IN-PERSON MADRID FOCUS ON PEDAGOGY. SECTION A

Abstract

Currently in the United States (US), educators attempting any pedagogical work related to race, diversity, equity and inclusion are enduring massive roadblocks. State by state, there are different circumstances and challenges that impact teaching, and such variation makes it nearly impossible to offer a general way forward. Fortunately, there is a notable lineage of educators who have provided pedagogical frames that assert daily practices and habits that are attentive to who we and our students are as humans and our ability to connect. We can seek guidance from scholars like Paulo Freire, bell hooks, and Bettina Love and other strategic, thoughtful, and revolutionary educators as we work to activate pedagogical strategies that are antiracist and are attentive to the diversity of our nation. The focus of their pedagogies is on the development of the educator and their values, and the growth of their psyche as a human in an interdependent world. Built on the foundation of these ideals, the author of this presentation suggests Anti-racist Art Pedagogy and the four principles that undergird it- political clarity, protective care, deep connection and critical witnessing-as a way forward through DEI backlash in the US. This presentation will unpack and expound upon the four principles of Anti-racist Art Pedagogy so that educators understand the ways in which their daily practices and habits in the art classroom actualize antiracism and DEI, amid the bans on words, books, and curriculum.