Transformative Curricula and Student Empowerment

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Thursday 9:45 am - Gold 2

Session Type: Roundtable Session

Abstract

This roundtable explores curricular transformations that aim to empower learners and challenge exclusionary practices. The papers document how ethnic studies affirm the identities of transfer students, how equity-centered approaches can expand STEAM opportunities for linguistically and culturally diverse learners, and how multicultural literature serves as a catalyst for preparing teachers to work across cultures. The added paper extends this conversation by highlighting resistance to erasure of cultural histories in curricula, underscoring the contested terrain of diversity in education. Collectively, the studies illustrate how curricular choices can disrupt traditional hierarchies, validate student identities, and cultivate inclusive educational communities.

Sub Unit

• SIG-Multicultural/Multiethnic Education: Theory, Research and Practice

Chair

• Cheng Chang, Binghamton University - SUNY

Papers

• From Access to Affirmation: The Transformative Benefits of Ethnic Studies on Transfer Students at a Minority-Serving Institution - Chang Wang, University of California - Santa Barbara

• From Awareness to Action: Multicultural Literature as a Tool for Inclusive, Cross-Cultural Teacher Preparation - Elsie Solis, California State University - San Marcos; Nirmla Griarte Flores, California State Polytechnic University - Pomona; Isabel Badilla Zamora, Universidad Nacional of Costa Rica

• Toward Equity-Centered STEAM Talent Development: Reconceptualizing Opportunities for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Learners - Emma H. Cho, University of Washington