ABSTRACT
Critical pedagogy is an ideology that drives teacher training and an increasing reorientation toward social justice and a focus on student identity within the classroom. Proponents of this approach write extensively on the merits of this paradigm shift; however, there is a profound lack of congruency in praxis, with much room for improvement. Charter schools often claim to operate as mechanisms toward social change, as they focus on failed schools, marginalized populations, and students coming from low socioeconomic levels; the mission for many charter schools is to provide an equitable education and to pave the way for students to enter the college of their choice. As such, many charter networks seek to zealously produce standardized test scores such as the SAT and the ACT resolving to achieve that mission. But can critical pedagogy live within the harsh constraints of the test-prep culture? Indeed, student liberation must come from a far more profound change. I argue that it must instead be rooted within a redefining of literacy as we know it, let alone the measurement of that literacy, and a praxis that puts the student at the center of learning.
