Page 417 - Cultural Studies of Science Education

392 B.C. Luitel and P.C. Taylor

But these tests are less likely to be useful for mathematics teachers in developing
holistic and meaningful assessment strategies that account for the culturally situated
intelligences of their students (Sternberg 2007). Furthermore, as I am critiquing
your suggestion of prescribing only books published in the west, I am also aware
of my own practice of using literature originating in the western context. Indeed,
my critique is not so much about the books themselves, but about the possible
singular worldview embedded in them and their uncritical use by our teachers and
teacher educators.

One big machine
Mass production
One shape and size fits all

An old man speaks
Of his past un-reflexively
High chance of imposition

Second, this narrow view of globalisation also harbours the unhelpful duality of
universalism versus contextualism. Etymologically, the term “context” arises from
the Latin word, contextus, meaning woven or connected together. Thus, the notion
of contextualism refers to the view that knowledge and knowing are always context
bound, no matter where and how they are produced (Stanley 2005). I argue from a
poststructural perspective (drawing on Brown 2007) that the notion of contextualism
is about promoting intertextuality between varying cultural products and lifeforms.
Thus, my emphasis is not on the exclusive hegemony of any standpoint; rather I am
trying to unpack the idea of contextualism so as to challenge the perpetual duality of
5
contextualism versus universalism promoted by the metonymy of globalisation as
universalisation. My deep-seated desire is to create an inclusive space that allows
both universalism and contextualism to operate in synergistic ways.

Weed’s encroachment
Local flowers begin to die
Dictionary changes

Comprador Intelligentsia OR Transformative Attitude?

Dear Dr. Director, arriving at this point of my letter writing journey, I request that
you think about possible answers to this question of mine: Do you want us to be
comprador intelligentsias or agents for transformation? In recent years, post-colonial
thinkers have articulated the notion of globalisation through a host of reflexive,
reciprocal and mutual relationships between local and global, contextual and

5 Metonym is a metaphor in which part of a concept is taken to represent the whole concept. In the
case of globalisation, which is a multifaceted concept (comprising conversation, exchange, dis-
course, etc.), often only one of its aspects (Westernisation) is taken to represent the whole concept
(Lakoff and Johnson 1980).