| The purpose of this study is to document the impact of a curriculum designed to foster critical literacy, critical consciousness and democracy. Critical literacy is an alternative to traditional literacy, which shapes the learner into a conformity with standards s/he is not allowed to question. Collaboration is one dimension of critical literacy by which the critically literate achieves self-edification; and conversation is the part of collaboration that affords mutual-edification. This commitment to power sharing is what democracy is about.; The curriculum was developed and piloted by the instructor/researcher in a sophomore-level course described as "UV 254: Critical Reading" in the Department of English of the University of Niamey in Niger. The thick description of data and inquiry process in this classroom ethnography focused on the UV 254 participants' case studies and evaluative reflections on the course.; The findings reveal that the experiences of challenge and involvement, and the relevance of the tasks to the conscious needs of the participants, stimulated the beginnings of a transition from traditional to critical consciousness as defined in this study.; Changes documented during the course. The evolution of three students' case responses revealed two examples of progress and one of stasis in their understanding of argument structure and argument strategies. The implication is that students need to be trained in the use of argument strategies because the best idea in the world can go astray if not vehicled in a well-organized way.; Development of student-composed cases over time. The qualitative differences observed among the twenty student-composed cases were rather between-group than chronological; however, some change over time was documented in the greater clustering of cases resonating with the purpose of the task in the last ten cases compared to the first ten, and students themselves perceived time to be an important factor in changes they experienced during the year. The groups that focused on the most current and most controversial social, economic or political issues in their society came up with the cases with the most viable alternative perspectives, suggesting that some groups reached a better understanding of the purposes and processes of critical literacy than others.; Participants' post-instructional epistemological profiles. The most common characteristic among the participants that translates into a significant move toward critical consciousness emerges from their assumptions about the role of their peers. In the context of this course, peers are generally perceived more as learning partners than as rivals, as is characteristic in teacher-directed classrooms in Niger. |
