While attention to antiracism, both in and out of the language classroom, has experienced a significant upswing (and backlash) in the United States since 2020, calls to incorporate the teaching of race and racism extend much farther back. Alda Blakeney published a touchstone article on antiracist pedagogy in 2005,^[1] and as early as 2001 Hugh Starkey and Audrey Osler explored the anti-racist dimensions of an upper-level online asynchronous French course.^[2] Antiracist pedagogy has roots within the sociological framework of Critical Theory;^[3] its distinguishing characteristic is that “it deals specifically and directly with the problem of racism.”^[4] The ideology of antiracist pedagogy is founded on awareness and comprehension of how race operates in society and the impact of racism.^[5] Furthermore, an antiracist educator must actively strive to reduce racial inequality through their actions and modes of expression.^[6] Blakeney argues that instructors require professional development in antiracist pedagogy that focuses on learning the ideology associated with the pedagogy, developing a racial identity, and developing the ability to use culturally responsive instruction.^[7]

Planning an antiracist unit or lesson involves identifying a theme and several essential questions before determining the antiracist takeaway and specific learning objectives. The essential questions should be open-ended and allow for thoughtful exploration while the antiracism takeaway is a statement or declaration of the key (antiracist) idea the unit is focused on.^[8] The takeaway and the learning objectives can focus on different dimensions of antiracism: personal, interpersonal, cultural/societal, curricular, institutional, or systemic/historical.^[9] Texts should be from, not just about, minoritized groups, and should not focus solely on victimization. Present diversity consistently throughout the course (not segregated into a separate unit) and strive for equal dignity and complexity in the presentation of all racial or ethnic groups. Finally, integrate the linguistic and cultural content so as to make explicit the connections between language, race, and sociohistorical context.^[10]

What are the challenges of implementing this pedagogy? Well, for starters you have to commit to explicitly discussing race. That seems obvious, but it is something many (White or non-minoritized) instructors shy away from, focusing instead on class or national origin. However, this has the effect of marginalizing the impact of race.^[11] Furthermore, antiracist pedagogy is a demanding approach. Teachers must be grounded in the ideology of recognizing and addressing issues of race and power, not just deploy a few isolated “difficult conversations” or texts from racial minorities, or it will remain superficial,^[12] perpetuating racism through a “one and done” approach.^[13] Starkey and Osler warn that superficial or misapplication could even be harmful: “Successful anti-racist teaching depends on a sensitive relationship between the materials and the teaching method. The materials are, of course, crucial. However, without an appropriate pedagogy, its exploitation may be limited in effect or even counterproductive.”^[14] We will be honest: this is an approach that we, personally, find intimidating to incorporate. We are still grappling with how to incorporate it into our own classrooms in an appropriate and principled way. In contrast to our general exhortation to get your feet wet and start exploring aspects of different critical approaches in your classroom, for this pedagogy we would recommend that you seek out further self-education (see the list of resources below) or training and ground yourself in the history and ideology of antiracism before beginning.

Resources

Anya, Uju. “Critical Race Pedagogy for More Effective and Inclusive World Language Teaching.” Applied Linguistics 42, no. 6 (2021): 1055-1069.

Blakeney, Alda M. “Antiracist Pedagogy: Definition, Theory, and Professional Development.” Journal of Curriculum and Pedagogy 2, no. 1 (2005): 119-132.

Hines-Gaither, Krishauna, and Cécile Accilien. The Antiracist World Language Classroom. Routledge, 2022.

Kubota, Ryuko, and Suhanthie Motha, eds. Race, Racism, and Antiracism in Language Education. Taylor & Francis, 2024.

Starkey, Hugh, and Audrey Osler. “Language Learning and Antiracism: Some Pedagogical Challenges.” The Curriculum Journal 12, no. 3 (2001): 313-345.

Villegas, Ana María, and Tamara Lucas. “Preparing Culturally Responsive Teachers: Rethinking the Curriculum.” Journal of Teacher Education 53, no. 1 (2002): 20-32.