Davena Jackson
Assistant Professor
Dr. Davena Jackson is an assistant professor of urban education in the Department of Teaching and Learning, where she focuses on English education, language, and literacy. She is interested in the complex intersections of race, language, literacy, and education and how teachers can work in solidarity across English language arts (ELA) classrooms to become sites of hope and resistance. Her research centers on teachers’ justice-oriented commitments and curricular and pedagogical choices that lead to the transformation and liberation of English classrooms.
Dr. Jackson builds on 24 years of teaching experience as a middle/high school English teacher, department chair, and consultant. She received her PhD from Michigan State University in curriculum, instruction & teacher education. In addition, she holds a graduate certificate in urban education. Finally, Dr. Jackson serves as a research affiliate at the Center for Antiracist Research and a faculty affiliate at the Center on the Ecology of Early Development.
Dr. Jackson’s work has been published in the Conference on College Composition & Communication (2020), Journal of Literacy Research (2020), Teachers College Record (2019), and the International Review of Qualitative Research (2017).
Recent News
Education
PhD, Michigan State University, Curriculum, Instruction and Teacher Education
Graduate certificate in urban education
Courses
CT 526: Family and Community Engagement
EN 500: Pre-Practicum in English Education
EN501/701: Methods in Teaching Classic and Contemporary Texts
EN 507/508 - English Education Practicum Seminar
EN 630: Educating for Equity and Literacy in the Humanities
Selected Publications
Journals
Baker-Bell, A., Jackson, D., Johnson, L., Kynard, C., McMurtry, T., Williams-Farrier, B.J. (2020). This Ain’t Another Statement! This is a DEMAND for Black Linguistic Justice! Conference on College Composition & Communication
Jackson, D. (2020). Relationship Building in a Black Space: Partnering in Solidarity. Journal of Literacy Research, 52(4), 432-455.
Carter Andrews, D., Brown, T., Castillo, B., Jackson, D., Vellanki, V. (2019). Beyond damage-centered teacher education: Humanizing pedagogy for teacher educators and preservice teachers.Teachers College Record,121(6), 1-28.
Baker-Bell, A., Paris, D., Jackson, D. (2017) Learning black language matters: Humanizing research as culturally sustaining pedagogy. International Review of Qualitative Research, 10 (4), (pp. 360-377).
Book Chapter
Dao, V., Farver, S., D., Jackson, D. (2018). Getting down to identities to trace a new career path: Understanding novice teacher educator identities in multicultural education teaching. In J. Sharkey & M.M. Peercy (Eds.), Self-Study of language and literacy teacher education practices across culturally and linguistically diverse contexts. V (30) (pp. 55-72). London: Emerald Publishing Group. Advances in Research on Teaching..
Selected Presentations
Jackson, D., Brownell, C., Coles, J., Everett, S., Moten, T. (2020, November). Decolonizing Literacy Practices: Using Multiliteracies as a Medium. National Council of Teachers of English Assembly for Research. Denver, Co.
Kynard, C., Martinez, D., Baker-Bell, A., Johnson, L., Lee, A., Jackson, D., McMurtry, T. (2020, November). Linguistic Justice: Scholars of Color Converge on Black Language, Literacy, Identity, and Pedagogy. National Council of Teachers of English Assembly for Research. Denver, Co.
Jackson, D. & Johnson, L. (2020, April). A Justice-Oriented Pedagogical Mutuality: Teaching and Learning Together to Disrupt Anti-Blackness. American Educational Research Association. San Francisco, CA.
Jackson, D. & Johnson, A. (2020, February). Promoting Possibilities for Justice-Oriented Learning in English Education. National Council of Teachers of English Assembly for Research. Nashville, TN.
Jackson, D. (2019, November). We, Us, and Ours: Building an Alliance that Seeks to Sustain Blackness in an Eleventh Grade English Classroom. National Council Teachers of English. Baltimore, MD.
Jackson, D. (2019, October). Engaging in Critical Conversations That Center, Race, Racism and Language. Arlington Public Schools, Arlington, MA.
Carter Andrews, D., Brown, T., Castillo, B., Jackson, D., & Vellanki, V. (2019, April). Thinking Beyond Damage-Centered Teaching: Enacting a Humanizing Pedagogy in Teacher Education. American Educational Research Association. Toronto, ON.
Jackson, D., & Presberry, C. (2019, April). Radical Mothering as Pedagogy. American Educational Research Association. Toronto, CA.
Jackson, D. (2018, April). Culturally Sustaining Talk: African-American Youth Use Discourse to Make Sense of Race, Racism, and Language. American Educational Research Association. New York, NY.