Open AccessTeaching Social Justice and Engaging Gen Z Students in Digital Classrooms During COVID-19
Author(s) -
Sun Wei,
Aisha Powell,
Kapriatta Jenkins,
Britney Gulledge
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
the journal of scholarship of teaching and learning
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 1527-9316
DOI - 10.14434/josotl.v21i4.32708
Subject(s) - covid-19 , pandemic , unrest , sociology , racism , economic justice , social justice , politics , teaching method , pedagogy , political science , mathematics education , public relations , psychology , social science , gender studies , law , medicine , disease , pathology , infectious disease (medical specialty)
The outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020 disrupted the lives of people on all fronts, but especially the traditional education system. Now dependent on online learning during a global pandemic, political unrest, and a contentious presidential election, many school educators were forced to transition to virtual instruction amid the ongoing health crises posed by COVID-19 and the ever-present issue of racism. We gathered and analyzed the teaching experiences of instructors at an historically Black college or university as they addressed social justice issues during the COVID-19 pandemic. The majority of college-age students today are from Generation Z (Gen Z), the “digital native” generation. They are living in a time in which recent social justice movements have called them to the frontlines. To teach Gen-Z students, faculty should create courses that fit their needs and consider innovative teaching strategies to engage them in classrooms. We discuss three classroom activities that showcase instructors’ pedagogical efforts during such unprecedented times.