TY - JOUR

T1 - How dignity matters for life and lifelong learning

T2 - insights from participatory story-telling by university students in South Africa

AU - Walker, Melanie

AU - Martinez-Vargas, Carmen

PY - 2025/1/2

Y1 - 2025/1/2

N2 - The claim made is that dignity matters in both legal and recognitional aspects for flourishing and lifelong learning opportunities for young adults. Dignity is understood here as a foundational capability and functioning to be and to do in ways which matter to a person, requiring the material and non-material conditions which enable and secure equal dignity for each person. The claim is first explored drawing on both the capability approach and conceptualisations of dignity, especially the inflorescent form. Then, to empirically animate the claim, the article draws on a participatory story-telling project undertaken in a South African university in 2020 with graduate students, in which they were co-creators of knowledge. Participants were supported pedagogically in producing their own individual and collective digital stories, focusing on their lived experiences of social justice and specifically of human dignity. The project shows that dignity is an especially important capability for young people’s present and future wellbeing and their aspirations. Dignity is formed in and sustained relationally in collective spaces. Further, dignity enables repair of the injustices of the colonial and apartheid past. If dignity is not fostered in and through education in adult and higher education spaces, education will always fall short of social justice aspirations and lifelong learning conditions.

AB - The claim made is that dignity matters in both legal and recognitional aspects for flourishing and lifelong learning opportunities for young adults. Dignity is understood here as a foundational capability and functioning to be and to do in ways which matter to a person, requiring the material and non-material conditions which enable and secure equal dignity for each person. The claim is first explored drawing on both the capability approach and conceptualisations of dignity, especially the inflorescent form. Then, to empirically animate the claim, the article draws on a participatory story-telling project undertaken in a South African university in 2020 with graduate students, in which they were co-creators of knowledge. Participants were supported pedagogically in producing their own individual and collective digital stories, focusing on their lived experiences of social justice and specifically of human dignity. The project shows that dignity is an especially important capability for young people’s present and future wellbeing and their aspirations. Dignity is formed in and sustained relationally in collective spaces. Further, dignity enables repair of the injustices of the colonial and apartheid past. If dignity is not fostered in and through education in adult and higher education spaces, education will always fall short of social justice aspirations and lifelong learning conditions.

KW - Dignity, quality education

KW - capabilities

KW - participatory story-telling

U2 - 10.1080/02601370.2024.2405543

DO - 10.1080/02601370.2024.2405543

M3 - Journal article

VL - 44

SP - 57

EP - 72

JO - International Journal of Lifelong Education

JF - International Journal of Lifelong Education

SN - 0260-1370

IS - 1

ER -