Support in Educators’ in Developing Their Sense of Purpose and Practices Regarding Racial Injustice and Other Forms of Oppression

• In Event: Understanding and Addressing Racialized History and Violent Extremism Across P–12 Systems and Settings

Abstract

In his call to action for AERA’s 2024 conference, President Tyrone Howard asks us to be “touched and changed by the charge of eliminating racial injustice and other forms of oppression and exclusion,” and to engage in research that has the potential to “change the conditions for everyday people.” This part of the proposed Presidential session grounds the aims of the conference in secondary schools and school-based research by 1) sharing concrete pedagogical frameworks, curricular resources, and professional learning opportunities that can support educators in developing their sense of purpose and practices as they relate to racial injustice and other forms of oppression, and 2)
presenting research that examines the impact of such supports on teachers, learning conditions, and students’ learning and development.
Undergirding the approach to professional development described in this presentation are several assumptions about teaching and learning. 1. Educators and their adolescent students need to be trusted with authentic accounts of history that include the full range of human behavior, perspectives and structural factors that perpetuate injustice. 2.
Examining human behavior in the context of particular inflection points in history that highlight the fragility of democracy, is a powerful way to shed light on the importance of justice-oriented participation. 3. Students need examples of voices and actions that fight for freedom and justice in the past and present. 4. The process of engaging students in making meaning of difficult history must build trust, acknowledge the lived reality of students, foster belonging, provide ample opportunities for reflection and engagement with a diversity of perspectives, and encourage emotional engagement, ethical reflection and intellectual analysis.

This work acknowledges what many students already know from their own lives—that progress towards greater freedom, equality, and justice is not linear or inevitable, and teaches something they may not yet know - that the choices of ordinary people can and do make a difference in shaping the course of events. Calling on Facing History resources that explore the pursuit of justice and freedom (The Murder of Emmett Till, The Reconstruction Era) this session will describe how these principles are reflected in our approach to professional learning and curricular resources. "We believe the bigotry and hate that we witness today are the legacy of brutal injustices of the past. We help teachers and students face our collective histories and understand how they inform attitudes and behaviors in today's world.” (Facing History website). The presenters will use classroom video and student voices to illuminate key elements of the approach.
The session will also share results from two randomized controlled trials that demonstrate teacher, classroom, and student level outcomes. Student outcomes span the terrain of competencies targeted by this integrative educational model - skills for historical analysis, empathy, tolerance for different viewpoints, a sense of civic responsibility and efficacy - all essential qualities for everyday people to be prepared to help move the needle towards justice.

Author

• Dennis Barr, Facing History and Ourselves