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✦ The Dispatch

Decolonising audiology education: Epistemic barriers and opportunities for Black African students

A dispatch from PubMed — filed

In South Africa, the Audiology curriculum remains rooted in Eurocentric epistemologies that do not reflect the lived realities, languages and cultural knowledge systems of Black African First-Language Speaking (BAFLS) students. This study responds to national calls for epistemic transformation in health sciences education, including Audiology....

Clinical Takeaway

No actionable change for day-to-day clinical practice; this is an education policy and equity argument directed at curriculum designers and academic institutions.

Why It Matters

Diversifying the knowledge foundations of audiology education is essential for producing a workforce capable of serving linguistically and culturally diverse populations globally.

Key Points
  1. 01Audiology curricula in South Africa are critiqued as predominantly Eurocentric in epistemology.
  2. 02Epistemic barriers disproportionately affect Black African students in audiology programs.
  3. 03The article identifies structural and knowledge-system-level opportunities for decolonisation.
  4. 04Published in the South African Journal of Communication Disorders (SAJCD, v73i1).
  5. 05Contributes to a growing international conversation about equity and diversity in health professions education.
Claims & Evidence

Audiology education curricula remain rooted in Eurocentric epistemologies.

opinionpartially supported

Eurocentric curricula create epistemic barriers for Black African audiology students.

opinionpartially supported
Research metadata
PMID
42084184
DOI
10.4102/sajcd.v73i1.1152.
Journal
South African Journal of Communication Disorders
Publication type
editorial
Evidence level
5
Population
Black African audiology students in South Africa
Intervention
Critical analysis of Eurocentric epistemologies in audiology curricula

Primary outcomes

Identification of epistemic barriers for Black African students; Identification of opportunities for curriculum decolonisation

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