A new path to cultivate human rights education at schools of social work in Africa from a decolonial lens

Abstract

This article reports on a theoretical and empirical study exploring the nature and extent of human rights coverage in the curriculum in schools of social work at universities in Southern and East Africa. In a mixed methods research approach, quantitative data were gathered using an online survey, and qualitative data were collected using semi-structured interviews and document study. The findings indicate that countries’ socio-political contexts influence the freedom of their higher education institutions to discuss human rights and speak out about human rights abuses. Educators’ personal viewpoints, training, and experiences influence the human rights content that they present in the curriculum. Students are not involved in curriculum design in the schools surveyed. The study recommends that a new path for cultivating human rights education for schools of social work in Africa be followed where a decolonial human rights-infused social work curriculum and locally relevant pedagogy are adopted. It calls for training for social work educators to deliver and research a human rights-based curriculum to be pursued from a decolonial perspective.