Analyzing the Barriers to Antiracist Pedagogies in English Language Arts Classrooms
Location
Session 2 Presentations - Literacy Education I
Proposal Track
Research Project
Session Format
Presentation
Abstract
English language arts provides an opportune space to engage students with topics related to race and racial justice. The books we read, the topics we write about, even the media we analyze together can all stimulate conversations on race and the ways that racial hierarchies and racism affect individuals. Whether teachers choose to engage in this work in their language arts classes depends on their position among several key barriers: state policies against discussing race in the classroom, federal policies that mandate standardized testing, teacher evaluation policies, teachers’ own beliefs about the purpose of language arts instruction, and the requirements of school administration. Identifying these barriers may allow university educators to identify steps they will need to take to support preservice teachers planning to discuss race and engage with antiracist pedagogies in their future classrooms.
Keywords
Antiracist pedagogy, race, educational policy, English language arts
Professional Bio
Jennifer Ervin is a doctoral student at the University of Georgia. Her work explores justice-oriented teaching in English language arts classrooms, and how teachers engage in this work with literature instruction specifically. She also focuses on the impact of educational policies on English language arts curricula, and how these policies affect teachers’ pedagogical practices in literary analysis instruction.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Ervin, Jennifer, "Analyzing the Barriers to Antiracist Pedagogies in English Language Arts Classrooms" (2021). Georgia Educational Research Association Conference. 27.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/gera/2021/2021/27
Analyzing the Barriers to Antiracist Pedagogies in English Language Arts Classrooms
Session 2 Presentations - Literacy Education I
English language arts provides an opportune space to engage students with topics related to race and racial justice. The books we read, the topics we write about, even the media we analyze together can all stimulate conversations on race and the ways that racial hierarchies and racism affect individuals. Whether teachers choose to engage in this work in their language arts classes depends on their position among several key barriers: state policies against discussing race in the classroom, federal policies that mandate standardized testing, teacher evaluation policies, teachers’ own beliefs about the purpose of language arts instruction, and the requirements of school administration. Identifying these barriers may allow university educators to identify steps they will need to take to support preservice teachers planning to discuss race and engage with antiracist pedagogies in their future classrooms.
