goal of social justice schooling = ambitious and elusive in field of educational leadership, this...
TRANSCRIPT
Goal of social justice schooling = ambitious
and elusive
In field of educational leadership, this goal is
widely espoused and haltingly pursued
Problem: the requisite learning to pursue goal
is underexamined
Pursuing social justice = developmental process,
namely a learning process
Social learning theory can help scholars and
practitioners pursue socially just schooling
One strand of social learning theory, communities
of practice = powerful tool for analyzing
organizational learning within schools, particularly
those ostensibly learning to move toward social
justice
How do communities of practice affect learning amongst educators in an aspirant socially just school
community?
COMMUNITY:Mutual
Engagement
DOMAIN:Joint Enterprise
PRACTICE:Shared Repertoire
“who” “what” “how”
COMMUNITY:Mutual
Engagement
DOMAIN:Joint Enterprise
PRACTICE:Shared Repertoire
“who” “what” “how”
Sustained mutual relationships
An effective grapevine
Specific tools, artifacts, representations
Harmonious or conflictual
Absence of introductory preambles
Lore, shared stories, inside jokes
Shared ways of doing things together
Quick setup of a problem to be discussed
Jargon and shortcuts to communication
Mutually defining identities and mission
Collective and local processes of interpretation
Shared discourse reflecting a certain perspective on the world
Case Study
Qualitative methodologiesSemi-structured interviews with 21
educators30 hours in formal observationsArchival data
Demographic dataStudent attendance and academic recordsHistory, mission/vision, strategic planning
materials
Mission: “Provide students from diverse family, financial and cultural backgrounds” an education that develops their “spiritual, academic, social, physical and personal integrity”
Faculty
Administration
Staff
School Board
How do communities of practice affect learning amongst educators in
an aspirant socially just school community?
Issue: Growing population of linguistically diverse students
When I was working in the library a parent came in [to the school office] to look into registering her child. And somebody made an announcement over the PA that we had a Spanish speaking family. “Does anybody in the school speak Spanish?!” So then I got back to them and said, “I speak Spanish.” So then the word was out (laughing)! Then that family registered… Every year since we've had more and more Hispanics in because now they realize that there's somebody here who can assist them.
- Ms. Lopez
Communicating with
the growing Latino
Population
First Ms.
Lopez…
New materials, policies, PD
Designed
Emergent
Increase teachers’ efficacy educating culturally and linguistically diverse students
Congruent
Communicating with
the growing Latino
Population
First Ms.
Lopez…
New materials, policies,
practices
Alternate learning:
embracing this
population
Coherent theories of action through which schools actually move from theory to practice
Theory: Learning is not designed directly, but can be “designed for.”
Socially just schooling is not designed per se. Rather, educators can design for such schooling by recognizing the role communities of practice play as fields of this learning, and by supporting these communities of practice to promote transformational learning.
From focusing on structures that promote social justice, to focusing on requisite learning beneath the structures:
This learning is sociocultural, occurring within and across communities of practice (who/what/how)
Examining learning within and across communities of practice can support efforts of educational leaders to design for learning social justice
Communities of practice can facilitate or frustrate the specific learning that promotes social justice
- Thoughts about the conclusions?
- Thoughts about the case of St. Malachy?
- How does this apply to your work?
Martin Scanlan [email protected]