Designing Counter-Narratives

Abstract

The growing field of online education has developed inside a cultural context rooted in racism, classism, sexism, and other forms of inherent bias. Likewise, the design and development of online curriculum is not excluded from the biases that have historically plagued face-to-face curriculum. In this article, the authors call online teachers into action by encouraging them to adopt an engaged instructional design praxis that builds learning environments inclusive of racial, ethnic, and gender diversity. Through the use of culturally responsive teaching, online teachers can create spaces of counter narrative that address curricular blindnesses and promote social justice.

Voices in the Desert

“…Spring (2004) talks about this long-standing historical bias reaching back to European settlers who, when seeing Native Americans, "rationalized the enslavement of other humans by classifying them as an inferior racial and cultural other" (p. 57). The impact of this form of othering in educational settings is visible in everything from gaps in educational achievement (Howard, 2015), to exclusionary and oppressive curriculum (Solorzano, Ceja, & Yosso, 2000;Woodley, Mucundanyi, & Lockard, 2017) and even in exclusionary practices in hiring of faculty (Arnold, Crawford, & Khalifa, 2016).…”

Pushing back against the mammy

“…Researchers have attempted to transfer a variety of these ideologies into online spaces to enrich knowledge production, critique, and creation. Often this research suggests faculty employ culturally responsive (Gay, 2018) and/or sustaining pedagogical practices (Parris, 2012) characterized by ongoing critical reflection, multiple perspectives, and deep interrogation of the inherent value of knowledge through experience (Woodley et al, 2017;Gruber, 2015;Meyers, 2008). One way researchers suggest to foster these aims is through the implementation of an authentic online presence (Young & Bruce, 2001).…”