The ecofeminist pedagogy for eco-social reconstruction

• Main Author: Balmes, Jane Mycka B.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2022
• Subjects: Ecofeminism; Ecosocialism; Feminist Philosophy; Philosophy
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etdm_philo/6; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1005&context=etdm_philo
• Institution: De La Salle University

The emergence of progressive education such as critical pedagogy, anti-oppressive education and engaged pedagogy was a response to criticisms against the banking system of education that perpetuates & maintains structural oppression and domination. Notwithstanding the possibilities and impact of these pedagogies to address concerns on social justice, environmental justice was not given enough focus by educators. Even if ecological education was mainstreamed in the educational system, the approach is too scientific and neglects the cultural roots of the environmentally harmful ways of thinking and doing. The neglect creates a gap between the social and the ecological aspects of education. The ecofeminist pedagogy is a viable framework to address this gap. The power and promises of the pedagogy is in its metaphor, the quilt, where there is an ongoing labor of knitting and reknitting diverse theories, including the social justice aims of progressive education theories while upholding its own goal for environmental justice. The quilt views oppression and domination of humankind and the natural world as interconnected, and solutions must address the roots of oppression. It questions the oppressive conceptual framework, rejects the logic of domination, and untangles the women-Other-nature interconnection. Ecofeminist pedagogy is counter-hegemonic, participatory, experiential, action-centered, focused on lived experience, and built on interrelation. With school, businesses, and countries showing adherence to ecofeminist ideals, the vision for the well-being of the biotic community through eco-social reconstruction in education is feasible. The thesis demonstrates the applicability of the pedagogy in the local context through a relevant integration into the Philippine setting. Keywords: ecofeminism; ecofeminist pedagogy; eco-social justice, eco-social reconstruction, well-being; ecofeminist quilt