Mindful and Relational Approaches to Social Justice, Equity, and Diversity in Teacher Education

Book excerpt: As teaching is socially, culturally, and politically constructed, it is important that teacher educators committed to social justice attempt to create secure environment where all voices are heard and teacher candidates can inquire into personally and socially challenging topics within a safe and caring classroom culture. Relationships of trust are fundamental to teaching about social justice and to being receptive as learners in such classes. Mindfulness on the part of teacher educators and teacher candidates can go a long way in fostering respect, openness and acceptance in such classes. Together they can lead to teacher educators and candidates thinking deeply about themselves, schools and schooling as they move towards a vision of a more equitable and just society. The teacher educators who have contributed to this volume recognize the challenges of balancing respect for their students with the call to social justice. Their accounts and critical reflections convey how relational and mindful approaches might offer positive avenues to self and shared exploration by teacher candidates and teacher educators alike. Several chapters attend to the challenges for educators as they encounter culturally and linguistically diverse contexts. Others attend to these issues within the complexity of diverse university classrooms in order to guide teacher candidates towards dispositions and practices that help foster inclusion and engage diverse learners and communities. Together, these chapters offer thoughtful approaches to living alongside aspiring teachers as they develop deeper understanding of the concepts of race and diversity, and inclusive approaches to teaching and learning.