Ferguson Teacher of the Year 2016

Colonizing the Classroom

Authors

  • Jennifer Hernandez Southern Illinois University

Keywords:

culturally responsive pedagogy, socially just education, colonization, trauma informed practice, Michael Brown Ferguson

Abstract

In the aftermath of Michael Brown’s murder in Ferguson, Missouri, the author deconstructs the Ferguson-Florissant School District’s response to the community in crisis and the policies enacted through a colonizer-colonized lens, coupled with ramifications resulting in a cultural mismatch in education and law enforcement. This article reviews the teacher-student dynamics resulting from the 2018–19 Ferguson Teacher of the Year award for Lindsay Williams, a fourth-grade teacher who decided that her students should make care packages for the police in Ferguson four short years after the uprising from which the community is still healing.

Author Biography

Jennifer Hernandez, Southern Illinois University

Assistant Professor, Teaching and Learning

Secondary Programs

Social Justice Issues in Education

Additional Files

Published

2020-04-20

How to Cite

Hernandez, J. (2020). Ferguson Teacher of the Year 2016: Colonizing the Classroom. Understanding and Dismantling Privilege, 10(1), 105–116. Retrieved from https://wpcjournal.com/article/view/19641

Issue

Vol. 10 No. 1 (2020): Understanding & Dismantling Privilege

Section

Creative Works & Self-Reflections

License

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