Pathways2Teaching: Being and Becoming a "Rida"

• In Event: 70.048 - Toward Racial Justice and Democratization of the Teaching Force

Abstract

This paper examines a pipeline program that engages high school students in exploring teaching as not only a career path, but also a path for strengthening their communities and broader society. Rida, a popular hip-hop term, designates someone’s loyalty and commitment to their people. The authors argue that, in order to increase the number of teachers of color in our nation’s schools, we must first develop students’ sociopolitical and critical consciousness as a means to disrupt the educational inequities they have experienced, for themselves, and for their communities. Pathways2Teaching is an academically challenging, pre-collegiate course for students attending low performing high schools; students earn college credit at the University of Colorado at Denver. In the program, they learn about critical theories of education, and how teaching can be an act of social justice. To date, 100% of seniors who have taken Pathways2Teaching have graduated from high school. Many currently attend local community colleges or state universities – even if only part-time, a stark contrast to national, state and district graduation and college going rates for students of color from high poverty communities. Through surveys and interviews the authors learned that many students who had not previously considered a teaching career now have an interest in pursuing teaching or related fields. As of December 2013, of the 17 seniors who graduated from high school in 2011 (our first cohort), 100% were taking college courses (even if only one course per semester) and 18% had recently declared an education major. While the program has faced several challenges, its powerful impact on students drives us forward.

Authors

• Madhavi Tandon, University of Colorado - Denver

• Margarita Bianco, University of Colorado - Denver

• Shelley Zion, University of Colorado - Denver