Learning to Liberate

Vajra Watson is Director of Research and Policy for Equity in the School of Education at the University of California, Davis.

• Preface: Gems in the Gutter1. Introduction: Gangstas, Gunshots, and Grades2. Dereca Blackmon: Pedagogy of Communication 3. Rudy Corpuz: Pedagogy of Community 4. Victor Damian: Pedagogy of Compassion 5. Jack Jacqua: Pedagogy of Commitment 6. What Does (Not) Work 7. Community-Based Urban Education 8. Grindin for all we Got from the Bottom to the Top Appendices A: TerminologyB: Methods and ValidityC: Participant-Observer or Observing Participant?D: Interview Protocols and Youth QuestionnaireE: Website and Contact Information for the Community-Based EducatorsBibliography

"In a language that is at once impassioned and skeptical, challenging and hopeful, provocative and poetic, Vajra Watson paints vivid portraits of four community educator/activists whose voices and visions, philosophies and pragmatism, and intelligence and courage offer us insights into how we might transform our schools into asylums of safety and oases of learning and achievement. Learning to Liberate is a heart-wrenching, soul-stirring, and mind-expanding call to action; it is a book for all of us who want to leave no child behind."Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot is the Emily Hargroves Fisher Professor of Education at Harvard University and the author of The Good High School, The Essential Conversation, and Respect: an Exploration"A brilliant and illuminating analysis of what it takes to reach and teach urban youth. Watson goes to the educators who have been effective in working with disadvantaged young people for years to uncover what makes it possible for them to build relationships that open minds, change lives, and expand opportunities. Any educators seeking to find ways to become more relevant and useful to the students they serve will benefit from this book. " Pedro Noguera is Professor of Education and the Executive Director of the Metropolitan Center for Urban Education at New York University