In this article the authors introduce the concept of “listening literacy,” a merged research and instructional framework designed to address growing civic disengagement and political polarization in the United States. Drawing on Indigenous pedagogies, Deweyan democratic philosophy, critical pedagogy, and culturally sustaining practices, the authors theorize listening as a foundational literacy skill essential for democratic participation. To illustrate the framework in practice, the authors present findings from a photovoice project conducted with 15 high school students, exploring their perspectives on the purpose of school, factors that support and hinder their school engagement, and the role teachers play in their success. Student insights revealed that schools serve as vital sites of community and opportunity. The authors argue that “listening pedagogies” like photovoice empower students to articulate their experiences, develop self‐efficacy, and engage as citizens. The authors close with a consideration of implications for educators across disciplines seeking to cultivate democratic literacy.
In this study, I explore how integrating problem-based learning with community-based service learning fosters 21st-century skills—specifically communication, collaboration, and critical thinking—among Bangladeshi elementary students. Drawing on a multi-stakeholder, participatory learning design process involving teachers, students, parents, teacher trainers, and education policymakers, I investigate the impact of a community engagement learning model developed and implemented across rural and urban public schools in Bangladesh. Using case study methodology, I analyzed data from classroom observations, student-led community projects, interviews, focus groups, and over 288 self-assessment survey responses. Findings demonstrate that embedding experiential, socially relevant learning activities into science curriculum enhanced students’ ability to articulate ideas, work collaboratively, and critically engage with socioscientific issues. The study provides empirical evidence of how localized service learning grounded in students’ lived experiences can challenge epistemic injustice and support educational transformation in Global South contexts. Implications are discussed for curricular innovation, teacher development, and educational policy in resource-constrained environments.
Agency and empowerment issues have been the central concerns of curriculum design and classroom dimension in English as foreign language learning (EFL) context. These issues seek an alignment to the practice of critical pedagogy in language classroom. Thus, the study aims to explore students’ perceptions of empowerment and agency in classrooms informed by critical pedagogy within Nepalese community campuses investigating how learners experience voice, participation, and constrains in EFL classrooms in the context of Nepal. Adopting a qualitative design, the researcher chose six undergraduate students from three community campuses located at Bagmati province, Nepal as participants for unstructured interviews and follow up discussions. Analysis of the information revealed four concurrent themes: voice and participation in classroom interaction, critical awareness and reflective learning, identity and confidence as English users, and structural and institutional barriers to agency. Findings indicate that dialogic and interactive classroom practices foster student empowerment and confidence. However, rigid academic structures and exam-oriented traditions still constrain the realization of genuine agency. The study highlights the necessity of teacher professional development in practicing critical pedagogy and advocates for participatory or flexible curriculum frameworks with practical evaluation system that promote learner autonomy in EFL contexts.
In Nepal's multilingual and multicultural context, teaching English poses distinct challenges and opportunities. Teachers are central to ensuring effective English language learning, but their potential is often undermined by inadequate training, poor infrastructure, and mismatched national policies that fail to consider local diversity. This study explored how to energize teacher potentials by focusing on socio-cultural inclusivity, professional development, and geo-political considerations in Nepal. Drawing on qualitative data collected through interviews, observations, and document analysis, the research investigates the current challenges and emerging solutions from teachers’ perspectives across different regions. The findings show that teachers can become transformative agents when equipped with context-sensitive pedagogy, culturally responsive training, and community engagement tools. The study recommends decentralizing teacher education, investing in continuous and reflective professional development, and involving teachers in curriculum design. Energizing teacher potential is thus framed not just as a pedagogical goal, but as a socio-political project essential for equitable and effective English education across Nepal
The pedagogical efficacy of children’s stories within the classroom is fundamentally contingent upon critical teacher mediation, thereby transcending the traditional perspective that may regard them merely as a source of entertainment. The primary objective of this research is to analyse the impact of stories focused on social and civic values on a group of four- to five-year-old children. To achieve this, we employed a qualitative methodology and data collection techniques, such as the teacher’s reflective diary (documenting each session), semi-structured interviews with two participating teachers, unfinished stories created by the lead teacher to encourage co-construction, transcripts of children’s responses to ethical dilemmas during assemblies, and creative productions such as drawings and collaboratively composed story endings. The findings revealed that even an unhappy story can provoke meaningful reflection, encourage the proposal of alternatives, and foster prosocial attitudes and emotional well-being in children. Additionally, our study observed that situations involving conflict, play, and experimentation became powerful opportunities to promote learning in cooperation, environmental awareness, equality, diversity, and the exercise of rights and responsibilities.
This qualitative study explores how secondary content‐area teachers of emergent bilingual (EB) students navigate tensions between linguistically responsive professional development (PD) and the implementation of state‐mandated College and Career Readiness (CCR) curricula in south Texas. It draws on data from coaching sessions and individual interviews with three educators who participated in Project SELFIES, a PD initiative intended to promote critically informed and linguistically responsive pedagogies among secondary educators serving EB students. Focusing on middle school context, which is under‐researched in CCR literature, the study examines how teachers experience and respond to CCR‐aligned curricular mandates such as Energize and Ascend Learning. Based on the thematic data analysis, the findings demonstrate how the three content‐area teachers experienced and responded to conflicting expectations, systemic constraints, and their own evolving identities as critical educators. The article presents findings within four interrelated themes: (1) curricular imposition and the erosion of teacher agency, (2) tensions between critical PD‐driven practices and prescribed curriculum, (3) emotional burnout and institutional pressure, and (4) systemic exclusion of EBs from policy visions.