Social Issues? Hmmm... Okay.
Social Issues? Hmmm... Okay.
Most would say that taking on critical literacy to implement in their own classroom is kind of nerve wracking. It isn't that teaching it is nerve wracking, but more allowing the students to talk about it together and then talking with the students about what they talked about together. Many educators I've personally spoken to say they are worried that something may get said that offends someone else in the classroom, then they have to deal with the upset student and their parents. After reading "Taking on Critical Literacy: The Journey of Newcomers and Novices" it's pretty clear which teachers are more nervous teaching the critical literacy approach. It's the "newcomer" group that have not implemented the critical literacy approach yet.
THIS MEANS...
The critical literacy approach has four dimensions:
- Disrupting the commonplace: Seeing everyday through a different lens instead of the same one that it is always seen through
- Interrogating multiple viewpoints: Imagine standing in the shoes of other people to understand texts and experiences from another's point of view
- Focusing on sociopolitical issues: Not treating teaching as a neutral form of social practice, but giving attention to how sociopolitical systems, power relationships, and language are intertwined in teaching
- Taking action and promoting social justice: Often said to be the definition of critical literacy, but cannot inform action against oppression or promote social justic without understandings of the other three dimensions
You may be asking, "How do I as a teacher get students to stay interested in critical literacy?" Well, it isn't easy, but it is easier than the overthinking that many encounter.
These four dimensions are the ones that get you started when you've never implemented this approach before. These four dimensions can be summed up as...
BE AN ADVOCATE FOR ALL OF YOUR STUDENTS BY SPEAKING AND PROVIDING MATERIALS ON SEVERAL SOCIAL ISSUES AND PROMOTE SOCIAL JUSTICE WITHIN THOSE ISSUES.
"SO...….. You answered how to implement the four dimensions, but HOW DO I KEEP MY STUDENTS INTERESTED?"
Well, as the article said (and what OneRepublic is repeatedly asking for!), CONNECTIONS! It's all about connecting the content to the students in the classroom. If you know a student (or many students) is (are) going through a certain situation in their life, maybe choose a book on that and use it as your critical literacy approach for that week. This is also a good way to let the students know you are advocating for them and promoting justice for their situation! Students will also stay interested in the conversation by being able to empathize with those around them, which was mentioned in another article last week. Group reading and book clubs allow students to become empathetic human beings.
Here are some questions for thought:
- How will you implement social issues books into a classroom and encourage students to talk about them without holding back? What if they are worried about offending someone or getting yelled at because someone disagrees?
- How can you ensure that students are "seeing the everyday through new lenses" and not just comparing and contrasting themselves to the social issue being read about and discussed?
- What could our students learn if we start asking questions like, "whose voices are heard and not heard"? Why is it important?
Great post, and I totally agree with you when you bring up how talking about social justice issue can be nerve-wracking! I think that it can become awkward when/if a student says an off-hand comment that doesn't align with your opinion on the topic. However, I think that by knowing their opinions, it allows us as teachers to better gauge how to approach these topics with our individual students. I think that one of the biggest components of initiating critical literacy to your students is the second dimension, "interrogating multiple views." I think that parents and students get nervous when the phrase social justice is brought into the equation of schooling, because they believe that their students and students believe that they will be fed only one perspective. Which brings me to why I really enjoyed when you brought up how it is important to show multiple social justice issues and from many perspectives. This way you, as an educator, are able to give your students multiple opinions but allow them to come to their own conclusions. Your last question is crucial to ask your students to be able to tell if they truly understand the topic, because if they can answer this question effectively this means that they are thinking critically!
ReplyDeleteI 100% agree with you on using the "interrogating multiple views" as one of the most essential dimensions! I do think many times educators will teach more of their viewpoint. It isn't necessarily their fault, it is just human nature to teach others what you have learned to be most beneficial. With that said, I do think that it is something we all need to be mindful of and even question a student on something that they have the same stance on as we do. As educators it is our job to educate all the way around each subject and allow the students to choose what they believe based off of the facts that we teach! I loved hearing your thoughts on this, Aubrey! Thank you!
DeleteI agree, I have heard so many teachers that want to go with the flow and not take a chance implementing critical literacy within their classroom. Whether it may be because its more challenging or difficult or if it is scary going from something that could provoke talk that may offend someone. Teachers should take that leap and have those critical texts and talks with their students to expand their knowledge with the outside world. I agree with you that teachers should be providing equitable materials for each and every student so they do have a chance to grow and put their ideas into the world. As you said, connections to ones life and the curriculum are very important for the students to become social justice fighters! With your third question, I think if we ask them these hard hitting questions, it will open up their minds to society and realize not everyone is getting equal chances in the world today. Great blog, it really made me think!
ReplyDeleteThe answer you gave for that third question was exactly what I was thinking! We have to educate our students on the harsh reality that not all peoples' voices are heard. This is important because we can then hold discussions on things like, why one person's voice is more important to the other, why hearing everyone's voice is important, and what to do if you are ever stuck in a situation where your voice isn't being heard. As you said above, it really makes them kind of critique society and their views of equality! Thanks for the thoughts!
DeleteI enjoyed your blog along with your outlook, most teachers would rather be comfortable in a sense of not discussing or implementing critical literacy in their classroom for the sake of not making anyone mad. but the truth is not everyone is going to agree with what is said or what you do in your classroom. it is our job as future educators to make sure that we are providing these children with the best knowledge and preparing them for the real world. i think alot of these issues can be squashed early on if you simply send out a letter disclosing what will go on in your classroom and what the parents should expect. i feel it is almost 2020 and we are changing ways in which we see the world and i think by changing our classrooms to more open and safe spaces then we are doing our jobs as educators. by provding these ciritcal texts students can see themesvles in the books we are reading and become passionate about school and better yet passionate about literacy. dont undermind the impact you can make just because youre afraid of making parents "uncomfortable"
ReplyDeleteYES! I LOVE THIS! I think many times educators feel that they will offend someone or make someone uncomfortable, but the truth of the matter is everything is uncomfortable until you do them a few times. So, I look at this as the same. It will only continue to be uncomfortable to talk about these things if educators decide to keep suppressing them. Another thing I think about is if a student is experiencing a certain social issue, and every educator they have doesn't talk about it because they are uncomfortable, this could make the student feel they make their teacher uncomfortable because they are part of it. I also like the idea of sending a letter home to the parents saying, "here are the things we will be talking about this year" because it gives the parents a chance to clarify or ask questions if they have them! Thank you for sharing ideas on this! I loved hearing your ideas and passion on this!
DeleteDani,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your post!
To answer one of your questions, I would start off by having my students create a list of expectations that they have of each other and myself during difficult conversations. This way they get to make the expectations because they are the ones involved in the conversation I am not. The teacher is there to facilitate learning not comment their own opinions and beliefs into a conversation. If students start to feel uncomfortable, I would use hand signs for students to use during the conversation. I would do this through having students put 1 finger up if they would like to listen to the conversation but not participate in it 2 if the student would like to go sit at their desk during the conversation because they are uncomfortable and 3 leave the room because they are uncomfortable. This would really only apply to the younger grades. I think using some form of this is a great way to avoid students from being called out directly and if they don't feel comfortable in a conversation they should not have to talk. I think it is really important to have these critical conversations and that can be brought into the classroom through enabling texts which is why it is so important to embrace those in your classroom.
I totally agree with the teacher facilitating the instruction! As educators, it is our job to teach students about a subject all the way around and allow them to decide their own thoughts and beliefs based on those facts. If a students looks up to their teacher and their teacher makes it known what their beliefs are, then the student may just jump on that bandwagon because their teacher thinks that way. I also really love the idea of hand signals because they can shoot those up at any time during the conversation and be acknowledged by the teacher without having to verbally say anything. If this becomes a classroom procedure, other students will not even flinch when students throw up different signals. I may use this idea one day! Thanks for sharing these thoughts with me!
DeleteI think from the article we learned that social issues through literature can be done effectively even through its being done through a first year teacher. when it comes to asking questions like "whose voices are being heard and not heard" it all come down to critical thinking in fact there is a cool guide that goes over a list of critical thinking questions that you could practice in your classroom, I'll see if I can post it somewhere because it is a cool resource.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteYeah, I would love to see the resource guide you are referring to! It sounds like it would be very beneficial to use in the classroom! Thanks for offering to share it!
DeleteDani,
ReplyDeleteAwesome post! I totally agree with you that the thought of bringing up social issues in class can be a very nerve wracking and touchy subject but it is something that should be implemented more in classrooms for critical thinking. For most teachers, I am sure they chose to take the easy way out and just not get into any social issue topics because it could split the class or make some people unhappy. But as teachers, we need to make our classroom a place where topics can be discussed and critically talked about in a way where everyone can learn from one another rather than some kids shutting down when they don't agree with something. This is not how the real world works and it is our job to prepare them for their future and how they can succeed. The classroom should be the environment where everyone's thoughts are valued because when you really sit down and listen to others opinions you learn a lot and maybe think of things in ways you may not have before.
I definitely agree with some teachers "taking the easy way out." It is a lot easier to just go along with the curriculum and teach it in a standard way, but like you said here, it has to change. I feel that the standard way needs to be changed to teachers putting in the effort to learn about their students, care about the social issues they experience, and then formulating lessons based off of those even if some may disagree. I love when you said, "When you really sit down and listen to others opinions you learn a lot and maybe think of things in ways you may not have before." This is so true and a great outlook! Thanks for your ideas and comments!
DeleteI think creating a space in which kids are allowed to have different opinions will help solve the problem of kids feeling safe, morning meetings and teaching kids to be inclusive can go a long way. Also letting kids group themselves when they talk can also help I believe in the long run.
ReplyDeleteIn their groups they could talk about who does this affect, for example a cause and effect chart but for who does this affect and how. I believe using this and maybe asking the kids themselves if anyone had an example from their life can help bridge that gap.