Red Clay Philosophical Lenses
The Red Clay Writing Project uses three philosophical lenses to guide our work. It's important that you know the beliefs of the facilitators; it is even more important that throughout the institute each participant has an opportunity to develop, discuss, and articulate your own philosophic lenses.
1) The first of these lenses concerns taking an inquiry stance . We believe that learning is enhanced when learners are able to take ownership of the meaning making process. In the summer institute we will experiment with a range of inquiry practice in teaching students, inquire into our own praxis, and explore inquiry as a means for working with colleagues. Such a stance will support efforts to become reflective practitioners and also facilitate RCWP in its own reflection as an NWP site.
2) The second lens involves connecting literacy to issues of educational equity and social justice. Using this lens helps us think about how to prepare students to participate as citizens working towards a truly democratic society. As the United States grows more diverse, issues of language, literacy, and culture become increasingly critical. Living by democratic principles has become more complicated and threatened in recent years, and the existential, political, and social needs for literacy have grown geometrically, especially for those students disenfranchised from the mainstream. We view literacy not only as a tool for learning or means of enjoyment, but also as a way to actively participate in and shape a democracy.
3) Our third lens is that of respecting educators as professionals, leaders, and intellectuals who engage in praxis: constant reflection and action on their teaching and their students' learning. Although "surefire" lesson plans may be useful, we feel it is more important to have a repertoire of flexible processes (e.g., journaling, literacy circles, conferencing, etc) anchored to a solid theoretical base, fueled by a commitment to educational equity and social justice, and guided by an inquiry stance. RCWP, like the NWP, is founded on the belief that teachers learn these processes best from other teachers. We will work together in the RCWP community to become not only strong writers and teachers of writing, but leaders at local, regional, and/or national levels.
These three lenses–taking an inquiry stance, connecting literacy to issues of educational equity and social justice, and respecting educators as literacy leaders–are at the core of the Red Clay Writing Project. It is our conviction that these lenses honor and enhance the guiding principles of NWP. By combining, focusing, and continually readjusting these lenses, we hope together you will be able to clarify, challenge, and enrich your own beliefs.