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Critical Pedagogy

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Franchesca Ramsey and Paulo Freire both touch upon a very important point. It is important to walk the walk. Franchesca says that in fact, among her tips for being a good ally, the most important one is using “Ally” as a verb. It is pointless to say that you are going to help the marginalized if you don’t actually get up and try to make an impact. The same sentiment is expressed and demonstrated by the way Paulo led his life. He was committed to changing the status quo by pursuing a less dehumanizing, more humane world for all. According to him, educators play a huge role in this and they need to recognize their power as a source of political awareness.             As someone who grew up in a family where politics were not discussed, because “beggars cannot be choosers”, it has been a huge learning curve for me, particularly over the past few years with all of the attention received by our last president and constant t...
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Deconstructing Disability

Ways To Reteach Disability ·       Teach “difference”- differences are viewed subjectively. Compare and contrast how the non-disabled and the disabled view “disability”. Use documentary video and films to demonstrate perspectives. ·       Discuss disability-related language- avoid putting down disability by using phrases such as “That’s retarded”, “are you deaf?”. ·       Contemplate disability as a minority label ·       Study the meaning of the words “able” and “disabled”. ·       Teach the history of people with disabilities, including the disability rights movement ·       Analyze stereotypes of “good guys” and “bad guys”-portraying certain disabilities as indicators. ·       Critique representations of disability in films, literature and cartoons ·     ...
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Care

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              In “Nice is not Enough. Defining Caring for Students of Color”, Sonia Nieto attempts to describe what real “care” should look like in a classroom composed of students of color. She mentions Rosalie Rolòn-Do’s perspective which calls for a “response to students’ actual personal  ives and to the institutional barriers they encounter as members of racialized groups. Teachers must understand individual students within their concrete sociopolitical contexts and devise specific pedagogical and curricular strategies to help them navigate those contexts successfully.” I agree whole heartedly with what she is saying but it also fills me with anxiety because I wish I could spend a whole day and school year getting to know my class. Some students are only with me for a semester and making time to get to know them can easily be misconstrued as targeting them.   However, my best friend in this endeavor continues to be my beginni...
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