Abstract
What roles do power, representation, and participation play in the practice of design and making? How might young people view the objects and systems they engage with each day – along with the content they encounter in school – through the lens of justice? This chapter introduces the core principles and pedagogical practices associated with the JusticexDesign approach to teaching and learning. Based on a collaborative inquiry with educators in public, parochial, and independent schools in Washington, DC, JusticexDesign practices and pedagogies apply key elements of maker-centered-learning – the incorporation of making into various educational settings – to prompt young people to engage critically with the designs of their worlds, with a particular emphasis on systems of power. Developing sensitivity to designed injustices involves recognizing the important roles of history and context, and interrogating power and representation when interacting with designed objects and systems. This critical sensitivity to design empowers learners to participate in redesigning and/or reimagining the oppressive objects, systems, and content they encounter. Throughout this chapter the theoretical underpinnings of the JusticexDesign approach are interwoven with student and teacher voice to offer practical suggestions that can be applied in a variety of classroom settings. The pedagogical principles presented herein seek to bridge the gap between learner and system, so that all students – regardless of their backgrounds and identities – might recognize their own connections to systemic forces, particularly those that operate in unjust ways.
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Acknowledgments
A special thank you to the Edward E. Ford Foundation and to Washington International School for the generous support of the Making Across the Curriculum Project, which set the stage for the JusticexDesign Project.
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Sheya, S., Mignano, J.C., Clapp, E.P. (2021). JusticexDesign: Exploring Power, Representation, and Participation Through Maker-Centered Learning. In: Mullen, C.A. (eds) Handbook of Social Justice Interventions in Education. Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-29553-0_83-1
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