Cassandra L. McKay

Bio: Cassandra L. McKay is an academic researcher. The author has contributed to research in topics: Ideology & Social pedagogy. The author has an hindex of 1, co-authored 1 publications receiving 27 citations.

Community Education and Critical Race Praxis: The Power of Voice.

Abstract: In a society, which ostensibly promotes homogeneity, it is easy to consider adult education simply in terms of skills and activities (Ferdman, 1990). Yet adult education around the world (e.g., Brazil, Cuba, Nigeria, Ghana, and Guinea- Bissau) has been venues for consciousness raising aimed at human liberation (Ladson-Billings, 1994). Moreover, beyond the formal classroom and closer to home, African American community education may provide adults a space to counter the master narrative, recover silenced consciousness and "facilitate their ability to articulate what they do and think about in order to provide a foundation for autonomous action" (Fasheh, 1990 p. 26). Within the field of education, the master narrative is affiliated with the process of assimilation which is imposed upon learners of color, requiring conformity to the status quo and silencing a diversity of knowledge and opinion. The master narrative is conveyed via stereotypes, communique, and ideology which objectify persons of color as inherently weak, devoid of power and voice, and incapable of positively contributing to the larger society (Aguirre, 2005). African American community education can act as a vehicle by which to interrogate these master narratives. Further, this type of adult education empowers learners to gain skills to assess the social and political contradictions and injustices of society, and assert action in addressing those contradictions and injustices. Education ceases to be solely for individual advancement, but "it becomes an interactive process that is constantly redefined and renegotiated, as the individual transacts with the socioculturally fluid surroundings" (Ferdman, 1990 p.187). Once new ways of seeing the world are learned and acted upon, it is from this adult population that emerge resistance to and transformation of societal structures (Welton, 1987 as cited in Mayo, 1999). This type of educational experience mirrors Paulo Freire's work with Brazilian disenfranchised poor. Freire's work not only encouraged adults to acquire knowledge and skills in order to navigate a growing literate world but he also encouraged a type of community education that was situated in the societal concerns of the learner's community. Moreover, resolutions for these concerns were located within the same community. Utilizing a critical pedagogical model, Freire encouraged: * social action by the learner against those oppressive elements that impact the civil liberation of people, * the learner to question the status quo, and * employment of the learner's voice in articulating reflection and liberatory social action. (Friere, 2000) Critical pedagogy is an instructional approach to teaching that employs a theoretical framework by which social injustices (e.g., discriminatory practices based on class, or race or gender or privilege--indeed any systematic form of oppression) are critiqued. Subsequently, the learner's life experiences and new uncovered knowledge are engaged in order to generate individual and societal transformation. The model mandates that the instructor take risks to address the unjust dominant themes and practices within society via reflective and action-oriented instruction. This type of pedagogy encourages the learner to critique obstructions to the learner's full participation in society (e.g. labor exploitation, economic stratification, and social marginalization), and encourages critical collective action, through the engagement of the learner's experiential knowledge and social agency. Critical pedagogy, however, falls flat in addressing racially oppressive practices due to its shortsightedness on the intersectionality of race and class. In response to this shortsightedness, Critical Race Theory emerged to address specific social, political, educational, and economic concerns of race (Ladson-Billings, 1997). When critical pedagogy and critical race theory (CRT) act in concert, adult education gives stage to the voice of the learner. …

Social Justice Leadership as Praxis: Developing Capacities Through Preparation Programs

Abstract: Purpose: The purpose of this article is to propose a conceptual framework for social justice leadership as praxis and to explore the implications of this framework for leadership preparation progra...

Student Teaching Experience in Diverse Settings, White Racial Identity Development and Teacher Efficacy

Abstract: This study examined how diversity of field placement affected White student teachers’ White racial identity (WRI) development, and the relationship between WRI and teacher efficacy. There was no change in WRI development regardless of placement; however, as the percentage of students of color in the placement increased, two subscales (instructional strategies, classroom management) of the Teacher Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES) decreased. A negative correlation existed between WRI (Pseudo-Independence and Contact subscales of the White Racial Consciousness Development Scale-Revised) and subscales of the TSES. Results indicate that teacher preparation programs critically examine Whiteness and WRI as a construct.

Toward A Multidimensional Framework: Exploring The Constructed Identities And Pedagogical Styles Of Black Male Kindergarten Teachers In The South

Abstract: Given the one-dimensional, essentialist view of Black male teachers as social change agents (i.e., role models and father-figures) (Brown, 2012; Rezai-Rashti, 2008), the purpose of this study was to examine the identities, the ability to support Black male students' success, and pedagogical styles of Black male kindergarten teachers in the South. Using a multidimensional conceptual framework including Black masculinity, study captured counterstories of culturally relevant Black male kindergarten teachers. The counterstories were used as a methodological tool to convey major themes which demonstrated Black male kindergarten teachers' ability to positively influence Black male kindergarteners academically using culturally relevant teaching. Findings revealed that Black male kindergarten teachers perceived themselves to be fictive brothers/fathers who fostered collaboration and built solidarity with the Black community to academically and socially support Black male kindergarteners in early childhood classrooms. Black male kindergarten teachers were also found to be pedagogues of culturally relevant classroom management practices. Black male kindergartners reported that their Black male teachers used hip-hop, sports, and mathematics literacies as instructional approaches. Black family members perceived Black male kindergarten teachers as Role Models who represented positive images of Black manhood for their Black male kindergarteners. They also regarded Black male

Afrocentric Curriculum: A Paradigm for Healing and Education

Abstract: As a result of the plight of some African-American men, changes are needed to improve the US mental health system’s curriculum and practices in order to produce sustainable positive outcomes culturally-relevant therapy is key to addressing the needs of this under serviced population. Afrocentric psychotherapy provides one promising culturally relevant framework to address the needs of African-American men clinically. The purpose of this study was to explore and observe a culturally-relevant curriculum in action and, more specifically, to document perceived affects derived from using an Afrocentric curriculum with African-American men in therapy through a series of indepth interviews and observations. The participants included eight African-American men who were active or had successfully completed Afrocentric therapy at a center in a large metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States as well as two therapists. Four concepts emerged from this study: African Consciousness or Black Consciousness, WE or Group Self-Awareness, Spirituality as a Therapeutic Process, and Ontology of Selfhatred and Internalized Racism. Therefore, the use of Afrocentric curriculum in the therapeutic setting is critical in helping African-American men to be keenly aware of self, culture, self-hatred, and the history of their oppression, which is essential for success.