I am a critical rhetorician who supports college students in de-linking from unexamined cultural biases and working toward critical consciousness by leading them through more sophisticated reading, research, and writing practices. I call it a new literacy to underscore its importance. I call it Truth Literacy to emphasize how important it is for people to extract ourselves from post-truth sensibilities and develop our critical thinking in service to society and our own well-being.
In this site I hope to have made some of those skill sets accessible to those wondering how to navigate today’s information landscape. The world of information is complex and is fraught with potentially debilitating challenges. My Critical Reader column offers additional insight into the complex and ever-changing informationcape, including AI.
High school teachers and college professors interested in adapting critical pedagogies may find my framework and curriculum useful in their classes. The framework is free of charge, and the curriculum is low cost, priced to cover expenses and labor. Educators and administrators interested in consulting with me can reach me through my sankofaloveproject.org for a fee schedule.
As they study and apply the skills presented on this site, your students should learn better ways of engaging ideas and expressing them through the written word. I encourage you to adapt the framework and curriculum however you see fit for your classroom, and I only request that you credit me through citation.
Below are some comments on an early version of the critical reading curriculum from my college students, most of whom practiced critical reading in my “High School History Book Bias” class. It is my hope that your students’ experience with the framework and curriculum mirrors theirs.
—Sarah J. Trembath, EdD
Washington, DC
When I was in high school, I noticed many times that students, including myself, failed to practice intellectual humility in classroom discussion by not trying to listen or understand the perspectives of others. I hope that new generations of students will overcome egocentrism and sociocentrism and practice intellectual humility. It would largely help develop critical thinking within minds across the nation.
–a critical reading and writing student
I see the most hope for change in educational racism in the hands of students who continue to reject textbook bias and read between the lines. When you assume everything in textbooks is true, it distorts your perception of history…. But it’s how students engage a text that allows them to critically analyze the bias that lies within.
–a critical reading and writing student
[When I did critical reading and research,] I had to dig deeper than I had in previous classes. I definitely will also now read all educational texts a lot more critically. Seeing the ways they attempt to persuade or manipulate the reader is something I will have to watch out for. I can take all these skills and apply them to every class that needs me to write a paper.
–a critical reading and writing student