Journal of International Social Studies, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2015, 195.


Journal of International Social Studies, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2015, 195. 
 

Corresponding author email: galter9@comcast.net 
©2012/2018 International Assembly Journal of International Social Studies  
Website: http://www.iajiss.org  ISSN 2327-3585   Page 195 
 

JISS Social Justice Perspectives 
 
Editor, Gloria T. Alter (galter9@comcast.net) 
 
Social Studies for Social Responsibility 
 
 
The article for this column of Social Justice Perspectives is written by Jamie Campbell Naidoo 
and Miriam E. Sweeney. They stretch the boundaries of social education by integrating Library 
and Information Science to address international social justice issues. Library studies are often 
untapped by social educators, although our most critical issues are addressed in both fields.  
 
The authors suggest alternatives to privileging and reproducing the dominant culture through 
“targeted justice-oriented curricular collaborations between social studies educators and 
librarians.” And they discuss the creation of a social justice framework that extends beyond 
cross-cultural education and media literacy as commonly practiced, to cross-cultural 
competency “embedded in critiques of structural power in order to connect individual 
experience and identity formation to systems of oppression and domination.”  The formal 
structures and informal norms of these systems are directed by “white supremacy and features 
of whiteness . . . “ [a] benchmark of the status quo.”  
 
We are encouraged to examine the assumptions underlying pedagogical paradigms that are 
presented as neutral. Paradigms reflecting the status quo hide the unequal/immoral distribution 
of knowledge, a deficit-based perspective of the digital divide, and an unwillingness to 
acknowledge the effects of social exclusion on education and wealth/well-being. These issues 
are highlighted in the article with supporting scholarship and focused questions that lead to 
understanding, and hopefully to action. 
 
Strategies for moving forward include using authentic literature, digital media, and relevancy in 
materials and activities, because students need to connect injustice in their lives with broader 
social injustices, and become involved in solutions. Multiple resources and multiple literacies 
can be incorporated in the service of international social justice, and many examples of how to 
do this are provided. 
 
I was especially touched by the very impressive speech of Malala Yousafzai (see youtube 
website) in the suggested lessons. It reminded me that student activities can be life-changing 
events. I hope that the materials shared here will be integrated into the work of all IA members 
and readers of the Journal of International Social Studies. 
 
Thank you Jamie and Miriam for sharing your expertise, your commitment to social justice, and 
your exemplary pedagogical practice. 
 
 
 

mailto:galter9@comcast.net