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Pedagogy of Refusal: Teaching When the Curriculum Is Violent

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Educators frequently encounter curricular mandates or textbooks perpetuating white supremacy, colonial narratives, or other forms of harm. Pedagogy of Refusal confronts this reality head-on, offering strategies to resist oppressive content and co-create liberatory alternatives with students. By centering refusal as an ethical stance, participants will explore how to subvert violent curricular norms, restore agency to marginalized voices, and design lessons where students become co-authors of their own learning experiences. Rather than teaching harmful material without question, this workshop empowers educators to challenge injustice from within, unearthing transformative possibilities in “required” texts and policies.

Educators frequently encounter curricular mandates or textbooks perpetuating white supremacy, colonial narratives, or other forms of harm. Pedagogy of Refusal confronts this reality head-on, offering strategies to resist oppressive content and co-create liberatory alternatives with students. By centering refusal as an ethical stance, participants will explore how to subvert violent curricular norms, restore agency to marginalized voices, and design lessons where students become co-authors of their own learning experiences. Rather than teaching harmful material without question, this workshop empowers educators to challenge injustice from within, unearthing transformative possibilities in “required” texts and policies.

Key Focus Areas

  1. Refusal as an Ethical Stance

    • Understand the history and philosophy of refusal, distinguishing when and how to reject mandates that perpetuate white supremacy, racism, or other systemic harms.

  2. Curriculum Subversion & Co-Creation

    • Learn how to adapt “required” lessons by inviting student agency, integrating counter-narratives, and centering historically erased perspectives.

  3. Navigating Institutional Pressures

    • Acquire practical tools for advocating within administrative constraints, engaging allies, and mitigating potential backlash while upholding ethical commitments to justice.

Who Should Attend

  • K–12 & Higher Ed Instructors
    Facing scripted curricula, textbook requirements, or standardized tests that misrepresent or exclude marginalized experiences.

  • School Administrators & Curriculum Leads
    Aiming to support teachers in resisting oppressive mandates and fostering inclusive, student-driven classrooms.

  • Activists & Community Educators
    Creating or revising youth programs impacted by broader educational guidelines that perpetuate inequities.

  • Equity & DEI Facilitators
    Looking to integrate refusal-based pedagogy into professional development offerings and institutional reform efforts.

Learning Objectives

  1. Critique Violent Curriculum

    • Identify and articulate the subtle or overt violence embedded in mandated content—particularly around race, class, gender, colonial history, and more.

  2. Facilitate Liberatory Alternatives

    • Discover strategies for reframing or supplementing harmful materials with reciprocal, co-created lesson designs that honor diverse epistemologies.

  3. Build Solidarity & Shared Action

    • Develop methods for collaborating with students, families, and colleagues to resist oppressive mandates, protect teacher autonomy, and advocate for curriculum reform.

Why It Matters

When violent or white supremacist narratives dominate “official” curriculum, students of marginalized backgrounds can feel alienated, harmed, or silenced. Simultaneously, well-intentioned educators may struggle to negotiate institutional mandates. Pedagogy of Refusal affirms that teaching itself can be a site of resistance—a space to disrupt unjust norms, amplify underrepresented knowledge, and nurture critical thought. By rejecting dehumanizing content and co-creating liberatory alternatives, teachers model transformative learning and help students see themselves as agents of change.

Is This Workshop For You?

  • Encountering frequent tension between your moral/ethical commitments and official lesson plans?
    We’ll discuss how to respectfully but firmly refuse violent or erasing narratives, and design pathways for liberatory content.

  • Concerned about potential repercussions when challenging state-approved materials or testing standards?
    Learn risk-management strategies, ally-building techniques, and community engagement methods that protect both educators and students.

  • Seeking ways to center student voices and lived experiences in direct opposition to oppressive mandates?
    Explore lesson-planning frameworks that invite youth co-leadership, critique, and innovation in reshaping the curriculum.

  • Wanting to unite with colleagues around subverting harmful standards without isolating yourself?
    We’ll show how solidarity-building, collective advocacy, and shared resource creation can strengthen teacher networks and reduce individual vulnerability.

If these points reflect your experiences, Pedagogy of Refusal: Teaching When the Curriculum Is Violent can illuminate a principled path forward—where refusal, reimagination, and radical listening underpin ethical classroom practice.