Trump Effect in a Second-Grade Dual-Language Classroom: Exploring Literacies of Social Transformation

• In Event: 44.065 - Literacies of Social Transformation: Enacting Freirean Perspectives Across Contexts

Abstract

Objective
The Trump effect was reported by Costello (2016) as “the (presidential) campaign producing an alarming level of fear and anxiety among children of color and inflaming racial and ethnic tensions in the classroom.” This paper examines the discourse around the presidential candidate Donald Trump in a second grade dual language classroom and how the teacher as a cultural worker (Freire, 1998) implemented problem-posing education to support these students’ in the process of building critical consciousness (Freire, 1970). The question focused on is: How does the current political climate affect the discourse and learning environment in a 2nd grade dual language classroom?

Theoretical Framework
This paper guided by critical consciousness, which is defined by Freire (1970) as students beginning to understand their world, specifically looking at the social and political oppressions in their lives and taking action against them. The cultural worker (teacher) in this classroom specifically moved away from the banking model (Freire, 1970), which is encouraged by the sociopolitical structures of schooling, and instead enacted literacies of social transformation.

Methods
This study took place during the 2015-2016 school year. Data collection included observations, field notes, audio recordings, and student artifacts. To capture how students’ alongside the teacher implemented problem-posing education, I employed open and closed coding as well as conducted constant comparison (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) across data sources.

Findings
Findings demonstrate that education cannot take place in a vacuum because education is not culturally or politically neutral (Freire, 1970). The initial Trump conversation between two students is one such example. They were reading Click, Clack, Moo, Cows that Type by Doreen Cornin when they got into an argument because one was pro-Trump and the other was not. Salvador shouted, “¡Quiere sacar a todos los sur americanos! Quiere quedarse con solo los blancos.” [He wants to take out all the South Americans! He wants to stay with only whites.]

Latinx students shared personal narratives of how the xenophobic and racist discourses surrounding Trump affected their lives. The teacher brought this issue to the forefront through children’s literature, dialogue, videos and writing. Small groups of students drew what life would be like if Donald Trump became president and then expressed those feelings through writing. By giving students a safe place to process their feelings, students then decided to move past the fear and anxiety and take action. They decided to write letters to different presidential candidates voicing their concerns about Trump and support for that particular candidate.

Scholarly Significance
This paper contributes to the growing body of literature by extending the conversation on the importance problem-posing education and the teacher as cultural worker (1998). As well as, providing one example of how it was done. The teacher in this study learned alongside her students, instead of “filling” them with knowledge. Rather than finding ways to separate the learning experiences from the lived experiences of students, she welcomed the lived experiences, fears, and stresses within the classroom, so that meaningful learning could lead to critical and political consciousness.

Author

• Sandra Lucia Osorio, Illinois State University