Teacher education research in the Mediterranean conference : a reflection

Abstract

Freire (2001) often speaks of ‘unfinishedness’ – a sense of incompleteness that evokes a “permanent movement of search” (Freire, 2001 p.57). To tap this ‘unfinishedness, I started a new course of study, attended various talks and particiapated in a number of conferences. One of these conferences was organised by the Faculty of Education, University of Malta, entitled ‘Teacher Education and Educational Research in the Mediterranean’ held between the 8th and 9th of June 2018. It was an engaging two-day conference which brought together educators, researchers and policy makers who discussed various education themes. I will start this article by introducing the chosen ten speakers who tackled those themes directly related to my dissertation. Then, I will identify five themes, discuss and reflect on them through the lens of various authors and the chosen speakers’ contribution. To share my reflections, I was inspired by Freire’s (2014) concept of the transformative “process of acting-and-thinking, speaking-and-writing” (p.55). Through this reflective journal, I will utilise a critical lens to denote the pros and cons of each theme. I will refer to the policy ‘Equity and Quality in Education: Supporting Disadvantaged Students and Schools’ (OECD, 2012) as Education 2012 and the policy ‘Education 2030 Incheon Declaration and Framework for Action towards Inclusive and Equitable Quality Education and Lifelong Learning for All’ (UNESCO, 2015) as Education 2030.