Pseudocommunity as a Limitation in Antiracist Faculty Professional Development

• Published in: Composition studies Vol. 52; no. 1; pp. 26 - 179
• Main Author: Grayson, Mara Lee
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chicago University of Massachusetts Boston 22.03.2024; University of Cincinnati on behalf of Composition Studies
• Subjects: Anti-racism; Collaboration; Communities of Practice; Culture; Education; Educational Environment; Educational Researchers; Essays; Faculty Development; Labor; Learning; Literacy; Literature Reviews; Minority & ethnic groups; Nongraded Student Evaluation; Pedagogy; Professional development; Professional Training; Program Administration; Race; Racial Differences; Racial Identification; Racial identity; Racism; Social aspects; Social justice; Teachers; Teaching; White supremacy; White supremacy movements; Writing (Composition); Writing instruction; Writing teachers; United Kingdom
• ISSN: 1534-9322

This article explores how the racialized discursive and behavioral norms of pseudocommunity interfere with faculty professional development toward antiracist writing pedagogy. The author draws upon original research into a faculty learning community of first year composition instructors to highlight how, without explicit acknowledgment and interrogation, antiracist initiatives meant to encourage collaboration, equitable exchange, and professional learning may reproduce the white pseudocommunity dynamics that prevail in writing programs. This essay contributes to the growing body of literature on antiracist pedagogy and writing program administration by emphasizing the necessity of deep consideration of contextual interpersonal aspects of racism and white supremacy that may go unnoticed or unacknowledged by administrators and instructors.