Using Asian Americans’ Counternarratives for Social Justice and Equity

Abstract

Employing Asian critical theory as a theoretical lens and critical literacy as a pedagogical approach, the present study explores how Asian American counternarratives serve as vehicles for challenging dominant narratives and constructing an equitable classroom space for Korean American students who have been marginalized in their American schools. Using the literature that validates Asian Americans’ experiences and perspectives served as empowering transformative pedagogy to the traditional curriculum as they played vital roles in leveraging students’ cognizance about injustice issues and promoting educational equity in the classroom. The findings show that Asian American counternarratives helped Korean American students articulate their analytic perspectives through profound conversations in cultivating their critical consciousness, transforming their perspectives, and becoming active and cognizant citizens. The findings provide implications for educators that counternarratives not only dispel inaccurate stereotypes, biases, and prejudices by amplifying voices of underrepresented groups but also accomplish educational equity and social justice by enhancing transformations in education practices.