Putting Deliberative Pedagogy in Place: How Colleges and Universities Can Help Build a More Democratic Society

Authors

  • Nicholas Longo Providence College

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18060/26443

Keywords:

place-based education, anchor institutions, deliberative pedagogy, civic education

Abstract

Place-based education makes a compelling case that the pedagogy of colleges and universities must be re-imagined to be more relevant and engaged. This article argues for a specific approach to place-based education—what has been termed deliberative pedagogy—offering an emerging practical philosophy that applies insights from deliberative dialogue towards teaching and learning. The author provides principles and practices, along with examples of this method of civic education. It makes a hopeful case for having democratic practices in education undergirding the connection between anchor institutions and the broader civic mission of higher education. 

References

Atwell, M., Bridgeland, J. and Levine, P. (2017). Civic deserts: America’s civic health challenge. National Conference on Citizenship, Tufts University.

Barr, R. & Tagg, J. (1995). From Teaching to learning. Change. November/December.

Boyte, H. (2017, February 2). Free spaces in schools and colleges. Huffington Post. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/free-spaces-in-schools-and_b_9138744

Buber, M. (1947). Between man and man. London: Routledge.

Daniels, R. (2021). Universities are shunning their responsibilities to democracy.” The Atlantic, October 3. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/10/universities-cant-dodge-civics/620261/

Davies, S. (2022). A few thoughts on democracy. Kettering Foundation Blog Post. www.kettering.org/blogs/few-thoughts-democracy

Educating for American Democracy (2021). Educating for American democracy: Excellence in history and civics for all learners. www.educatingforamericandemocracy.org.

Harvard University Kennedy School's Institute of Politics (2021). The Harvard youth poll. Fall. https://iop.harvard.edu/youth-poll/fall-2021-harvard-youth-poll

International IDEA (2021). The Global state of democracy. https://www.idea.int/gsod/sites/default/files/2021-11/the-global-state-of-democracy-2021_0.pdf

Horton, M. with Judith and Herbert Kohl (1998). The long haul: An autobiography. New York: Teachers College Press.

Leighninger, M. (2012). Mapping Deliberative Civic Engagement: Pictures from a (R)evolution. In T. Nabatchi, J. Gastil, M. Leighninger & G. M. Weiksner (Eds.), Democracy in Motion: Evaluating the Practice and Impact of Deliberative Civic Engagement. New York: Oxford University Press.

Levine, P. (2022). What should we do? A theory of civic life. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Longo, N. (2022). Does place still matter? The future of higher education depends on vibrant local communities. TIAA Institute’s Voices of Expertise and Experience Series. https://www.tiaainstitute.org/about/news/does-place-still-matter-future-higher-education-depends-vibrant-local-communities

Longo, N. & McMillan, J. (2020). Knowledge exists in many spaces: Civic possibilities through deliberative pedagogy, Journal of Language & Literacy Education (March). http://jolle.coe.uga.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/SSO_March_Longo.pdf

Longo, N. & Shaffer, T. (Eds.). (2019). Creating space for democracy: A primer on dialogue and deliberation in higher education. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing.

Marken, S. (2019). A crisis of confidence in higher ed, Gallup Blog, April 12. https://news.gallup.com/opinion/gallup/248492/crisis-confidence-higher.aspx

McMillan, J. (2017). I Understand that Infrastructure Affects People’s Lives: Deliberative Pedagogy and Community-Engaged Learning in a South African Engineering Curriculum,” in Shaffer, Longo, Manosevitch, and Thomas (Eds.), Deliberative Pedagogy: Teaching and Learning for Democratic Engagement. East Lansing, MI: Michigan State University Press.

Morton, K. & Hernandez, L. (2019). Providence College-Smith Hill Annex. In Nicholas V. Longo & Timothy Shaffer (Eds.) Creating Space for Democracy. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing.

The National Task Force on Civic Learning and Democratic Engagement (2012). A crucible moment: College learning and democracy’s future. Washington, DC: Association of American Colleges and Universities.

Shaffer, T., Longo, N., Manosevitch, I. & Thomas, M. (Eds.). (2017). Deliberative pedagogy: Teaching and learning for democratic engagement. East Lansing, MI: Michigan State University Press.

Thomas, N. (2019). Readiness for discussing democracy in supercharged political times. In N. V. Longo & T. J. Shaffer (Eds.), Creating Space for Democracy: A Primer on Dialogue and Deliberation in Higher Education. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing.

Wheatley M. (2009). Turning to one another: Simple conversations to restore hope to the future. Oakland: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

Byron P. White, B. (2021). Toward the community-centric university. Higher Education Exchange.

Yamamura, E. & Koth, K. (2018). Place-based community engagement in higher education: A strategy to transform universities and communities. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishers.

Downloads

Published

2023-03-08