Background and purpose:

Physiotherapy education and most of higher education in South Africa adopted Western models of academic organisation which largely excluded and decimated the knowledge of colonised people. As curricula are being reformed and transformed, the question of decolonisation cannot be left out of the equation. Whether the physiotherapy education needs to be decolonised or not, and how this should be done; is the main purpose of this opinion paper.

Objectives:

The aim is to highlight importance of decolonisation as a strategy for transforming physiotherapy education curricula in South Africa in order to be relevant to context, and take cognisance of indigenous knowledge.

Methodology:

In formulating this opinion paper, the authors drew from their own educational experiences, events in the South African Higher education landscape between 2015 and 2017, and national and international literature on decolonisation. Critical questions are asked as the authors take a trip back into the past and reflect on the professional trajectory of physiotherapy and the curriculum.

Conclusion:

A paper on decolonising the curriculum is very relevant today, in the context of the higher education landscape in South Africa We put it to that there is an urgent need for the physiotherapy to heed the call for transformative professional education, in terms of the relevance of the curriculum. We are or the opinion that it is time for the physiotherapy education to seriously consider decolonisation as an integral part of transformation. Opportunities exist in the area of Indigenous knowledge system, and this untapped area must be maximised for contextually relevant transformation.

Take-home message:

The paper propose that physiotherapy educators must take a deeper look into the curriculum to determine relevance of content and delivery modes in the context of the current technological era and African indigenous knowledge systems. The paper suggests a critical search for strategic education to develop future practitioners relevant for sustainable development on the continent.

Keywords

Decolonization, physiotherapy, curriculum