Constructing and (Re)constructing Social Identities in Educational Contexts: Power, Norms, and Resistance

Topic Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Topic aims to examine the construction of social identities in educational settings as a process shaped by institutional power dynamics, hegemonic social norms, and the resistance practices enacted by students and teaching staff. The scientific literature demonstrates that these contexts often function as spaces that reproduce inequality and reinforce normative categories related to gender, class, ethnicity, and sexuality, thereby perpetuating social hierarchies. Far from being neutral environments, educational institutions embed dominant ideologies that significantly influence students’ identity formation. Empirical research has likewise documented both explicit acts of resistance and more subtle, everyday strategies that challenge authority and normative expectations within the classroom.

From an intersectional perspective, it is essential to analyze how multiple identity dimensions intertwine and amplify the effects of exclusion, as well as how educational systems might respond to these intersections through inclusive policies. The central objective of this topic is to bring together transdisciplinary contributions that perform the following: (i) uncover the institutional mechanisms that sustain inequality; (ii) highlight forms of resistance and agency; and (iii) propose theoretical and methodological frameworks that can inform policies and practices aimed at fostering more inclusive and equitable educational environments.

Contributions should fit one of the journal’s three categories of papers (article, conceptual paper, or review) and address the topic.

Prof. Dr. Delfín Ortega-Sánchez
Dr. Carlos Pérez-González
Topic Editors

Keywords

Participating Journals

Journal Name	Impact Factor	CiteScore	Launched Year	First Decision (median)	APC
Education Sciences education	2.6	5.5	2011	26.5 Days	CHF 1800	Submit
Social Sciences socsci	1.7	3.1	2012	33.1 Days	CHF 1800	Submit
Societies societies	1.6	3.0	2011	29.9 Days	CHF 1600	Submit
World world	1.9	-	2020	24.7 Days	CHF 1200	Submit

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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20 pages, 314 KB  

Open AccessArticle

The State of the Academy Address: Perspectives from Two Emerging Scholars Re-Membering the University Through Re-Imagination

by Curwyn Mapaling and Nokulunga Shabalala

Educ. Sci. 2026, 16(3), 412; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16030412 - 9 Mar 2026

Viewed by 427

Abstract

South African universities remain shaped by unresolved colonial inheritances and a deepening neoliberal turn that privileges measurable outputs, competition, and narrow definitions of merit. Within this landscape, Black academics and students often encounter institutional cultures that regulate belonging and constrain transformation. While accounts [...] Read more.

South African universities remain shaped by unresolved colonial inheritances and a deepening neoliberal turn that privileges measurable outputs, competition, and narrow definitions of merit. Within this landscape, Black academics and students often encounter institutional cultures that regulate belonging and constrain transformation. While accounts of the neoliberal university have been richly documented, less attention has been given to mentorship as an everyday institutional practice through which such regimes are reproduced and contested, particularly within professional training contexts. This paper offers a State of the Academy Address through the perspectives of two Black early-career clinical psychologists in academia. Drawing on collaborative autoethnography, a qualitative approach in which researchers use their own lived experiences as data to examine broader cultural patterns, and reflexive thematic analysis (a method of identifying and interpreting patterns of meaning across qualitative data) of structured reflective dialogues, we examine how emerging scholars attempt to re-make academic life through refusal and care. Two themes are presented: promoting mentorship while rejecting gatekeeping, and the tension between knowledge production and scholarly development under metric-driven performativity. The paper appreciates the notions of relationality and relational ethics, which are central to Ubuntu philosophy. Additionally, by centering a Freirean commitment to critical consciousness and empowerment, we argue that mentorship can function as an everyday agency that challenges exclusionary traditions, even as output pressures narrow scholarly formation and deepen the vulnerability of early-career academics. We conclude with implications for policy and practice across departmental, institutional, and sector levels, including the formal recognition of mentorship in workload models, protections for early-career academics against exploitative workload practices, and broader promotion and performance criteria that recognise relational labour, collaborative scholarship, and community-engaged knowledge production. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Constructing and (Re)constructing Social Identities in Educational Contexts: Power, Norms, and Resistance)

21 pages, 6406 KB  

Open AccessArticle

Connectivity and Consciousness: Quantifying Digital Mobilisation in Bangladesh’s 2024 Uprising

by Fahim Sufi, Sumaiya Islam, A K M Iftekharul Islam, Asif Bin Ali and Mohammad Abdul Jabber

World 2026, 7(3), 37; https://doi.org/10.3390/world7030037 - 2 Mar 2026

Viewed by 1111

Abstract

The July 2024 uprising in Bangladesh highlighted the growing importance of social media in transforming widespread grievances into coordinated civic mobilisation, yet empirical understanding of how grievances, access to platforms, networked connectivity, and global consciousness jointly shape mobilisation remains limited, particularly in Global [...] Read more.

The July 2024 uprising in Bangladesh highlighted the growing importance of social media in transforming widespread grievances into coordinated civic mobilisation, yet empirical understanding of how grievances, access to platforms, networked connectivity, and global consciousness jointly shape mobilisation remains limited, particularly in Global South contexts. This study addresses this gap by systematically examining the mechanisms through which these factors interact to influence digital mobilisation during the Bangladeshi uprising. Using survey data collected from 260 university students who constituted a central mobilisation cohort, the study operationalises grievances, access, connectivity, global consciousness, and digital mobilisation as composite constructs and analyses them through an integrated quantitative framework. Reliability analysis confirms internal consistency of the constructs, while principal component analysis validates their latent structure. Standardised regression modelling demonstrates that connectivity within online communities and global consciousness are the most influential predictors of mobilisation, together explaining approximately 45% of the variance in mobilisation outcomes, whereas access to platforms and grievances play smaller enabling roles. Unsupervised clustering further reveals two graded mobilisation profiles rather than a sharply polarised divide. Substantively, a one standard deviation increase in connectivity and global consciousness is associated with an average increase of approximately 0.6 on a 5-point mobilisation scale, corresponding to a marked shift from passive to active participation. By quantifying how network embeddedness and transnational framing amplify mobilisation, this study advances theories of connective action and provides empirically grounded insight into the dynamics of digitally mediated collective action in contemporary protest movements. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Constructing and (Re)constructing Social Identities in Educational Contexts: Power, Norms, and Resistance)

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16 pages, 390 KB  

Open AccessArticle

Lecturer Agency in the Enactment of CEFR-Based Curriculum Internationalisation: Lessons Learned from Indonesian Higher Education

by Yuni Budi Lestari, Kamaludin Yusra, Nuriadi Nuriadi, Lalu Muhaimi, Nawawi Nawawi and Baiq Jihan Olvy Wanasatya

Educ. Sci. 2026, 16(3), 369; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16030369 - 27 Feb 2026

Viewed by 599

Abstract

Generally portrayed as a neutral framework, the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) is implemented in various contexts through unequal policy transfers that favour Global North perspectives. The CEFR has become a key policy tool for curriculum internationalisation worldwide, particularly in [...] Read more.

Generally portrayed as a neutral framework, the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) is implemented in various contexts through unequal policy transfers that favour Global North perspectives. The CEFR has become a key policy tool for curriculum internationalisation worldwide, particularly in higher education institutions in the Global South that seek international recognition. This qualitative study uses a critical policy transfer and policy enactment approach to examine how lecturer agency influences CEFR-based curriculum internationalisation in Indonesian postgraduate English programs, especially those aiming for the C1/C2 level. Informed by Priestley, Biesta, and Robinson’s ecological model of agency, the analysis reveals that lecturers employ interpretive, adaptive, and transformative agency to counter deficit narratives, integrate global standards with local pedagogical principles, and redefine CEFR C1/C2 as a construct of contextual significance. Rather than implementing the CEFR as a fixed benchmark, lecturers act as epistemic and cultural brokers who reclaim curriculum internationalisation as a locally grounded pedagogical project. The study advances debates on the CEFR, policy transfer, and Global South internationalisation by foregrounding lecturer agency as a critical site where global language policies are negotiated, contested, and reworked. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Constructing and (Re)constructing Social Identities in Educational Contexts: Power, Norms, and Resistance)

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17 pages, 1163 KB  

Open AccessArticle

The Challenges of Dual Education and the Role of Resilience in the Balance Between Learning and Work

by Zsolt Nagy and Kinga Hokstok

Soc. Sci. 2026, 15(1), 15; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci15010015 - 28 Dec 2025

Viewed by 1563

Abstract

The rapid transformation of the 21st-century labour market requires students to be highly psychologically adaptable, especially in dual education systems where academic and work-based learning occur simultaneously. This study examines resilience as a psychological and pedagogical protective factor among students in dual vocational [...] Read more.

The rapid transformation of the 21st-century labour market requires students to be highly psychologically adaptable, especially in dual education systems where academic and work-based learning occur simultaneously. This study examines resilience as a psychological and pedagogical protective factor among students in dual vocational education and dual higher education programmes. Using a quantitative research design with validated scales measuring resilience, motivation, satisfaction, and stress, the research investigates how individual and contextual factors influence students’ adaptability. The results showed that vocational education and training students exhibited greater resilience, greater learning satisfaction, and lower levels of stress than those in higher education. Regression analysis confirmed that resilience positively contributes to academic success, while supportive mentoring and a structured learning environment enhance emotional stability and motivation. The analysis highlights that autonomy and pressure to perform are associated with higher levels of stress in higher education, underscoring the critical role of mentorship and peer support in improving adaptability. These findings emphasise that resilience is not only an individual capacity, but also a pedagogical and organisational construct; its systematic development should be integrated into the dual education framework to support student well-being, learning effectiveness, and long-term professional adaptation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Constructing and (Re)constructing Social Identities in Educational Contexts: Power, Norms, and Resistance)

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23 pages, 642 KB  

Open AccessArticle

From Collaboration to Integration: How a Community of Practice Supports Public School Teachers’ Understanding of Integrated STEAM Education

by Daniela Pedrosa de Souza, Ileana Maria Greca and Helaine Sivini Ferreira

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(11), 1559; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15111559 - 19 Nov 2025

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1086

Abstract

Integrated science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (i-STEAM) education has been recognized for its potential to promote interdisciplinary learning and connect scientific knowledge to socially relevant contexts. However, its implementation in school practices remains limited, often owing to conceptual ambiguities and a lack [...] Read more.

Integrated science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (i-STEAM) education has been recognized for its potential to promote interdisciplinary learning and connect scientific knowledge to socially relevant contexts. However, its implementation in school practices remains limited, often owing to conceptual ambiguities and a lack of sustained support for teachers. This study examines the role of participation in a community of practice (CoP) in facilitating the adoption of i-STEAM principles by public school teachers through collaborative lesson planning. Drawing on meeting transcripts, documents produced during the process, and interviews with participants, the analysis focused on the constitution of the CoP, the presence of i-STEAM elements in the teaching proposals, and the level of integration achieved. The results suggest that the CoP supported the development of more coherent and context-sensitive understandings of i-STEAM, while also promoting interdisciplinary design across diverse educational levels. These findings may also inform initiatives in other public education systems facing similar structural conditions, such as limited resources, disciplinary fragmentation, and restricted opportunities for collaborative curriculum development. The study highlights the value of CoPs as professional learning strategies and proposes a replicable analytical approach for evaluating how teachers engage with integrative pedagogies. Implications for teacher education and policy are discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Constructing and (Re)constructing Social Identities in Educational Contexts: Power, Norms, and Resistance)

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