Social Justice In Teacher Education Equity Diversity Inclusion

As teaching is socially, culturally, and politically constructed, it is important that teacher educators committed to social justice attempt to create secure environment where all voices are heard and teacher candidates can inquire into personally and socially challenging topics within a safe and caring classroom culture. Relationships of trust are fundamental to teaching about social justice and to being receptive as learners in such classes. Mindfulness on the part of teacher educators and teacher candidates can go a long way in fostering respect, openness and acceptance in such classes. Together they can lead to teacher educators and candidates thinking deeply about themselves, schools and schooling as they move towards a vision of a more equitable and just society. The teacher educators who have contributed to this volume recognize the challenges of balancing respect for their students with the call to social justice. Their accounts and critical reflections convey how relational and mindful approaches might offer positive avenues to self and shared exploration by teacher candidates and teacher educators alike. Several chapters attend to the challenges for educators as they encounter culturally and linguistically diverse contexts. Others attend to these issues within the complexity of diverse university classrooms in order to guide teacher candidates towards dispositions and practices that help foster inclusion and engage diverse learners and communities. Together, these chapters offer thoughtful approaches to living alongside aspiring teachers as they develop deeper understanding of the concepts of race and diversity, and inclusive approaches to teaching and learning.

Educators on Diversity, Social Justice, and Schooling identifies categories of privilege and marginalization in the “master narrative” of social discourse and works to bring equity into classrooms across Canada. This timely text challenges students to question the power relations that value one group’s system of knowledge over another and brings this to bear on the classroom environment. This volume features contributions by educators from diverse disciplinary backgrounds and includes chapter-end key questions, additional resources for more information, and suggested activities to engage students in critical thought and to ground concepts of diversity and social justice in practical application. Students in undergraduate and graduate education programs will value the combination of theoretical and practical knowledge that this collection puts forth to foster a new generation of inclusive educators.

Case Studies on Diversity and Social Justice Education offers pre- and in-service educators an opportunity to analyze and reflect upon a variety of realistic case studies related to educational equity and social justice. The accessibly written cases allow educators to practice the process of considering a range of contextual factors, checking their own biases, and making immediate- and longer-term decisions about how to create and sustain equitable learning environments for all students. This revised edition adds ten new cases to offer greater coverage of elementary education, as well as topics such as body-shaming, Black Lives Matter, and transgender oppression. Existing cases have been updated to reflect new societal contexts, and streamlined for ease-of-use. The book begins with a seven-point process for examining case studies. Largely lacking from existing case study collections, this framework guides readers through the process of identifying, examining, reflecting on, and taking concrete steps to resolve challenges related to diversity and equity in schools. The cases themselves present everyday examples of the ways in which racism, sexism, homophobia and heterosexism, class inequities, language bias, religious-based oppression, and other equity and diversity concerns affect students, teachers, families, and other members of our school communities. They involve classroom issues that are relevant to all grade levels and content areas, allowing significant flexibility in how and with whom they are used. Although organized topically, the intersections of these issues are stressed throughout the cases, reflecting the complexities of real-life scenarios. All cases conclude with a series of questions to guide discussion and a section of facilitator notes, called ‘Points for Consideration.’ This unique feature provides valuable insight for understanding the complexities of each case.

Self-Study and Diversity II is a book about the self-study of teacher education practices in a diverse world. In this volume, the authors examine the preparation of teachers through a shared orientation to diversity grounded in a commitment to addressing issues of identity, equity, diversity, social justice, inclusion, and access in their professional practice. The first chapters are autobiographical studies in which teacher educators reflect on how their personal identities as minorities within a historically oppressive culture inform their professional practice. These powerful narratives are followed by accounts of teacher educators addressing diversity issues in the United Arab Emirates, India, South Africa, and Thailand. The closing chapters attend to the challenges of preparing teacher candidates to become inclusive educators in a diverse world. Even though each chapter focusses on a particular dimension of equity and social justice or dilemma of practice, the insights in these self-studies are relevant to all teacher educators interested in improving teacher education by respecting diversity and becoming more inclusive. Particular strengths are the diversity of authors and international scope of the book.

This book is about the self-study of teacher education practices at a time when inclusion and diversity are being questioned. Authors of various backgrounds and identities draw on their own experiences to examine the challenges of preparing teachers.

This edited volume explores and extends themes in contemporary educational research on teacher preparation and the evolution in social justice education to antiracist pedagogy. These times call for teacher education to reconsider how the work devoted to social justice is explicit and intentional about its commitment to a racially just society. What does it mean for teacher education to seize this moment to confront racism and inequities that continue to perpetuate in society and school? The book highlights efforts that are being augmented to prepare teacher candidates and future faculty to address systemic racism in their teaching practices.

The book captures the various ways issues of diversity, equity and social justice unfold in educational settings and offers ideas for eradicating inequalities in schools. Concepts such as parental involvement, equity pedagogy, and dual language, among others, provide a template for assisting educators to improve educational outcomes for students.