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TEACHING TEXTS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE: ENGLISH TEACHERS AS AGENTS OF CHANGE

BENDER-SLACK, DELANE ANN
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1183419335

Abstract Details

2007, EdD, University of Cincinnati, Education : Literacy.
Given that schools are an elemental force in the lives of adolescents, ELA classrooms might provide opportunities for students to engage in relevant literacy practices. Teaching for social justice is one way to provide authentic literacy practices that meet the current needs of adolescents. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine how secondary English Language Arts (ELA) educators understood teaching for social justice as it related to the texts they chose for students to consume and produce. The literature review hinges on the argument that teaching for social justice is complex, and the understanding and implementation of it is individualized by educators based on their understandings. Precisely 22 secondary literacy educators were interviewed using a three-tier process with regard to how they defined social justice, the purpose of teaching for social justice, and texts they utilized as tools to do so. Three kinds of qualitative data were collected: in-depth, open-ended interviews, classroom texts, and written documents. I found considerable dependency on reader response in the classroom; central to that were students’ affective responses with particular teacher concern for safety and comfort. Participants frequently had to negotiate a variety of institutional obligations such as administrative and school policies and standardized tests. There was a pervasive pattern of fear with regard to institutional obligations and frequent compliance and self-monitoring. Canonical texts were most commonly used with little critical reading of the canon itself. The genres most frequently chosen for students to consume were nonfiction articles and narratives. Students were most often required to produce class discussions. Few enter literacy courses with an inclination to problematize, question cultural assumptions and ideologies, or examine feelings of boredom or shame (Greene, 1998). I argue that to meet the needs of adolescents, get students engaged in texts, and create critical thinkers, this problematizing and questioning must be done by teachers and teacher educators. This can be achieved by maintaining a vibrant and collective dialogue. ELA teachers and teacher educators might differentiate between the study of literature and an active literacy, teaching for social justice as a means of doing so.
Holly Johnson (Advisor)
234 p.
Teaching for Social Justice; Literature; Adolescent Literacy; Texts; Teacher Beliefs

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • BENDER-SLACK, D. A. (2007). TEACHING TEXTS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE: ENGLISH TEACHERS AS AGENTS OF CHANGE [Doctoral dissertation, University of Cincinnati]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1183419335

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • BENDER-SLACK, DELANE. TEACHING TEXTS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE: ENGLISH TEACHERS AS AGENTS OF CHANGE. 2007. University of Cincinnati, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1183419335.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • BENDER-SLACK, DELANE. "TEACHING TEXTS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE: ENGLISH TEACHERS AS AGENTS OF CHANGE." Doctoral dissertation, University of Cincinnati, 2007. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1183419335

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ucin1183419335
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© 2007, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by University of Cincinnati and OhioLINK.