Presuppositional interviewing, reflection and reflective practice in human rights teaching

TY - JOUR

T1 - Presuppositional interviewing, reflection and reflective practice in human rights teaching

AU - Hoddy, Eric

PY - 2024

Y1 - 2024

N2 - Human rights practice makes occasional note of the importance of and need for reflective practitioners. Yet reflection is not systematically discussed in its academic literature, including the human rights education literature. The methods, techniques and procedures for developing reflective practitioners in higher education settings also remain underexplored. One novel technique for developing reflexivity in the research sphere is the presuppositional interview. By undertaking these interviews, researchers may acquire new reflexive insights about their underlying biases and assumptions and how these shape how research problems are viewed and studied. This technique was transposed to the teaching sphere as a means of testing it with learners in an ‘authentic’, human rights learning environment. 12 postgraduate human rights students undertook presuppositional interviewing and then completed a brief survey on the exercise, where they appraised the value of the exercise in terms of their own learning and practice. Survey results present a mixed picture of the perceived value of the exercise, with some seeing it as useful and others less so. The paper offers a set of moorings for future follow-up on the value of this technique and addresses questions including student understanding of the purpose of the exercise and group dynamics.

AB - Human rights practice makes occasional note of the importance of and need for reflective practitioners. Yet reflection is not systematically discussed in its academic literature, including the human rights education literature. The methods, techniques and procedures for developing reflective practitioners in higher education settings also remain underexplored. One novel technique for developing reflexivity in the research sphere is the presuppositional interview. By undertaking these interviews, researchers may acquire new reflexive insights about their underlying biases and assumptions and how these shape how research problems are viewed and studied. This technique was transposed to the teaching sphere as a means of testing it with learners in an ‘authentic’, human rights learning environment. 12 postgraduate human rights students undertook presuppositional interviewing and then completed a brief survey on the exercise, where they appraised the value of the exercise in terms of their own learning and practice. Survey results present a mixed picture of the perceived value of the exercise, with some seeing it as useful and others less so. The paper offers a set of moorings for future follow-up on the value of this technique and addresses questions including student understanding of the purpose of the exercise and group dynamics.

M3 - Article

VL - 7

JO - York Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Journal

JF - York Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Journal

ER -