Paper short abstract:

Social anthropology graduates often practice in other fields, questioning its relevance and suitability for addressing societal problems. Restructuring teaching methods can motivate students, provide quality jobs, and address persistent community issues.

Paper long abstract:

This abstract explores the persistent challenge of aligning theoretical knowledge with practical applications in the field of social anthropology. Originating in the 1920s, social anthropology has been instrumental in imparting theoretical knowledge to students, yet there is a significant disparity between academic knowledge and practical application.

This presentation focuses on the issue of integrating social anthropology education into practical scenarios to bolster its applicability for students entering the job market. Two questions guide our inquiry: Firstly, we draw attention to how social anthropology can be restructured to attract students by establishing a direct link between academic pursuits and job opportunities. Secondly, we explore avenues for integrating social anthropology with ongoing societal interventions in areas such as livelihoods, education, health, and protection? Our aim is to discuss strategies that align academic knowledge with practical applications, equipping students with job creation and opportunity skills.

Paper short abstract:

How do we make Anthropology more approachable for future students? – Conducting qualitative interviews and seeking solutions

Paper long abstract:

As members of the student council for social and cultural anthropology at the University of Münster, our task and goal are to represent the students’ interests and requests. However, the engagement in class and the satisfaction with our curriculum and methods of teaching appear to be declining, creating organizational issues for our lecturers and complicating communal studying, which has been an ongoing problem for several semesters. Our goal with this paper is to present qualitative data from first and second semester students about the general satisfaction with the model of our bachelor’s degree program. We intend to carry out interviews and aim to include our students’ perspectives for a more approachable degree, shedding light on both the arising challenges and inspiring aspects of studying anthropology at our university. Furthermore, we seek to point out ideas and concepts that could pose a solution to the aforementioned issues with engagement in classes and that could additionally ease the cooperation between students and the institute for Ethnology itself.

Paper short abstract:

Students don't just attend their teachers' lectures, but they also silently conduct participant observation. Yet, are teachers willing to accept and integrate this as part of an academic exercise in anthropology? What dilemmas emerge from the duality of being a teacher or student and anthropologist?

Paper long abstract:

Anthropologists are given an additional role to fulfill in educational contexts besides their own. Whether it is to be a teacher or a student, this implies a new adaptation to the tasks ahead. After having taught Social Sciences for two years I decided to go back and continue studying Anthropology. Quickly I saw difficulties in assuming my role as a student, and couldn't let go of my previous roles as a teacher or Anthropologist. As we went back to the basics of empirical research, I found myself being aware of the participant observation I conducted weekly throughout the lectures. This duality allowed me to both see from the veranda and walk the field of how anthropology was being taught to us. This participant observation was an opportunity to identify didactics used in the seminars and to address this in conversations with teachers. As a former teacher, I tried to exercise empathy toward the endeavor and understand the formative structure behind the modules and classes. As a student, I lived and performed the planned learning curricula and experienced the social, cultural, and political characteristics of the educational system and higher education institutions of Germany, in contrast to those of my country of origin, which I tried to reflect on using autoethnography. Last, I reflect on the methodology I conducted and the ethical aspects of conducting anthropological research on educational settings and institutions.

Paper short abstract:

MA students, spanning diverse backgrounds and programs, share their transformative approach to anthropology in a two-semester research group seminar. This paper reflects on challenges and successes, offers insights into applying non-normative relations and speculative futures in museum studies.

Paper long abstract:

This paper presents the collaborative experiences of MA students from diverse backgrounds, programs, and countries participating in a two-semester research group seminar led by anthropologist Isabel Bredenbröker. The seminar series, titled "Non-normative relations wanted: Testing queer methods at the Berlin Ethnological Museum" and "Speculative futures wanted: Investigating queer temporalities at the Berlin Ethnological Museum," aimed to unpack theoretical approaches from anthropology, queer studies, museum studies, literature criticism, and global history to challenge the normative underpinnings of the museum.

In the first semester, students engaged in theoretical reflections and practical applications, presenting their projects at a student conference and curating an exhibition at the Humboldt Forum. The focus was on understanding and co-creating queer relations around objects, emphasizing the development of a queer methodology for the analysis and creation of non-normative relations within the museum context.

The second seminar explored speculative futures through queer temporalities and collective writing. The resulting narratives, intended for publication in the anthropological journal "Ethnofoor," attempt alternative ways of thinking, narrating, and envisioning heritage and archives in the past, present, and future by expanding the toolbox of anthropology with the creative potential of fiction.

Our contribution to this conference aligns with the theme of reflexivity in anthropology. We share our experiences of integrating theoretical reflections with artistic and curatorial practices, emphasizing the collaborative nature of our approach. This paper addresses the transformative potential of non-traditional and interdisciplinary learning journey, offering insights into the challenges and successes of applying queer methodologies.