In episode 209, Dan and Michael chat with Asif Wilson and Rachel McMillian about their article published in Theory & Research in Social Education, “Black teachers in white spaces: Rupturing reproductions of Anti-Blackness in preservice social studies education.”

Transcript 

Books, Articles and Other Amazing Resources

1. Dr. Wilson and McMillian’s relevant, and recent publications:
   1. Wilson, A., & McMillian, R. (2024). Black teachers in white spaces: Rupturing reproductions of Anti-Blackness in preservice social studies education. Theory & Research in Social Education, 1-24.
   2. McMillian, R. (2024). Our Eyes are Watching God: Bearing Witness to Black Life and the Complexities of Black Joy on Death Row. Urban Education, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/00420859241227949
   3. Wilson, A. (2023). Returning to the source: Black teachers centering justice with Black students in Chicago public schools. The Urban Review, 1-21.
   4. Wilson, A., & McMillian, R. (2024). kNOw Your History KNOw Yourself: Fugitive Praxes of Black Joy During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Urban Education, 
   5. Wilson, A., & Robinson, I. (2024). Fighting for Justice Amid Anti-Black Violence. Urban Education, 00420859241258137.
2. Dr. Wilson’s new documentary titled, Towards Inquiry: Moving in Solidarity With Your Students, is available for private screenings of his new documentary. The film follows Seth, a high school social studies teacher and his students as they engage in inquiry-to-action for their entire class. Please contact Asif Wilson if you are interested in a screening.
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3. Dr. Wilson and McMillian created a resource page related to inquiry and justice in social studies, 
4. Access their Ppdcast, What’s Going On? and their TikTok channel.

Biographies

Asif Wilson, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of Social Studies Education in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction at University of Illinois Urbana Champaign. Wilson’s research broadly focuses on justice-centered pedagogies in P-20 educational contexts and has published over 20 peer-reviewed articles and chapters in publications like the International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, Whiteness and Education, Teachers College Press, and Rethinking Schools. In 2023, Dr. Wilson received the Early Career Award through the National Council for Social Studies and the Emerging Scholar Award through the Critical Race Studies in Education Association. Wilson started his career in education with Chicago Public Schools as a middle school social studies and science teacher. Before moving to his role at UIUC, he served as Dean of Instruction at Harold Washington College, one of the City Colleges of Chicago, and Executive Director of a non-profit organization where he conducted his dissertation research on liberatory education. 

Rachel McMillian is an Assistant Professor of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. As a curriculum theorist and educational researcher, her work broadly explores two intersecting avenues: Black Education and Critical Prison Studies. More specifically–through counterstorytelling–she focuses on 1) the schooling and educational experiences of Black people who were (wrongfully) incarcerated as children/youth and, 2) Black liberatory education and curriculum that occurs within spaces of confinement and enclosure. McMillian’s interdisciplinary scholarship is inspired by her years of experience as a social studies teacher, her relationships and work with both formerly and currently incarcerated people, and her lived experiences as someone directly impacted by mass incarceration.