Innovating the teach-in to transform the faculty: Findings from a #blacklivesmatter teach-in

Abstract

College students across the U.S. have been mobilizing their campuses in exposing institutional racism, biases, and curriculum structures that have historically marginalized students of color. As a response to ongoing racial justice movements such as #BlackLivesMatter, we developed a new teach-in model with the aim of creating a transformative experience for faculty and students. Our teach-in challenged faculty to incorporate topics related to #BlackLivesMatter to the discipline-specific content of their course during the same one-week period; this was followed by a campus-wide town hall event. Framed by critical race theory with the goal of creating transformative learning for faculty, we sought to assess the impact of the teach-in from the perspective of teachers. Our findings indicated that our teach-in successfully created an opportunity for faculty to interrogate their curriculum, engage students in race discussions, and develop the knowledge and professional skills needed to tackle a more inclusive social justice curriculum.