ABSTRACT
The quote can be both true and unfortunate. Although it is not a sweeping generalization meant to ridicule faculty in educational policy studies and foundations departments (like myself), many professors who deliver messages of educational critique to pre-service teachers are far removed from the lives of young people. The painful reality is that writing, talking and dreaming can be luxuries in relation to the contested spaces of schools. K-12 teaching can be messy, contradictory, and conflicting, particularly in light of recent developments in urban schools such as high-stakes testing, the privatization of public education, and the gentrification of working-class communities of color by middle-class and affluent residents. Still, because K-12 schools are spaces where we interact with young people, they remain sites of hope in challenging times. They are spaces that offer an alternative reality to the sensibilities of the ivory tower. The following is an account of my experiences in just such a space. I attempted through these experiences to make my writing, talking, and dreaming practical through the use of critical race theory (CRT).
