Critical-Collaborative Language Education Through English: An Experience With Youth and Adult Education Students

Abstract

This study takes a cue from the biography of Maya Angelou and aims to intertwine her life experiences to a critical-collaborative language education through English approach. To reach our goal, a group of four Youth and Adult Education (YAE) students departed from Instituto Federal de Goiás (IFG) and metaphorically went to the U.S.A. through the story of the black woman aforementioned. Our reflections during this adventure were drawn on the works of many scholars, such as Almeida (2017); Figueiredo (2008, 2018); Figueiredo & Lago (2018); Lago & Cintra (2016); Magalhães (2014); Morrison (1975); Pessoa (2014); Rosa & Flores (2017); Scarcella & Oxford (1992), among others. We find it paramount to mention that our problematizations also stemmed from our very own experiences with the study participants as well as our personal narratives and struggles against racism, sexism, poverty and other types of prejudice in our classes. Our empirical material was generated through an open-ended questionnaire, the letters the students wrote to themselves in class, and the discussions carried out in a yarning circle about an experience the study participants had with students from three first-year high school integrated courses – Foreign Trade, Construction and Chemistry. We conclude that this investigation allowed us and the study participants to reflect upon and rethink our opinions about our bodies, complexion, and the very process of language education through English.