After engaging in various conversations with many colleagues in the English as a second language (ESL) industry for several years in Toronto, I have learned that issues of social justice are minimally discussed in the classroom as a pedagogical tool. Many have experienced that in deed social justice work has been done in classes, but that sometimes we feel we should teach these issues more explicitly. I feel that sometimes educators forget to address issues of social justice because we focus too much on the linguistic aspects of teaching (grammar, pronunciation, writing, etc.) and not on the social side of education.

Many scholars agree that social justice is a term complicated to conceptualize. Though we may agree that teaching for or about social justice is the right thing to do, conceptual clarity on the notion is necessary. For the purposes of this article, I will use the definition given by Nieto and Bode (2008), who define social justice as a philosophy, an approach, and actions that embody treating all people with fairness, respect, dignity, and generosity. I believe we all do some of this in our classrooms already; it is just that we are not aware or do not always conceptualise the work within the frames of social justice. In other words, we get up every day and go to our schools to teach English, and we hope to create a learning environment that is just for all in the class. For example, we all give equal opportunities for students to participate in class, we prepare classes that are culturally relevant, and we understand students’ cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

Some ESL colleagues may argue that sometimes we teach critical and challenging topics. Unfortunately, there has not been a systematic way developed to address such topics because we are all busy and sometimes we simply do not have time. To organize a way to implement social justice work in our classes, I recommend using Picower’s (2012) six elements of social justice curriculum design. For the purposes of this article, I will only focus on the first element, which is called “self-love and knowledge.” Under this theme, teachers look at understanding the students, where they are from, and what their linguistic and cultural backgrounds are. Students primarily learn from culture, heritage, other languages, race, religion, and personal and family stories. Students learn about themselves, their own identities, and others. To promote this first element of social justice in the ESL classroom, I present two simple classroom activities.

Activity 1: This Is Me

Level A1 CEFR / CBL Level 3/4

Social justice work starts from the beginning of the academic year. Recognizing and validating students’ identities and background is a good way to welcome students in the classroom. “This Is Me” is a project that is simple but meaningful for students. Students use butcher paper, make a large hole in the middle, and write some words that best describe them. Students can use English or words from their home language. Afterward, they put their head in the hole and present in front of the class.

Example:

“My name is Santiago. I am a happy person, a bit ruidoso [noisy]. I am brave and amistoso [friendly]. I am also a boy who likes to have a lot of fun. But, sometimes I feel tired.”

Activity 2: Identity Portraits

Level A1/A2 CEFR/CBL Level 4/5

Students are “asked to use any medium (e.g., words, colours, pictures, cartoons, photographs, etc.) to represent the different elements of their sociocultural identities (such as language, religion, ethnicity, roles they played in society, etc.)” (Herath, 2015, p. 141). Students can draw, for example, a flag on the chest of a drawn silhouette to symbolise that their home is their heart and write the word friends in the head to mean that friends are always on their mind. Students can use this idea to make multimodal identity portraits, posters, videos, and spoken word poetry and share it with their friends, family, and the community.

Although I have used only one of Picower’s (2012) elements to exemplify how an ESL teacher can engage his or her students with more culturally relevant themes, I encourage teachers to keep learning and engaging in conversations about societal social inequalities. Teachers and students have experienced these inequalities, and we must provide the space to discuss them openly and carefully. We may find challenges and dissonance along the way, but I can assure you that the rewards of working together with students will eventually come. We want to foster critical students who use language to talk about social justice issues, students who make personal and community connections, and students who become more aware of the context that surrounds them—but, overall, students who will become better citizens to improve the quality of the communities in which they live. At the end of the day, social justice in ESL lies in our practice as teachers and the motivation and inspiration we provide to our students.

References

Herath, S. (2015). Teachers as transformative intellectuals in post-conflict reconciliation: A study of Sri Lankan language teachers' identities, experiences and perceptions (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.

Nieto, S., & Bode, P. (2008). Affirming diversity: The sociopolitical context of multicultural education (5th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Picower, B. (2012). Using their words: Six elements of social justice curriculum design for the elementary classroom. International Journal of Multicultural Education. 14(1). 1–17.

Yecid’s main research interests draw from critical ethnographic approaches in language teaching and learning. He explores how social justice juxtaposes with concepts of culture, race, linguistics, human rights, and gender equality in different language education programs (e.g., TESOL, EFL/ESL) in international contexts. For more information about social justice-inspired lessons for ESL visit andjustice4all.ca.