The Courageous Conversations Project: Examining the Persistence of the Racial Divide in South Africa and the United States
The Courageous Conversations Project attempts to elicit frank discourse on the subject of race, poverty and schooling, understanding that present day educational matters reside within the larger context of historical narratives. The project, coordinated by educational leaders in the United States and South Africa, is committed to moving in a positive direction and is fueled by the courage of the participants to be actors in uncharted territory. The participants are creating an “aspirational space” to motivate others to join in these conversations. This “space” bestrides the twin phenomena of race and poverty. The project attempts to unpack the social capital inheritances of youngsters in South African and US schools. The school leaders involved have pledged to contribute to the project in the spirit of social change. The project has a multi-layered design. Working with the imprimatur of The University of Stellenbosch in South Africa and LIU-Post in the United States, professors from both universities have been meeting for the last eight years to share ideas and their perspectives on the themes of the initiative. A chapter in the Handbook of Educational Leadership and Social (In)Justice (Springer, 2013) written by Dr. Arnold Dodge from LIU-Post and Dr. Berte van Wyk from the University of Stellenbosch (the directors of the program) provides the backdrop for the work. Principals from schools in South Africa and the United States have attended ongoing workshops in their home countries with professors from both universities. Partner schools from Long Island engage in exchanges with schools in South Africa, including narratives of home life, community service endeavors, arts and sports programs, photo galleries, audio archives, and live conversations via SKYPE and other electronic media. Delegations from both countries visit their partner schools across the ocean on a yearly basis. Research is ongoing throughout the project, including an extensive interview protocol recently administered in 14 schools in both countries. A broad network of communications amongst all schools provides coherence and continuity to the work. |
US/South Africa Project
The Courageous Conversations project, a US/South Africa research initiative, examines issues of race and poverty and how these phenomena affect schooling in both countries. The work is divided into two basic domains: Advocacy Leadership and School Partnerships. While the approaches differ in their emphases, participants in the project are typically involved in both.
Part I Advocacy Leadership
US and South African principals advance the goals of the project through:
Roundtable discussions on their personal viewpoints regarding race, poverty and schooling and those gleaned from experiences in their professional environment(s).
Findings from interviews based on critical race theory.
Visitations to other schools involved in the project.
Additional sources to grow the work: review of pertinent documents, (e.g., policy and law governing schools); artifacts from school cultures (e.g., teacher handbooks, student yearbooks); reflections (those gathered as the project proceeds); data gathering (from various and sometimes unlikely sources), (tentative) hypotheses development, etc.
Development of an agenda to advocate for change, offer support, and involve a wider audience/more participants in the work.
Part II School Partnerships
Partner schools share best practices in:
Instructional effectiveness, including classroom methods for reading, writing, speaking and listening and development of narratives, e.g., stories of hurt and hope
Service learning involving students in community projects and sharing planning, implementation and outcomes of the projects
The arts, including theater, dance, painting/drawing, sculpting, etc., to increase understanding of one another’s cultures
Schools support their partner schools with the introduction/installation of new programs and expansion of existing programs in these areas.
Note: All activities, investigations, sharing, forums, etc. will occur in both intra-country and inter-country environments.
The Courageous Conversations project, a US/South Africa research initiative, examines issues of race and poverty and how these phenomena affect schooling in both countries. The work is divided into two basic domains: Advocacy Leadership and School Partnerships. While the approaches differ in their emphases, participants in the project are typically involved in both.
Part I Advocacy Leadership
US and South African principals advance the goals of the project through:
Roundtable discussions on their personal viewpoints regarding race, poverty and schooling and those gleaned from experiences in their professional environment(s).
Findings from interviews based on critical race theory.
Visitations to other schools involved in the project.
Additional sources to grow the work: review of pertinent documents, (e.g., policy and law governing schools); artifacts from school cultures (e.g., teacher handbooks, student yearbooks); reflections (those gathered as the project proceeds); data gathering (from various and sometimes unlikely sources), (tentative) hypotheses development, etc.
Development of an agenda to advocate for change, offer support, and involve a wider audience/more participants in the work.
Part II School Partnerships
Partner schools share best practices in:
Instructional effectiveness, including classroom methods for reading, writing, speaking and listening and development of narratives, e.g., stories of hurt and hope
Service learning involving students in community projects and sharing planning, implementation and outcomes of the projects
The arts, including theater, dance, painting/drawing, sculpting, etc., to increase understanding of one another’s cultures
Schools support their partner schools with the introduction/installation of new programs and expansion of existing programs in these areas.
Note: All activities, investigations, sharing, forums, etc. will occur in both intra-country and inter-country environments.