Elective course open to students in other doctoral programs

Doctoral students who wish to learn facilitation skills for courses addressing power, privilege, and social justice may be interested in this course: SK718S: Social Justice Pedagogy. The course might also be of interest to masters students who are already active in social justice learning, activism and/or community work. This course will be offered in the Fall Term on Tuesdays from 1:30p.m. – 4:20 p.m.

Location: Faculty of Social Work, 120 Duke Street W, Kitchener

Description: Undergraduate and graduate social work curriculum often deals explicitly with issues of privilege, power, and specific forms of individual, structural and state oppression and marginalization.  Teaching and facilitating social justice content carries with it unique pedagogical challenges that require intentional and relational pedagogical approaches.  This course will include an exploration of theoretical, empirical and practice scholarship on teaching social justice material, and experiential learning opportunities. The course will function as a space in which to examine and experience the concepts and practices involved in social justice pedagogy/facilitation.

Learning outcomes

• Illustrate an understanding of key concepts in the interdisciplinary scholarly literature related to teaching about power, privilege ,marginalization and oppression.
• Understand the various ways that power operates in classrooms between and among diverse students and instructor
• Practice teaching and facilitating social justice content about such issues as decolonization, gender violence, racism, heteronormativity and other axes of social marginalization.
• Demonstrate awareness of areas needed for further learning and growth.

The course will be taught by Shoshana Pollack. Please contact Pollack (spollack@wlu.ca) if you have any questions.

Students from outside the Faculty of Social Work who wish to take the course need to complete the relevant sections of the Graduate Program Change Request form and obtain permissions from Pollack and their program’s Graduate Coordinator.