A Critical Examination of K-12 Ethnic Studies: Transforming and Liberating Praxis

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is twofold: (a) to use the theoretical framework of Critical Race Theory (CRT) to highlight and understand the vision, process, and practice of creating an Ethnic Studies program in an urban public school district, and (b) to inform social justice praxis by producing counter-hegemonic knowledge about K-12 Ethnic Studies programs. By focusing on K-12 Ethnic Studies, this paper seeks to show how everyday social justice praxis interrupts “race-neutral” or colorblind master narratives and White cultural hegemony in traditional social studies (Ross, 2001; Apple 2004; Bonilla-Silva, 2006; Hursh & Ross, 2000).