Toward a Professional Community for Social Justice

Abstract

In response to a call for educators to work for social justice, this article introduces an argument for developing a novel community of practice: a transprofessional community for social justice. Some features of community, profession, and social justice work that suggest basic elements of such a professional community are explored, including possible areas of resistance to a core orientation toward social justice within professional activity. Professional education's place within this framework, including suggestions for how to support educators entering into the professional community for social justice, is addressed.

Rural Education in South Africa: Concepts and Practices

“…Similarly, Calderwood (2003) also adopts a revolutionary approach to social justice. She posits that it works to undo socially created and maintained differences in material conditions of living, so as to reduce and eventually eliminate the perpetuation of the privileging of some at the expense of others.…”

“…The authors (Frey et al) claim that sensibility should forego ethical concerns, commit to structural analyses of ethical concerns, adopt an activist orientation and seek identification with others. Regarding the promotion of social justice, Calderwood (2003) is of the view that people need to act to reduce and eradicate oppression, however distant we may feel from the personal culpability of its enactment. The view is further emphasised by former British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, who, quoting an unknown Greek philosopher, said: "When will there be justice in Athens?…”

“…The situation seems to further call for alertness or what we may call thinking beyond the visible and the ordinary. Calderwood (2003) cites an unfortunate reality about social justice. She states that the mechanisms of injustice are largely invisible, even to those who strive to live their lives and carry out their work ethically.…”

“…Her perspectival dualist framework views recognition and redistribution as the co-fundamental and mutually irreducible dimensions of justice. Social justice works to undo socially created and maintained differences in material conditions of living, so as to reduce and eventually eliminate the perpetuation of the privileging of some at the expense of others (Calderwood 2003) In order to promote social justice, we must act to reduce and eradicate oppression, however distant we may feel from personal culpability for its enactment. Unfortunately, the mechanisms of oppression are largely invisible, even to those of us who strive to live our lives and carry out our work ethically (Solomon and Murphy, 2000).…”

Exploring the corollaries of students’ social justice intentionality

“…As educators have addressed the goal of multicultural and social justice education, emergent themes have included the need for social justice principles to be infused throughout educational systems, practices and curricula (Calderwood, 2003;Elicker et al, 2009;Hackman, 2005;Sciame-Giesecke et al, 2009) as well as a focus on increasing cultural competence as an ethical responsibility (APA, 2002(APA, , 2003Rogers-Sirin and Sirin, 2009). Reviewing the calls for social justice initiatives within the field of educational leadership, Brown (2004: 80) agreed that such new understandings of educational training and professional development were crucial, yet added that 'questions remain -Who?…”