The Necessity of Feminist Pedagogy in a Climate of Political Backlash

Abstract

After decades of increasing efforts toward creating multicultural education in the United States, criticism and hostility from white conservatives has created a climate of backlash against the variety of efforts designed to create equity in the classroom. Both Freirean and feminist pedagogies advocate a more just society and personal empowerment by promoting inquiry into individual and collective experiences. As an evolving teaching methodology that is influenced by those who practice it, feminist pedagogy is an essential tool both to deconstruct and to make meaning of the current manifestations of inequality in U.S. society. It provides educators with the means to help students integrate emotional responses to social injustices with cognitive learning. Given the current climate, feminist pedagogy is essential to promoting critical thinking and reflection that leads to transformative learning, student empowerment, and collective action.