Activism is “Acknowledging Oppression and Caring to Create Change”: An Educational Case-Study Exploring Graduate Student Critical Consciousness

• In Event: Equity and persistence among students of color

Abstract

In such contentious and debilitating times in education, especially regarding work focused on justice, social transformation, and equity, we have seen students organize in response to anti-DEI policies. While much scholarship has focused on K-12 and undergraduate student activism, emerging scholarship has also highlighted how graduate education has been and continues to be a space where praxis and inquiry can foster student activism. Drawing on data from a graduate course on higher education activism and guided by Paulo Freire’s theory of conscientização, we highlight the reflections, motivations, and actions of nine graduate students. We ultimately suggest that through intentional pedagogical and curricular strategies, graduate students were encouraged to think about micro-scale activist efforts in response to broader sociopolitical issues.

Authors

• Stephanie Cuellar, Texas Christian University

• Pablo Montes, Texas Christian University