Teaching for diversity and social justice are professional imperatives, and the responsibility of all teachers. Yet what does it actually mean to ‘teach for diversity and social justice’? In what ways might diversity and social justice relate to teachers’ work, and what might they mean for you in particular? In this assignment you are invited to explore these questions through reflecting on the issues raised in weekly classes, and unit reading material.  The way that diversity and social justice are framed in education policy and curriculum documents often tends to focus on particular equity target groups, such as Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander students, ‘Low SES’ students, or students with a ‘disability’. The ideal teacher implied in these documents is an efficient, technicist teacher who can develop effective strategies for catering for marginalised students. Engaging with theoretical and research literature in education allows us to critique and move beyond such constructions, and to broaden our consideration about what it might mean to teach for diversity and social justice.  Over the first 5 weeks of this unit you will participate in weekly classes where you hear from a range of visitors (including school principals, academics, and community organisations) about different diversity and social justice issues that schools are facing. In seminars you will be given time to reflect on the voices of these people and the weekly readings (in particular Amanda Keddie’s book ‘Educating for Diversity and Social Justice’), and the issues being raised about diversity and social justice in education. You will be given time in seminars to discuss and prepare some written responses based around the meaning you are making from the speakers and readings about how social justice may be related to your work as a secondary teacher and a member of a school community. You will also put forward some questions you have about the issues raised that week for your future practice. You will engage in this thinking and writing process for each of the first 5 classes – as each will feature a different visitor with a different perspective. You will be encouraged to write responses each week.  For the first assignment you need to select a response/topic that you found the most challenging and that you want to think further about during your placement and future practice, and submit your written response (of no more than 2000 words) for assessment. You may (of course) choose to develop your writing on this topic further prior to final submission of the assignment by the 19th August.  When we assess your written submission we will be looking for evidence of the first two unit learning outcomes. In particular, we will be looking for evidence that you have:  • Read and thought about the dimensions of justice discussed by Keddie • Read and thought about other weekly readings (particularly those set for the week(s)/topic you have chosen to include in your submission) • Been able to synthesise the voices of the guest speakers, and the scholarly reading in a critical manner, allowing you to raise questions and issues that move beyond your initial assumptions about what it means to teach for diversity and social justice, and technicist understandings of the work of teachers.  
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• Thought about what all this might mean for your own teaching, including how pedagogies for social justice might operate at different levels of life in schools (eg classroom level, school level)
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