The colonial legacy in Cambridge Assessment literature syllabi

David Golding,Kyle Kopsick

doi:10.1007/s41297-018-00062-0

Abstract

This study analyzes the literature syllabi of Cambridge Assessment International Education (CAIE), a highly influential international education organization that determines curricula and conducts examinations for nearly one million students annually. Although CAIE describes its syllabi as internationalized and free from cultural bias and discrimination, little research has been conducted to confirm or reject these claims. Using a framework of postcolonial feminism and postdevelopment theory, this study analyzes author representation in CAIE literature syllabi to reveal potential colonial and patriarchal dimensions. We analyze the six CAIE literature syllabi in terms of author nationality, world region, and gender. The results indicate a clear bias in favor of European male authors and a consistent underrepresentation of women authors from the Global South. Authors of the MENA region are entirely excluded from the syllabi. Women authors from Latin America are also almost entirely absent. The study concludes that CAIE literature syllabi are not sufficiently international or multicultural, but instead reflects the continued legacy of colonial relations between British education and the Global South. Since the colonial era, CAIE has continued to enact banking education at a global scale by conceiving of the Global South as lacking in literature worthy of study. In order to begin to decolonize their literature syllabi, we suggest that CAIE should draw from diverse literature throughout World Englishes, especially literature written by women authors in the Global South.

Highlights

Cambridge Assessment International Education (CAIE), formed in 1858 in Cambridge, England, is an international not-for-profit organization that annually prescribes the curricula for nearly one million primary and secondary students
Since marginalization in the CAIE literature syllabi operates at the intersection of colonialism and patriarchy, women in the Global South are faced with curricula that do not regard their perspective to be of equal value
The results only identify whether or not there is a problem of author representation in the CAIE curricula, rather than attempt to explain the nuances of identity politics and literatureproduction in the diverse political, cultural, and geographical contexts of the Global South

Summary

Introduction

Cambridge Assessment International Education (CAIE), formed in 1858 in Cambridge, England, is an international not-for-profit organization that annually prescribes the curricula for nearly one million primary and secondary students. The organization is the largest provider of international education programs for students of 5 to 19 years of age (CAIE 2018b). CAIE expanded its global presence in the late twentieth century as a push to Bcivilize^ colonized populations through an English-medium education. According to its mission statement, CAIE seeks to: Curric Perspect (2019) 39:7–17 engaged—equipped for success in the modern world. A culturally neutral approach is cornerstone to CAIE, who say in developing their syllabi, they have: taken great care in the preparation of this syllabus and assessment materials to avoid bias of any kind. To comply with the UK Equality Act (2010), Cambridge has designed this qualification with the aim of avoiding direct and indirect discrimination. (Cambridge Assessment 2014)

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Conclusion