"There's a Lot to Know, and We'll Learn It Together": Emancipatory Teaching at Harlem Preparatory School, 1967–1974

• In Event: Transforming Schools From the Outside-In: Families and Communities as School Activists

Abstract

This study explores the history of Harlem Preparatory School, an independent community school in Central Harlem from 1967 to 1974 that successfully educated former “dropout” students and other non-traditional youth. Specifically, this paper highlights the ‘teaching and learning’ that occurred at Harlem Prep, focusing on three elements of teachers’ pedagogy that contributed to student achievement and empowerment: one, the breaking down of the traditional teacher-student hierarchy; two, employing culturally relevant teaching (in the complicated context of the era); and three, the tangible use of love as a pedagogical technique. Ultimately, this historical study—based on extensive archival research and more than two dozen oral history interviews—seeks to use the past to inform, if not inspire, critical educators today.

Author

• Barry Goldenberg, Teachers College, Columbia University