Abstract

State schooling in North America has drastically under-served Black communities, and much educational research has explored visions of schooling that might provide a more relevant and socially just educational experience for Black students. Toronto’s Africentric Alternative School is the product of just such a vision. This article explores the aspirations, experiences, and practices of the first cohort of teachers at the Africentric Alternative School as they exercise agency to implement this vision. Findings demonstrate several key features of the teachers’ work, which they offer as their understanding of Africentric pedagogy: (1) they cooperate with each other, parents, and community to establish a familial environment for all school stakeholders; (2) they endeavour to establish classrooms that affirm students’ lived and political Blackness, that value the diverse ways in which Blackness is lived, and that help students to challenge oppressive practices among themselves; and (3) they persevere through sometimes challenging conditions created by historical and ongoing educational injustice, endeavouring to preserve the dignity of all members of the school community. Teachers, students, and parents consistently contrast these conditions to those they find in other school settings, which therefore positions these teachers’ pedagogies as a response to antiblackness embedded in public schools in Toronto.

摘要

北美的州立学校教育为黑人社区提供的服务严重不足，许多教育研究都探索了学校教育的愿景，这些愿景可能会为黑人学生提供更相关和社会公正的教育经验。多伦多的非洲中心另类学校就是这种愿景的产物。本文探讨了非洲中心另类学校的第一批教师的志向，经验和做法，他们行使代理权来实现这一愿景。调查结果显示了教师工作的几个关键特征，这些特征是他们对非洲中心教育学的理解：（1）他们与彼此，父母和社区合作，为所有学校利益相关者建立家庭环境；（2）他们努力建立教室，以确认学生的生活和政治上的黑度，重视黑人生活的多种方式，并帮助学生相互挑战压迫行为；（3）他们坚持不懈地度过历史和持续的教育不公正所创造的有时具有挑战性的条件，努力维护学校社区所有成员的尊严。老师，学生和家长始终将这些条件与他们在其他学校环境中发现的条件进行对比，从而将这些老师的教学法定位为对多伦多公立学校中反黑现象的回应。努力维护学校社区所有成员的尊严。老师，学生和家长始终将这些条件与他们在其他学校环境中发现的条件进行对比，从而将这些老师的教学法定位为对多伦多公立学校中反黑现象的回应。努力维护学校社区所有成员的尊严。老师，学生和家长始终将这些条件与他们在其他学校环境中发现的条件进行对比，从而将这些老师的教学法定位为对多伦多公立学校中反黑现象的回应。