Reading Ourselves: Placing Critical Literacies in Contemporary Language Education

Abstract

This article problematizes the place of critical literacies (CLs) in contemporary language education. In doing so, we ask: Where do we place critique within the curriculum in neoconservative times? What is left to teachers in their commitment to educate critical citizens? Do critical literacies suffice? To respond to these questions, we bring a set of contemporary snapshots, unveiling all the anguish brought up by the complex politics of “us” versus “them”. Some understandings of CLs within the field are then reviewed, preparing the terrain for the reading of ourselves in relation to our theories and practices. To (in)conclude, we outline a few orientations which seek to relocate CLs beyond the dichotomic view of the micro versus macro as a formative strategy in dealing with our frustrations in such dark times.

Navigating Critical Language Education at the Crossroads of Neonationalism and Neoliberalism: The Role of Border Talk

“…Sharing feelings of frustration and ways of handling attempts at professional or social disqualification appeared to be important to the strengthening of well‐being and professional identity, in our observations of discussions in the education degree in which we taught. Whereas earlier versions of critical language education, inspired by Freire, offered programmatic and revolutionary discursive resources, more recent versions have also turned to local and contextualized actions, and teachers questioning both self and student understandings of the world and of English (Duboc & Ferraz, 2018; Moita‐Lopes, 2008). Talk about these localized strategies—metapragmatic discourse—needs greater recognition as part of critical language education.…”

“…Neo‐nationalism deliberately draws attention to polarization across multiple spheres, thriving on political and discursive conditions of conflict and even chaos (Silva, 2020). As such, it can be so overwhelming as to generate a paralyzing affective response amongst teachers of “anguish, frustration and exhaustion” (Duboc & Ferraz, 2018, p. 234).…”

Wines, Bottles, Crises: A Decolonial Perspective on Brazilian Higher Education

“…Our readings of such situations/vignettes are very much informed by the area of literacy studies, especially as formulated by Brazilian scholars such as Jordão (2011Jordão ( , 2014Jordão ( , 2015, Duboc and Ferraz (2018), Menezes de Souza (2011a, 2011b), Monte Mór (2013, 2018. They have helped us reframe our perspectives, widening our repertoires and looking at language issues from a socio-cultural-political perspective.…”

(Sobre)vivendo Em Meio Ao Caos: O Potencial Da Literatura E Do Afeto Na Educação Linguística Crítica

“…Além disso, nas perspectivas aqui sustentadas, o letramento crítico é chave para uma educação linguística que busque favorecer a empatia e o diálogo humanizadores. Trata-se, portanto, de uma experiência vivida no exercício constante de ler a nós mesmos enquanto lemos o outro (MENEZES DE SOUZA, 2011;DUBOC;FERRAZ, 2018). Assim sendo, faço minhas as palavras de Jordão (2019, p. 73/74), que defende o letramento crítico como uma forma de "ler o mundo e a si, observando-se implicado nos processos de construção de sentidos não apenas como um ser racional e consciente, mas também como alguém atravessado por emoções, afetos e desejos".…”