Open research questions in Critical and Liberation Pedagogy
109 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 1,858 Critical and Liberation Pedagogy papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.
What the literature leaves open
Prior work has not typically engaged multiple and intersecting systems of power and dominance in the study of liminality. The paper identifies a need for deeper discourse that interrogates how liminality functions within, and in response to, structural conditions in higher education through a systemic lens. The study aims to fill this gap by using situational analysis to study liminality and power in higher education.
Toward Theoretical Plausibilities of Power: An Analysis of Liminality in Higher Education · 2026 · DOITraditional ethical theories are often abstract and detached from human relationships. Educational institutions face challenges in fostering empathy, responsibility, and interconnectedness among students. There is a need for a more compassionate and student-centered approach to education.
Traditional ethical theories are limited in their ability to address the complexities of human relationships. There is a need for a more relational and context-sensitive approach to moral reasoning in education.
There is a need for a more nuanced understanding of educative leadership as a form of moral craftsmanship. The paper identifies a gap in the literature regarding the development of an integrative framework for educative leadership. The ethical stakes in contemporary schooling require a more thoughtful and responsive approach to leadership.
The book identifies a gap in the conceptual definition and empirical attention to kindness in higher education. The book argues that kindness is commonly discussed implicitly yet rarely defined with sufficient precision.
Book review of Catherine J. Denial (2024). A pedagogy of kindness. University of Oklahoma Press, Norman. · 2026 · DOIThe paper suggests that future research should explore the application of Muxerista spirit restoration and healing pedagogies in different educational settings. The paper implies that future research should investigate the impact of embodiment and healing on student outcomes.
The paper identifies a gap in understanding how to be a liberator in a system that works within and against the educator. The paper notes that there is a need for more exploration of Muxerista spirit restoration and healing pedagogies in educational settings.
The neglect of moral and humanistic development in modern education systems. The lack of a framework that integrates professional competence and moral character.
The two-winged education paradigm: Reuniting professional competence and moral character · 2026 · DOIFuture research should prioritize the experiences of international students in Canada. Researchers should explore the intersection of racism and international education. Further study is needed on the effectiveness of critical pedagogy in disrupting the intergenerational miseducation of racism.
The paper identifies a gap in the literature on the experiences of international students in Canada. The author argues that there is a need for more research on the intersection of racism and international education.
Cross-cultural research to adapt philosophical practice to different societal contexts. Interdisciplinary collaboration between philosophers, psychologists, and other mental health professionals. The exploration of digital platforms for philosophical counselling.
From Academia to Action: Philosophical Practice as an Emerging Profession and Paradigm in Contemporary Society · 2025 · DOIThe gap between traditional academic philosophy and the immediate needs of individuals seeking guidance. The lack of comprehensive overview of the field of philosophical practice.
From Academia to Action: Philosophical Practice as an Emerging Profession and Paradigm in Contemporary Society · 2025 · DOIIt does so by offering a five-step model, which involves: situating the text in its historical context; acknowledging and addressing problematic content in the text; drawing out novel or underexplored themes and questions from the text; bringing the text into dialogue with diverse and contemporary philosophical approaches and issues (e.
Diversifying . . . Aristotle? Engaging Diverse Students with New Approaches to the Nicomachean Ethics · 2021 · DOIBecause the compassion element in CCI is understudied in teacher education, yet crucial to the success of the framework as a whole, in this article, I apply the tenets of relational–cultural theory (RCT) to enhance existing understandings of this component.
Critically Compassionate Intellectualism in Teacher Education: The Contributions of Relational–Cultural Theory · 2018 · DOIIn the final section we supplement our conclusion that universities should promote academic citizenship and aim to foster students’ ability to live a good life with a sobering note and urgent call: successful pursuit of these aims is only possible in an ethical environment and ethos that are currently lacking in universities.
ETHICS EDUCATION AT THE UNIVERSITY: FROM TEACHING AN ETHICS MODULE TO EDUCATION FOR THE GOOD LIFE · 2017 · DOISuch expressions have not been characterized and discussed in the mainstream educational leadership literature; however, they have been documented for centuries across philosophies and religions, including the Mahayana Buddhist teachings of the six virtues of the Bodhisattva, the awakened spiritual leader.
The paper identifies a gap in understanding the meaning of art and its relationship to teaching. The author notes that the connection between art and teaching is often sloganized, but the meaning of art is often left unexplained.
The paper identifies a gap in the way special education approaches the needs of individuals with special needs - The paper argues that the current emphasis on empathy and compassion is misguided
The paper identifies the challenge of dealing with complex and novel problem situations in the teaching profession. The author highlights the need to balance the teaching of formal ethical codes with the development of critical thinking and ethical decision-making skills.
The paper identifies a gap in the current approach to teaching professional ethics, which may leave prospective teachers ill-equipped to deal with complex situations. The author argues that a comprehensive approach is necessary to address this gap.
The paper identifies a gap in the literature regarding the conceptual basis for ethics in teacher education. The paper argues that alternative approaches to ethics teaching have limitations.
The paper identifies a gap in the understanding of hope in radical education. It argues that the concept of hope is often overlooked in favor of cynicism.
Solidarity, Struggle, and the Discourse of Hope: Theory, Practice, and Experience in Radical Education, Part II · 1986 · DOIThe book is designed and appropriate only for gifted children. There is no bibliography, so students might have a starting point for further exploration.
G/C/T Review: Teaching Philosophy to Gifted Students: A Secondary Level Course of Study for Teachers and Administraton · 1986 · DOIThe paper identifies a gap in the suitability of the materials for only gifted children. The paper questions whether the knowledge and skills stressed are necessary and appropriate for all children.
G/C/T Review: Teaching Philosophy to Gifted Students: A Secondary Level Course of Study for Teachers and Administraton · 1986 · DOIThe paper identifies a gap in the understanding of the relationship between pluralism and tolerance. The author notes a lack of exploration of the concept of tolerance in the context of moral education.
Most-cited papers in Critical and Liberation Pedagogy
- The caring relation in teaching · Oxford Review of Education · 2012 · 581 citations
- An Ethic of Caring and Its Implications for Instructional Arrangements · American Journal of Education · 1988 · 424 citations
- Chapter 1 Developing Socially Just Subject-Matter Instruction: A Review of the Literature on Disciplinary Literacy Teaching · Review of Research in Education · 2007 · 324 citations
- The relationship of perceived teacher caring with student learning and teacher evaluation · Communication Education · 1997 · 291 citations
- ‘Pedagogy of discomfort’ and its ethical implications: the tensions of ethical violence in social justice education · Ethics and Education · 2015 · 287 citations
- Building an Ethical School: A Theory for Practice in Educational Leadership · Educational Administration Quarterly · 1991 · 248 citations
- More Than Words? Delving Into the Substantive Meaning(s) of “Social Justice” in Education · Review of Educational Research · 2006 · 228 citations
- Theory, Practice, and the Education of Professionals · The Elementary School Journal · 1998 · 224 citations
- Education, Accountability, and the Ethical Demand: Can the Democratic Potential of Accountability Be Regained? · Educational Theory · 2004 · 218 citations
- Fidelity in Teaching, Teacher Education, and Research for Teaching · Harvard Educational Review · 1986 · 206 citations
Most recent work
- A Luta Continua! Education and the long black freedom struggle · Ethnic and Racial Studies · 2026
- When I say … liberation pedagogy · Medical Education · 2026
- Relational pedagogy and educator wellbeing: navigating care, identity, and institutional conditions in higher education · Higher Education Research & Development · 2026
- The demise of critical agency in a post-conflict teaching environment · ELT Journal · 2026
- THE POWER OF CARING: NEL NODDINGS’ CONTRIBUTIONS TO PHILOSOPHY AND EDUCATION · The Social Science Review A Multidisciplinary Journal · 2026
- Philosophy, Praxis, and Reasonable Hope: A Conversation with John P. Portelli · Journal of Applied Philosophy of Education · 2026
- Educative Leadership as a Moral Craft · New Zealand Journal of Educational Studies · 2026
- “Teach All Ways, For All Ways Are Mine” · Communal Societies · 2026
- Literacy as Philosophy: A Review of Teaching from an Ethical Center · Education and Culture · 2026
- Teacher-Philosophers: Community, Care, and the Question of Loneliness · Education and Culture · 2026
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