Excavating the Methodological Terrains of Life Writing: How and Why We Engage in Re-Memberings of Black and Chicana/Latina Lived Experiences

• In Event: Acts of Survival: Theory, Methods, and Lived Experiences in Writing Race

Abstract

life writing projects. Specifically, we share 1) the vehicles/methodologies we have used to engage in life writing, 2) how we have decided which stories to tell, and 3) the complexities of engaging in life writing.
Grasping the significance of telling one’s story, the first author offers a recursive consideration of how the use of testimonios and personal narratives have served as avenues for examining the lived experiences of faculty members of color at predominantly white institutions as well as K-12 parents and students. The second author engages in re-memberings and reflections on her approaches to using multimodal testimonios with teachers (K-12) and in teacher education, while also reflecting on her use of testimonios about her own educational journey. The third author reflects on her use of testimonios and life notes to rethink childhood/s, teacher education, and the experiences of minoritized young children in early childhood education and care.

Authors

• Crystal Shelby-Caffey, Southern Illinois University

• Paty Abril-Gonzalez, University of Texas at Austin

• Michelle Salazar Perez, University of North Texas