Findings
it is imperative that
students have access
to mirrors and windows
in their curricula
Over the course of the semester, I collected a rich set of data. I am sure that as I reflect on this experience throughout the years and continue to investigate the most effective ways to develop critical literacy in my classroom, I will uncover more lessons.
Many students (and people) who do not experience tangible marginalization are not as critical as students who have disadvantages that accompany their identities. Their privilege provides a safety net from many of the injustices that become normalized in the day to day life of people with identities that are marginalized. Privilege can be viewed as layers of protection from injustice. Part of privilege is that you do not have to be critical or have a nuanced understanding of how your identities fit. Many of my students who had to consider marginalization for the first time, were uncomfortable, some felt guilty and some were in denial. If schools do not provide a space for students to have these discussions, then they will normalize silence and consequently violence.
The framework that I applied created a healthy learning environment for my students. Many students were comfortable sharing and being vulnerable in the classroom space. As a class, we processed the election together. A female white student cried as she mourned Clinton’s loss while a white female Trump supporter cried because she felt misunderstood. A Mohawk student was able to research her history and bring her grandmother’s stories to class. It’s something that many people take for granted the eurocentric curriculum honors white lives. We must find a way to honor all lives, all histories. When we provide a space where children can honor their heritage, they will be more comfortable with who they are. Nakkula argues that adolescents co-create their identity and when it comes to racial identity we must do our parts to see and hear multiple histories the way we want to see and hear our students.
I recognize that my identity and presence in these spaces is viewed as “radical”. To be black, a child of West African immigrant parents, a woman, a muslim, a hijabi, outspoken, mindful and passionate. For some of my colleagues and students, my presence is radical enough, but this journey to explore nuance with my students should not be seen as radical, and I hope to interrupt the system that presents this attempt as such. My pedagogy makes many people uncomfortable. When I ask questions and challenge cultures, I make people uncomfortable. When people are uncomfortable with you, they try to avoid you and/or overlook you. When this becomes normalized, people whose identities have been marginalized become apologetic and start to doubt themselves because they made people feel uncomfortable. I’ve witnessed it with my students, and I’ve faced this dilemma many times in my work space.
This work is urgent work. This work is political. The political climate is turbulent. Minds must be liberated and our students must learn to inquire. Critical literacy is just that: questioning. Deconstructing what may appear to be obvious. My fascination with language fuels my critical stance. I am attempting to develop critical literacy with my students, I encourage them to reflect on the relationship between language and power.
It is difficult to measure the level of critical literacy that my students have or to know the impact this course had on my students. Educators plant seeds and my goal was to give my students the tools to make better decisions and look at their world differently.
Many students (and people) who do not experience tangible marginalization are not as critical as students who have disadvantages that accompany their identities. Their privilege provides a safety net from many of the injustices that become normalized in the day to day life of people with identities that are marginalized. Privilege can be viewed as layers of protection from injustice. Part of privilege is that you do not have to be critical or have a nuanced understanding of how your identities fit. Many of my students who had to consider marginalization for the first time, were uncomfortable, some felt guilty and some were in denial. If schools do not provide a space for students to have these discussions, then they will normalize silence and consequently violence.
The framework that I applied created a healthy learning environment for my students. Many students were comfortable sharing and being vulnerable in the classroom space. As a class, we processed the election together. A female white student cried as she mourned Clinton’s loss while a white female Trump supporter cried because she felt misunderstood. A Mohawk student was able to research her history and bring her grandmother’s stories to class. It’s something that many people take for granted the eurocentric curriculum honors white lives. We must find a way to honor all lives, all histories. When we provide a space where children can honor their heritage, they will be more comfortable with who they are. Nakkula argues that adolescents co-create their identity and when it comes to racial identity we must do our parts to see and hear multiple histories the way we want to see and hear our students.
I recognize that my identity and presence in these spaces is viewed as “radical”. To be black, a child of West African immigrant parents, a woman, a muslim, a hijabi, outspoken, mindful and passionate. For some of my colleagues and students, my presence is radical enough, but this journey to explore nuance with my students should not be seen as radical, and I hope to interrupt the system that presents this attempt as such. My pedagogy makes many people uncomfortable. When I ask questions and challenge cultures, I make people uncomfortable. When people are uncomfortable with you, they try to avoid you and/or overlook you. When this becomes normalized, people whose identities have been marginalized become apologetic and start to doubt themselves because they made people feel uncomfortable. I’ve witnessed it with my students, and I’ve faced this dilemma many times in my work space.
This work is urgent work. This work is political. The political climate is turbulent. Minds must be liberated and our students must learn to inquire. Critical literacy is just that: questioning. Deconstructing what may appear to be obvious. My fascination with language fuels my critical stance. I am attempting to develop critical literacy with my students, I encourage them to reflect on the relationship between language and power.
It is difficult to measure the level of critical literacy that my students have or to know the impact this course had on my students. Educators plant seeds and my goal was to give my students the tools to make better decisions and look at their world differently.