Ascending to Critical Consciousness: Centering Liberating Knowledge, Antiracist Pedagogy, and Experiential Learning in University, School, Community Collaborative for Justice-Oriented Educators

• In Event: Teacher Agency for Critical Consciousness

Abstract

The Atlanta Schools Critical Education Network for Distinction (ASCEND) is an ongoing interdisciplinary collaborative supporting the critical consciousness of justice-oriented educators. ASCEND partners: (1) activist faculty from two university departments: Middle and Secondary Education and African-American Studies; (2) a justice-oriented community-based organization; and (3) local public middle school faculty. This paper analyzes ASCEND’s impact on deepening urban teachers’ awareness of local injustices, their knowledge and initial application of critical composition pedagogy, and their attention to those injustices within their curriculum. Mixed-methods measures indicate that by employing a responsive professional learning model and implementing Black Studies (King, 2017) guided experiential activities, participating educators increased their critical consciousness and attempts at integrating critical literacy principles in their curricular plans.

Authors

• Jacob Hackett, Georgia State University

• Nadia Behizadeh, Georgia State University

• Ayinde Summers, Project South