1st Edition
Critical Race Theory and Classroom Practice
This edited book shows how critical race theory (CRT) can shape teacher practices in ways that improve educational outcomes for all children, especially those most marginalized in PreK-20 classrooms.
The volume bridges the gap between the theoretical foundations of critical race theory and its application in formal and informal learning environments. To promote an active and interdisciplinary engagement of critical race praxis, it illuminates the pedagogical possibilities of using CRT while explicitly addressing grade span-specific content area standards and skills. Each chapter explores how educators use a critical race theory lens to deepen student learning, teach honestly about racism and white supremacy, and actively prepare learners to equitably participate in a multiracial democracy.
Written for pre- and in-service teachers, teacher educators, and anti-racist community stakeholders, the text addresses the applicability of CRT as a pedagogical practice for PreK-20 educators seeking to meaningfully combat intersectional racial injustice and to create a more just democracy. This book is necessary reading for educators, and courses in Educational Foundations, Anti-Racist Education, Social Justice Education, Curriculum Studies, Educational Leadership, and Multicultural Education.
Introduction: Critical Race Theory, Classroom Practice, and Building a Just Future
Daniella Ann Cook and Nathaniel Bryan
Part I CRT Practices in Early Childhood and Elementary Classrooms
1. “We Make Some Woke Kids”: Using Critical Race Theory to Revolutionize the Elementary Curriculum
Benjamin Blaisdell, Tequila Powell, and Elizabeth Vail
2. America’s Long History of Racializing Epidemics: CRT Critique and Lesson for Elementary Classrooms
Sohyun An
Part II CRT Practices in Middle and Secondary Classrooms
3. Coloring in the Lines: Critical Race Possibilities for Civics in the Middle Level World History Classroom
Erica Kelley
4. Critical Race Theory in the Spanish Classroom
Rosemary Hendriks
5. Developing Racial Literacy through Critical Race English Education in Secondary English Language Arts Classrooms
Keith Newvine and Lamar Johnson
6. Teaching Science for Critical Race Consciousness and Counter-Storytelling
Manali J. Sheth
7. Centering the Histories, Experiences, and Narratives of Communities of Color Through a Social Studies Counternarrative: Within Secondary and Teacher Education
Oscar Navarro and Brian Woodward
8. Looking to the Past for a More Just Future: Black Mathematics Teacher Practices, Critical Race Theory, and the Secondary Mathematics Classroom
Jay Bradley, Toya Frank, Marvin G. Powell, and Jenice View
9. Testimonio Art as Critical Praxis: Embodied Counter-Storytelling in an Art Classroom
Injeong Yoon-Ramirez
Part III Implications of Informal Learning Spaces for Formal Classroom Spaces
10. From Out-of-School to In-School Learning Contexts: The Transformative Possibilities of Using CRT with Young Learners
Ronda Taylor Bullock and Daniel Kelvin Bullock
11. The Black Girl Gaze in Middle School Mathematics Spaces
Evan Taylor, Crystal Morton, and Imade Williams
12. Social Studies Teacher–Coaches Matter: Reading, Discussing, and Writing about Narratives on Race and Racism in Sport and Society
John N. Singer
Conclusion: From Bad Faith to Good Faith: An Altar Call to Teach Truth
Nathaniel Bryan and Daniella Ann Cook
Biography
Daniella Ann Cook is Associate Professor in the Department of Teacher Education (TE) at the University of South Carolina, USA.
Nathaniel Bryan is Associate Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Texas–Austin, USA.
"We have two educational choices—continuing deceiving our children with lies, omissions, and distortions, or facing up to the truth about racial inequalities in our society. They are persistent and they are systemic. Critical Race Theory and Classroom Practice is a volume willing to take on this important challenge."
Gloria Ladson-Billings, Professor Emerita, FBA
Department of Curriculum & InstructionImmediate Past President, National Academy of Education
2020-2021 Hagler Institute Fellow, Texas A&M University
Fellow, American Academy of Arts & Sciences
Fellow, The British Academy
Fellow, American Educational Research Association
“Cook and Bryan’s well conceptualized and brilliantly written edited book draws on Critical Race Theory to elucidate the liberatory practices of modern-day teachers and teacher educators who are teaching an honest curriculum. Given the current paranoia over discussions of race in many places across the country, this book provides essential knowledge about the critical importance of teaching about racism in today’s classrooms. This is the book we’ve been waiting for!”
Marvin Lynn, Dean & Professor, College of Education and Human Development University of Colorado Denver
“Through an incredibly diverse mix of scholars, this volume offers a strong representation of theoretically sound praxis for current and aspiring educators seeking to engage curriculum in racially just and socially responsible ways.”
Theodorea Regina Berry, Professor of Curriculum Studies, Department of Learning Sciences and Research, College of Community Innovation and Education, University of Central Florida
