Resistance, Creativity, and Innovation in the 21st Century: Transforming Curriculum for Educational Equity

Authors

  • Suniti Sharma

Abstract

Resistance, Creativity, and Innovation in the 21st Century: Transforming Curriculum for Educational Equity According to policy research, building upon 21st century skills of creativity and innovation in navigating the complexity of an ever changing world will keep the US on the cutting edge of global competition. Using autobiographical theory of curriculum, this article looks at the literary works of girls behind bars and how they resist convention, think outside the box, and envision innovative curricula for educational equity. Participants in the study are girls behind bars aged 15-19 years, and data consists of their autobiographical poems. Findings indicate girls behind bars respond creatively with new ideas and skills to address social and academic marginalization that demand rethinking of how we as educators, curriculum developers, and policy makers understand, organize and implement school and curriculum knowledge and practices.

Author Biography

Suniti Sharma

Suniti Sharma is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Teacher Education at Saint Joseph’s University, Philadelphia. Her teaching and research interests include literacy across the curriculum, girls in prison and curriculum change, multicultural competencies for preservice teachers through international field experiences, and autoethnographic studies in identity, culture, and curriculum. Some of her research has been published in Race Ethnicity and Education, Issues in Teacher Education, and Teachers College Record. She has co-authored chapters in The Curriculum Studies Handbook – The Next Moment, Handbook of Public Pedagogy: Education and Learning Beyond Schooling, and authored the book, Girls Behind Bars: Reclaiming Education in Transformative Spaces.

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Published

2013-01-17

Issue

Vol. 28 No. 2 (2012): Journal of Curriculum Theorizing

Section

General Themes

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