Disrupting the Master Narrative of U.S. English Teaching Abroad with Jonathan Peraza

Fulbright Forward

In this episode of Fulbright Forward, Fulbright Americas Diversity and Inclusion Liaison speaks with U.S. ETA alum to Guatemala, Jonathan Peraza Campos about the critical need to redefine and reimagine how folks from the United States conduct English teaching abroad, in particular within Latin America and the Caribbean. As Jonathan shares in the episode, this is about disrupting “perceptions that the United States is a white, wealthy, and perfect English-speaking country by exposing [students] to the multiracial, multicultural, and multilingual diversity and history of the U.S.” Through this discussion we reflect on how Jonathan navigated his ETA-ship, how he implemented a critical English-teaching praxis with his students, and what any of us can do to move us towards a more politically conscious English teaching world where the full humanity of our students and ourselves is celebrated, and exclusionary narratives are questioned and dismantled.
Jonathan Peraza Campos, a U.S. Salvadoran/Guatemalan educator, organizer, abolitionist thinker, and Central American scholar whose work focuses on organizing around racial, immigrant, and educational justice, on providing a critical and multifaceted education to Latinx youth throughout the Atlanta metro area, and to building bridges built on solidarity and connection between communities in Central America and U.S. Central Americans. To learn more about Jonathan and the work in which he is involved, check out the links below:

• Activist in Residence with Abolitionist Teaching Network
• Lead Teacher with Ser Familia Inc.
• Migration News Curator with Central American News
• Organizer with the Buford Highway People’s Hub

Links to work by scholars and activists mentioned in the episode:

• Race, Empire, and English Language Teaching by Dr. Suhanthie Motha
• Website of Dr. Bettina Love
• Discussion on the four part equity framework designed by Dr. Gholdy Muhammad
• Website of Dr. Christopher Emdin