We are Team XV! (…and this is blog article no. 400!)

We are Team XV!

The Call for another team went viral at the University of Cape Coast when it was published, and it was quickly answered. Let us present to you The Ghanaian Experience!

With an utmost pleasure we would like you to follow this journey from Karlsruhe to Cape Coast in the year 2025. We are glad to share our work in the project Decolonizing of English Language Teaching and ELT Curricula Through a Bi-Directional Learning and Teaching Approach, which is financed by Engagement Global and administrated in the “ASA Academia global” line. 

Below is an introduction of the group, our tasks and our goals.

The Project “Decolonizing English Language Teaching and ELT Curricula Through a Bi-Directional Learning-and-Teaching Approach”

This project unites students and faculty from the Karlsruhe University of Education (PHKA) and Ghana’s University of Cape Coast (UCC) in a critical North-South partnership. Based on Prof. Isabel Martin’s bi-directional learning-and-teaching framework, a group of 6 German and Ghanaian students collaboratively identify and dismantle colonial legacies embedded within English Language Teaching (ELT) curricula, pedagogical practices, and teaching materials in both contexts, for 3 months in each place. The project is co-funded by the Karlsruhe University of Education’s International Office and the English Department as well, and we are now all there on campus, working together in Prof. Martin’s office during “Phase 1”.

Editor’s note: a tandem is a bicycle for two. Metaphorically speaking, our three student-tandems consist of one student from Ghana and one from Germany each, and they use their combined energy to arrive at a new destination together. 

Beyond theoretical analysis, the tandems co-design and pilot decolonial ELT lesson prototypes for primary and secondary schools, in cooperation with local students from one of Prof. Martin’s decolonial seminars. This is done for schools in Karlsruhe, but also for interested schools nearby. Our cooperation schools presently are Sophie-Scholl-Realschule, Sebastianschule Neuthard Grundschule, Albert-Schweitzer-Schule, and Schule am Stromberg Gemeinschaftsschule Illingen. The lessons are paired with open-access resources like toolkits, workshops, consultations, seminars, and press releases to share transformative strategies with educators globally, while research on attitudes and impact is being conducted at the same time via classroom observations, surveys, questionnaires, etc.
Jointly led by PHKA’s Prof. Dr. Isabel Martin and UCC’s Dr. Christopher Yaw Kwaah, the initiative contributes to decolonizing English teacher education and foregrounding Ghanaian/African perspectives to counter Eurocentric dominance in ELT.

By confronting coloniality in language education, this partnership carves out locally actionable pathways toward linguistically more just and inclusive classrooms — thus reshaping how English is taught, learned, and owned in both our educational spheres.

With that there are specific goals we will achieve: the project group will gradually unlearn their binary epistemes and decolonize their minds and knowledge (re)-production in bi-directional tandem and seminar work by interacting with and examining structures, processes, knowledge production, and many more. The project design comprises varied tasks that help trigger and scaffold this un-learning process:
– e.g. writing both weekly and monthly reflections and relating them to the five axes of unlearning which were designed in the German-Cameroonian project last year (cognitive, system, language, socialization, inter-/transcultural),
– attending the mandatory course which is Prof. Martin’s “Decoloniality Praxis”,
– organization of team meetings on Mondays and Fridays to make reflections on seminars and experiences to discuss organizational matters,
– designing a “Decoloniality Praxis project” in tandems together with local students in the “Decoloniality Praxis” seminar, which will later be disseminated on this blog.

This and many more are the goals and activities that are taking place in the first phase here at the University of Education Karlsruhe.

The ASA Academia global format programme

A cornerstone of international capacity-building, the non-profit and politically independent ASA Programme connects young people from Germany and the Global South. Its mission is to cultivate diverse perspectives and practical skills necessary to tackle global challenges. By offering seminars, project work, and support, the programme develops expertise in sustainable development and global justice, empowering participants to drive positive change. It is primarily funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and receives additional support from German partner universities. The German universities submit project applications to ASA beforehand which build frameworks for working towards (some of) the Sustainable Development Goals in cooperation with an African university partner. If accepted, ASA funding is granted for the participating students (not for the mentors or their departments), but the German partner is expected to co-fund their projects by hosting the participants and providing them with the essential resources to attain the goals of both the ASA programme and their own specific implementations in a local project. Our project #1107 explicitly advances the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)  #4 quality education, #10 reduced inequalities, #16 peace justice and strong institutions, and #17 partnership for the goals. The larger bracket involves longer-term strategic international collaboration and multi-stakeholder partnerships across education, politics, business, and society.

The first phase takes of priject #1107 place in Karlsruhe in Germany from April 22nd until July 17th. The second phase will be in Cape Coast, Ghana from September 22nd until December 21st.

The beneficiaries in Team XV 

Eli Attipoe

The first participant to be introduced chosen for this project “Decolonizing of English Language Teaching and ELT curricula through a bidirectional approach” goes by the name Eli Attipoe. At twenty-one years, I am studying English and History in Education while being a final year student at the University of Cape Coast. My leisure hours include music listening and reading alongside productive dialogue with friends as well as dance sessions and creative activities. I read the educational program because I aim to share my acquired knowledge with the upcoming students. According to Kofi Anan (a Ghanaian who was the seventh Secretary general of the UN) I always endorse his statement that Education serves as the strongest instrument which transforms entire global communities. The understanding became clear to me that universal education ensures people function as positive agents who make a difference worldwide thus manifesting and achieving the concept of a better world.

The deadline for the application of the project came at a short notice and sounded urgent but I applied at the very end when a few others had already submitted their applications. I believed there was little chance for my acceptance. I decided to submit my application despite feeling apprehension about the outcome… and since, my interview appearance led me to this moment of writing among selected candidates. Hurray!!

Reading the project requirements and its description, it awoke something: that I had always been fighting for equal representation. This is something that I believe is lacking in this world and it is keeping us back from being the better world that we are capable of being. As a student-teacher from Ghana and having the privilege to teach English Language and Literature in English for some period of time, I noticed there is this underrepresentation of our traditions and culture in the teaching of both English Language and Literature in English classes in Ghana. Also being an individual who has undergone colonial education and experience with its flaws and its effects on my life, I decided to apply for the project. It is sad how we are not in a position to connect most of our English classes to our day-to-day experience, which is not helpful. Knowledge regarding the ASA program and how closely it relates to the SDGs I fell in love with the project as soon as I read it because I also wanted an in-depth knowledge of the SDGs as well. I believe this project will provide me with the ability to decolonize lessons for my students because I am very sure that my students will love a lesson that relates to their lived experiences.

Karlsruhe is the most wonderful city I have ever visited in my life. Moving and living in this city and the PHKA has been pretty smooth and instructive. I will describe my first experience in two German words: “aufregend” and “wunderbar”. This team is a special team, to be honest I love the way that we have been able to bond in the first few days of us meeting physically. We have so far attended both informing and inspiring seminars both at the PH and as well as from ASA, where we have been learning about topics like International Development Corporation, Feminist Development Corporation, SDGs, Colonialism and its effects, which was very interesting. So far the experience has been both educative, informative and life-changing. Now we all have identified our “Special Task” roles for this 6-month project and we are all doing all the roles nicely and smoothly. I personally have the role of Blog Manager and with that you will be hearing a lot from this team.

Get your paddles ready because this team will assist in propelling us toward a great change with our research, findings, and togetherness as well.

 

Sara Aleid

Hello everyone! I am so excited to be part of this blog.

My name is Sara Aleid, I am 22 years old, and I study Political Science in Frankfurt. Growing up, political conversations were a regular part of my life at home. My father would often discuss the political challenges the world is facing, encouraging us to think critically, ask questions, and seek the truth for ourselves. That habit stayed with me, and as I got older, my interest in politics only deepened.

I chose to pursue political science because I want to make a difference — by helping people feel seen and heard, and by standing up for causes rooted in history that still shape people’s lives today.
I first heard about the ASA program through an email from my university suggesting it as a path for internships. I looked it up and immediately knew that I did not want to stay in Germany for my internship — I was looking for international experience. ASA seemed like the perfect opportunity, so I decided to apply the following year.

By then, I was already attending university seminars that focused on colonialism and its ongoing effects. So when I saw this project, it felt like an ideal fit. It was a chance to take everything I had been learning and apply it in a real-world context. What especially drew me in was the connection between the so-called Global North and South — a relationship I believe we urgently need to rethink and reshape.

I arrived in Karlsruhe on Easter Monday. It is a small, quiet city where everything is easily reachable on foot, which makes getting around pretty simple. On Tuesday, I met my team — and since then, we have really hit it off. Everyone is open-minded, supportive, and most importantly, there is room to be yourself within the group.

During the second week, we got to learn more about ASA Global and had some really interesting discussions about who they are and what their aims are. These conversations helped me better understand the broader mission we are part of while learning and growing both academically and personally.

Ms Martin, the professor responsible for our project, has been incredibly helpful with everything from accommodation to getting us settled in. I am currently attending two of her seminars on Decoloniality, and they have been eye-opening — especially the focus on postcolonial theory from an African perspective, which is something I have always wanted to explore more deeply.

I am really excited to see where this journey will take me next, and I hope to continue learning and growing both academically and personally along the way.

Emmanuel Agyapong

Hello everyone,

I am Emmanuel Agyapong, a third-year teacher-trainee reading Bachelor of Education Arts with English as my major in the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. The UCC is ranked first in Ghana, first in West Africa, and among the top 10 universities in Africa according to Times Higher Education World University Rankings. I am teacher-student on a study leave program: The Ghana Education Service (GES) offers a study leave with pay policy to its eligible employees, primarily teachers to further their education. This policy allows teachers to pursue further studies, often with the aim of enhancing their skills and contributing to the development of the education sector. I taught for three years in the Junior High School. In my free times I love to watch football, and anything football-related, I also love watching wrestling and adventurous TV series like Game of Thrones, Vikings, Legend of the Seeker and the like.

Given my background in education and experience working in Ghana, the ASA program’s focus on de-colonial and bi-directional learning resonates deeply with me, particularly in the context of our Project #1107. I am drawn to the program’s emphasis on promoting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) #4, #10, #16, and #17 through collaborative learning, and to decolonizing our minds, practices, materials, and curricula. By participating, I can contribute my expertise and help shape a more inclusive and equitable approach to education. And this motivated me to apply after I read about the project.
As a participant, I have the opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals from diverse backgrounds, sharing experiences and best practices. This broadens my perspective, fosters global understanding and potentially leads to future collaborations.

Karlsruhe has been great so far, very welcoming, and the people I have met up to now are loving and caring and this makes my stay here so far very exciting. It has also been great with the members of this team, as each individual brings different expertise in different aspects which come together to form a formidable team. I have so much belief in this team to bring out the best. In this team, I have the Special Task as documentation and copyright manager.

I would end here with a quote from Henry Ford, an American industrialist. Henry Ford is famous for revolutionizing the automobile industry through mass production and the assembly line, making cars affordable for the average American. He founded the Ford Motor Company and introduced the iconic Model T, which became a symbol of the era: “Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.”

Maya Isabel Hart

My name is Maya Isabel Hart. I was born in April, and like the season of spring, I associate this time with new beginnings — much like the early stages of this project. In my free time, I enjoy creative activities such as knitting and crocheting, and I have developed a passion for running, which allows me to explore and familiarize myself with new surroundings. This has been particularly helpful as I settle into a new city.

I studied Social Work at Faculty of Social Work, Education and Nursing Sciences in Esslingen, choosing an international focus that allowed me to explore migration-related issues and anti-racist social work. My research started with looking at my academic and personal interests and I was guided by a desire to contribute to global and social justice, seeking for global sustainable developmental work regarding my fields of interest. Since I was already employed and had completed my Bachelor’s degree before starting the project, I began my research online.  So, I found the ASA Programme through the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, which eventually made me conscious of the invitation to participate in this project.

Throughout our project phase at PHKA, we are also supported by the ASA seminars, which allow us to get into contact with other ASA participants attending other projects.

I consider the course “Decoloniality Praxis” to be particularly important. It is offered by Ms. Isabel Martin; within we engage both theoretically and practically with looking at English language use and English teaching. The bi-directional working method of the course encourages dialogue, feedback, and development of knowledge. Working in tandems with other students, we (un-)learn, exchange ideas, conduct research, and will eventually use the collaboratively developed teaching materials in educational settings and also publish our results on various platforms in the end. To sum up, this course constitutes the central element of our academic project.

As the term “body language” already implies, we possess the ability to express ourselves beyond words. In this aspect, I see the course “World Dance Calling for the English Classroom” as an opportunity to communicate inclusively in alternative forms, beyond spoken language. I came to understand that dance teaching is both a form of instruction, a form of language, and that it works beautifully in peace education contexts. Depending on their audiences, Callers may call simple steps or complex choreographies, using the expressive power of body language for connecting the dancers always with another person.

I am responsible for the organization surrounding the school lessons at the schools where the bi-directional teaching projects will take place.

As Nelson Mandela said: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”.

Peter Hintz

Hello everyone!

My name is Peter Hintz, I am 26 years old and currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Educational Sciences at the Technical University of Darmstadt, where I study in my third semester. In my free time, I enjoy grounding activities like gardening and baking bread, as well as doing sports, spending time outdoors, and being with friends and family.

I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work, with a particular focus on generational relations in an ageing society. My focus especially lies in the dynamics of power, particularly the ways in which it shapes society through diverse and subtle mechanisms by which power is transferred and social order is maintained within and across generations. I view the field of critical education as a key tool for interrogating and challenging these enduring inequalities within societies and globally.

Alongside my studies, I recently finished a long-term qualification to become a certified expert in the field of international youth work. This discipline offers an educational framework that fosters intercultural exchange, global learning, and active citizenship.

While searching for an internship as part of the practical component of my Master’s programme that aligned with this educational approach, I came across the ASA programme and was immediately drawn to this project. I chose to apply for this project because it addresses key issues such as anti-racist education, legacies of colonialism, and postcolonial perspectives within teacher education. I believe it offers a powerful opportunity to question dominant knowledge structures and foster more equitable educational practices, especially because it engages with future school teachers.

The atmosphere in our team is enriching and collaborative. I have the special task of Project Manager, so I help coordinate our project and ensure things run smoothly, while (un-)learning something new every day. In the first weeks of the project, our research focused on decoloniality, systemic racism, power structures, and the relationship between language and power. Seminars such as “Decoloniality Praxis”, the workshop on “Asymmetrical North-South Power Relations”, and the ASA seminars have revealed how deeply colonial patterns of thinking, constructs such as white supremacy, and structural inequalities continue to persist in today’s education systems.  Coloniality is not merely a problem of the past, it is an ongoing issue that shapes institutions, practices, and ways of thinking. Addressing these challenges requires critical reflection, the interrogation of dominant knowledge systems, and a focus on the intersectional dynamics of oppression. This is an ongoing process of learning, unlearning, and action.

Benedicta Ekua Arthur

Hello everyone,

I am Benedicta Ekua Arthur, but all my friends and colleagues at work call me Bene. I am a professional licensed teacher with twelve years’ experience in elementary education. I hold a Bachelor’s degree in basic education and a one-year training by a UK-based organization called Sabre Education Trust on British Curriculum for kindergarten and early graders. Since Sabre education taught me more about using the British curriculum in teaching Kindergarten kids, it also taught me the importance of using the lived experiences of the kids in lessons. This brings me to the believe that this project will help me fuse what I have learnt at Sabre to push in for a more Ghanaian-centred teaching approach so that the relation to lived experiences would be done better.

I have been in the kindergarten class for seven years now. I am also the curriculum lead of my school who sees to it that teachers in my school are abreast in the new trends in education, thus the Standardized Based Curriculum (which talks about making learning more student-centered) and Professional Learning Community (these deals with the professional growth of teachers). Lesson plan preparation, organizing the professional learning community, disseminating information on attended workshops and others are the roles I perform as a curriculum lead amongst others. I believe teaching should be both challenging and fun. I like to create a classroom environment where everyone feels respected and encouraged to do their best.

Outside of my teaching career, I like cooking, watching movies, singing, meeting friends and above all I am a lover of entertainment like attending traditional festival activities like the Fetu Afahye, and engaging in sporting activities like volleyball. I am always eager to learn new perspectives and ideas. I was privileged to be selected to be part of this year’s ASA team, working on the project “Decolonizing English Language teaching and ELT curricula trough a bi-directional learning and teaching approach”. I joined this project because I am passionate about sustainable development, education, and social justice, and I also believe in the power of cross-cultural collaboration.

In this project, I look forward to engaging with the local community both at home and in Germany, and with my fellow participants, learning from each others’ perspectives and contributing meaningfully to the goals of the project. I am keen on dismantling certain binary epistemes I had. Through the Decoloniality Praxis course and other lessons, I gain knowledge that I can take back home and apply in my classroom through my teaching and also extend it by teaching it to my colleagues during our professional learning community.

As the team has started on a good pace, we believe we can achieve the expected goals for this project, and we entreat you to follow us on this journey of unlearning and relearning. Stay tuned—there is much more ahead as we continue developing our tandem projects and begin uncovering new insights.

Keep your eyes on what is next – it is going to be worth the wait!

Team XV

 

Text by Sara Aleid, Eli Attipoe, Maya Isabel Hart, Benedicta Ekua Arthur, Peter Hintz & Emmanuel Agyapong

Photos by Emmanuel Agyapong, Peter Hintz & Valentyna Guseva