Culture and Power in the Classroom: A Critical Foundation for Bicultural Education

by Antonia Darder

In this work, Antonia Darder draws upon the writings of Brazilian philosopher Paulo Freire and American theorist Henry Giroux to provide a detailed look at the education of subordinate cultural groups in the United States, and the impact of dominant cultural forces on the lives of students from disenfranchised communities. Darder confronts the cultural values and practices that serve to marginalize black, Latino, Asian, and other bicultural students, and offers a set of theoretical principles from which to develop a critical practice of bicultural education. By expanding the dialogue with respect to bicultural education, Darder provides classroom teachers with a critical theoretical perspective by which they can evaluate their current practices with bicultural students. The book introduces the principles of a culturally democratic vision of schooling that both challenges the pluralistic notions of multicultural approaches, and also represents something of a political project, dedicated to securing the societal participation of communities and groups that historically have been excluded from the mainstream of American life. The work concludes with a practical study of bicultural education. This unique work will be an important resource for teachers, education students, and educational researchers, as well as a valuable addition to college and university libraries.

Genres: Education, Nonfiction

192 pages, Paperback

First published November 30, 1991

Reviews

[Ekaete · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked up this book from a thrift store several months ago and I finally got to reading it. It easily ranks as one of my favorite reads of 2017! In "Culture and Power in the Classroom: A Critical Foundation for Bicultural Education," Antonia Darder gives a highly academic, thoroughly thoughtful exposé on the definition, function, and dynamics of culture both inside and outside of the classroom and how the dynamics of culture manifest for the bicultural student and the bicultural educator. She also shows the various ways a bicultural student and a bicultural teacher attempt to reconcile their various cultures as they try to navigate the dominant culture, especially in the classroom. With consistent references to academic materia, Darder provides an astute evaluation of how the public school system has disenfranchised marginalized people groups, how teachers (both white and bicultural) can and have aided in the marginalization of bicultural students, and how both conservative politics and liberal politics have aided in this unfortunate occurrence. She also demonstrates the ways in which educators who are about the emancipatory business of reforming the educational system can do so more effectively. Towards the end of the book, Darder demonstrates how the ideas in this book have been used to create the Bicultural Development Program at Pacific Oaks College in Southern California, a curriculum "focused on preparing educators to meet effectively the pedagogical needs of bicultural students" (page 129) and she gives excerpts of various student reflections from the college program and their growth in the classes.

One thing I observed most was how a lot of the political concepts in the book were published in the 70's and 80's. A couple of these concepts include institutional racism and the idea that you can be a person of color who reinforces the dominant culture. With these things resurfacing in current political discourse, the misconception, especially among a number of people on the right, is that these concepts are new trend that the left randomly decided to co-opt. On the contrary, these are well-documented phenomena that have been recorded in academia for decades. And despite the time difference, its reality in our current day is very much still real and present.

As a multicultural person and an educator, it is no surprise that I thoroughly enjoyed this book and saw pieces of myself scattered all over this book's pages. It affirmed me, empowered me, and inspired me to be cognizant of ways in which the institution I teach at embodies the emancipatory goals in this book and also demonstrates room for improvement. If you are an educator or a student of color, I especially recommend the book to you. But honestly, I believe everyone, no matter their walk of life, should read it. And more importantly, that this book drives those who are willing to take action.