Summary
Through a Spencer-funded research project, 14 social studies teachers from the Midwest and 3 teacher educators collaborated with the goal of enhancing teachers’ racially literate curriculum making in the social studies. The eighteen-month endeavor draws from the international GeoCapabilities project and the recent book “Race, Racism and the Geography Curriculum” (Morgan & Lambert, 2023).
This session will summarize what was learned about racial literacy in geography teaching and about expanding teacher and student capabilities in the current political climate. Session participants will explore conceptual and practical tools, including sample curriculum artifacts and vignettes developed by geography teachers. By the end of the session, it is hoped that participants have a vision for how they might adapt and adopt the presented tools for contexts ranging from secondary geography classrooms to initial teacher preparation.
Session Focus
All Grade Levels | Curriculum and Instruction | Racial literacy, Curriculum-making, Teacher-agency
Conference Room
Lewis
Meet the Presenters
Kelly León is an Assistant Professor of Social Studies Education at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay (UWGB). Prior to moving to UWGB, she worked for nineteen years as a social studies teacher in a large urban school district in southern California. She led efforts to reconceptualize and update her district’s required 9th grade human geography course and also taught human geography for many years. Kelly completed her undergraduate degree, bilingual teaching credential, and M.E.d in Policy Studies in Language & Cross-Cultural Education at San Diego State University and her PhD in Education for Social Justice at the University of San Diego. Kelly is passionate about the role geography can play in a young person’s education and issues related to educational justice.
