Udah, Hyacinth, Suluma, Wili, and Jordan, Lucy (2026) Academic freedom as an ethical imperative: pedagogies for teaching across difference in social work education. Social Work Education. (In Press)

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Abstract

Social work education requires more than technical competence. It demands ethical judgment, critical reasoning, and the capacity to engage constructively with contested social issues. This article argues that academic freedom is not an abstract principle but an ethical and pedagogical imperative for social work education as a regulated, practice-based profession. In the context of neoliberal governance, accreditation pressures, and ideological polarization, academic freedom enables social work educators to design learning environments where diverse intellectual traditions including critical, decolonial, Indigenous, liberal, conservative, and faith-based perspectives can be used rigorously and ethically for preparing socially responsive practitioners. Drawing on social work pedagogy literature, this article moves beyond theory to outline teaching strategies and assessment tools that enable educators to teach contested content ethically without coercion or self-censorship while meeting accreditation and accountability requirements. By offering a practice-oriented model for teaching across difference, this article demonstrates how academic freedom strengthens professional identity formation, critical thinking, and ethical competence in social work education.

Item ID:	90957
Item Type:	Article (Research - C1)
ISSN:	1470-1227
Keywords:	Academic freedom,critical thinking,ethics and pedagogical pluralism,professional identity,social work education
Copyright Information:	© 2026 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent.
Date Deposited:	11 Mar 2026 00:28
FoR Codes:	39 EDUCATION > 3903 Education systems > 390303 Higher education @ 100%
SEO Codes:	16 EDUCATION AND TRAINING > 1699 Other education and training > 169999 Other education and training not elsewhere classified @ 100%
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