A few motivations of people endeavoring to engage in critical pedagogy:
- You have begun to think critically. You think about your thinking and how your identity is related to the sociopolitical world. You engage in this thinking because your very existence and mental health depends on it. You need this metacognitive outlet to engage in the meaningful action that results in change of the systems and structures within your personal sphere of influence.
- You have reached a moment in time where you begin to recognize there is a whole other world out there you know nothing about. You have begun to realize that people are impacted by the world in ways that you cannot imagine. You now know you live in a bubble that shelters you from the disproportional impacts of identities in which you find yourself privileged.
- As a school leader or teacher, you engage in the type of self-reflection that causes you to question the school system, critique central administration decisions, see clearly the detrimental impacts of a dominant normed school system to the students and families in your care.
- You engage in creative problem-solving and co-construct new and innovative ways of educating to, with, and by students.
Critical pedagogy will chew you up, and spit you out if you ain’t serious. ~Dr. Angela M. Ward
I am motivated to engage in critical pedagogy because I see inequity in 3D! I see and feel deeply the impacts of today’s decisions on the youth in the classroom currently and history tells me what those impacts will be ten years from now. I also believe in the power of learning and teaching students to question me as their teacher, pushing me to expand my knowledge along with theirs.
If you are only considering critical pedagogy because it’s a buzzword, don’t bother. Critical pedagogy will chew you up, and spit you out if you ain’t serious (yep, intentional). I entered education with a critical lens. I did not come to the elementary school classroom with hours upon hours of practice in classroom instruction and study of traditional pedagogical approaches. I came with knowledge of my proud black community. I came with knowledge of my collectivist black family. I brought with me the natural inclination to connect to others and have fun, I could not fathom being in a classroom (virtual or physical) day in and day out with other peoples children and not get to know them, discover their interests, their dislikes, and co-create the type of learning environment they wanted to return to everyday. I also brought with me the fear that if I didn’t get it right, my babies might end up in prison. I had a keen sense of what the onramp to the school to prison pipeline looked like and I chose the elementary classroom to obliterate the structure upon which the pipeline rests.
#AntiRacistEd Reflection/Action: What is your motivation to engage in critical pedagogy? If you don’t know why, I urge you to uncover your motivation and reflect on it as you engage in this series.
Angela Ward, “What is your motivation to engage in critical pedagogy?”, As originally published on 2ward Equity Blog, January 26, 2021.
Photo by Jaredd Craig on Unsplash
