“We Tell Our Story”: The Power of Critical Literacy with Refugee-Background Students

Abstract

As the number of displaced people increases, providing refugee-background students with critically engaging classrooms is essential. Supporting diverse learners, while focusing on issues of social justice and equity, critical literacy facilitates a perspective where texts are analyzed for underlying messages of power and sociopolitical issues. Using Lewison et al.’s critical literacy framework, we present ways in which refugee-background students’ educational experiences were enhanced. Through the stories of these students, we provide ideas for practical application of Lewison et al.’s concepts of disrupting the commonplace, interrogating multiple viewpoints, focusing on sociopolitical issues, and taking action and promoting social justice.