This article presents resources and strategies for the infusion of diversity and social justice themes into an undergraduate death and dying course. The intent is not to replace or dismiss existing thanatological insights and debates, but rather to widen the cultural perspective to bring these insights and debates into conversation with multiple ways of perceiving and understanding. The article covers definitions, goals and rationales, challenges in identifying and developing appropriate resources, and overall course design. It also explores readings, audiovisual materials, class activities, and pedagogical approaches to foster: student engagement with diverse world-views and experiences; understanding of "cultural competence" in various fields; awareness of the impact of race, class, gender, etc., on access to resources and care; commitment to activism for social justice; and exposure to many forms of resilience, meaning-making, and creative healing.
In her preface, Mary Margaret Kerr speaks about how this text is her way of digesting "thousands of resources" (p. vi) about crisis into an easily-accessible format that would be a resource for all school personnel, no matter what their roles. Surprisingly, given such an ambitious goal, this small-but-mighty text (less than 200 pages, including index and references) successfully delivers on-point information and resources to Kerr's target audience in an easy-to-read format that is accessible to school personnel as well as academicians interested in providing a resource for school personnel-in-training. Although school personnel will not find every answer to every question they might have in this book, this text provides a firm foundation for a range of topics, and Kerr has concisely pulled together the best resources available for school crisis and interwoven guidelines for crisis planning with real examples, vignettes, and thought-provoking questions that lend urgency and realism to topics that school personnel, students, and communities may neglect or fail to consider.Kerr has a laundry list of qualifications to write a book on school-based crisis prevention and intervention. This expertise and experience is evident through her knowledge of the topics she describes, and although her voice conveys the gravity of the topic, she allows the case studies, vignettes, and personal narratives present in each chapter to speak, which makes for a much more powerful experience for the reader.This book is divided into four sections, roughly paralleling the phases described by the U.S. Department of Education publication Practical information on crisis planning: A guide for schools and communities (2007). These four phases-Mitigation/prevention, Preparedness, Response, and Recovery-provide a framework for thinking through all phases of crisis, including how to anticipate and
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