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DEI Educator Guide

Pedagogical Frameworks

"[Baldwin's] "A Talk to Teachers” showed me that a teacher’s work should reject the false pretense of being apolitical, and, instead, confront the problems that shape our students’ lives..." - Clint Smith, "James Baldwin’s Lesson for Teachers in a Time of Turmoil"

We recognize the need to approach pedagogy from the lens of anti-racism for all courses, from marketing to statistics to communication.

In this sense, all pedagogy potentially contributes to oppression unless it is explicitly anti-racist. 

This page offers a jumping off point to understanding inclusive pedagogies.

The resources below will help you think about how to frame your pedagogy within various inclusive, anti-racist, and social justice philosophies. 

Understanding the Theories and Frameworks

Antiracist Teaching: Understanding Theories and Frameworks

Why Anti-racist Pedagogy? 

"I argue that faculty need to be aware of their social position, but more importantly, to begin and continue critical self-reflection in order to effectively implement anti-racist pedagogy, which has three components:

(1) incorporating the topics of race and inequality into course content, (2) teaching from an anti-racist pedagogical approach, and (3) anti-racist organizing within the campus and linking our efforts to the surrounding community.

In other words, anti-racist pedagogy is an organizing effort for institutional and social change that is much broader than teaching in the classroom." Kyoko Kishimoto

Want to learn more about Anti-Racist Pedagogy? 

Read the article Anti-racist pedagogy: from faculty's self-reflection to organizing within and beyond the classroom by Kyoko Kishimoto.

Use the Anti-Racist Educator Self-Examination Questionnaire and Rubric and the Anti-Racist Student Self-Examination Questionnaire.

Explore Dr. Nicole A. Cooke's Anti-Racism Resources for All Ages.

 

Explore specific strategies to overcome common barriers:

Read the article "Barriers and Strategies by White Faculty Who Incorporate Anti-Racist Pedagogy" by Akamine et al., 2019. 

Explore this course Effective teaching Is Anti-Racist teaching at Brown University, Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning (2022). 

 

For a deep dive into anti-racist philosophy:

Read the essays in New Framings on Anti-Racism and Resistance. Volume 1, Anti-Racism and Transgressive Pedagogiesedited by Ayan Abdulle and Anne Nelun Obeyesekere.

Explore the intersection of anti-capitalism and anti-racism and the impact of racial identity on education and schools in the US with A Pedagogy of Anti-Capitalism and Anti-Racism by Zachary Casey.

What is Critical Pedagogy and Inclusive Teaching or Pedagogy? 

"Critical pedagogy provides a theoretical framework to examine issues of power in the classroom, and to surface and challenge the biases and oppressive structures that can undermine learning and alienate students.

Inclusive teaching offers strategies for translating that theoretical knowledge into action" (Sanders & Wong).  

 

Learn about CIP (Critical and Inclusive Pedagogies):

Read or choose a chapter from Race, Equity, and The Learning Environment: The Global Relevance of Critical and Inclusive Pedagogies in Higher Education, edited by Haynes, et. al.

Explore Inclusive Pedagogy for Virtual Teaching which focuses on pedagogical practices in distance learning. 

Interested in learning about Critical Race Theory?

Listen to "The State of Critical Race Theory in Education," an episode of HarvardEdcast, to learn about Critical Race Theory, why it is so controversial, and how and where it is truly being taught [transcript of podcast is provided in this link].

Take this course from Professor Keene, Assistant Professor of American Studies and Ethnic Studies at Brown University: Introduction to Critical Race Theory. The link provides course syllabus, discussion questions, background readings.

What is Culturally Responsive/Reflective Teaching (CRT)?

Culturally responsive instruction is about helping students become independent learners by (1)focusing on improving the learning capacity of students who have been marginalized educationally because of historical inequities in our school systems. (2)Center around both the affective and cognitive aspects of teaching and learning and (3)build cognitive capacity and academic mindset by pushing back on dominant narratives about people of color. (Adapted from Amielle Major, "How to Develop Culturally Responsive Teaching for Distance Learning.")

 

Zarretta Hammond writes that in addition to and beyond supporting students to become independent learners, culturally responsive teaching "... means that you’re also focused on building brainpower by helping students leverage and grow their existing funds of knowledge."

 

Want to learn more about Culturally Responsive/Reflective Teaching (CRT)?

Read "How to Develop Culturally Responsive Teaching for Distance Learning" by Amielle Major to learn the difference between culturally responsive education, social justice education, and multicultural education and how to apply the former in distance learning classrooms

Explore the diverse chapters in Culturally Responsive Pedagogy: Promising Practices for African American Male Students by Denisha Murff.

Deep Dive into CSRP in action, obstacles faced by teachers at their institutions, and the impact of CSRP on indigenous and non-indigenous marginalized students, explore Culturally Sustaining and Revitalizing Pedagogies: Language, Culture, and Power, edited by Cathy Coulter and Margarita Jimenez-Silva.

Open Pedagogy Defined...

"Open pedagogy, variously defined, comprises a number of core tenets: agency of students in their own learning, creative or innovative ways of learning, and participatory technological tools that enable community learner-generated outcomes." Read the rest of this definition and learn more about Open Pedagogy in the Open Pedagogy Notebook.

 

Want to know more about Open Pedagogy (Open Education Practices or OEP)?

Read Framing Open Educational Practices from a Social Justice Perspective by Maha Bali, et al. 

Explore examples of open pedagogy in practice in UTA's Introduction to Open Pedagogy guide.

What is Social Justice Education (SJE)?

"Social justice education (SJE) is a critical pedagogy that combines intersectionality and human rights perspectives..."

Explore the various chapters in Acceptance, Understanding, and the Moral Imperative of Promoting Social Justice Education in the Schoolhouse, edited by Young, et al.

Read about SJE from experienced practitioners and educator and about the history of SJE in the classroom in Black Women and Social Justice Education: Legacies and Lessons, Evans, et al.