Teacher Education for Social Justice: What's Pupil Learning Got to Do With It?

Abstract

There

Still Wandering: The Exclusion of Jews From Issues of Social Justice and Multicultural Thought

“…There are many ways to accomplish this task: through critical self-reflection (Hackman, 2005;Rios, Trent, & Castañeda, 2003), reflexive analysis and deconstruction of one's own personal/historical contexts (Haynes Writer & Chávez Chávez, 2001), personal inventories of one's own social identities (Harro, 2000), community analysis projects (Haynes Writer & Baptiste, 2009), critical discussions about diversity and social justice issues (Hackman, 2005), and perspective-taking exercises as the "Other" (Rios, Trent, & Castañeda, 2003). According to Cochran-Smith, Gleeson, and Mitchell (2010), Teacher education for social justice encompasses many pupil learning goals, including thinking critically, connecting knowledge to real-world problems and situations, challenging received knowledge, understanding multiple perspectives, debating diverse viewpoints, unpacking underlying assumptions, and engaging productively in cross-cultural discussion. (p. 37) In other words, there are many effective teaching techniques and learning strategies to help students become aware of their own "blind spots," so to speak.…”

Cultivating Culturally Fluent Leaders for the Future of Kinesiology

“…In pedagogy, for example, teachers will not be required to just teach to the standards, but they will be responsible for designing curriculum and making instructional decisions that support all of their students (Kohl, 2006;Liebtag, 2013). They will need to know how to encourage students to think critically, connect knowledge to real-world problems, engage in cross-cultural discussions, and debate diverse viewpoints, all in addition to developing basic skills (Cochran-Smith, Gleeson, & Mitchell, 2010). In other words, they will need to be leaders.…”

Getting “Up to Code”: Preparing for and Confronting Challenges when Teaching for Social Justice in Standards-Based Classrooms

“…However, though numerous researchers have explored tensions within and across the multiple, and sometimes competing, interpretations of social justice in education (e.g., Cochran-Smith et al, 2009;North, 2006North, , 2008Shakman et al, 2007), there has been limited examination of how teachers translate their theoretical frameworks into curricular and pedagogical practice, especially in the current climate of accountability mandates. This issue is especially salient for teacher educators, who cite growing concern about the fragmentation between preservice teacher preparation and teaching practice (Zeichner, 2010b(Zeichner, , 2011 and limited research regarding the relationship between social justice oriented teacher preparation and P-12 pupil outcomes (Cochran-Smith et al, 2010;Poplin & Rivera, 2005). Moreover, though some researchers argue that teaching for social justice can function as a countermovement to 90 ALISON G. DOVER neoliberal education policy (Duncan-Andrade & Morrell, 2008;Ritchie, 2011), other research suggests that the accountability context itself limits or negates the impact of teachers' efforts (Agarwal, 2011;Agarwal et al, 2010;Gorski, 2010;Shakman et al, 2007;Picowar, 2011b).…”

“…Teaching for social justice is an increasingly popular ideological, curricular, and pedagogical approach to promoting equity and justice in P-12 classrooms (e.g., Agarwal, Epstein, Oppenheim, Oyler, & Sonu, 2010;Bender-Slack, 2010;Esposito & Swain, 2009;Kelly & Brandes, 2008;Shakman et al, 2007), and additional research explores the application of social justice frameworks in teacher education (e.g., Cochran-Smith, Gleeson, & Mitchell, 2010;Gorski, 2010;Grant & Agosoto, 2008). However, though numerous researchers have explored tensions within and across the multiple, and sometimes competing, interpretations of social justice in education (e.g., Cochran-Smith et al, 2009;North, 2006North, , 2008Shakman et al, 2007), there has been limited examination of how teachers translate their theoretical frameworks into curricular and pedagogical practice, especially in the current climate of accountability mandates.…”