Critical Pedagogy in Us History Classrooms
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CRITICAL PEDAGOGY IN U.S. HISTORY CLASSROOMS: CONSCIENTIZATION AND CONTRADICTORY CONSCIOUSNESS Hillary Parkhouse A dissertation submitted to the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Education (Culture, Curriculum and Change). Chapel Hill 2016 Approved by: Xue Lan Rong Cheryl Bolick Ashley Boyd Suzanne Gulledge Jeremy Hilburn George Noblit © 2016 Hillary Parkhouse ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii ABSTRACT Hillary Parkhouse: Critical Pedagogy in U.S. History Classrooms: Conscientization and Contradictory Consciousness (Under the direction of Xue Lan Rong) Critical pedagogy has been a significant interest area for education researchers and practitioners over the past fifty years because of the promise it offers not only for more equitable, democratic, and student-centered education, but also for a more just world. Although there have been major theoretical contributions to the field of critical pedagogy, relatively little empirical research has been conducted on its use in K-12 classrooms. Furthermore, the research has tended to focus more on teachers’ dispositions and approaches than it has on students’ responses to critical pedagogy. This postcritical ethnography responds to these gaps in two ways: first, by exploring specific approaches to critical pedagogy in two 11th grade, urban U.S. History classrooms; and second, by integrating observational data with teacher and student interviews to illuminate how the teachers and students together resist traditional forms of schooling in the US. The findings suggest that the approaches used by teachers with a critical orientation included dialogue for dissent and for unfixing opinions, teaching oppression but pairing it with examples of resistance, and encouraging students to take action to address contemporary injustices. Students in these classrooms demonstrated critical consciousness related to racism and their definitions of citizenship. However, dominant ideologies such as meritocracy, individualism, American exceptionalism, and a belief in inevitable progress contributed to students’ contradictory consciousness related to sexism, capitalism, and neocolonialism. Furthermore, these ideologies compromised students’ determination to take political action to iii address the social injustices they identified. Although students were planning to vote, they did not express a desire to engage in more transformative resistance such as through collective direct action. The implications for critical pedagogy practice is that educators should pair their teaching about past civil rights violations and victories with lessons on the more subtle ways that social structures continue to subordinate women, immigrants, racial and sexual minorities, and many others. This extension of critical pedagogy, which would include lessons on the concepts of ideology and hegemony, may help students understand how contradictory consciousness is sustained and in turn sustains the dominant social order. iv This work is dedicated to the two teachers and fifty-three students who allowed me into their classrooms and generously shared their thoughts, concerns, and hopes with me. I learned as much from these two teachers as their students did—about reading the world, about effecting change, and about critical pedagogy grounded in love. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation would not have been possible without the support and guidance of my committee. George Noblit, the lessons I have learned from you are immeasurable—through theory group, through your individual support whenever I need it, and through many conversations over pad thai and shrimp-flavored chips. Cheryl Bolick, thank you for introducing me to the social studies research world and all of your great colleagues within it. Suzanne Gulledge, I am grateful for your constant encouragement and reassuring positivity. Jeremy Hilburn, you taught me everything I know. And you modeled (and still model) for me what an ideal mentor is—in giving your time, your thoughtful feedback, your reassurance, and your endearingly self-deprecating humor. Ashley, you defined true friendship and self-sacrifice in offering to be a reader when I know you had zero extra time. You are my personal and professional role model. And to Xue Lan Rong, my advisor, you have taught me how to be a scholar and have done everything in your power to ensure my success. I am grateful for your time, your honest guidance, and your genuine concern not just for my professional future, but also for my overall health and happiness. I will pay your generosity forward. My work would not be possible without the emotional and intellectual support of my friends at UNC. Summer, Alison, and Tim, my meta-four teammates, I hope in thirty years we are still so close that we make George shake his head in pretend bewilderment. Ariel, I hit the jackpot when I teamed up with you in Jocelyn’s class. Thanks for making all our GCTC work so fun. Stephanie, trying to keep up with your intellectual prowess has made me a better thinker; I also thank you for your devoted and selfless friendship. To Mandy, Anne and Dave, Eldrin, vi Fede, Matt, Melissa, Mariah, Betsy, Esme, Katy, and Sharon, thank you for your constant support and for accepting me in all my nerdiness. To my New York teacher friends, Kelly, Sarah, Nicole, Chad, and Elle, thank you for the much-needed support in those early years of teaching. To my family. Mom, you are the reason I am passionate about social justice, eager to learn as much as possible, and wary of wordy sentences. Thank you for the endless emotional and editorial support you have provided over the last five years (and all the years before that). Dad, thank you for reminding me how proud you are and for all the relaxing visits and nourishing dinners to sustain me through my doctoral work. Lo, you know there is no way to put into words how much I love you. I wouldn't be me without you. Whether you’re in Alaska, Nepal, or South America, I never feel far from you. Thank you for fulfilling my dream to have you as a roommate, for giving me confidence in everything I do, and for valuing my attempts to give you big sister advice even though I am usually the one receiving it from you. I am also grateful to my almost-family members: Susan and Alyssa. Susan, I became a different person through our four years as roommates and twelve more as best friends. You helped me become more self-assured, outgoing, and less of a worrywart. Thank you for finding my ideal place to live and being a big reason my life is so good. My Lyssa, you are like a sister to me, only with a more similar brain and personality to my own. I am thankful for the love I can still feel from you even when you are gone for months in Jordan, Liberia, or Pohnpei. And to Thomas. Our friends may tease us for sharing a dropbox folder of critical theory readings, but I just feel lucky to have someone I can share all parts of my life with. You inspire me with the passion, precision, and focus you put into your own research on the uneven distribution of power and human flourishing. I look forward to spending the rest of my life learning from you and watching you teach our son how to make the world better. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................... xiii LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................. xiv LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS .................................................................................................. .xv CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW OF STUDY ........................................... 1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 Research Questions ......................................................................................................... 3 Outline of the Dissertation ............................................................................................... 3 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ................... 5 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 5 Origins of Critical Theory: Marx and His Followers ...................................................... 6 Culture and Consciousness: The Frankfurt School and Gramsci .................................. 10 Hegemony .......................................................................................................... 12 Progressive and regressive hegemony ............................................................... 13 Hegemony and Resistance in Schools ........................................................................... 14 Intellectual Movements with Influences on and from Critical Theory ......................... 16 Critical Race Theory .......................................................................................... 16 Critical feminisms ............................................................................................. 17 Postcolonial theory ............................................................................................ 18 Critical Pedagogy: The Theory ..................................................................................... 19 Origins and aims of critical pedagogy ..............................................................