Critical Professional Development and Social Justice: Developing Liberatory Praxis Through Critical Inquiry Teacher Action Groups

• In Event: Millennium Hotel Roundtable Session 13
  In Roundtable Session: Applications of Paulo Freire's Pedagogy

Abstract

Forming the basis for dialogue about the development of teachers committed to teaching for social justice, and written to amplify and build on works offering critical professional development (CPD) as counter-narrative to antidialogical professional development (APD) (Kohli, Martinez, & Ortiz, 2015), this reflective, analytical essay illuminates the experiences of nine critical educators affiliated with Teachers for Social Justice Las Vegas (TFSJLV), and implementing a critical inquiry teacher action group (CI-TAG), a form of CPD. Affirming the value of CPD as a powerful tool for teacher professional development and growth, this essay also provides insight about social justice education and may answer the inquiry, “How do we sustain and retain critical educators of color committed to racial equity and social justice?”

Authors

• Tonya Evette Walls, Touro University Nevada

• Malayka Neith Cornejo, University of Nevada - Las Vegas