UCLA

Since the passing of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB), it has become increasingly difficult to teach for social justice in urban schools. The post-NCLB era has led to standardized and narrowed curriculum that has pushed equity based instruction to the margins. The study examined, how educators sustained and enhanced social justice teaching in urban secondary schools through a critical inquiry group (CIG). A qualitative case study methodology and critical inquiry group design was utilized to investigate six participants across the teaching experience spectrum. Research methods included participant observations, semi-structured interviews, and document analysis. The study had three key findings; the first finding revealed that the CIG structured a community of transformative praxis. Secondly, the participants’ collaboration within the CIG involved trust, vulnerability, and accountability. The last finding described that all of the participants, regardless of years of teaching experience, employed social justice teaching and further suggests that social justice teaching is a process.