In this article, I share ways in which I have used the artworks of contemporary artists to encourage middle school students to reflect on the concepts of identity, diversity, and social justice. Specifically, I focus on the "Comfort Hair" series by Yuni Kim Lang, a Michigan-based Korean American artist, and a piece from the "Giant…

This reflective narrative explores two university professors and one preservice teacher's attempts to teach for social justice through justice-oriented children's literature in an introductory level education course. Situated in a predominantly White context, the teacher educators reflect on their experiences piloting Book to Art, an afterschool…

This paper explores student participation in dialogue in two sections of a master's level course in diversity and social justice. The researchers, including a student from the course and the instructor of the course, analyzed responses to a brief survey and transcripts from student focus groups. Three major themes relevant to students' attitudes…

Teaching diversity and social justice can be difficult when working with teacher candidates (TCs) from primarily homogenous areas, with little to no exposure to pluralistic realities. In multicultural classes, TCs often struggle to understand intersections of race, gender, orientation, socioeconomic levels, religion, ability, and citizenship. In…

This article describes a recent implementation of digital literacies in which high school literature students engaged in literary analysis of a novel using the video game Minecraft. Students who had previously expressed reluctance with reading and dissatisfaction with school experiences used their gaming skills to re-create scenes, respond to…

In a 2007 issue of "Multicultural Perspectives," Johnson and Nieto highlighted the need for more deliberate, robust, and balanced conversations regarding disability, especially within the context of multicultural education. Although researchers echo the importance of disability-based discussions and related curriculum, disability…

One of the learning goals for social justice education courses is to prepare students for social action engagement. Teaching students about issues related to social justice is complex. Prior studies have found a positive relationship between student enrollment in social justice education courses and action-oriented outcomes. While these findings…

As social justice-oriented teachers and teacher educators, it can seem as if we are fighting a losing battle against neoliberal education policies designed to disrupt and dismantle our field. In this article we draw upon traditions of critical race theory, counterstorying, and critical hope to examine the complex realities of contemporary teacher…

Using interview data collected from high school students who attended school in Broward County, Florida, this article focuses on how first- and second-generation adolescent Latinas understand citizenship. The author explores participants' citizenship formations using the conceptual frameworks of transnationalism and cultural dimensions of…

In this article, the author describes how he used photography to conceptualize social justice to a group of undergraduate students. As part of their final assessment, the students were required to take photographs that represented their understanding of social justice. The author believed that photography provided a rich way to understand student…

Immigration is making this country and schools increasingly diverse. An unfortunate consequence of this condition is prejudice, discrimination, and lack of understanding. The challenge for educators is to create learning opportunities that will allow students to gain understanding and appreciation of the differences among the people who are in…

The author came to the United States when she was seven years old from Amman, Jordan. She entered public school and within two years had mastered the language and excelled in school, as did all her siblings. When she was in the third grade her teacher told her she was spelling and pronouncing her name wrong. Her name is "Laila" and that is how it…

In this article, the author shares perspectives on "Brown v. Board of Education" that are not focused only on the immediate aftermath but range across the 50 years since. They are compilations of the perspectives and experiences of students and teachers of color more generally as they have navigated the "mazeways" of promises…