Informed by her love of science fiction and fantasy texts as well as her experience as a 9th and 10th grade English and reading teacher, Toliver’s scholarship centers the freedom dreams of Black youth and Black communities and honors the historical legacy that Black imaginations have had and will have on activism and social change. Specifically, her research centers three main foci: (1) to examine how Black youth engage in the reading and writing of speculative fiction to discuss and challenge their experiences with social injustice; (2) to consider how intersecting oppressions infiltrate the field of education and how educators must use their imaginations to dream of ways to challenge injustice in schools; and (3) to demonstrate how Black people use speculative storytelling to metaphorically describe modern and historical antiblackness and to dream of worlds and futures in which Black people are free from the burdens of societal injustice.
keywords
Afrofuturism, Black Girls, Speculative Fiction, Endarkened Storywork, Arts-Based Research
EDUC 4135 - Story and Memoir
Primary Instructor
-
Fall 2021
Explores narrative theory and the epistemological/stylistic commitments of stories as the basis for writing memoir, as well as for studying the written and spoken memoirs of others. We use the word memoir to mean a story of "how one remembers one's own life." Introduces and discusses narrative theory and selected memoirs. Students engage in reflection on their own narrative-making processes and evaluate their practical and analytic understanding of daily narrative practice. Same as EDUC 5135.
EDUC 4295 - Narrative and Story in the Humanities
Primary Instructor
-
Fall 2020 / Fall 2021
Explores a wide variety of texts that might be used in secondary English and Social Studies classrooms. Examines philosophies and instructional approaches to the teaching of reading and literature. Considers the influence of story and storytelling in the construction of personal and societal meaning. Same as EDUC 5295.
EDUC 4490 - Blurring Disciplinary Lines in the Humanities
Primary Instructor
-
Spring 2022
Explores theories, methods, and materials for building interdisciplinary connections within and across secondary English and Social Studies classrooms. Provides opportunities for collaborative work in building lessons and unit plans that challenge disciplinary boundaries and advocate for complex problem solving. Same as EDUC 5490.
EDUC 5295 - Narrative and Story in the Humanities
Primary Instructor
-
Fall 2020 / Fall 2021
Explores a wide variety of texts that might be used in secondary English and Social Studies classrooms. Examines philosophies and instructional approaches to the teaching of reading and literature. Considers the influence of story and storytelling in the construction of personal and societal meaning. Same as EDUC 4295.
EDUC 5365 - Methods and Materials in Secondary English
Primary Instructor
-
Spring 2021 / Spring 2022 / Spring 2023
Explores the underlying principles and philosophies of several approaches to the teaching of English in the areas of reading, thinking, and viewing and the practical application of these methods in the secondary classroom. Provides support in constructing activities, assignments, assessments, and units that meet the differentiated needs of students given their diverse identities, lives, interests, and needs.
EDUC 8102 - Literacy Research Methods
Primary Instructor
-
Fall 2022
This graduate seminar focuses on some of the central research methods and methodologies employed by literacy researchers. The course will examine methodologies such as ethnography, practitioner research, participatory research, reciprocal partnerships, discourse analysis, literary and textual analysis, design research, and case study, along with specific methods of data collection and analysis commensurate with study designs. Students will read articles focused on methodology specifically, as well as have opportunities to discuss research articles through a focus on the methods scholars describe and enact. The course includes attention to humanizing research practices and issues of relationship, responsibility, and ethics in literacy research. In addition, the course will engage discussions and support for IRB proposals, generative writing practices and processes, as well as dissemination of research through various genres and in academic, practice focused, and publicly accessible venues. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours.
EDUC 8155 - Advanced Topics in Literacy Education
Primary Instructor
-
Fall 2020
Examines special topics in theory and research related to literacy and literacy education. Topics vary each semester. May be repeated up to 12 total credit hours.
EDUC 8210 - Perspectives on Classroom Teaching and Learning
Primary Instructor
-
Fall 2022
Introduces students to various theoretical perspectives informing educational research and how they are employed to study teaching, learning, and policy in K-12 classrooms. Includes reading and discussion related to the assumptions,questions, methods, and findings associated with theoretical traditions within and across disciplines.
