bell hooks (Gloria Jean Watkins) presented by Saby Labor 4/21/11 Teaching to Transgress Before we begin, I will hand out some supplemental materials at the conclusion and email the ppt and evaluation afterward

Overview Objectives Community Guidelines Who is bell hooks? Activity: What is engaged pedagogy? Applying a Sociological Lens What does engaged pedagogy look like? What does it Mean to Be a Critical Educator? Evaluation LABOR

Objectives The students will… The instructor will… Apply concepts of engaged pedagogy and multicultural education to their own experiences. Engage in self-reflection of their educational journey and its influences on their role as educators/learners. Understand education from a critical sociological perspective. The instructor will… Gain an understanding of the course material through dialogue, shared narratives, and shared power. of shared power and recognize individual student voices. Objectives can’t be achieved without first establishing a safe space for individual voices, perspectives, and experiences LABOR

Community Guidelines (this example established by diverse undergraduate student group) Use “I” statements 1 diva, 1 mic (one voice at a time) Assume good intent Use inclusive language “don’t yuck my yum” Confidentiality Meet them where ‘they are’ Mutual respect Step up, Step back Which ground rules or guidelines would anyone like to add… Are these guidelines something that we can all respect and abide by? (need visual confirmation, nod, thumbs up, etc) LABOR

bell hooks Context of my personal educational experience with bell hooks Black feminist critic of "white supremacist capitalist patriarchy“ A writer, a feminist theorist, and a cultural critic Known as one of the most accessible academics in feminist writing Her pseudonym, her great-grandmother's name, celebrates female legacies and is in lower case because "it is the substance of my books, not who is writing them, that is important." “Feminist movement created a revolution when it demanded respect for women’s academic work, recognition of that work past and present, and an end to gender biases in curriculum and pedagogy.” Feminism is for Everyone: Passionate Politics, 2000 Source: http://www.answers.com/topic/bell-hooks Source: feminism is for everyone LABOR

Questions bell hooks raises Why is it necessary to talk about race? It is inherent within traditional models of education that teachers have power…The question is how will you use it? How does our own processes of self-awareness and self-reflection influence engaged pedagogy? LABOR

Activity: What is engaged pedagogy? (30 mins) Instructions (you will need a piece of paper and a pen/pencil) Each student receives one slip of paper with a concept or idea regarding engaged pedagogy Take 5 minutes to journal on the concept or idea “Thinking of your own educational experiences, take 5 minutes to journal on how this concept or idea relates to these experiences.” Your concept or idea matches that of another person in the class. Find your partner and sit with them. In your pairs, take 5 minutes to discuss these concepts in relationship to bell hooks’ engaged pedagogy and be prepared to share a 2 minute reflection of your discussion. LABOR

Applying a Sociological Lens… “White Supremacist Capitalist Patriarchy” Video: cultural criticism and transformation pt 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQ-XVTzBMvQ Part 2: 4:23-6:17 LABOR

Applying a Sociological Lens… College as a Total Institution Revealed features of college society that are similar to mental hospitals Total institution- self-contained societies that are designed to service all the needs of the people residing within their boundaries All aspects of life conducted in same place under the same authority Authority figures have tremendous power within the institution's confines Total institutions are also largely self-contained and are designed so day-to-day interaction can occur independent of outside society A consequence of building structures into college society, students are structurally discouraged from interacting with people outside of its confines Strongly imposed division of power lends to superiority and ability to structure encounters How is the classroom a total institution? Eerving Goffman’s Asylums, 1961 College and Society, p.9 LABOR

What does engaged pedagogy look like in practice What does engaged pedagogy look like in practice? Teaching Theories of Difference Through Popular Culture video: cultural criticism and transformation pt 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQUuHFKP-9s Analyzing popular culture and pedagogy 2:07-2:40 and critical thinking transforming lives 3:35- 4:10 LABOR

In an education system which… Denigrates notions of wholeness and upholds idea of mind/body split Encourages students and teachers to see no connection between life practices, habits of being, and the roles of professors Reinforces existing systems of domination Positions learning as a rote assembly-line based on coercion LABOR

…then we have a lot to think about as educators and learners Education reinforces systems of domination. What are other systems of domination? How is the college a “total institution”? How will you use the power assigned as an educator to facilitate critical dialogue and learning environments? What role will self-actualization and reflection play in your institutional pedagogy? How will you facilitate unlearning as a platform for holistic and critical learning? How will you integrate shared narratives and shared voices in your classroom? LABOR

Transformative Practices “Building common ground” or creation of collective guidelines to build community Teaching gender using itunes Article: http://www.sociologysource.com/home/2010/9/12/teaching-gender-with-itunes.html Teaching hegemony Article in handout: http://www.sociologysource.com/home/2010/9/27/teaching-hegemony.html Adjust your rubric to reflect emphasis on participation to encourage student voices Using autho ethnography to teach multiculturalism See handout http://naha1.edublogs.org/2008/03/07/auto-ethnography-an-empowering-methodology-for-educators/ Benefits of auto ethnography: students interact with culture, engages them in the disconnect between beliefs and actions, practice in self-reflection and awareness Auto ethnography material from NASPA 2011 Conference Workshop: Know Thyself: Using Autoethnography in a Multicultural Course , Henrietta Pichon, Northwestern State University LABOR

What does it mean to be a critical educator? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaTQ5g8Prog&feature=related “I entered the classroom with the conviction that it was crucial for me and every other student to be an active participant, not a passive consumer...education as the practice of freedom.... education that connects the will to know with the will to become. Learning is a place where paradise can be created.” hooks Sites for critical education Feminist classrooms Childrens’ literature Colleges and universities? 0:00-3:32 LABOR

Evaluation An email will be sent out with a short online evaluation form (or you can follow the link below) https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dGNVTHJzeFZScXQ5WlNoS2liTnU3MGc6MQ Thank you  LABOR