ABSTRACT
We began this work assuming we were cultural insiders, teaching colleagues working together in solidarity to serve all students. After all, from the inception of our work together, teachers from both the United States and Belize shared an unwavering commitment to literacy, to teaching the next generation of citizens to read, understand, and use literacy to lift their lives and the lives of others. We all embraced the magnitude and importance of the task. This shared vision was foundational in becoming committed allies to our Belizean colleagues. Because of this particular social fact, which still holds true, we were initially bewildered by what felt like insurmountable barriers in this work. However, as we came to know and work side by side with our colleagues in Belize, it became more and more clear that we had very different life experiences and that we were influenced by very different cultural forces. In this chapter, we address the history of colonialism in Belize and its continued impact on the personal and cultural identities of our Belizean colleagues (and ourselves). We specifically explore the continued impact of colonialism on educational practice in Belize. Finally, we share ways in which we imagined possibilities for working toward decolonizing pedagogies.
