The decolonial paradigm and the problem of identity thinking: An analysis from the perspective of comparative education

This article analyzes the problem that identity thinking implies for the pedagogy approach of the decolonial option. Firstly, an approach is made to the theoretical assumptions that articulate the decolonial paradigm, paying special attention to posthumanist philosophy, the ontological turn, and the ecological crisis in the context of the Anthropocene. Subsequently, the decolonial approach is situated in the path it presents in the specific field of comparative education. The focus is on three problems of identity thinking: a) the assumption of privileged positions; b) the reinforcement of the colonial humanist framework; b) the essentialist conception of identity as the beginning and end of thought. To conceptualize these problems from a critical perspective, central notions of Theodor Adorno's work are taken as reference. His idea of non-identitarian thinking is of great relevance to consider that the promotion of identity is more linked to adaptation processes than to resistance dynamics.