Activist Teachers, "People's Pedagogy," and Collaborations With Howard Zinn, 1970 to 2010

• In Event: Historical Contexts of Educator Activism and Educational Development

Abstract

This study highlights the work of activist teachers of the 1970s and 80s, including collaborations with the historian and activist, Howard Zinn. While Zinn is best known for his published work as a historian, most notably his A People's History of the United States, he for decades sought out and collaborated with activist teachers (and they, him). This history, 1) provides evidence for collaboration between activist teachers, critical pedagogues, and a radical historian, 2) describes how activist teachers helped make A People’s History a bestseller across decades, and 3) spotlights the creative work of activist teachers who worked tirelessly to bring a people’s history and a people’s pedagogy into the schools.

Author

• Sonia E. Murrow, Brooklyn College - CUNY