| dc.description.abstract | The
project
was
undertaken
in
order
to
gain
a
deeper
understanding
of
the
conceptual
and
practical
relationships
between
education
and
activism.
Of
particular
concern
is
how
teachers
perceive
this
landscape
from
social,
cultural,
political,
and
pedagogical
perspectives.
Underpinning
this
research
is
a
presupposition
that
education
has
the
potential
to
create
a
less
oppressive
and
more
socially
just
world.
Methodologically
informed
by
narrative
inquiry,
ten
participants
were
interviewed
using
a
semi-‐structured
interview
format
that
encouraged
story
telling.
The
approach
to
the
interviews
was
based
in
an
understanding
of
stories
as
fluid
and
organic
organisms.
Deleuze
and
Guattari’s
(1987)
notion
of
concepts
as
rhizomes
was
helpful
in
theorizing
this
approach.
Participants
were
encouraged
to
share
stories
of
their
experiences
as
activist
educators,
the
transcripts
of
each
were
parsed
for
relevant
stories,
following
McCormack’s
(2000a,
b)
multiple
lenses
approach,
and
then
curated
into
an
experience
narrative
for
each
participant.
Three
meaningful
rhizomes
were
discerned
from
the
body
of
experience
narratives.
Analysis
of
stories
indicated
that
activist
education
may
be
understood
as
socially,
politically,
and
pedagogically
oriented.
Social
elements
have
to
do
with
human
relations,
how
people
treat
each
other,
and
how
they
learn
these
ideas
through
education.
Political
elements
refer
to
normative
dimensions
of
activism
and
education:
what
decisions
should
be
made
in
order
to
live
well?
Who
should
be
included
in
making
these
decisions,
and
who
is
excluded?
Pedagogical
elements
reflect
the
importance
of
experiences
as
vehicles
for
learning,
and
the
potential
for
activism
to
be
a
source
of
rich
learning
experiences.
These
three
strands
are
not
strictly
independent,
but
rather
are intricately
intertwined,
and
even
chameleonic
at
times;
that
is
to
say
that
activist
education
may
be
social
at
one
moment,
but
transform
into
something
more
political
or
pedagogical
at
another
moment
according
to
the
needs
of
the
teachers
and
students
and
the
contexts
in
which
they
find
themselves.
The
findings
of
this
work
are
significant
both
for
teachers
who
identify
as
activist
educators,
teachers
who
do
not
immediately
see
themselves
as
activist
educators
but
who
are
interested
in
anti-‐oppressive
and
social
justice
education,
and
others
who
are
interested
in
social
justice
and
anti-‐oppressive
education.
The
stories
shared
by
the
ten
participants
in
this
research
illustrate
a
broad
range
of
activist
education
approaches
that
range
from
simple
and
politically
safe,
to
complex
and
politically
contentious.
Readers
of
the
participants’
stories
and
accompanying
theorizing
have
an
opportunity
to
better
understand
ways
that
education,
as
a
process
that
changes
students
and
teachers,
can
play
a
role
in
social
change
both
in
schools
and
the
societies
and
cultures
in
which
they
are
situated. | en_US |
