Teaching democracy in the social work and human service classroom

Abstract

The Highlander Folk School, now called the Highlander Research and Education Center, was a grassroots organization in the Appalachian region of the United States that played a transformational role in the 20th-century civil rights movement. Led by Myles Horton, the organization helped the community work toward creating a more democratic society in which every person could be an active participant. Horton believed that the community knew its own needs but needed to be taught skills of reflection, organizing, advocacy, and change. This chapter describes the work of Myles Horton and Highlander and offers it as a possible model for creating a more democratic social work and human service classroom that better meets the needs of the community. Teaching social work and human service students the skills of reflection, organizing, advocacy, and change can prepare them for identifying and responding to emerging civil rights issues. Additionally, this chapter also proposes that learning in social work and the human service classroom can be shaped by the needs, experiences, and interests of students and community, if driven by the educator.