Applying a Critical Race Educational History Methodology to Classroom and Community Teaching of Primary Sources

• In Event: Critical Race Educational History: Methodological Commitments and Praxis With and for Chicana/o Students and Communities

Abstract

This paper highlights the ways in which Chicanx and Latinx youth can participate in historical recovery by engaging with archival materials. The idea of doing primary source historical research can feel daunting and inaccessible to youth because of the association with large institutional archives. Yet with the steady growth of digitized archive collections, primary sources are becoming increasingly accessible for use in classrooms and community settings. This paper builds off previous work by Hendry (2007) and Dickson & Gorzalski (2013), which explored the ways in which primary sources can be incorporated into K-12 education. As well as expands on the Critical Race Theory (CRT) work of Dunbar (2006) and Morris & Parker (2018) that connected CRT with archival analysis.

The primary focus of this paper is how a Critical Race Educational History (CREH) methodology (Santos, Mares-Tamayo, & Alonso, 2017) can be applied to the teaching of history in classroom and community settings. In this paper, a CREH methodology guides the historical analysis, informs the process of historical recovery, and directs the use of historical materials for classroom and community learning. CREH embraces 5 tenets of CRT in Education that emphasize 1) the centrality of race and racism in education, 2) a challenge to the dominant ideology, 3) a commitment to social justice, 4) experiential knowledge, and 5) the tools available through interdisciplinary inquiry (Solórzano, 1998). While also defying 3 guiding principles of CREH, which are 1) intentionality, 2) embodying a collaborative process, and 3) creating space for multiple voices to be heard (Santos, Mares-Tamayo, & Alonso, 2017).

Archival materials connected to the Crawford v. Los Angeles Board of Education (1963-1982) desegregation case will serve as historical case study for a CREH approach to engaging Chicanx and Latinx local history. The city of Los Angeles was the site of an extremely contentious and vicious desegregation battle that hovered over the city for almost 20 years. The Crawford case captured both the public imagination and the attention of education scholars of that era (Caughey 1973; Haro, 1977; Orfield, 1984). In the last decade, historians have begun to revisit and reconsider Crawford in the context of systemic and concentrated efforts to undermine the precedent and spirit of Brown v. Board of Education (1954) (HoSang, 2010, 2014; Sosa, 2013). This paper explores examples of primary source historical activities designed for youth utilizing archival materials from the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education records, American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California records, Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund records, and National Association for the Advancement of Colored People records. Encouraging youth to understand the process of finding and analyzing existing primary source documents can serve as a first step to developing the tools necessary to actively engage in the historical recovery of voices and stories that have yet to be documented. A CREH methodology provides a systematic approach to facilitate this important goal and helps Chicanx and Latinx youth understand the enduring legacy of resistance against White supremacy which emanates from their communities.

Author

• Ryan E. Santos, California State University - Long Beach