Social Justice in the Language Classroom:

A Call to Action
Linwood J. Randolph Jr.
University of North Carolina—Wilmington

Stacey Margarita Johnson

Vanderbilt University

Abstract
The goals of language education in the United States have always been informed by
the social, historical, and political contexts in which the instruction takes place. In this
paper, we make the case for social justice education in all language classrooms, and
we explore the different threads of scholarship that inform social justice in language
education. We begin with the Communities and Cultures standards, and then discuss
critical pedagogy and transformative learning. Avenues and opportunities are explored
for effective social justice instruction at the lesson planning and course design level, and
for professional development. This paper concludes with a call to action for all language
teachers.
Key Words: Social Justice, Critical Pedagogy, Intercultural Communicative Compe-
tence, Transformative Learning, World-Readiness Standards

Background
The goals of language education in the United States have always been in-
formed by the social, historical, and political contexts in which the instruction takes
place. These contexts have influenced methodologies (from grammar-translation
to proficiency-based approaches) as well as language offerings (from classical lan-
guage curricula to modern world and community language curricula) with specific
languages experiencing varying degrees of popularity throughout history. Although
functional proficiency in the target language is often touted as a goal of language pro-
grams and an expectation for students, the structure of language programs in the US
has never been ideal for fostering such fluency; many students do not begin language
study until mid to late adolescence and will not achieve the amount of contact hours
necessary to become proficient in the language of study (Johnson, 2015).
Many researchers (e.g., Johnson & Randolph, 2015; Leeman, 2007; Norton &
Toohey, 2010; Osborn, 2006) have challenged the idea of a purely practical, profi-
ciency-based language classroom and have called upon language educators to take
a more critical approach to curriculum development that recognizes the political
nature of language study. In fact, the current political climate of our nation is often
dominated by questions of immigration, diversity, inclusion, multiculturalism, and
globalism—all issues that relate to and are informed by language and language study.
100 Dimension 2017

The recently released “Framework for Developing Global and Cultural Competen-
cies to Advance Equity, Excellence and Economic Competitiveness” (U.S. Depart-
ment of Education International Affairs Office, 2017) is a testament to the high ur-
gency of such issues.
Generally, social justice can be defined as the equitable sharing of social power
and benefits within a society (Osborn, 2006). In the context of language education,
this would include the curricular elements as well as the instructional choices im-
plemented to aid in that endeavor. Although social justice has emerged in the last
decade as a popular line of inquiry in language pedagogy scholarship, the founda-
tions for social justice education have been present for much longer. For decades,
researchers have been concerned about the superficial treatment of culture in world
language curriculum development and instruction and have called for more critical
approaches (Garrett-Rucks, 2016; Koning, 2010; Kubota, 2008; Nieto, 2002; Tedick &
Walker, 1994; Weinberg, 1982). Although social justice education is compatible with
the world language curriculum and can be rewarding, it is also challenging and inten-
tional work. Incorporating this type of pedagogy requires the critical deconstruction
of various political, institutional, and linguistic power structures that exist as well as
their explicit and implicit influences in the organization and operation of schools
and in the development of curriculum. Faculty have long been teaching students to
see the world from divergent points of view and to reevaluate their worldview based
on their new understanding of other languages, cultures, and communities. The next
steps for teachers and researchers involve operationalizing the factors, developing
strategies and materials, and sharing successes with an eye towards replicability and
scalability. Because the foundation for social justice in language education has al-
ready been laid, the current community of teachers and scholars must continue to
build on that foundation with original research that furthers our understanding of
how to take critical approaches to social justice in the world language classroom.
Given that the world language curriculum is already quite overloaded, many
language teachers may wonder why and how social justice themes should be incor-
porated into their classrooms. For nearly two decades, the world language curricu-
lum has been guided by the Five C’s: Communication, Cultures, Connections, Com-
parisons, and Cultures. Given the broad nature of these curricular goals, a teacher
could spend an entire language course focusing solely on the development of stu-
dents’ language proficiency and performance (the Communication standard) while
neglecting the other standards. This is a common and understandable approach,
because it is challenging enough to develop students’ skills in speaking, listening,
reading, and writing in the interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational modes
within the confines of a traditional classroom model. The challenge is exasperated
with the added responsibility of incorporating the other C’s of the curriculum and,
beyond that, the addition of a social justice element. No matter how important those
curricular elements may be, it is indeed impractical to incorporate each of them
into everyday instruction in an isolated fashion. Teachers must be intentional and
resourceful about the way they integrate these skills and capitalize upon the potential
for interconnectivity that each element offers. It is our argument that social justice
concepts support language proficiency goals as well as all five of the C’s from the
World-Readiness Standards (National Standards Collaborative Board, 2015), and
 Social Justice in the Language Classroom 101

that social justice can be pursued at all levels of the world language curriculum. In
fact, social justice can be the thread that ties together the other curricular elements.
As language, culture, and community are inextricably connected, the language
education classroom provides the ideal context for entering critical, transformative
spaces of culture and community study informed by a social justice framework.
Moreover, this critical approach to language study complements the curricular goals
as outlined by the World-Readiness Standards (2015) and supports the development
of students’ language proficiency and intercultural communicative competence at
all levels. ACTFL’s (2016) most recent statement on the value of language study for
diversity and unity further underscores the importance of learning to communi-
cate with each other in ways that foster the collaboration and creativity necessary
to address real social problems. The statement asserts that “diversity and intercul-
tural competence are qualities that must be embraced in the US and throughout the
world” (paragraph 1).
In this paper, we make the case for social justice education in the world lan-
guage classroom for all learners, and we explore the different threads of scholarship
that inform social justice in language education beginning with the Communities
and Cultures standards for connections to social justice education. We then demon-
strate that scholarship in critical pedagogy and transformative learning in language
education is already setting the stage for social justice as a unifying principle. We
conclude by suggesting avenues and opportunities for effective social justice instruc-
tion at the lesson planning level, the course design level, and for language teacher
development.

Social Justice in Language Education

In a webinar (Randolph & Johnson, 2016) through the ACTFL Teaching and
Learning of Culture Special Interest Group in June 2016, we asked participants what
they associated with the term social justice. They gave answers such as equity, sharing
of power, response to biases, fairness, reconciliation, self-reflection, empowerment,
community, and critique of whiteness. These answers suggest that social justice is a
subjective term that takes on different meanings in various contexts. As authors, this
presents us with a dilemma—we want to avoid an objective, prescribed definition of
social justice, but at the same time we recognize that we cannot speak critically of
social justice education without some sense of common reference about what exactly
the term entails. With those constraints and goals in mind, we have developed a
framework for understanding how topics of social justice fit into the broader context
of world language education.
For the purposes of this essay, we imagine the scope of social justice to include
any aspect of the language classroom through which participants (students, teachers,
and other stakeholders) come to a greater understanding of or make progress to-
wards equity in society. Social justice is related to at least four other themes that have
emerged in the current generation of world language education: critical pedagogy,
intercultural competence, transformative learning, and community-based learning.
In order to engage in social justice in the classroom, students need to develop their
intercultural communicative competence, which is often a transformative learning
process that fundamentally alters the way students interact with the world. As teach-
102 Dimension 2017

ers, we employ critical pedagogy in the classroom and, as a result of a social justice
emphasis, are able to effectively engage in community-based learning.

Student-Oriented
Processes:
Transformative Learning
Intercultural
Communicative
Competence
Teacher-Oriented
Standards: Processes:
Cultures and Critical Pedagogy
Communities Community-Based
Instructional Design

Social
Justice
Learning
Outcomes

Figure 1. Elements of Social Justice in World Language Education

Cultures and Communities

When teachers’ pedagogical choices and learners’ experiences are all organized
around a critically conscious view of the World-Readiness Standards’ sections on
Cultures and Communities, our classrooms become sites of social justice work. Be-
low, we explore each of these elements in more detail.
Community-based learning. A community, at the most basic level, can be de-
fined as a group of individuals that, to some degree, have shared experiences. When
we ask students to study another culture, we are asking them to enter into a commu-
nity that is not their own, make sense of new experiences, and build relationships. In
some classrooms, community engagement is limited to the virtual or hypothetical.
In others, students travel, do service learning, or in other ways experience actual
contact with communities. Although it is often largely ignored by language educa-
tors because of the logistical difficulties it entails, the Communities standard is a
high priority for language learners (Magnan, 2014).
When students engage in this kind of community-based learning, we cannot
ignore historical and current injustices forced upon those communities. It is un-
doubtedly more comfortable and less controversial to interact with communities as
tourists (Byram, 1997) benefitting from privileged positions without acknowledg-
ing the realities of race, class, power, and oppression. However, students cannot ef-
fectively engage with the communities about which they learn without also under-
standing the social, historical, economic, and political interactions between their
own communities and the target communities. Through community-based learning,
students should come to understand that entering into authentic relationships with
people from another community requires getting to know people as individuals and
not as representatives of a community, while also acknowledging the common reali-
 Social Justice in the Language Classroom 103

ties experienced by members of that community.

Community engagement, when done well, can be an enlightening or even dis-
orienting experience for students. It can also lead students to develop empathy and
courage, building relationships across difference and participating in community ac-
tivism both in their own and other communities. Students may come to understand
the truth in the famous Lilla Watson quote, “If you have come here to help me, you
are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with
mine, then let us work together.”
In the current social and political climate in which our language classrooms
are situated, the need is clear for students to be able to communicate, not only in the
most efficient way possible, but also in ways that set the stage for relationship build-
ing and problem solving. Problems stemming from economic and social inequity
affect all of our communities at a local and a global scale. We cannot hope to teach
students to engage in intercultural communication without also imparting aware-
ness of the inequities that exist between and within communities. We assert that, in
order to teach language proficiency to our students, we must also teach them to see
the world from the perspectives of diverse communities.
Any discussion of the so-called “target” community leads us to ask, where is
the target community? When we talk about speakers of the target language, are they
members of our own communities? Or are they a far-away hypothetical? In many
classrooms, students are exposed to a version of the target community that is not
only far away, but is also represented as an idealized “native speaker”. For French
students, this may mean focusing on France to the exclusion of other Francophone
communities, even communities of French speakers here in the United States. For
Spanish students, community engagement may involve interacting with people in
their own neighborhood as representatives of an exotic foreign culture, rather than
as members of their own local community. For students of other languages such as
Japanese or Arabic, to name just a couple, students need not imagine a static, ideal-
ized native speaker in order to learn about communities. The United States includes
communities from these target language groups and is home to many speakers of
those languages. The term community language (see Menacker, 2001) is used in the
UK to describe languages that are represented domestically as opposed to the terms
most commonly used in the US: foreign or world languages, both of which empha-
size the languages’ outsider status.
Additionally, in classrooms where we explore languages whose speakers have
affected the historical and political realities of the United States, another view of
community comes to bear. If we let go of the one-dimensional ideal of communi-
ty, then we can help students acquire a long view of history and effectively analyze
how their own community’s story has become intertwined with the stories of others.
Teaching history in the target language can be challenging and can result in superfi-
cial, isolated vignettes from history. Teaching the same history from the perspective
of community contact allows students to cultivate accurate perceptions of how U.S.
policy, culture, and language have impacted communities both domestically and
abroad, for better or worse.
In Menacker (2001), the benefits of engaging with real communities are de-
scribed as a “trade-off ” (p. 2) between the carefully controlled input that is char-
104 Dimension 2017

acteristic of a classroom environment and the exposure to authentic language and

variation that is characteristic of community-based language learning. Menacker
goes on to suggest that, in order to learn language that will prove useful in commu-
nity settings, students should develop listening skills, capacity for real-world interac-
tion, investment in the local community, and language awareness, just to name a few.
Students who are well-prepared to grapple with the social realities of the community
and partner with community members in pursuit of social good are characterized
by a) an ability to truly listen and communicate with speakers of authentic varieties
of language, b) investment in those communities, and c) an awareness of language
use and function. Also, such students become more astute observers of communities
in general and therefore more able to pursue social good in their own local context,
even if that context is separate from the target community.
Intercultural communicative competence. Intercultural communicative com-
petence (ICC) can be understood as the ability to understand cultures other than
one’s own and to use that understanding to communicate effectively. Byram (1997)
outlines five objectives of ICC. The first four are attitudes, knowledge, skills of in-
terpreting and relating, and skills of discovery and interaction. The fifth objective—
critical cultural awareness/political education—falls squarely into the social justice
arena. This objective involves examining the practices, products, and perspectives of
one’s own culture and the culture of others through a critically conscious lens. This
critical consciousness can be achieved by examining power and access and recogniz-
ing that language is a political act, especially as these concepts relate to a language
learner’s interactions with native speakers (Byram & Risager, 1999). A focus on so-
called “native speakers” and “native cultures”1 has made ICC an ideal framework for
organizing study abroad experiences (e.g., Deardorff, 2006; Shiri, 2015); however,
there is also a focus on ICC and its practical application in the domestic world lan-
guage classroom (Moeller & Fatlin Osborn, 2014). Given that ICC focuses on linking
communication and culture in meaningful and critical ways, ICC is probably the
component that links social justice education most directly to what has long been the
dominant goal of most language courses—the goal of language competence.
In the teaching and learning of ICC, access to authentic texts—texts written by
members of a culture for members of that culture—is of great importance because
they provide evidence of the culture in its most robust form. It is through these
resources that learners have the opportunity to come into contact with and thus
to analyze other cultures. Inauthentic resources developed for the language learner
prioritize language over culture (Moeller & Fatlin Osborn, 2014). If language acqui-
sition is the only goal of language instruction, such constructed texts serve a clear
purpose. However, if language education is about accessing other cultures through
language and expanding learners’ views, then authentic texts provide essential op-
portunities for language and culture learning.
The World-Readiness Standards. Any discussion of community-based learn-
ing and intercultural communicative competence must connect with the Cultures
and Communities standards. Although social justice is not explicitly mentioned as
one of the goals of the World-Readiness Standards, the current standards do take a
more critical and nuanced approach to the conceptualization of such notions of “cul-
tures” and “communities” when compared to the previous national standards docu-
 Social Justice in the Language Classroom 105

ment. Table 1 shows how the language for the Cultures and Communities standards
has been updated from 2006 to 2015.
It is clear from this comparison that the World-Readiness Standards move
away from a knowledge-based understanding of cultures and communities and fo-
cus more on such skills as interaction, reflection, and collaboration. The phrase “cul-
tural competence” emphasizes the ability to work within different cultural contexts.
With that in mind, social justice education is a powerful vehicle to move students
toward a deeper, more critical understanding of the notions of cultures and commu-
nities so that they become individuals who can communicate and interact with that
high level of cultural competence that the standards promote.
Table 1
Evolution of the Cultures and Communities Standards
Standards for Foreign Language World-Readiness Standards for Learning
Learning (2006) Languages (2015)
Gain knowledge and understand- Interact with cultural competence and
ing of other cultures. understanding.
• Students demonstrate an • Learners use the language to inves-
understanding of the relation- tigate, explain, and reflect on the
ship between the practices relationship between the practices and
and perspectives of the cul- perspectives of the cultures studied.
ture studied. • Learners use the language to inves-
• Students demonstrate an tigate, explain, and reflect on the
understanding of the relation- relationship between the products and
ship between the products perspectives of the cultures studied.
and perspectives of the cul-
ture studied.
Participate in multilingual com- Communicate and interact with cultural
munities at home and around the competence in order to participate in mul-
world. tilingual communities at home and around
• Students use the language the world.
both within and beyond the • Learners use the language both within
school setting. and beyond the classroom to interact
• Students show evidence of and collaborate in their community
becoming life-long learners and the globalized world.
by using the language for • Learners set goals and reflect on their
both personal enjoyment and progress in using languages for enjoy-
enrichment. ment, enrichment, and advancement.

Another element of the way we describe culture is in terms of the “Three P’s,”
or products, practices, and perspectives. Specifically, the World-Readiness Standards
highlight the relationship among these three elements—for example, how do the
practices and products of a culture influence that culture’s perspectives? Within this
framework, there are some opportunities and pitfalls. Most notably, if we carry a
106 Dimension 2017

superficial or content-based interpretation of that framework into our classrooms,

we run the risk of perpetuating traditional approaches to culture that can foster ste-
reotypes and that ultimately do not enhance students’ cultural competence. Garrett-
Rucks (2016) exemplifies this in her work by taking “a critical perspective of di-
chotomous cultural comparisons that inadvertently perpetuate stereotypes” (p. 18).
Kubota (2008) developed a framework for cultural studies that replaced the 3 P’s
with what she coined the 4 D’s of Culture:
1. Engaging students in a descriptive approach to the study of cultures rather than
a prescriptive approach
2. Acknowledging the diverse nature of cultures, including variability and com-
plexity within cultures
3. Recognizing that cultural study is dynamic; that is, culture isn’t frozen in time;
it needs to be studied diachronically, because social values and beliefs change
throughout history
4. And finally, embracing the discursive nature of the construction of knowledge,
that there are no objective truths.
Other authors have expanded the 3 P’s framework itself to include more critical
approaches. For example, Glynn, Wesely, and Wassell (2014) expanded the defini-
tion of products to include “access to and relationships with tangible and intangible
resources” and practices to include “interactions among and within communities,” for
example marginalization and social hierarchies (Chapter 1). When we fail to take such
a critical perspective, we leave students with a prescribed view of culture rather than
an analytical/inquiry-based approach. Culture becomes “content” rather than the
critical recognition of the dynamic nature of communities and their lived experiences.
As much work is being done on the implications of the new Cultures and Com-
munities standards, those traditional approaches still linger in our classes and cur-
ricular materials today. Therefore, we as instructors need to take a critical approach
in our own classrooms. Outdated textbooks and pedagogical tradition cannot have
the last word in how we teach to the standards; we insist that cultures and communi-
ties ultimately must speak for themselves and students must engage in critical, reflec-
tive inquiry to discover cultures and communities.

Transformative Learning
Because ICC requires students to see the world in new ways, decentering their
own experiences and taking up the perspective of the interlocutor (Byram, 1997),
for many students the language learning experience becomes transformative. Trans-
formative learning, a learning theory developed by Mezirow (1991), describes the
learning process of reevaluating previously held beliefs and attitudes and learning to
interpret experiences from a new perspective. Proponents of ICC make a strong case
for why transformative learning is necessary:
In ICC learning, students must also develop a sense of self, where
they gain awareness about their own culture before embarking on dis-
covering a second culture. Before being able to challenge their own
beliefs and begin to understand and accept those of individuals from
another culture, students must not only know what they believe but
why they believe it. They must undergo an exploration of how they
 Social Justice in the Language Classroom 107

developed their own understanding of the world. By questioning

their own belief system, and even comparing it to those who share
their home culture, they will become more prepared for exploring an-
other culture and interacting with people from that culture (Moeller
& Fatlin Osborn, 2014, pp. 680-681).
This process of critical examination, questioning, and interacting that Moeller de-
scribes can be explained and promoted if it is understood as the process of transfor-
mative learning. The lens through which one views the world, the collection of one’s
beliefs, assumptions, experiences, and linguistic/cultural norms, was referred to by
Mezirow (1991) as a meaning perspective. Seeing the world from a fixed perspective
according to certain expectations is how individuals make sense of their experiences.
Mezirow (1997) also used the term habit of mind to refer to meaning perspectives,
and, in fact, gave the example of “ethnocentrism, the predisposition to regard oth-
ers outside one’s own group as inferior” (p. 6) as a habit of mind. This example is of
particular interest to language instructors interested in promoting ICC.
Tracing learning through the theoretical model of transformation, the infor-
mation a student receives is filtered through the lens of the meaning perspective.
One’s meaning perspective consists of elements such as social norms and roles, cul-
tural and language codes, common sense as a cultural system, and ethnocentrism
(Mezirow, 1991). These sociolinguistic elements of the meaning perspective allow
individuals to live within the structures of their native language and culture and
readily discard any input from the world that does not fit in their system. A normal
part of first language acquisition includes becoming indoctrinated in the codes and
assumptions of one’s native language and culture. Intercultural contact puts differ-
ently socialized individuals in communication, often resulting in conflict, or at the
least, opportunity for miscommunication based on different frames of reference.
Perspective transformation, the hallmark process underlying transformative
learning, is the process of becoming critically aware of how and why our assump-
tions have come to constrain the way we perceive our world, making possible a more
inclusive perspective and allowing the individual to act on new understandings
(Mezirow, 1991). The process of perspective transformation is a movement from the
conflict, also called the disorienting dilemma, to critical reflection, then to conscious
action, and finally to integration, resulting in a new, broader meaning perspective.
In the end, the transformative learning process may turn out to be the most
important one we provide our students. As Sosulski (2013) described, building re-
lationships with people who are different from ourselves “involves calculated risk-
taking for the student, and a willingness to deal with the problems, paradoxes and
challenges of cultural difference. Being able to do this requires personal growth in
students” (p. 92). Therefore, transformative language learning is not just about lan-
guage at a surface level, but about improving ourselves and the ways we interact
with others. It turns out that learning language is one of the most human endeavors
we can undertake, and recent research in transformative language learning (Crane,
forthcoming; Johnson, 2015; Johnson & Mullins Nelson, 2010; Kiely, 2005; Sosulski,
2013) helps us as teachers focus on the humanity underneath the language structures
and support our students as they learn to see the world in entirely new ways.
108 Dimension 2017

Critical Pedagogy
The discussion of critical pedagogy in this essay refers to “any classroom prac-
tice that addresses difference, power, or social stratification in the classroom or in the
world” (Johnson & Randolph, 2015, p. 36). It is informed and generated by critical
studies in other fields such as critical race theory and gender studies. Crookes (2012)
asserted that critical pedagogy is “the most widespread term for social justice ori-
ented tendencies in applied linguistics and in language teaching” (paragraph 2). For
the purposes of this essay, we categorize critical pedagogy as an umbrella term that
not only describes social justice approaches but also contains them and serves as a
vehicle for them. Social justice approaches are those that employ critical pedagogy in
order to reach social justice learning outcomes for students. Critical language peda-
gogy, or even more broadly, critical applied linguistics (Pennycook, 2001), is the path
we follow to arrive at social justice in our classrooms as a result of our instruction.
With pedagogy a widely recognized subfield in language departments, the term
critical pedagogy reframes the discipline, asserting a separation from traditional ped-
agogy that reinforces the meaning perspective students have acquired from their first
language and the social conditioning associated with childhood education. Critical
pedagogy, in contrast, seeks to transform students’ meaning perspective by resisting
the primary social purpose of education: to indoctrinate the young with the social
ideology that will allow then to thrive in their social group (Kennedy, 1990). Social
institutions use traditional pedagogy to prepare students to function in the social
conditions in which they find themselves. Critical pedagogy prepares students to
resist, reconsider, reflect, and enact change in response to social inequity. Studies
like the one by Pessoa and De Urzêda Freitas (2012) can give us insight into some
of the challenges associated with moving from a traditional to critical approach in a
language classroom.
The originator of critical pedagogy in language learning, Paolo Freire, termed
this process of teaching conscientization (1970/2000). He makes a distinction be-
tween conscientization and what he terms banking education. Banking education
is defined as a process by which the instructor uncritically transfers chunks of
knowledge rather than making that knowledge the focus of critical reflection and
awareness-raising. Critical pedagogy emphasizes the importance of learners engag-
ing in critical reflection. Because ideologies are hard to detect even in ourselves,
uncritically transferring knowledge, by default, reinforces the existing structures and
hierarchies. Critical pedagogy teaches students to become aware of how learning is
constrained by ideologies embedded in language, social habits, and cultural forms
that combine to shape the way we think about the world. These ideologies appear on
the surface to be common sense, just the way things are, rather than structures that
are deliberately skewed in favor of the powerful.
In his foreword to the most recent edition of Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Op-
pressed, Richard Shaull (2007) stated the following:
There is no such thing as a neutral educational process. Education
either functions as an instrument that is used to facilitate the integra-
tion of the younger generation into the logic of the present system and
bring about conformity to it, or it becomes “the practice of freedom,”
 Social Justice in the Language Classroom 109

the means by which men and women deal critically and creatively
with reality and discover how to participate in the transformation of
their world” (p. 34, emphasis in original).
What are the implications of a language classroom where neutrality is impos-
sible? Where we side either with traditional pedagogy that reinforces the status quo
or critical pedagogy that questions the same? Pennycook (2001) described language
classrooms as “sites of cultural struggle, contexts in which different versions of the
world are battled over” (p. 128). Neutrality for language teachers becomes impossible
because “language is not a neutral medium of communication, but takes on differ-
ent meanings when the relationships between speakers change, together with shifts
in relations of power” (Norton, 2010, p. 175). For many language teachers, critical
pedagogy is not just a choice we make, it is an ethical imperative.

Social Justice Pedagogy: Considerations in Various Contexts

As we engage in discussions on how to incorporate social justice in the world
language classroom, it is important to note that social justice isn’t something “extra”
that teachers have to add to an already crowded curriculum. As we clearly demon-
strated above, social justice themes are compatible with and reinforce the goals of
the Cultures and Communities components of the World-Readiness Standards. Such
themes can also support the communication/proficiency goals of the curriculum,
even at the novice levels.
An effective way to engage students with social justice themes is through a
constructivist approach, in which learners are able to develop their own views about
cultures and communities “through social interaction and interpersonal commu-
nication” (Shrum & Glisan, 2010, p. 156). This student-centered framework allows
students to confront authentic problems and topics; places the teacher in the role
of a mediator instead of expert; fosters a community in which students are able to
share opinions, solutions, and strategies; and enables students to reflect on their own
learning and compare various points of view (Shrum & Glisan, 2010; Wright, 2000)
Osborn’s (2006) Critical Inquiry Cycle provides some guiding principles for
the incorporation of critical approaches, including social justice, into the world lan-
guage curriculum. Osborn describes the cycle as “a process of exploration that can be
entered into by students, community members, and teacher as learners together, in
their individual contexts” (p. 33). The cycle consists of four phases: (1) informed in-
vestigation of a socially relevant problem, (2) inductive analysis to make sense of the
problem in its relevant context, (3) the development of tentative conclusions which
are by nature subjective and value-laden, and (4) mutual critical reflection in which
the students and instructor engage in a community dialogue and are able to explore
their own privilege, power, and powerlessness (Osborn, 2006, pp. 33-35).
Ultimately, the inclusion of social justice in the language curriculum comes
down to a matter of backward design (Wiggins & McTighe, 2006). Teachers may be-
gin the process by asking such global questions as: What kind of students do we want
to leave our classrooms? Do we think that elements of critical cultural competence
and social justice are important? Do we see a need for students, and really society
as a whole, to have a higher level of intercultural competence and to be advocates
110 Dimension 2017

for social justice in their immediate and global communities? Indeed, one need not
look any further than our Twitter and Facebook feeds or the comments section of
a controversial news story to see the need for people to be able to speak articulately
and compassionately about social justice issues. There are great opportunities for
this type of learning to occur in the world language classroom. In fact, by not in-
corporating social justice at all and instead adhering to traditional pedagogy, we are
reinforcing the status quo and thus missing the opportunity to involve students in
transformational learning within our classrooms.
Osborn (2006) identifies four pillars of social justice that can be used to guide
teachers’ thinking with regard to implementing social justice into the everyday cur-
riculum: 1) identity, 2) social architecture, 3) language choices, and 4) activism.
These four pillars relate to topics that are often already included as part of the world
language curriculum. For example, teachers and students can approach “identity”
from a social justice perspective while also studying such grammar and vocabulary
topics as descriptive adjectives, personal pronouns, and the present tense. “Social
architecture” can be examined alongside such topics as the past tense, formal and
informal speech, schools, media, and entertainment. “Language choices” can be ex-
amined alongside such topics as speech register, the subjunctive, journalism, and
politics. Finally, “activism” can be examined through extended spoken and written
discourse, imperatives, social change, and marginalization.
In addition to Osborn’s four pillars, there is a multitude of relevant themes that
can be used as a gateway or springboard to incorporate social justice in the language
classroom. Examples include: immigration, employment, environment, linguicism,
racism, xenophobia, violence and weapons, stereotypes, sexuality, sexism, poverty,
identity, education, institutions, marginalization, and diversity. These topics are not
only relevant to cultures and communities of the target language but are also relevant
to the language learners’ own cultures and communities—and in many cases, the so-
called target cultures and communities overlap or interact with those of the language
learners. Thus, students not only look at how these themes are relevant in the target
communities and cultures, but they also turn a critical eye to their own communi-
ties and cultures and examine how the intersections of some of those themes affect
various groups of people.
Finally, in an earlier publication (Johnson & Randolph, 2015) we outlined
specific steps for incorporating critical pedagogy and social justice themes into the
classroom. We presented four guiding questions and a series of practical guidelines
to help teachers begin the process of lesson planning within a critical, social justice
framework:
1. Who is the source of knowledge? (Implication: Afford students opportunities to
contribute to the curriculum, some level of autonomy with course assignments,
and opportunities for self-evaluation.)
2. What resources do we use in the classroom? (Implication: Select a variety of au-
thentic resources that provide counterpoint to dominant narratives, which more
often than not requires going beyond the textbook and its ancillaries.)
3. How do we incorporate language proficiency with critical pedagogy? (Implica-
tion: Carefully plan instruction using a backward design to provide maximum
contextualization of social justice themes and language objectives, and take ad-
 Social Justice in the Language Classroom 111

vantage of technological resources like online journals and discussion boards

to allow student to engage in critical reflection in English outside of the class.)
4. How do we respond to controversy? (Implication: First, expect and embrace
conflict. Second, be proactive with establishing community and trust in the
classroom and with engaging students in discussions so that they learn to navi-
gate potentially polemic topics with diverse participants.)
As Nieto (2002) argues, “classrooms should not only simply allow discussions
that focus on social justice, but in fact welcome them” (p. 41). Although the guiding
principles for incorporating social justice in the world language classroom can be
applied to all levels, there are some specific considerations that instructors must take
into account when planning instruction for specific groups of learners. Below, we of-
fer an overview of considerations at various proficiency levels and contexts.
Novice learners. A principal concern with novice (and even intermediate)
language students is that they have not yet developed the necessary language pro-
ficiency to engage in critical reflection and critical discussion about social justice
issues in the target language. As such, teachers must think beyond the confines of
the World-Readiness Standards (which limit students to “using the target language”)
when implementing critical pedagogical approaches to cultural study. In order to
avoid sacrificing valuable classroom time in the target language, teachers must care-
fully consider how to implement social justice learning objectives in a way that sup-
ports the development of the students’ language proficiency in the target language.
The social justice themes must be closely linked to language topics of novice courses,
the resources must be carefully selected with accompanying level-appropriate com-
prehension activities, and students must be allowed to reflect in their native language
in a way does not stifle their language development in the target language.
As an example, we will consider a typical first unit of a level one language class
in which students are learning how to say their names and how to describe them-
selves using basic adjectives. The teacher could introduce a social justice theme at
this early stage of language development by incorporating readings, activities, and
discussions relating to the identity politics and stereotypes associated with names.
Consider the following activities that can be incorporated into a Spanish course (Op-
pewal, Zelaya, & Wooten, 2016; Randolph, 2016):
• Introduce cognates that students can use to make basic responses (e.g., contro-
versia, estereotipo, discriminación, racismo).
• Give students a list of common names in both English and Spanish. Ask them
if they (or others) would make assumptions about the person’s identity (gender,
race, nationality, level of education, native language) based on their name.
• Prepare an activity in which students match the anglicized stage names of celeb-
rities of Latino or Hispanic descent with their original Spanish-language names.
Brainstorm what may have been the motives and benefits for such changes and
if attitudes have changed over time.
• Gather authentic resources from the media (articles or videos) that highlight
various perspectives. Relevant resources in English can be read and reflected
upon outside of class. Resources in the target language can be studied in class
through collaborative activities. For target-language texts too difficult for novice
112 Dimension 2017

students to understand, “edit the task, not the text” (Shrum & Glisan, 2010, p.
197); that is, change what you have students do with the text instead of modify-
ing the text itself. Sample comprehension strategies that can be incorporated at
the novice level include:
° Students write a title for each paragraph.
° Students express their reaction with 140 characters or less (a “tweet”).
° Students identify the three most important sentences of the passage.
° Teacher distributes a list of simple sentences, and students organize the
list in chronological order or in order of importance (depending on com-
prehension goals).
° Teacher develops a brief informal true/false or multiple-choice assessment.
• Have students complete follow-up assignments based on the resources exam-
ined and topics unpacked during class. Depending on the format and the level
of critical engagement required, these assignments can be completed in English
or in the target language. In addition, such activities can be purely reflective, ac-
tion based, or a combination of the two. Successful follow-up activities that have
been used in our and our colleagues’ classes include:
° Students write a brief, simple letter in Spanish to respond to the views
expressed by one of the authors or speakers from the authentic sources.
° Students compose a conceptual map responding to the question, “What
does a name represent?” Students use simple words and phrases in Span-
ish to discuss implications at the individual, familial, communal, and so-
cietal levels.
° Teacher facilitates a follow-up reflective discussion in English about ste-
reotypes and hegemony.
As the sample activities above show, with careful planning and strong, thematic
curricular design, students are able to engage in meaningful social justice work as
early as the first week of a level one language course. The social justice theme sup-
ports the students’ language development in the target language while at the same
time offering opportunities for students to complete some activities in English to
engage critically at the highest level possible. While language teachers may want
to keep their students engaged in the target language 90+% of the time (as recom-
mended by ACTFL, 2010), the strategic use of English from time to time can aid
in the incorporation of critical pedagogies without necessarily sacrificing language
proficiency goals (Johnson & Randolph, 2015; Lee, 2012).
Intermediate learners. At the intermediate level, language learners are begin-
ning to produce more original thought with complete sentence discourse. While
they do not need as much scaffolding and support as novice learners, their language
level is still not at the place to engage in nuanced discourse about social justice is-
sues. Thus, many of the strategies and activities highlighted in the previous section
can also be applied to intermediate learners, including the strategic use of English to
achieve critical pedagogy goals.
 Social Justice in the Language Classroom 113

As intermediate learners develop increasing proficiency in the target language,

teachers can replace traditional communicative activities with activities that revolve
around social justice communicative contexts. For example, when intermediate stu-
dents are learning how to narrate in the past, they can engage in discussions, con-
versations, and role-plays about the experiences that have shaped the racial, cultural,
linguistic, sexual, and gender identities of themselves and others. Such activities can
be used as a springboard for activist-oriented initiatives in which students begin
to learn to have conversations about race and politics with individuals who do not
share their own racial or political identity and to learn how they can be allies in
their communities for issues that may not explicitly relate to their own identities (for
example, how can a white student support the local Black Lives Matter movement?,
or how can a straight student be an effective ally and advocate for LGBT rights?).
To offer another example, when students are learning the subjunctive and impera-
tive moods in a language like Spanish, as an activist-oriented assignment they could
create websites or flyers outlining steps that their peers could take to join or support
organizations within the local Latino community. Again, the goal is to embed social
justice issues in a way that supports language proficiency goals and other elements
from the world language curriculum while also allowing room for students to engage
in transformative learning.
Service learning and study abroad. One of the greatest opportunities of the
world language curriculum is that students can (and are expected to) use the target
language “both within and beyond the classroom to interact and collaborate in their
community and the globalized world” (National Standards in Foreign Language Ed-
ucation Project, 2015). Indeed, interacting with speakers of the target language in the
appropriate context can be a mutually rewarding and transformative experience for
all parties involved. However, interacting with communities of the target language
does present some possible challenges and pitfalls. For example, as mentioned previ-
ously, Byram (1997) cautions against approaching study abroad experiences from
the mindset of a tourist rather than a sojourner. He writes:
[A]lthough tourism has had major economic consequences, it is the
sojourner who produces effects on a society which challenge its un-
questioned and unconscious beliefs, behaviours and meanings, and
whose own beliefs, behaviours and meanings are in turn challenged
and expected to change. […] Where the tourist remains essentially
unchanged, the sojourner has the opportunity to learn and be edu-
cated, acquiring the capacity to critique and improve their own and
others’ conditions (pp. 1-2).
Interacting with local target language communities also presents some chal-
lenges. Often, students think they are going into communities to help, save, or en-
lighten other populations. This is especially true for traditionally marginalized com-
munities. Teachers can sometimes inadvertently contribute to this process by not
providing adequate training for students before they interact with communities or
by asking students to complete assignments that are intrusive or that reinforce ste-
reotypes. Therefore, when interacting with communities, teachers must challenge
students to maintain a critical mindset and be open to challenging and evolving their
114 Dimension 2017

own beliefs. Students must also maintain a sense of humility and recognize that they
are serving with (not for or on behalf of) the community.
There has been much research on effective ways to interact with communi-
ties through service learning, study abroad, or ethnographic research (for example,
Arends, 2014; Hartman & Kiely, 2014; Lee, 2012). Some practical experiences that
teachers can plan include:
• Incorporate a pre-experience orientation outlining goals and expectations be-
fore students are asked to engage in work.
• Design assignments (e.g., journals, blogs, discussion boards) that allow students
to constantly be engaged in self-reflection rather than analysis and objectifica-
tion of other communities.
• Especially in unfamiliar communities, work with well-established commu-
nal organizations that have the same goals and outcomes as the people of that
community.
At every proficiency level and in every context, the way we interact with stu-
dents and with the content is transformed when we evaluate classroom practice
through the lens of social justice. In Table 2, we offer an overview of how traditional
practices may be reimagined to fit within this framework.
Table 2
Classroom Practices through a Social Justice Lens
Traditional Practice Recommended Practice
Teacher presents a brief culture Teacher engages students with a relevant cul-
lesson in English or the target tural topic by using authentic resources that
language through lecture, video, represent a variety of perspectives.
or reading.
Students complete comprehen- Students are required to answer questions
sion questions in English or the that call for critical reflection of the perspec-
target language about a text. tives presented in a cultural text. Transforma-
tive learning, not mere reading comprehen-
sion, is the learning objective.
Students attend a community Students attend a cultural event and interact
event and interview a native or with native and heritage speakers. Students
heritage speaker. reflect on themes of intercultural communi-
cative competence (attitudes, conversational
roles, openness to new perspectives, etc.)
based on their interactions.
Teacher avoids potentially con- Teacher works to build community and
troversial or polemic cultural establish norms of engagement so that such
topics in favor of facts-based or topics can be discussed in a productive,
superficial content. respectful manner.
 Social Justice in the Language Classroom 115

Teacher assumes the respon- Teacher allows students select relevant topics
sibility of selecting all cultural of high interest.
topics for the course.
Teacher creates assessments that Teacher incorporates assessments that require
focus on cultural knowledge critical reflection (e.g., journals). Students are
(facts, dates, monuments, etc.). given choice with assessments and are able to
participate in self-assessment.
Lesson planning includes begin- All units throughout the semester incorpo-
ning-of-semester team-building rate low-stakes trust-building activities in
activities and ice breakers. order to establish and continually reinforce
community.
Textbook is accepted as the pri- Textbook and other language learning ma-
mary and authoritative resource terials are examined critically and supple-
for the class. mented with authentic resources and diverse
perspectives.
Teacher keeps detailed lesson Teacher works with a community of language
plans and reflects on her own teachers to develop plans, reflects on own and
work each term. others’ practices, and shares successes and
failures with others. Knowledge builds over
time and is published openly in order to fa-
cilitate broad participation in larger conversa-
tions about teaching social justice.

Opportunities for Professional Development

One of the most underutilized resources teachers have is a community of col-
leagues. Connecting with colleagues at meetings, at conferences, through social me-
dia, and even across disciplines allows teachers to benefit from the experiences of
others. In particular, for teachers who may not have other language teachers in their
school or in their immediate geographical area, taking advantage of state and region-
al language teaching resources and connecting digitally with colleagues becomes es-
sential. Additionally, some teachers may even face resistance from colleagues when
they begin engaging in what Pennycook (2001) referred to as the “dangerous work”
(p. 138) of critical pedagogy. Social justice work is about communities, and it works
best when done in community. We need each other for support and encouragement,
as well as for honest critique and accountability.
For teachers interested in connecting with professional organizations where
they can find supportive communities of colleagues, this year will see the arrival
of at least one new ACTFL special interest group (SIG) focused on Critical and So-
cial Justice Approaches to language education. All of the topics of this essay as well
as many other critical approaches are within this new SIG’s mission to cultivate a
community of educators committed to consciousness raising and community action
in and through language education. There are also organizations such as ISLS (In-
ternational Society for Language Studies) that focus on critical approaches specifi-
116 Dimension 2017

cally. And on the state level, groups such as FLANC (Foreign Language Association
of North Carolina) hold annual conferences for teachers. This past year, FLANC’s
theme was “Empowerment, Transformation, and Social Justice.” Teachers from all
over the state were able to come and develop professionally around those common
themes. Consider getting involved in the leadership of your local or regional organi-
zation and bringing that change to your state.
Social media also provides rich opportunities to connect with other teachers.
Twitter has an active community of language teachers, as does Pinterest and Insta-
gram. One way to build up your social media network is to follow people who post
using hashtags related to conferences or topics of interest to you. Twitter in particu-
lar can be a great way to engage authors and other teachers in conversation around
how to enact social justice in the language classroom. If you are reading an article
and have questions or comments for the author, consider using Twitter to reach out
and start a conversation.
For college instructors, many colleges and universities have language centers or
teaching centers that provide high quality professional development around teach-
ing and learning. For example, a teaching center may have programs and resources
to support inclusive teaching and may provide training on how to have difficult dia-
logues in the classroom, both of which are important skill sets for teachers interested
in social justice. Other centers or programs at your college may have incentive pro-
grams to improve instruction on campus. K-12 teachers may find support available
through the district or state world language supervisor. Ask around your institution
to find out where teachers can get professional or financial support for any kind of
teaching, but in particular for working on diversity, inclusion, equity, and social jus-
tice in their classrooms.
Some language teachers interested in social justice feel alone in their efforts.
Although you may be the only language teacher in your school working on social
justice, you may have colleagues in other disciplines engaged in these issues. Work-
ing with local colleagues from different disciplines can be a fruitful exchange. A
reading group or weekly lunch meeting to discuss ideas, challenges, and successes
can be beneficial for all involved. Although these cross-disciplinary colleagues may
not be able to provide you with resources for facilitating second language acquisi-
tion, many good teaching practices do, in fact, apply across disciplinary boundaries.
When others see what a small group of committed individuals is able to do, they may
want to join in. In the end, building a coalition of diverse colleagues with a common
goal will benefit all involved, may result in unexpected benefits, and will also set a
good example for students of how to build relationships in service of social justice.
Finally, the most important tool teachers have at their disposal is knowledge.
Read widely. Ask questions. Stay current on world events and how social justice ad-
vocates are responding to those events. Journals like Dimension publish a variety
of articles and are freely available to teachers to read online. In fact, the 2018 issue
of Dimension will be a special issue with a focus on social justice and critical peda-
gogy. Other journals like ACTFL’s Foreign Language Annals and magazines like The
Language Educator are included with organizational membership. Take advantage of
these resources.
With all the opportunities for professional development, the biggest challenge
 Social Justice in the Language Classroom 117

facing teachers may be information overload. Ideally, a social justice minded teacher
would choose a few concrete steps that feel manageable and commit to moving for-
ward one step at a time. No one can do everything, but everyone can do something.

Call for Future Work

The research that has been done in intercultural communicative competence
and community-based learning has changed the field for the better, legitimizing the
possibility that our students will not only learn proficiency in our classrooms, but
also learn how to engage the world with confidence and compassion. Some language
education scholars have begun exploring the potential of transformative learning
theory and critical pedagogy to promote the critical reflection and questioning that
leads to social justice outcomes. As demonstrated above, research on the World-
Readiness Standards, particularly the Cultures and Communities standards, have set
the stage for a larger discussion for how we can engage with communities not as con-
sumers, but as partners committed to confronting historical and present inequities.
Yet, there is much scholarship that needs to be done. In order to build a useful
body of scholarship around social justice in language education, participants at all
levels should document and share their experiences, ideas, pedagogies, and results of
research. Some key areas of need in the field are highlighted below.
Service learning. A critical perspective requires changing how we think about
service learning and community involvement. When we conflate service learning
with social justice education, we run the risk of unintentionally replicating the social
structures that led to inequity through the very programs that are meant to lead to
social justice. Good research in this field expands or challenges the idea that service
learning and other kinds of charitable activities automatically reflect a social justice
framework. Research and pedagogical models that provide useful, replicable prac-
tices for teachers who want to do service learning are needed.
Classroom climate. At conferences and other meetings, people often ask us
questions about successful classroom dynamics and relationships. More research is
needed on how to create those safe spaces where debate is encouraged and kind-
ness is valued, how to build trust and promote communication, and how to prepare
students and teachers effectively for the type of high stakes collaborative projects we
ask them to do.
Curriculum development. Integrating language and proficiency goals with
culture and social justice goals is challenging. There are no textbooks that lay out a
roadmap, and perhaps, nor should there be. Social justice education requires teach-
ers to bring the real world into the classroom and to respond to students as unique
individuals. In each context, the methods and content may be different. However,
developing level-appropriate practices and objectives that could be adapted by teach-
ers for their own local contexts would be a tremendous step forward and would
provide teachers new to this arena with a way forward.
Faculty development. We must prepare teachers, including TAs, college in-
structors, teacher candidates, and every other category of language teacher, to rec-
ognize opportunities for and capitalize on productive discomfort in the classroom ,
and to interrogate their own perspectives as teachers. Best practices in training and
supporting faculty as they engage in social justice work would be a timely addition
118 Dimension 2017

to the literature. When faculty strike out on their own and develop themselves pro-
fessionally, or join with others to seek professional development in community, they
should consider setting the goal of writing publicly about the steps they took so that
others can follow in their footsteps.
Marginalized perspectives. In language education, we need more diverse voic-
es and approaches. Part of social justice work is amplifying the voices of the margin-
alized. As a field, let’s make a commitment to creating space for everyone to come to
the table and share their experiences, their challenges, and their ideas.
Action research. We love reading high quality empirical research conducted
by university faculty of the sort that is prevalent in language teaching journals, and
hope to see more of that sort of work around social justice. However, the field also
needs more classroom teachers publishing their successes (and failures) whether in
traditional academic venues and at conferences, or on blogs and social media. We
need useful models and authentic experiences from those doing the work in their
own classrooms. Action research is not only useful as professional development for
the teacher involved; it also contributes to the field when published by adding to the
body of knowledge. We hope to see more grassroots, action research efforts coming
from classroom teachers.
Above all, the most important way we can contribute to the current movement
of social justice in language education is in our own teaching. In our classrooms, tak-
ing one small step at a time, we have the opportunity to share with our students that
the world is bigger, more complex, and more beautiful than they know. There are real
challenges, but there are also groups of people who choose to work together to ad-
dress those challenges. There is no better place than a language classroom to explore
how to communicate across differences and work together to solve real problems.
We leave you now with a call to action: Take small thoughtful steps to promote so-
cial justice in your classroom; bring students, community members, and colleagues
along as partners in your work; and report back to the community of language teach-
ers. As ACTFL’s (2016) statement on the value of language learning in promoting
unity stated, “We remain hopeful for a future where cultural and linguistic diversity
is viewed as an invaluable asset that enriches the lives of all” (paragraph 4).

End Note
1
Although the use of the terms “native speaker” and “native culture” serves as a convenient frame of
reference when discussing linguistic and cultural goals for our students, it is important to remember that
such constructs are abstract ideologies that oversimplify the complex nature of languages and cultures
(see Train, 2007).
 Social Justice in the Language Classroom 119

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