ABSTRACT

Every day, children living in low-income communities have no choice but to grow up in a climate where they experience multiple unending assaults to their sense of dignity. This volume applies theoretical and historical insights to think through the increasingly undignified realities of life in economically marginalized communities. It includes examples of curricular challenges that low-income students in the US confront today while attempting to learn. Curricular challenges are analyzed as material texts that emerge out of student lived experiences in the economically disposed neighborhoods in which schools are located, and the dynamics of the schools and classrooms themselves. Attention is also paid to educators and students who push back against these forces in an effort to reclaim voice, identity and dignity.

chapter 1|15 pages

Introduction

part I|78 pages

The Assault on Dignity in Households and Communities

part II|59 pages

The Assault on Dignity in Schools

chapter 6|22 pages

E Pluribus Unum

Elementary School Narratives and the Making of National Identity

chapter 7|22 pages

Neoliberalism and Urban School Reform

A Cincinnati Case Study

part III|57 pages

Resistance from Inside Communities and Schools

chapter 9|19 pages

Speak It, Live It!

Spoken Word Pedagogy as Critical and Culturally Responsive Practice

chapter 10|16 pages

The War on Dignity

Hip-Hop Youth Read Schools the Riot Act

chapter 11|4 pages

Conclusion