Where Is the Justice? Engaged Pedagogies in Schools and Communities

This inspirational book is about engaged pedagogies, an approach to teaching and learning that centers dialogue, listening, equity, and connection among stakeholders who understand the human and ecological cost of inequality. The authors share their story of working with students, teachers, teacher educators, families, community members, and union leaders to create transformative practices within and beyond public school classrooms. This collaborative work occurred within various spaces--including inside school buildings, libraries, churches, community gardens, and nonprofit organizations--and afforded opportunities to grapple with engaged pedagogies in times of political crisis. Featuring descriptions from a district-wide initiative, this book offers practical and theoretical resources for educators wanting to center justice in their work with students. Through question-posing, color images, empirical observations, and use of scholarly and practitioner-driven literature, readers will learn how to use these resources to reconfigure schools and classrooms as sites of engagement for equity, justice, and love.

Book Features:

• Provides a sound approach to deeply taking up the work of justice and engaged pedagogies.
• Presents linguistic, cultural, theoretical, and practical ideas that can be used and implemented immediately.
• Includes reflective questions, found poetry, lesson ideas, storytelling as narrative, and examples of engaged pedagogies.
• Shares stories from a district-wide initiative that embedded engaged pedagogies within classrooms, counseling offices, and libraries.
• Showcases original artwork and images in full color by Grace D. Player, one of the coauthors.

Valerie Kinloch is the Renée and Richard Goldman Dean of the University of Pittsburgh School of Education and president of the National Council of Teachers of English (2021-2022). Her books include Race, Justice, and Activism in Literacy Instruction. Emily A. Nemeth is an associate professor in the Department of Education at Denison University. Tamara T. Butler is executive director of Avery Research Center, College of Charleston. Grace D. Player is an assistant professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Connecticut.