Mounted on the walls, windows, and bookcases of Ms. Cati de los Rios's Pomona High School classroom are a multitude of faces, mainly heroes, martyrs, and leaders of Latina/o and African descent. These faces are a symbol of the countercultural and student-centered approach to education that occurs in her classroom. The mere presence of these…

This storytelling begins with a positioning of why and how we use "testimonio" as part of a larger project of social justice and transformative pedagogies. In this collective "testimonio," 5 working-class Latina scholars tell the stories of their struggles to overcome the challenges of language and assimilation, of gender discrimination and…

In this commentary, we extend the cautionary tales regarding dual-language programs raised by several scholars by considering the interface of such programs with global education. We consider the possible pitfalls of uncritically framing dual-language programs within the global education movement in the United States, especially in light of how…

Some students are "outsiders" in today's science classroom. What makes an outsider, and how can the teacher break down barriers and reach these students? This article details one teacher's journey as she attempts to understand and connect with an outsider in her science classroom. Written from the first person, it is a poignant tale of…

The richest nation of the world, the United States still struggles to graduate 50% of its Latina/o high school students. Nominal policy attention on this issue begs the need for bolder and more creative initiatives that call attention to this crisis. States, districts, and schools need to reconfigure this pedagogical crisis by leveraging all…

This poetic-prose piece is my personal ethnic educational history. It challenges the misconception that Cuban students (so-called voluntary minorities) are not oppressed, especially not by their Cuban teachers, and that they thus achieve more academic success than other Latinos. Some may be hiding. Perhaps this work will help to find them.

In this interview, Reynaldo F. Macias, chair of the recently established Department of Chicana/o Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), talks about the historical significance of El Plan de Santa Barbara, its impact on Chicana/o studies throughout the Southwest, and its relevance in establishing a department at UCLA, and the…

Multicultural service-learning has come to be seen as a viable means by which to teach about the complexities of our multiethnic, multiracial world. However, when the service component involves having White college students tutor Black and Latino schoolchildren, there are numerous ethical issues that must be seriously considered. It is argued that…

This is a reflection essay that posits the issues of identity, education, and social responsibility on the shoulders of a dream gone wrong. Beginning in the violent streets of south Los Angeles, a young Chicano boy (me) becomes addicted to the word and inquiry at age 5. He follows the tenets of society, seeking upward mobility and happiness via…

In this article, I address the present-day political and pedagogical implications of the imposition of one year of English only immersion on limited English proficient (LEP) students. The article also presents a case study of an inner-city community in Massachusetts during the early years -- 1968-1974 -- of transition from English only to…

From the perspective of two practitioners who have been influenced by work in the area of critical pedagogy and critical theory, this article examines bilingual education, education reform, and the achievement gap in relation to Latino English Language Learners. The authors integrate personal experiences as they examine underlying assumptions of…

This "critical personal narrative" is aimed at deconstructing the imposed definition of Hispanic-Latino(a) identity to unveil its typecasting and stereotypes, although reconstructing it based on shared language, values, and experiences despite our pan-ethnic characteristics. Based on a deep and systematic reflection on my own experience as…

Chicana/o Studies has fallen victim to the contradictions of challenging the academic apparatus from within. In this article, I argue that Chicana/o Studies and its scholars are still struggling with the most basic issues introduced in the early 1970s. This is of grave concern because a race war is now being fought in U.S. academia and Chicana/o…

In this article, I draw on personal experiences with mentors throughout various periods of my education. More specifically, I address the impact of two scholars, Dr. Michelle Camacho and Dr. Lionel Cantu, in shaping my decision to attend graduate school. I discuss how their ongoing support, in combination with university mentorship-focused…

In this article, I argue that mestizo immigrants from the Mesoamerica region experience a low socioeconomic tracking compounded by a racialized subordinating discourse in the United States. These immigrants come over to the United States from a region where social stratification and racial prejudice are based more on cultural and linguistic…