In Pursuit of Respectful Teaching and Intellectually-Dynamic Social Fields

Abstract

In contrast to educational policies in the U.S., which assume an individualistic path of success and promote the assimilation of students, this essay argues for pedagogies where teachers focus upon facilitating the development of strong relationships en route to creating exciting educational environments and fertile contexts for social justice movements. Powerful teachers model the process whereby a commitment to appreciating the perspectives of individual students is combined with the orchestration of a dynamic intersubjective context, because such contexts call out the strongest performances of individuals. Viewing educational events in terms of the patterns and rhythms that transpire in a particular social fields allows educators ways to create powerful educational environments even in neocolonial contexts that pit students and teachers against one another. Viewing educational events as social fields also allows us to understand how the common classroom, which focuses each student on the material in front of them, creates impotent individuals who dissociate themselves from others.Keywords Relational educational philosophy Á Student-centered pedagogy Á Neocolonial educational contexts As an educational philosopher situated in the United States, I have sought to develop a counter-hegemonic collectivist pedagogical orientation devoted to creating exciting educational environments and fertile contexts for social justice movements. Seeking healthy collectivities in the U.S. is complicated by the nation's cut-throat economy combined with its colonial history-both of which pit individuals and groups against one another. A pervasive culture of competition renders individuals isolated and impotent, and the nation's colonial history has left us with deep relational wounds, separating people who have endured forms of colonial attack-such as American Indians, African Americans, and Latinas/os-from European descendant peoples. The fault lines of class and race predict

Trust, Play, and Intersubjectivity

“…37 Or, as Margonis puts it: "the game plays the players." 38 This idea, central to his characterization of educational "social fields," also resonates with an important aspect of Lugones's discussion of "worlds." It is important to recall that whether or not Lugones is playful in a world is not a matter of will: certain worlds already construct her as unplayful.…”

“…Responsiveness is vital for encouraging every student in a classroom, but it is especially important for opening the academy to the distinctive perspectives of students from groups that have "endured forms of colonial attack." 32 Like Margonis, I am deeply committed to such a project, and I also find Freire's groundbreaking work offers a needed balance to the postmodern understanding that our subjectivity arises in the event of relating to the Other. While recognizing that Freire's modernist language leads to a deficit-laden understanding of the "oppressed" student, Margonis also acknowledges that Freire is grappling with something profoundly real … for there are many cases in which students will not voice their own perspectives, when [their] words … reflect the power dynamics of their intersubjective context: we've all seen contexts in which students … choose silence instead of speaking out.…”

Decolonization and qualitative epistemology: Toward reconciliation in the academy

“…In addition to alternative, Indigenous teaching resources outlined in APC, Indigenous reflexivity can be taught across generations by engaging students in the production of knowledge/writing text through exposure to histories of marginalized peoples (Hsiung, 2016), fostering dialogue on issues of social justice and discrimination pertinent to Indigenous peoples (Lincoln, 1998), having students conduct research projects on marginalized Indigenous experiences (Kaomea, 2016), or including workshops and discussions that challenge the credibility of and philosophies embodied in prevailing themes in QRP texts (Hood, 2006). Richardson (2012) theorizes that reflexivity is a powerful antidote for coloniality in education, such as to embody the "sentiment of existence" by placing students into contact with the "experiential and existential situation of particular individuals," most notably "the everyday experiences of racism, patriarchy, and classism… particularly minoritized and racialized [peoples]" (p.543; see also Margonis, 2011). Reflexivity is salient for educators as well, whose "broader socio-cultural milieu" may well perpetuate "the continuing regulating force of coloniality in contemporary educational relationships which dehumanize African American and other minoritized [students]" (Richardson, 2012: 540;Ruwhiu, 2019;Quijano, 2000).…”

Choosing to Love

“…I wonder whether learning to love students better would ultimately help us move toward the goal of educational equity, but my work is complicated by the fact that I very often serve students who have been wounded by their journeys through the educational system (Margonis, 2011). I must often relate to students across differences of race, class, gender, sexuality and ability, and trust is hard to develop.…”