Patel, K; (2015) Teaching and learning in the tropics: An epistemic exploration of 'the field' in a development studies fieldtrip. Journal of Geography in Higher Education , 39 (4) pp. 584-594. 10.1080/03098265.2015.1084499.

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Abstract

Development studies, with its focus on the human condition in the global south, employs theories, analytical tools and teaching methods often found in geography, including the international fieldtrip which is taken to a ‘developing’ country. In 2013 and 2014 I led a two-week trip to Ethiopia with 60-70 students on a UK masters programme. In 2013, a worrying yet fascinating conversation with a student (recounted below), prompted me to reflect on epistemologies of ‘the field’ in international fieldtrips (especially to countries normatised as ‘developing’), particularly the expectation among students and instructors that ‘the field’ is a place of difference punctuated by “exotic” encounters. To better comprehend the effects of ‘the field’ on students’ learning, in 2014, I introduced an assessed reflexive field diary to understand what the fieldtrip experience teaches students about themselves and their relationship to the field. In this paper I present critical reflections on ‘the field’ in development studies fieldtrips drawing upon students’ diary entries and geography literature that speaks to a provocative concept - ‘the tropics’. These reflections illuminate prevailing challenges in the study and practice of development and suggest a way forward.

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