Creating Conversations: An inclusive approach to the networking of knowledge about education in Southern contexts

This thesis provides a synthesis of knowledge about inclusive networking in aninternational context, derived from the experience of stakeholders in educationin countries of the South. It is suggested that inclusive networking facilitates thetelling of stories, challenges stereotypes, humanises headlines and promotescontextually relevant research.The research question: “What are the key principles for the development of aninclusive international network?” was developed as a guide to this study. Usinga process of autoethnographic analysis, I identified my tacit knowledge ofinclusive networking through a continual analysis and cross-referencing of theten publications presented here, and a wider search of the literature.This thesis is presented as a narrative in three parts. In the first part I trace mymotivation for becoming involved in international networking as a strategy toaddress global inequality, review the literature on networking most relevant tothis thesis, and identify some of the barriers to publishing faced by educationstakeholders in the South. In the second part, a case study of the EnablingEducation Network (EENET) is presented and a wide range of networkingdilemmas identified, related to the way information is collected and sharedacross diverse Southern contexts. The overarching dilemmas of northerndominance and deficit thinking are discussed in the context of oral culture andthe global digital and communication divide, and the difficulties in promotinggenuinely critical conversations.In the third part, it is argued that contextual detail and transparency aboutauthorship are critical to the construction of stories and accounts if they are tobe meaningfully networked across diverse contexts. However, it is suggestedthat investing resources in the development of documentation, reflection andanalytical skills in education stakeholders is an essential part of inclusivenetworking, if ‘promising’ practice is to be captured from a Southernperspective.Following this, the penultimate chapter puts forward four key principles relatingto the development of an inclusive international network that emerged from theanalysis of publications and the wider literature:1. sharing of information, knowledge and stories between contexts;2. knowledge creation: through reflection, documentation and analysis;3. balancing insider and outsider knowledge and perspectives; and4. developing appropriate responses at community level.I conclude with some possible future directions for research, and with apersonal story which encapsulates the theoretical framework of this thesis.