Reading Education in the Night Market

Abstract

This study aims to understand night markets as informal educational spaces through an analysis of the concept of deterritorialization from Deleuze and Guattari. As dynamic spaces, night markets are not only an arena for economic transactions, but also a space for cultural interaction, knowledge exchange, and the formation of community identity. This study uses a qualitative approach with participatory observation methods and in-depth interviews with visitors to night markets. The data obtained are then analyzed using a deterritorialization framework to describe how night markets go beyond the formal boundaries of education, creating a fluid and creative learning space. The results of the study show that night markets are an arena for deterritorialization of education, where local values and knowledge, negotiation skills, and cultural adaptation are distributed organically. Night markets show the blurring of the boundaries between economic space and educational space, making them an alternative learning locus that is not bound by formal institutions. In addition, the process of deterritorialization in night markets goes beyond traditional understandings of education by showing that knowledge and learning can thrive in marginal and temporary spaces. This study contributes to the discourse on informal education and marginal spaces, and opens up opportunities for further exploration of the role of non-formal spaces in building a learning society. The night market, as a site of deterritorialization, serves as a concrete example of how education can occur outside institutional control, offering an inclusive and flexible alternative for the dissemination of knowledge.