102083 - Diversity, Social Justice and Learning

Assessment 2: Part B

Name: Tony Dimrajian

SID: 19058173
Personal Reflection

Why is it important to implement social justice perspectives in your teaching

practice?

It is of substantial importance that teachers implement social justice perspectives in

their teaching practice. In order to create a safe and fair learning environment,

teachers have an instrumental role in ensuring students are aware of social justice

issues. It has been observed that the interests of students in learning about social

justice issues are limited to the issues where they needed not confront their own

complicity with oppression (Kumashiro, 2002, pp. 1-2). This highlights the

difficulties that students have in trying to understand the injustices that others from

different backgrounds suffer.

Diversity within the educational community can often be understood metaphorically

as the making up of an ‘unseen half’. The unseen half is a reference to the individuals

in schools who are made invisible by teaching practices (Ferfolja, Jones-Diaz, &

Ullman, 2015). Personal and cultural biases surrounding students from the unseen half

have a direct impact on their experience at school. For example, numerous LGBTQ

students have experienced circumstances where there has been pervasive

illegitimation around LGBTQ identities in their schools (Sauntson, 2016). The impact

of these biases leaves students in this minority at a disadvantage, as they are open to

experiencing particular types of poor treatment that others will not have to endure.
When considering the importance of implementing social justice perspectives in

teaching practice, another important aspect is the impact of power on learning

communities. Social theorist Michel Foucault argues that discourse is what constitutes

power, thus making it unstable and contextual (Ferfolja, Jones-Diaz, & Ullman,

2015). In considering social injustice, a formal understanding of the dominant

discourse and how it is shaped in Australia and on a global scale proves very useful.

Foucault had methodology aimed at showing how any period in history is made up of

disparate discourses (Felluga, 2015).

For example, with the Australian government’s stance still in opposition to same-sex

marriage, students and teachers of Australian schools are able to draw on this stance

and interpret that because the law forbids a legal union of two such people, they too

should oppose it. This in turn marginalises sexually diverse Australian students.

However, many other countries have come to legalise same-sex marriage which

would make the dominant discourse and way of thinking in such places to be overall

supportive of such sexual diversity, thus empowering their sexually diverse students.

What pedagogical theories would influence and enhance learning and teaching

and/or the student experience?

Teachers play a highly instrumental role in creating classroom and schoolyard

conditions that enhance learning, teaching and the student experience, and that are

able to foster success through anti-discriminatory pedagogical practices. One practice

could include giving the class tasks that involve researching and learning about
injustices to minority groups such as indigenous or sexually diverse individuals. This

learning can be weaved into classroom activities in different ways. For example,

when explaining a topic to students, teachers can discuss the beliefs of native

traditions with the class to combat indigenous stereotypes and immerse their students

in cultural knowledge, teachings and perspectives (McNally, 2004). Multicultural

pedagogy can be effective as it is inclusive of indigenous cultures. However, if

improperly implemented, reductive approaches that simplify indigenous culture to

dots and boomerangs can have negative repercussions on indigenous students

(Ferfolja, Jones-Diaz, & Ullman, 2015).

Part A of this assignment involved our class creating games that could be played in a

classroom setting to engage students and educate them on social injustices. My group

and I developed a snakes-and-ladders-styled board game called ‘Race of the Races’.

The game begins with each player drawing a character card at random which specifies

the different aspects of the person they are for the game including their gender,

sexuality, nationality, location and family support. Each player starts with an amount

of money that is based on how privileged or disadvantaged a character is. Such

characters as those who are indigenous or LGTBQ begin with less money and will

suffer more setbacks throughout the duration of the game. ‘Race of the Races’

therefore emphasizes the difficulties that are faced by disadvantaged individuals to

give students more clarity on what it is like to walk in the shoes of others. For

teachers to be effective with all learners, they should engage with issues of diversity

(Baldwin, Buchanan, & Rudisill, 2007). Pedagogy incorporating games of such nature

can influence and enhance teaching, learning and the student experience, and involve

the students in games that widen their perspectives about social justice issues.
How does/will your teaching practice address issues of equity and diversity?

Engaging students with social justice issues will ensure that students are aware of

others who are different from them, and that they have a deepened understanding of

the issues of equity and diversity. By considering the ‘Race of the Races’ game that

my group and I developed, the effectiveness of such teaching practices in addressing

such issues is made clearer. In this game, players who hold the cards of characters that

are from more disadvantaged backgrounds are far more likely to lose the game due to

the lessened starting balance of money they have to work with as well as the

abundance of drawback cards that focus on them.

There is also a game sheet explaining the reasoning behind the benefits of each

privilege and why disadvantages exist. For example, this sheet informs players that

sport provides the opportunity to increase social cohesion and is associated with a

reduction in mental health issues (Allen, 2003; Jewett et al., 2014). An explanation

behind the disadvantage females have in applying for jobs in a male-dominated field

includes how gender capital creates job opportunities or constraints on individuals and

how a stereotype threat among women in masculine fields may lead to negative job

attitudes and intentions to quit (Huppatz, & Goodwin, 2013; von Hippel,

Sekaquaptewa, & McFarlane, 2015). Having these explanations behind how issues of

equity and diversity exist makes tasks and games such as ‘Race of the Races’

particularly useful in educating students about social injustices. As a future teacher, I

will make sure that I treat all respectfully and provide a sense of awareness to the

class about social justice issues through applicable and effective pedagogical

practices.
Reference List

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