Challenging Bias And Promoting Transformative Education In Public Schooling Through Critical Literacy

"The goal of critical literacy is to create a more equitable society that promotes social justice, dialogue, and acceptance: more specifically, the goal of critical literacy is to nurture justice-oriented citizens"--

Public schooling faces a significant problem: the acquisition of literacy perpetuates biases and hampers inclusive and transformative education. Challenging Bias and Promoting Transformative Education in Public Schooling Through Critical Literacy offers a powerful solution. Edited by Lyndsey Benharris and Katharine Covino, this groundbreaking book explores how critical literacy can effectively challenge biases, center marginalized voices, and foster inclusive learning environments. This comprehensive volume delves into collaborative critical literacy work across disciplines, highlighting its efficacy in various grade levels. It examines the engagement between schools and communities, demonstrating how critical literacy can bridge gaps and promote transformative education. The book emphasizes the importance of incorporating marginalized voices and stories, and it serves as an essential resource for academic scholars seeking to create more equitable and just learning environments. By integrating critical literacy into their pedagogy, educators can disrupt biases, amplify marginalized voices, and nurture justice-oriented citizens. This resource equips them with research-based stories, practical examples, and classroom experiences, empowering them to transform their teaching and contribute to a more inclusive and socially conscious society.

In today's developing view of education, a disquieting trend looms—the erosion of students' right to choose what they read. This erosion, fueled by an alarming surge in censorship attempts, casts a shadow over the very essence of intellectual exploration. Recent years have witnessed an unprecedented number of challenges aimed at restricting access to books, targeting themes that embrace human diversity, inclusivity, and the tapestry of life itself. As educators, administrators, and scholars grapple with this critical juncture, Supporting Students’ Intellectual Freedom in Schools: The Right to Read serves as a comprehensive resource they can turn to for support and knowledge. This book is a call to action, resonating with teachers, school librarians, administrators, and scholars who refuse to let censorship erode the foundations of education. As censorship attempts proliferate, its chapters offer fortification, providing educators at all levels with the tools to safeguard students' intellectual freedom. From the hallowed halls of academia to the vibrant classrooms of K-12, the insights within these pages shape curricula, conversations, and a collective commitment to nurturing minds that thrive on diversity and inquiry. In a world clamoring for unwavering advocates of intellectual freedom, Supporting Students’ Intellectual Freedom in Schools is not just a solution—it is a declaration of resolute solidarity in the pursuit of knowledge and the unassailable right to read.

In today's rapidly evolving world, the digital learning gap presents a significant challenge, impacting the effectiveness of education and the development of essential skills for future generations. Traditional teaching methods often fail to meet students' diverse needs, leading to a skills gap between current and future workers. Additionally, the ambiguity in defining concepts such as the "heap paradox" and the inadequacies of traditional economic measures like GDP highlights the need for more nuanced and comprehensive approaches to education, environmental psychology, and sustainable development. Inclusive Educational Practices and Technologies for Promoting Sustainability offers a multifaceted solution to these pressing issues by exploring the transformative potential of Educational Technology (EdTech), the insights of environmental psychology, and the importance of holistic measures of human welfare. By showcasing how EdTech can bridge the digital learning gap, enabling teachers to employ diverse strategies and better meet students' needs, we demonstrate its potential to revolutionize education and support the growth of the next generation. The book also delves into the paradox of the heap, where logic, vagueness, and philosophy complicate our methods of thinking. It illustrates the complexities of everyday concepts and their relevance to environmental psychology while advocating for a deeper understanding of the human-nature relationship.

In the vast expanse of education, a pervasive issue remains in the marginalization and lack of visibility of individuals with disabilities. Despite a strong desire for inclusivity, recent research suggests that fewer than 5% of children with disabilities in 51 countries across sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia are enrolled in primary school. This exclusion is not solely in enrollment numbers; even those who manage to attend face learning environments ill-equipped to adapt to their needs, leading to further isolation. Girls with disabilities, in particular, endure heightened vulnerability to abuse, reflecting a systemic failure to provide an environment that fosters equality, dignity, and respect for all. The Handbook of Research on Inclusive and Accessible Education emerges as an inspiration for change, providing a profound solution to the persistent issue of exclusion. The book encapsulates a collective effort to reimagine education. It advocates for a paradigm shift—moving away from the confinement of special schools and towards inclusive, mainstream settings. By addressing controversies, sharing successes, and outlining prospects, the book serves as a comprehensive guide for special school governing bodies, curriculum advisors, university lecturers, and all stakeholders committed to reshaping education.

Powerful generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) has defined and transformed our modern era, and the fundamental conceptualization of academia stands at a crossroads. Academic Integrity in the Age of Artificial Intelligence delves deep into the seismic shifts and intricate challenges brought forth by the proliferation of AI technologies, exploring the intricacies between innovation and integrity. The rise of generative AI, exemplified by ChatGPT, has set a cascade of change across diverse sectors, including higher education, medicine, and the arts. This book dissects the multifaceted impact of AI on the academic landscape. With AI's ability to craft text and imagery mirroring human creativity, the lines between authentic scholarship and synthetic deception blur. The book examines the delicate balance between productivity and ethics while weaving a comprehensive tapestry of insights from various stakeholders. From academics grappling with the definition of AI-assisted breaches of academic integrity to policymakers reshaping the future of higher education, this book engages a myriad of voices. It scrutinizes the nascent challenges in assessment design, the urgent need to update antiquated integrity policies, and the importance of research ethics in an AI-driven world. This book is ideal for educators, policymakers, students, and technologists through the complicated terrain of AI ethics.

Postsecondary language classrooms perpetuate racial discrimination and linguistic inequalities, posing a significant problem for racialized students who face institutional barriers and erasure of their linguistic identities. Interrogating Race and Racism in Postsecondary Language Classrooms, edited by Xiangying Huo and Clayton Smith, offers a transformative solution by confronting deeply ingrained racism, linguicism, and neo-racism in language education. Through an intersectional lens, the book exposes these issues and provides practical strategies to combat injustice, fostering inclusive learning environments. With topics ranging from power dynamics to anti-oppressive pedagogies, the book equips readers with tools to effect meaningful change. By amplifying marginalized voices and emphasizing anti-racist and anti-colonial practices, it empowers educators and policymakers to dismantle oppressive systems. This comprehensive resource has the potential to reshape language classrooms and create equitable educational landscapes that value diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds, contributing to a more just and inclusive society.

"This open access textbook offers a comprehensive introduction to instruction in all types of library and information settings. Designed for students in library instruction courses, the text is also a resource for new and experienced professionals seeking best practices and selected resources to support their instructional practice. Organized around the backward design approach and written by LIS faculty members with expertise in teaching and learning, this book offers clear guidance on writing learning outcomes, designing assessments, and choosing and implementing instructional strategies, framed by clear and accessible explanations of learning theories. The text takes a critical approach to pedagogy and emphasizes inclusive and accessible instruction. Using a theory into practice approach that will move students from learning to praxis, each chapter includes practical examples, activities, and templates to aid readers in developing their own practice and materials."--Publisher's description.