The purpose of this symposium is to present a critical discussion whilst revisiting the concept of the Hidden Curriculum from the Feminist, Intersectional and Postcolonial Perspectives. The discussion includes four separate yet connecting papers exploring the way in which the Hidden Curriculum brings feminist voice into the subject taught in the classroom. Collectively considered, the papers offer critical analyses of contemporary issues and make profound recommendations for rethinking the way the curriculum is prepared and delivered. The session is well aligned with the ECER Conference “'Education in an Era of Risk – the Role of Educational Research for the Future' ” in that papers both interrogate extant practice but offer innovative possibilities for improved practice. The session includes an introduction that suggests connections and points of departure between papers, a presentation of the four papers, featuring research investigations representing an intersectional approach to revisiting the concept of the hidden curriculum from three different countries. This is relevant and timely particularly in the era of conversations around the decolonisation of the curriculum.

In addition we will present theoretical perspectives related to women’s leadership in international contexts. The studies and theory we will present can serve to inform curriculum preparation globally through its confirmation of or challenge to present practices. Presenters will include questions designed to reimagine curriculum areas in research that takes the feminist, intersectional and postcolonial perspectives seriously and embraces the concepts and produce new knowledge through the use of varying theoretical frameworks and re-thinking data analysis and outcomes.

The discussion will provide an opportunity for liberating the curriculum to ensure that works to engage with international and nationally devise learners entering higher education sector. Being able to grapple with and navigate the curriculum as academics will be part of the critical conversation this symposium intends to create. What is the role of the researcher as students demand a change on the content and delivery of the curriculum?  

McConlogue, T. Liberating the Curriculum at UCL. IN HIGHER EDUCATION: PERSPECTIVES FROM UCL, 99. Fung, D. (2016). Engaging Students with Research Through a Connected Curriculum: An Innovative Institutional Approach. Council on Undergraduate Research Quarterly, 37(2). Fung, D. (2017). A connected curriculum for higher education (p. 182). Ucl Press.