac…
Making sense of learning for work. Towards a framework of transitional learning
Hovering on the periphery? ‘Decolonising’ writing for academic journals
In this Forum, we are creating a space to challenge not only the dominance of English in academic journals, but also ‘metropolitan’ genres of scholarly writing and discourse, and, indeed, the ways in which particular knowledges continue to retain their dominance and to be privileged. We are inviting readers to reflect on how academic writing continues to be ‘colonised’, by problematising it and seeking to ‘decolonise’ it in,order to ‘decentre kno…
Intercultural education and curricular diversification
Thirteen Ecuadorian indigenous nationalities follow the Intercultural Bilingual Education Model in Ecuador (MOSEIB). This paper analyses the present situation of MOSEIB, the challenges to it and future prospects. First, in order to understand how MOSEIB today has relieved the intercultural tensions of the past it is necessary to look at the history of Ecuadorian education. Second, in order to explore the particular characteristics of the MOSEIB m…
Opening spaces of conversation
The arrival of newcomers in our societies ‘impinges upon us’ (Peter Jarvis). Adult and continuing education are invited to take a stance. In response to this, I explore how relevant citizenship education for and with newcomers can be conceived of. In the first place, I explore how the arrival of newcomers triggers ambivalent reactions between fear and hope. Next, I present different concepts of responsible citizenship as a response to these ambiv…
Silence – a matter of public concern
The paper analyses the contribution of critical pedagogy to the reflection on environmental and sustainability education. It links this reflection to a case of a Flemish/Belgian citizen movement that sensitizes the public for the issue of silence, through various educational and community-based practices. These practices inspired the author to try and find out how the narrative of the organisation could be framed in terms of critical pedagogy. He…
Adult and community education in complex societies
In this contribution, I explore how critical pedagogical perspectives can inspire adult and community education practices. The central argument is that today, in contrast with the heydays of emancipatory practices and theories, the classical critical approaches need reconsideration. The paper explores how these approaches sometimes have a stultifying effect on the participants in practice. In line with the French philosopher Rancière, a perspecti…
The validity and reliability of focus groups as a research method in adult education
The article examines the theory and practice of focus groups in adult education research. Three theoretical positions are described: radical hermeneutic, moderate interpretative and pragmatic realistic position trying to bridge the gap with positivist research. This last position has been chosen as the departure point for a further analysis of the focus group elements, which relate to validity and reliability. The research examines four European …
Making sense of learning for work. Towards a framework of transitional learning
In this article a framework is presented to understand the changing character of individual learning processes and of educational practices related to work and employment. Based on two research projects - a research on women's biographical learning in relation to work and a European research on the socio-economic integration of young adults - a perspective of transitional learning is developed. It is argued that nowadays individual learning proce…
Diverse cities
In 1996 UNESCO published the report of the International Commission on Education for the Twenty-first Century. In the introduction Jacques Delors, the chairman of this commission, writes that exact
Imagining pedagogy in public space
This paper reports on a research project completed with graduate students of the adult-education programme at the Leuven University in Flanders, Belgium. The research focused on cultural policies and practices in urban contexts that try to facilitate the learning of democratic citizenship in non-formal settings. In the first part we introduce some theoretical notions regarding the relationship between artistic practices in public spaces and pedag…
Stories of/on citizenship education
In this article we elaborate a case where citizens were encouraged to discuss an environmental policy plan within seven focus groups. In line with this experience, we raise two questions about the deliberation process we tried to support. First, how to understand the importance of narratives as sources of civic learning? Second, how can a narrative understanding of civic education challenge current practices of citizen participation? Our answers …
Issues of citizenship
This paper explores how the report Learning through Life exemplifies the dominant policy discourse on lifelong learning emphasizing strongly individual social mobility. The paper explores further how this functionalist and reductionist turn in (adult) education has come about and how concepts of democratic citizenship and education may create new perspectives on how to deal with important challenges of society today
Hosting Foreign Students in European Universities
Europe intends to establish the European Area of Higher Education by 2010 and further enhance the attractiveness and competitiveness of its higher education as compared to other parts of the world. The Bologna process indicates the course of harmonization in the area of higher education throughout Europe. The restructuring of higher education system in European countries, especially the introduction of the Bachelor-Master model, has facilitated t…
The Vocational Turn in Adult Literacy Education and the Impact of the International Adult Literacy Survey
Solving work‐related problems through learning projects
The concept of the learning project can be used to systematically organize learning around work‐related problem‐solving activities. It draws on a dual tradition of organizational projects and project education. There are several approaches to learning projects which tend to overstress competence development of learners and underscore the importance of simultaneous work development as a means of problem‐solving. The learning network theory (Van de…
Learning from regularity, irregularity and responsibility
In this paper two complementary approaches towards the organization of the learning process are distinguished. The first approach deals with learning in regular, stable contexts and therefore has a mechanistic character. The second approach is concerned with learning as a process of adaptation to a variable context. Cybernetic principles govern this orientation. It is argued that both approaches may lack an ethical or political dimension. Therefo…
Learning from regularity, irregularity and responsibility
In this paper two complementary approaches towards the organization of the learning process are distinguished. The first approach deals with learning in regular, stable contexts and therefore has a mechanistic character. The second approach is concerned with learning as a process of adaptation to a variable context. Cybernetic principles govern this orientation. It is argued that both approaches may lack an ethical or political dimension. Therefo…
Adult education and critical identity development
The translation of this paper has been made possible with the financial help of the Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen (the Royal Dutch Academy of Sciences) In this paper the authors criticise the growing tendency to conceive of adult education as a qualification oriented field of practice. Especially with respect to disadvantaged groups in society this orientation could have a stigmatizing effect. Various agents of education cons…
Solving work‐related problems through learning projects
The concept of the learning project can be used to systematically organize learning around work‐related problem‐solving activities. It draws on a dual tradition of organizational projects and project education. There are several approaches to learning projects which tend to overstress competence development of learners and underscore the importance of simultaneous work development as a means of problem‐solving. The learning network theory (Van de…
The Vocational Turn in Adult Literacy Education and the Impact of the International Adult Literacy Survey
Constructing a research methodology to develop models for work-related learning
This study describes an iteractive research method by which empirically validated models of work-related learning were constructed. Theoretical models were elaborated and practical experiments conducted in seven stages. A shift occurred during the research process regarding the practical goal, the underlying theoretical propositions, and the methodological instruments used. This shift, from an empirical-analytical to a more constructivist approac…
Making sense of learning for work. Towards a framework of transitional learning
Making sense of learning for work. Towards a framework of transitional learning
In this article a framework is presented to understand the changing character of individual learning processes and of educational practices related to work and employment. Based on two research projects - a research on women's biographical learning in relation to work and a European research on the socio-economic integration of young adults - a perspective of transitional learning is developed. It is argued that nowadays individual learning proce…
The validity and reliability of focus groups as a research method in adult education
The article examines the theory and practice of focus groups in adult education research. Three theoretical positions are described: radical hermeneutic, moderate interpretative and pragmatic realistic position trying to bridge the gap with positivist research. This last position has been chosen as the departure point for a further analysis of the focus group elements, which relate to validity and reliability. The research examines four European …
Unemployed Youth and Social Exclusion in Europe
This book confronts readers with questions emerging from the 'gap' between EU aspirations to reduce youth unemployment without increasing social exclusion - and what is actually happening in practice. Aimed at a diverse readership, it is based on a three year European Union (EU) project into education, training, guidance and employment (ETG) programmes for young adults across six countries. Insights are grounded in the lives and stories of disadv…
Intercultural education and curricular diversification
Thirteen Ecuadorian indigenous nationalities follow the Intercultural Bilingual Education Model in Ecuador (MOSEIB). This paper analyses the present situation of MOSEIB, the challenges to it and future prospects. First, in order to understand how MOSEIB today has relieved the intercultural tensions of the past it is necessary to look at the history of Ecuadorian education. Second, in order to explore the particular characteristics of the MOSEIB m…
Hosting Foreign Students in European Universities
Europe intends to establish the European Area of Higher Education by 2010 and further enhance the attractiveness and competitiveness of its higher education as compared to other parts of the world. The Bologna process indicates the course of harmonization in the area of higher education throughout Europe. The restructuring of higher education system in European countries, especially the introduction of the Bachelor-Master model, has facilitated t…
Issues of citizenship
This paper explores how the report Learning through Life exemplifies the dominant policy discourse on lifelong learning emphasizing strongly individual social mobility. The paper explores further how this functionalist and reductionist turn in (adult) education has come about and how concepts of democratic citizenship and education may create new perspectives on how to deal with important challenges of society today
Stories of/on citizenship education
In this article we elaborate a case where citizens were encouraged to discuss an environmental policy plan within seven focus groups. In line with this experience, we raise two questions about the deliberation process we tried to support. First, how to understand the importance of narratives as sources of civic learning? Second, how can a narrative understanding of civic education challenge current practices of citizen participation? Our answers …
Diverse cities
In 1996 UNESCO published the report of the International Commission on Education for the Twenty-first Century. In the introduction Jacques Delors, the chairman of this commission, writes that exact
Imagining pedagogy in public space
This paper reports on a research project completed with graduate students of the adult-education programme at the Leuven University in Flanders, Belgium. The research focused on cultural policies and practices in urban contexts that try to facilitate the learning of democratic citizenship in non-formal settings. In the first part we introduce some theoretical notions regarding the relationship between artistic practices in public spaces and pedag…
Community forests as heterotopia. The case of the Mu community forest – Ngoc Son – Ngo Luong Nature Reserve, Vietnam
This paper examines issues of culture and power in regard to the Mu sacred forest, Vietnam, a community forest. The research uses Foucault’s notion of ‘heterotopia’ as a heuristic tool to interpret forest management. It appears that the Mu sacred forest can be understood as a space of ‘self reflective construction’, but also a space that might dissolve, destabilize, interrupt and suspend power. The moment of power suspension frees people from the…
The Confessing Society
As the title suggests, the book is inspired by Foucault’s reading of the world we live in today, particularly the world of scientifically driven practices of welfare provision such as health care, ...
Adult and community education in complex societies
In this contribution, I explore how critical pedagogical perspectives can inspire adult and community education practices. The central argument is that today, in contrast with the heydays of emancipatory practices and theories, the classical critical approaches need reconsideration. The paper explores how these approaches sometimes have a stultifying effect on the participants in practice. In line with the French philosopher Rancière, a perspecti…
From formal to non-formal
Opening spaces of conversation
The arrival of newcomers in our societies ‘impinges upon us’ (Peter Jarvis). Adult and continuing education are invited to take a stance. In response to this, I explore how relevant citizenship education for and with newcomers can be conceived of. In the first place, I explore how the arrival of newcomers triggers ambivalent reactions between fear and hope. Next, I present different concepts of responsible citizenship as a response to these ambiv…
Silence – a matter of public concern
The paper analyses the contribution of critical pedagogy to the reflection on environmental and sustainability education. It links this reflection to a case of a Flemish/Belgian citizen movement that sensitizes the public for the issue of silence, through various educational and community-based practices. These practices inspired the author to try and find out how the narrative of the organisation could be framed in terms of critical pedagogy. He…
Lessons from the South
Between 1998 and 2011, we coordinated three consecutive research projects in three different provinces of Northern Vietnam. The projects aimed at improving the living conditions of various ethnic minorities in these areas. We focused on poverty alleviation, water management, and nature conservation. In all cases, there was a close collaboration between Vietnamese and Belgian researchers. The participation of the local population was an important …
Adult education and the formation of citizens
status: Published
Adult education and the formation of citizens
Hovering on the periphery? ‘Decolonising’ writing for academic journals
In this Forum, we are creating a space to challenge not only the dominance of English in academic journals, but also ‘metropolitan’ genres of scholarly writing and discourse, and, indeed, the ways in which particular knowledges continue to retain their dominance and to be privileged. We are inviting readers to reflect on how academic writing continues to be ‘colonised’, by problematising it and seeking to ‘decolonise’ it in,order to ‘decentre kno…
Sociology (26 works) · Pedagogy (23 works) · Political science (22 works) · Law (13 works) · Psychology (12 works) · Adult education (11 works) · Law (11 works) · Global Educational Policies and Reforms (10 works) · Politics (10 works) · Epistemology (9 works)