(Name-mce) ListServ Call for Papers - Practitioner Research on Multicultural Education; Due: Dec. 1, 2006

[Francisco Rios]

Please post freely and circulate!

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Practitioner Research on Multicultural Education
Invitation to Submit/Call for Papers for Special Issue
 
This special issue of Multicultural Perspectives will feature practitioner
research focused on issues of multicultural education, diversity, and social
justice.  
 
As guest editors and former K-12 teachers, we suspect that all serious and
committed multicultural educators question their work, investigate and
experiment with new curriculum materials and pedagogies, and trade fresh
ideas and accounts of their practice in conversations with others. Thinking
deeply about teaching is simply something that all good teachers do. Now
teaching multicultural education courses at universities, we continue to ask
ourselves questions like, ³What happens when I try this new approach in my
class?² or ³What are my students really learning?² and ³How can I best use
these materials in my classroom?² or ³What can we do as a department to
provide a more inclusive and inviting environment for all students?²   And,
we continue to share our dilemmas of practice with colleagues in multiple
communities.
 
Based on our attendance at recent NAME conferences, we know that a growing
number of NAME members and readers of Multicultural Perspectives are taking
their conversations about teaching to deeper levels by conducting
practitioner research and then sharing their stories with broader audiences
via conference presentations.  Increasingly, in more localized settings,
various forms of teacher research are formally recognized as self-directed
professional development by states and school districts, used as criteria in
some districts¹ evaluations of teachers, or shared with other teachers via
school or district web sites (For example, see
http://www.madison.k12.wi.us/sod/car/carhomepage.html), inservice
activities, or informal teacher study groups.
 
However, too often, practitioner/action/teacher research on multicultural
education serves as professional development in limited circles but fails to
add to the growing knowledge bases that guide the field. This is especially
problematic in multicultural education since contextually situated and
diverse perspectives, grounded in empirical data, could provide valuable
information for other practitioners (teachers, counselors, teacher
educators, etc.) and, in turn, might inform further research, development,
or critique of pedagogical practices, curricular perspectives, and education
policy.  For example, sharing practitioner research that illustrates
culturally responsive ways to meet the stated aims of federal initiatives
(like the No Child Left Behind Act), instead of in ways that devalue or
ignore the funds of knowledge and cultural capital of children and their
families and communities, is particularly important during this time of
encroaching standardization and oppressive assessment.  We also believe that
studying one¹s own practice and sharing the resulting stories is critical
for educators striving to enact more just and equitable practices, infuse
multicultural approaches, or interrogate policies in their schools, in part,
because these stories aren¹t as readily available in many mainstream venues.
In this special issue, we seek to publish practitioner research on
multicultural education to both negate the pervasive ³neglect of the
knowledge educators generate in enacting and studying their own practiceŠ²
(Zeichner & Noffke, p. 298, 2001) and to make this knowledge readily
available for use, further critique, and continuing dialogue. This is the
aim of this call for papers.
 
We are interested in contributions from K-12 practitioners and other
educators who employ practitioner research/self study/action
research/teacher research methods to better understand or change practices,
create knowledge, and/or examine, critique, or change policies associated
with multicultural education in their settings of practice.  For example,
submissions may describe a child-focused case study, detail the
implementation of multicultural curriculum in a classroom or a school,
document the use of innovative and/or culturally responsive pedagogies, or
describe and analyze the enactment of social justice initiatives that
include community partners and agencies.  Collaborative research that
involves multiple practitioners, varied settings, students¹ voices, or
involvement with other education stakeholders is welcome.  Submissions that
interrogate institutional practices, provide political and cultural
critique, candidly reflect upon ³failed² efforts, or raise provocative
questions are encouraged.
 
Possible topic areas include:
 
·      Multicultural Education and Student Learning
·      Second Language Learning and Multicultural Education
·      Families/Communities and Multicultural Education
·      The Role of Practitioner Research in Guiding Social Change
·      Multicultural Education in Monocultural Settings
·      Institutional Factors in Multicultural Education
·      Multicultural Education in Settings of Privilege
 
All submissions should include rich contextual description and provide
logical and explicit connections to multicultural education, diversity,
and/or social justice. Potential contributors are asked to submit
manuscripts by December 1, 2006 (NOTE: New date) for peer-review. Word limit
is 3000 (minimum) to 5000 words (maximum).  Manuscripts should include a 100
word abstract and must be written in APA Style. Submit manuscripts to:
Francisco Rios, College of Education, Dept 3374, 1000 E. University Avenue,
Laramie, WY 82071.  Keep in mind that 30% of the readership of the journal
is K-12 classroom teachers. A complete list of submission guidelines can be
found at: http://www.leaonline.com/loi/mcp
 
Please contact guest editors Terry Burant (terry.burant at marquette.edu) or
Allen Trent (atrent at uwyo.edu) with questions or requests for additional
information.
 
Multicultural Perspectives is the peer-reviewed journal of
the National Association for Multicultural Education.