Critical inquiry is at the heart of critical pedagogies such as multiliteracies and social justice approaches (Hackman, 2005; New London Group 1996). Although many language teachers have embraced such approaches, implementing critical inquiry in the classroom can be difficult. For example, Wassell, Wesely & Glynn (2019) reported that multiple factors inhibit K-16 language teachers' ability to engage students in challenging conversations including fear of backlash, students' linguistic proficiency, and lack of time for curricular innovation. Additionally, Rowland et al. (2014) and Menke and Paesani (2019) reported that multiliteracies instructional materials underemphasized the framework's critical components, though the reason why remained unclear. This present study aims to deepen our understanding of how critical inquiry is carried out in language classes by answering the following research questions: What facilitates and constrains the implementation of critical inquiry? What experiences and resources support teachers' understanding of critical pedagogies?
This qualitative study examines the experiences of 4 postsecondary language instructors developing curricular units grounded in multiliteracies and social justice pedagogies. Data collected at various points of the curriculum development process include questionnaires, interviews, consultation meetings, group work sessions, and classroom observations. Using the lens of Sociocultural Theory (van Lier, 2004; Vygotsky, 1978) and multicycle descriptive coding (Saldaña, 2016), we analyze the mediational and environmental affordances and constraints that influence how instructors planned for critical inquiry in instruction as well as the tools and systems that supported their understanding of critical pedagogies and how to implement them. Preliminary findings suggest that multiple factors afford and constrain the implementation of critical inquiry in language education that are both individual (e.g., the instructors' interest in the topic, their [dis]comfort with conflict, pedagogical strategies, etc.) and contextual (e.g., adequate linguistic and conceptual scaffolding, institutional context, time, etc.). Among the tools and systems that supported instructors' conceptual understanding and implementation of critical inquiry are workshops and consultations with pedagogical experts, an iterative, reflective planning process, and peer collaboration. Implications for teacher professional development to support critical inquiry in language education will be discussed.
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Wassell, B. A., Wesely, P., & Glynn, C. (2019). Agents of change : Reimagining curriculum and instruction in world language classrooms through social justice education. Journal of Curriculum and Pedagogy, 16(3), 263–284. https://doi.org/10.1080/15505170.2019.1570399
