Making Space for Transformative Teaching: An Analysis of Student-Centered and Critical Race Pedagogies in Higher Education

• In Event: The Margins of Neoliberal Reform: Envisioning Critical Race Praxis Along the Borders of K–12 Education

Abstract

Objective
In this paper, I assert that transformative teaching should be widely adopted into higher education curricula. Our current systems should adopt associated educational models to foster students’ critical intellectual development, promote democratic values and multicultural tolerance, and cultivate greater awareness of current social issues (Apple, 2009; Chomsky & Otero, 2003; Darder & Mirón 2005; Freire, 2000; Giroux, 2011; hooks, 2003). This inclusionary push is due to the massive movement of historically excluded minorities into public higher education nationwide (Gándara & Contreras, 2009; Nagda, Gurin, & Lopez, 2010). Minority students now make up 48.2% of students enrolled in these institutions and their enrollment numbers are projected to grow in the coming decades (Gándara & Contreras, 2009; Nieto, 2005). These students are now demanding an academic curriculum that facilitates economic mobility and, more importantly, fosters critical and multicultural intellectual development (Darder, 2012; Delgado Bernal, Elenes, Godinez, & Villenas, 2006). I demonstrate the need for including this type of teaching at public university four-year universities. I also provide testimonial data showing how professors developed related pedagogical perspectives, various educational methods, and barriers they face when trying to implement this work while constricted by a neo-liberal corporatized institution.

Author

• Franklin Christopher Perez, California State University - Fullerton