Critical content knowledges in the English language arts classroom: examining practicing teachers' nuanced perspectives

ABSTRACT

Manifest in research, national policy, and instructional standards, the United States has a long-documented interest in teachers as ‘content experts.’ Yet, research offers limited empirical examinations of teachers’ discipline-specific critical content knowledges—their curricular agility in noticing and disrupting power and oppression, and working to promote empowerment, joy, and liberation. Accordingly, this study asks: what critical content knowledges are most prominent among social justice-oriented secondary English language arts (ELA) teachers, and how do teachers understand and describe these knowledges? Using collective case study methodologies, this study investigates interview data from five ELA teachers to understand participants’ critical content knowledges and their descriptions of these knowledges. Data were interpreted through deductive and inductive coding and analysis. Findings reveal that teachers’ most prominent critical content knowledges include a) knowledge of disciplinary critique; b) knowledge of marginalized identities; and c) knowledge of supplementary content. Limitations to teachers’ critical content knowledges include a narrow race and gender foci, and discursive avoidance of explicitly naming marginalized identities. Implications for future research aimed at better understanding, supporting, and expanding teachers’ critical content knowledges are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Content
• critical content knowledge
• pedagogical content knowledge
• SJPACK

Acknowledgments

We would like to acknowledge our deep appreciation for the teacher participants who contributed their time, expertise, and vulnerabilities to this study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Notes

1. The authors recognize the indelible links between language, power, and identity. In this paper, in direct quotations, we share terms as participants use them.

2. This interview occurred before multiple women accused Alexie of sexual misconduct. We are not advocating for teaching his works, but rather reporting data explaining a participant’s self-described instruction.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jeanne Dyches

Dr. Jeanne Dyches is an assistant professor at Iowa State University’s School of Education. A former high school English teacher and literacy coach, Dr. Dyches’ scholarship examines tensions and synergies between canonical curricula and critical pedagogies and applications of critical disciplinary literacies in secondary classrooms. Dr. Dyches’ scholarship has been published in journals such as Journal of Literacy Research, Harvard Educational Review, Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, Journal of Teacher Education, English Education, Urban Review, and Changing English. Her first book, Acts of Resistance: Subversive Teaching in the English Language Arts Classroom (Myers Press), co-edited with Drs. Brandon Sams (Iowa State) and Ashley Boyd (Washington State), was published in January 2020. Dr. Dyches was awarded the 2020 Critical Issues in Curriculum and Cultural Studies SIG's Early Career Award from the American Educational Research Association. Her current projects include developing and evaluating a critical canon pedagogy professional development model that helps ELA teachers learn about the histories and hegemonies of their discipline; analyzing students’ experiences reading Huck Finn through critical race theory lenses; and supporting teachers as they develop the discipline-specific knowledges and skills needed to teach “traditional” curricula in ways that acknowledge and challenge whiteness.

Ashley S. Boyd

Dr. Ashley S. Boyd is associate professor of English Education at Washington State University where she teaches graduate courses on critical and cultural theory and undergraduate courses on English Methods and Young Adult Literature. A former secondary English language arts teacher, Ashley’s current scholarship examines practicing teachers’ social justice pedagogies and their critical content knowledge and explores how young adult literature is an avenue for cultivating students’ critical literacies. Her books include: Social Justice Literacies in the English Classroom: Teaching Practice in Action (Teachers College Press), which analyzes case studies of practicing English teachers to identify specific pedagogic approaches for advancing equity both inside and outside of the classroom; and Reading for Action: Engaging Youth in Social Justice through Young Adult Literature (Rowman & Littlefield), co-authored with Dr. Janine Darragh (University of Idaho),  which offers myriad texts and pedagogies to encourage students toward social action. She is co-editor of Acts of Resistance: Subversive Teaching in the English Language Arts Classroom (Myers Press) and Possibilities in Practice: Social Justice Teaching in the Disciplines (Peter Lang).  She has also published in the Journal of Teacher Education, Teacher Education Quarterly, Educational Studies, the International Journal of Critical Pedagogy, and the ALAN Review. 

Jessica M. Schulz

Jessica M. Schulz is a Ph.D candidate in Higher Education at Iowa State University where their research focuses on interpersonal violence in higher education, critical consciousness, gender, and whiteness. Jessica, a former student affairs professional from California State University, Fresno, has taught at Des Moines Area Community College and Iowa State’s Women’s and Gender studies program. They have been published in the Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice and the Journal of Critical Thought and Praxis.