Nothing Never Happens

The University of California San Diego is on Kumeyaay land. The chancellor’s house is on an indigenous burial ground. How do universities move beyond guilt and toward a rematriation of the land? How do we teach, and train teachers, in these places with such violent history? How do we live and teach sustainably on this … Continue reading "A Third University Is Always Happening: A Conversation with...

Prof. Shirley Steinberg speaks with us amid a global pandemic. For some of us, this pandemic has exposed what we already new about neoliberal higher education: the proliferation of the banking model of education, top-down power relations, undemocratic classrooms and departments, etc. In her work in critical pedagogy, Steinberg has long been challenging and resisting the … Continue reading "Te...

In Act 2 of our April podcast, Shirley Steinberg talks further about the Freirean foundations of her education theory and practice. She calls on teachers and students to live out righteous indignation in our educational systems and how to create resistance and change. “We have to be in stealth,” says Steinberg, and shed light on how … Continue reading "Righteous Indignation for Change: A Conv...

“Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.” — Frederick Douglass In Part Two Scott describes ways of integrating the community (university, city, state, nation) with the classroom. Students are citizens, with power, who have the knowledge and tools to change public policy. Students determine the issues they want to … Continue reading "Educating for Democracy: A Conve...

Our March 2020 episode features Scott Myers-Lipton from San Jose State. We talk about sustainable and just community engagement. The post Teaching Change: A Conversation with Scott Myers-Lipton appeared first on Nothing Never Happens .

The post The Practice of Transforming Power: A Conversation with Beth Corrie, Act 2 appeared first on Nothing Never Happens .

Act 1, Young People as Citizens Tina and Lucia speak to Dr. Beth Corrie, Associate Professor in the Practice of Youth Education and Peacebuilding and Director of the Youth Theological Initiative (2007-2019) at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University. We talk about her transformational work on the page and the classroom and in mentoring … Continue reading "Young People as Citizens:...

“Philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways; the point is to change it.” Karl Marx In Part Two Randy Stoecker takes us further into his understanding of community-based research as critical pedagogy. He offers a challenge to the “careerism” approach that is plaguing many institutions of higher education. Using participatory action research and … Continue reading "Changing How the...

Liberating Service Learning, Act 1   For this January 2020 podcast, Lucia and Tina spoke with Randy Stoecker, Professor in the Department of Community and Environmental Sociology at the University of Wisconsin, with a joint appointment in the Center for Community and Economic Development. Stoecker works in two spheres, the university and its extension program. Some … Continue reading "Li...

In Part Two we talk more with Angela about her place-based pedagogy in Hawai’i. Angela describes her pedagogical approach for her intensive course: “This land-based intensive class is grounded in the engaged theory of bell hooks, and structured in Parker Palmer’s knowing, being, and doing framework. The classrooms’ radical space of possibility expands to encompass … Continue reading "Decolonizing...

The Radical Space of Possibility, Act 1 “The classroom remains the most radical space of possibility in the academy.”—bell hooks Ua Mau ke Ea o ka ‘Āina i ka Pono (The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness) (quotes from Dr. Angela Yarber’s “Holy Women Icons: Embodied Ecofeminism and the Arts” syllabus for a … Continue reading "The Radical Space of Possibility: A Conversation with Angela...

Participatory democracy requires students who are able to transform their knowledge to solve problems in community (The Algebra Project is one example). Apple examines the keywords of democracy, power, and freedom and the need of educators to reassert their control over these words. Apple is optimistic that educators, in collaboration with unions and grassroots movements … Continue reading "What D...

Michael W. Apple is the John Bascom Professor of Curriculum & Instruction & Educational Policy Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (1970-2018). He is the author and editor of over 50 books and the advisor of 119 doctoral students. His influence on global critical pedagogy and inclusive curriculum studies (in particular, a critique of “official … Continue reading "The Challenges...

In the forward to their book, Reading the Rainbow, Mariana Souto-Manning asks, “Will you commit to justice in and through your teaching?” Jill and Caitlin challenge teachers at all levels to expand our own lgbtq literacy into our curriculum and pedagogical commitments. They discuss the uses of literature in creating inclusive classrooms through the use … Continue reading "Creating Equitable Classr...

Caitlin Ryan with Jill Hermann-Wilmarth Reading the Rainbow, Act 1   Jill M. Hermann-Wilmarth (PhD UGA) is Professor of Social Foundations at Western Michigan State University in the Department of Teaching, Learning, and Educational Studies. Full disclosure: Jill majored in Religious Studies at Agnes Scott College, where she did a Directed Reading course in Paulo … Continue reading "Reading t...

The impossible demand involves demanding the impossible—studying what freedom educators from Ella Baker to Christopher Emdin do to create a model for restorative justice in education. Love believes, “You can’t have liberation without queerness,” and it is queerness that allows us to push what society says is normal and do the work of freedom dreaming. … Continue reading "The Impossible Demand: Bet...

Act 1: Mattering Pedagogy Dr. Bettina Love is Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Theory & Practice (Early Childhood, Elementary Education) in the College of Education at the University of Georgia. Love is the creator of “Get Free: Hip Hop Civics Education” [http://getfreehiphopcivics.com/], and is the author of Hip Hop Li’l Sistas Speak: Negotiating … Continue reading "Abolit...

In Part Two Antonia Darder discusses the use of art and poetry in her engaged pedagogy. She raises key questions for talking about critical pedagogies and rethinking oppressive educational systems. What does an emancipatory pedagogy look like and how do we create the spaces to dream with our students? Outro music is by Paul Myhre, … Continue reading "The Courage to Engage: A Conversation with Anto...

The Courage to Engage, Act 1 Dr. Antonia Darder is the Leavey Presidential Endowed Chair in Ethics and Moral Leadership in the School of Education at Loyola Marymount University and Professor Emerita of Educational Policy, Organization, and Leadership at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and Distinguished Visiting Faculty at the University of Johannesburg. Prof. … Continue reading "T...

Justice work requires reflection and resiliency. In Part Two Gordon asks the question: where does religion stand?—on the side of the status quo or the people most effected by injustice? He sees social change as a spiritual activity, and one that makes religion a force of unity in justice work. This activity means showing up … Continue reading "Speaking Truth to Power: A Conversation with Gordon Wh...

Organizing for a Just World, Act 1 This July 2019 podcast is a conversation with Gordon Whitman, senior advisor of the interfaith group Faith in Action: Building a People-Powered Movement (formerly PICO National Network; https://faithinaction.org). He has a B.A. in history and urban studies and a law degree from Harvard Law School. Gordon did his … Continue reading "Organizing for a Just World: A...

In Part 2 of this conversation, share with us their strategies for creating open and democratic spaces in the classroom through specific games and other techniques such as storytelling, poetry, and the arts. They share their joy at being surprised at the creative innovation of their students, whether in k-2, university level, or k-12 teachers. … Continue reading "Rehearsing a Different Pedagogy: A...

Rehearsing a Different Pedagogy, Act 1 Misha Cahnmann-Taylor and Mariana Souto-Manning are “rehearsing for the revolution” (Augusto Boal’s term) in their creative teaching. In Part One of this podcast they share with us their stories of using theatre “as a way to train new teachers, and ourselves,” as well as create democratic spaces in classrooms … Continue reading "Teachers Act Up! A conversatio...

For the May 2019 podcast we welcome Jerome Scott, co-founder of Project South: Institute for the Elimination of Poverty and Genocide (f. 1986). Jerome visited my REL/EDU 385: Religion, Education, and Activism class in April and told his story of what led him to become an activist/scholar educator. He shared about his work in voting … Continue reading "Jerome Scott: Organizing for the Future" The p...

In Part 2 of our conversation Martusewicz moves from root metaphors and their destructive, patriarchal force. With Wendell Berry she shows us how to write a better story to create a different world. For example, she discusses her pedagogical style of having a conversation with her students about how to teach a subject (such as, … Continue reading "“Can critical pedagogy be greened?” : A Conversati...