Curriculums of Identity: Embracing Digital Space

Abstract

Nevitt Sanford (1967) and Arthur Chickering (1969; 1993) are two theorists of postsecondary learning. Each challenged institutions of higher education to see beyond the vocational purposes of higher learning, challenging colleges and universities to see the exploration and establishing of identity as a central outcome of postsecondary learning.

Faculty and student affairs educators embraced these challenges. Colleges and universities began forming spaces for the formal study of social identities in departments now widely recognized: Ethnic and Racial studies departments, Native American or Indigenous Studies, Women’s studies, GLBT studies, Religious or Spiritual Studies. Colleges and universities opened research centers, support centers, and other multicultural spaces. The narrative about such efforts on college campuses often focuses on recruitment and retention or creating safe spaces for underrepresented students. Arguably some of these outcomes have been achieved. Lost in these narratives is the role of such spaces for learning about identity: challenging individuals to learn about identity from historical, social, poitical, ecological, and spiritual perspectives.

Faculty and student affairs educators are challenged to extend this learning into digital spaces. This paper examines the role of digital spaces in learning about identity, interrogating and asking critical questions about the possibilities and limitations of digital architectures in presenting, examining, exploring, and disrupting human understanding of identity. What are the curriculums of identity in digital space? What are our responsibilities as educators toward including such spaces in our thinking, research, and teaching on how human beings come into being and learning about identity?

Presentation Description

This paper examines a critical question: What are the curriculums of identity in digital space? Examining such curriculums is necessary for understanding the role of digital spaces in learning about identity and interrogating the possibilities and limitations of digital architectures in presenting, examining, exploring, and disrupting human understanding of identity. The paper will conclude by examining the responsibilities of educators toward including such spaces in our thinking, research, and teaching on how human beings come into being and learning about identity.

Keywords

Identity, Digital learning, Social media, Curriculum

Location

Magnolia Room C

Publication Type and Release Option

Presentation (Open Access)

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Jun 12th, 10:45 AM Jun 12th, 12:00 PM

Curriculums of Identity: Embracing Digital Space

Magnolia Room C

Nevitt Sanford (1967) and Arthur Chickering (1969; 1993) are two theorists of postsecondary learning. Each challenged institutions of higher education to see beyond the vocational purposes of higher learning, challenging colleges and universities to see the exploration and establishing of identity as a central outcome of postsecondary learning.

Faculty and student affairs educators embraced these challenges. Colleges and universities began forming spaces for the formal study of social identities in departments now widely recognized: Ethnic and Racial studies departments, Native American or Indigenous Studies, Women’s studies, GLBT studies, Religious or Spiritual Studies. Colleges and universities opened research centers, support centers, and other multicultural spaces. The narrative about such efforts on college campuses often focuses on recruitment and retention or creating safe spaces for underrepresented students. Arguably some of these outcomes have been achieved. Lost in these narratives is the role of such spaces for learning about identity: challenging individuals to learn about identity from historical, social, poitical, ecological, and spiritual perspectives.

Faculty and student affairs educators are challenged to extend this learning into digital spaces. This paper examines the role of digital spaces in learning about identity, interrogating and asking critical questions about the possibilities and limitations of digital architectures in presenting, examining, exploring, and disrupting human understanding of identity. What are the curriculums of identity in digital space? What are our responsibilities as educators toward including such spaces in our thinking, research, and teaching on how human beings come into being and learning about identity?