Dr F. Burgers (Floris)

As an educational anthropologist, I am interested in the relationship between schools and society. I explore questions related to the ways in which schooling shapes and changes society and, the other way around, how social contexts influence schools. My academic work consists of two main projects: my PhD research on schooling and social change in Uganda and my current project on equality of opportunity in Dutch formal education.

My PhD thesis is based on 2 years of ethnographic fieldwork in a small village in Sironko, a rural district in Uganda. In many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, access to schools has improved dramatically since the early 21st century. Schooling used to be a privilege for a few wealthy Ugandans, but today almost all young adults have spent at least a few years in school. This trend of better access to education instigates various social changes: from new marriage dynamics, to changing intergenerational relationships, to an increase in the popularity of football. My thesis describe these changes, and explores their relation to schooling. The thesis will be published in the summer of 2023.

My current project 'Koersen op Kansengelijkheid’ (aiming for equality of opportunity) is a collaboration between researchers from the Radboud University and the University of Amsterdam. We investigate the ways in which different actor groups in Dutch formal education – parents, teachers, school leaders, school boards and policymakers – think about equality of opportunity: what do they mean by equality of opportunity? How do they see their own role when it comes to promoting equality of opportunity? And do they feel that they can actually take on the responsibilities they would like to take on? We are also developing, and investigating the effectiveness of, a serious policy game that should help instigate a collective action network for more equality of opportunity in formal education at the municipal level of governance.