“Theory, Praxis and a Pedagogical Bridge”

Philosophy and Activism Seminar

Format: Video circulated to seminar in May, virtual seminar discussion on June, 13, 2022 (View video here)

Description of Video:

In this deliberately conversational co-interview, Tammy Nyden and Dionne Bensonsmith discuss their interrelated pedagogical journeys, which brought their activism for Children’s Mental Health Justice and Caregiver Justice together with their theorizing about epistemic injustice, relational autonomy, mental health policy, and trauma-informed research methodology and ethics. Main points are that 1) trans-disciplinary pedagogical shifts happen best in collaboration and 2) social justice scholarship and pedagogy must be grounded in community practices. For this to happen, academics have to give up a lot our discursive space.

In our discussion on June 13th, we look forward to answering questions and discussing how this work resulted in new class structures, activities, and assignments that provide students direct experiences that merge philosophical theories and praxis; as well as how these teaching experiences in turn influenced our scholarship and theorizing.

Tammy Nyden teaches in the Philosophy Department and the Gender, Women, and Sexuality Department at Grinnell College. Dionne Bensonsmith teaches in the Government Studies Department at Claremont McKenna College and the Applied Women’s Studies Department at Claremont Graduate University.