Agonistic possibilities for global unlearning: Constraints to learning within global citizenship education and social movements

Abstract

The continued rise of populisms and divisions alongside widening inequalities nationally and globally give increasing urgency to the question of how educators and activists can respond. This article examines the possibilities that emerge from the connections between global citizenship education (GCE) and learning in social movements, both spaces where people seek to engage others in ideas of how the world is, could and should be. Drawing on Mouffe's (2005) theory of agonistic pluralism to engage conflict and emotion with possibilities for learning and unlearning, the case study reveals the significance of recognizing constraints created by histories and narrations of the 'other'. The article calls for more work on the intersections of unlearning and agonism in order to create agonistic pedagogies for activism and GCE.