Projects per year
Personal profile
Biography
Esther Priyadharshini is Professor of Educational Futures at the School of Education & Lifelong Learning. She is the Director of Research in the school and co-leader of the Cultural Studies in Education research group. Esther completed her Ph.D from Lancaster University and previously graduated from Bharatidasan and Madras Universities, India. Esther curently teaches and supervises across several programmes in education - BA, MRes, PhD and EdD.
Key Research Interests
Prof. Esther Priyadharshini’s research is located in the intersection of futures studies, youth studies and education. She is interested in how processes of education, learning and research can be made to respond to social/global challenges and support the making of more desirable futures. To do this, she draws on feminisms, postcolonialism, new materialisms, and post humanist perspectives. She is interested in experimental and innovative approaches to research methodology (non-representational, speculative approaches and participatory persepectives).
Her recent (2021) book, "Pedagogies for the Post Anthropocene" was awarded the Runner Up Prize for the CIES 2022 Book Award, Globalisation & Education SIG.
Recent Publications
Priyadharshini, E. (2024). Speculative Method-Making for Feminist Futures: Insights from Black Feminist Science and Afrofuturist Work. Australian Feminist Studies, 1–18.
Priyadharshini, E., (2023) 'Decolonizing Citational and Quotational Practices as Reparative Politics', (199-219) In, Decolonizing Education for Sustainable Futures, Eds. Y. Hutchinson, A. Ochoa, J. Paulson, L.Tikly, Bristol University Press.
Priyadharshini E., (2021) Pedagogies for the post-Anthropocene: Lessons from Apocalypse, Revolution & Utopia, Springer Press.
Jere, C., Robinson-Pant, A., Priyadharshini, E., Millora, C., & Evren, B. (2021). Cooperation, collaboration and compromise: Learning through difference and diversity. Educational Action Research.
Priyadharshini, E. (2020). 'Re-imaginging futures, education and learning relations' in Humanist Futures: Perspectives from UNESCO Chairs and UNITWIN Networks on the futures of education. Paris, UNESCO.
Priyadharshini, E., (2019) 'Anticipating the apocalypse: Monstrous educational futures'. Futures 113 (2019), 102453.
(2018) Analysis as assemblage: making sense of polysemous texts, Critical Studies in Media Communication, 35:5, 420-439.
Areas of Expertise
Educational Futures; Posthumanism, Postcolonial and feminist theory; post-qualitative research, speculative methods, participatory approaches.
Teaching Interests
Prof. Priyadharshini contributes to teaching across UG, PG and doctoral programmes. She is the EDU lead for the MRes in Social Sciences. She also leads the BA year 3 module ''Understanding Childhoods: Society, Politics and Culture"
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
External positions
ESRC Peer Review College Member, ESRC Peer Review College
External Examiner - Edinburgh Futures Institute, University of Edinburgh
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
-
Teacher agency with technology: creating an ecological model through a place-based study of teaching and learning in Norfolk
Gordon, J., Bartholomew, K., Blair, R., Chin, J., Craske, J., Dyer, H., Greenwood, D., Hammond, S., Maddox, B., Medler, D., Parr, G., Priyadharshini, E. & Russell, K.
Economic and Social Research Council
1/12/22 → 30/11/25
Project: Research
-
Towards embedding responsible AI in the school system: co-creation with young people
Arts and Humanities Research Council
1/02/24 → 31/10/24
Project: Research
-
Time, space, belonging and mental health: Participatory explorations of Black and minority ethnic doctoral student experiences.
Ramakrishnan, K., Priyadharshini, E. & Ghaffar, F.
31/08/21 → 31/10/22
Project: Research
-
Advanced Training Initiative
Lebeau, Y., Chhotray, V., Finlayson, A., Lorenzoni, I., Priyadharshini, E. & Watts, S.
Economic and Social Research Council
1/10/14 → 30/09/17
Project: Research
-
Crafting solidarities, crafting a zine: Methods for resistance and recovery in Higher Education amongst doctoral researchers of colour
Ghaffar, F., Kamtam, M., Mir, T., Nakibuuka, L-M., Priyadharshini, E., Ramakrishnan, K., Martinez Renteria, A., Thomas, T. & Wang, Q., 11 Nov 2024, In: ACME: An International E-Journal for Critical Geographies. 23, 5, p. 310-337 28 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile22 Downloads (Pure) -
Speculative method-making for feminist futures: Insights from black feminist science and Afrofuturist work
Priyadharshini, E., Sep 2024, In: Australian Feminist Studies. 38, 115-116, p. 14-31 18 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile12 Downloads (Pure) -
Cooperation, collaboration and compromise: Learning through difference and diversity
Jere, C. M., Priyadharshini, E., Robinson-Pant, A., Millora, C. & Evren, B., Aug 2023, In: Educational Action Research. 31, 3, p. 540-555 16 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile30 Downloads (Pure) -
Decolonizing Citational and Quotational Practices as Reparative Politics
Priyadharshini, E., 2023, Decolonizing Education for Sustainable Futures. Hutchison, Y., Cortez Ochoa, A. A., Paulson, J. & Tikly, L. (eds.). Bristol University Press, p. 199-219 20 p.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter
-
Post-qualitative approach to researching temporalities: Making post-anthropocentric futures
Priyadharshini, E. & Rennolds, N., Jan 2023.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper
Prizes
-
Runner Up, CIES 2022 Book Award, Globalisation & Education SIG
Priyadharshini, Esther (Recipient), 12 Apr 2022
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
-
MeCCSA Conference
Esther Priyadharshini (Speaker) & Harry Dyer (Speaker)
4 Sep 2024 → 6 Sep 2024Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Participation in conference
-
'What’ is an activist? Learning and enacting emergent youth civic engagements - paper presented at BERA 2023
Harry Dyer (Speaker), Esther Priyadharshini (Contributor), Lauren Bouttell (Contributor), Chris Millora (Contributor), Natasha Rennolds (Contributor) & Spyros Themelis (Contributor)
12 Sep 2023 → 14 Sep 2023Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Participation in conference
-
Futures (Journal)
Esther Priyadharshini (Editorial board member)
2022 → …Activity: Editorial work › Publication editorial role
-
External Examiner with the Edinburgh Futures Insitute (EFI), University of Edinburgh
Esther Priyadharshini (Examiner)
2022 → …Activity: Examination
-
Digital Culture and Education (Journal)
Esther Priyadharshini (Editorial board member)
2017 → …Activity: Editorial work › Publication editorial role