Name: Teachers Inducting Mexican Cultural Themes through Co-Construction of an Informal Mural
Start: 2026-10-07T13:30:00-0400
End: 2026-10-07T14:00:00-0400

Teachers Inducting Mexican Cultural Themes through Co-Construction of an Informal Mural

Wednesday October 7, 2026 1:30pm - 2:00pm EDT

Circular Church

In this presentation, we share the results of a mural co-construction activity with in-service teachers participating in a study abroad program in Mexico that aims to prepare and encourage educators to carry out culturally-reflective representation activities in their own classrooms. The activity was intentionally reflective of and synergistic with the rich heritage of Mexican muralism viewed by participants during study abroad (Rivera, Orozco, Siqueiros). The activity tasked teachers with initially collecting a mix of original visuals (e.g., photographs, hand-drawn art, sketches) and printed visual artifacts (e.g., brochures, pamphlets, newspapers, magazines, advertisements) in Puebla and Mexico City that reflected Mexican culture, broadly conceived. Teachers were asked to bring at least eight printed images to a reflection session where they met in small groups to share and group images thematically where possible. A facilitator invited groups to share developing themes and asked follow up questions to help differentiate, collapse, and relate themes. A large wall covered in flipchart paper was then used for teachers to attach their images into themed collages. With the informal mural in place, small groups used the Visual Thinking Strategies process (Gardner, 2017; Yenawine, 2013) to critically examine what they had co-constructed and how it reflected Mexican culture (e.g., "What is happening in this picture?" "What do you see that makes you say that?"). In the presentation, we will share the theoretical grounding for our activity, including: preparation for culturally-responsive teaching by becoming learners of culture (Gay, 2010); place-based education and learning in situ (Smith, 2002); and material culture theory that calls for reading physical objects as primary texts (Cunningham, 2004). We will also share results on how well the activity prompted teachers to see and value funds of knowledge (Moll et al., 1992) or community cultural knowledge during their time abroad.

Speakers

Angela Wiseman

Associate Professor, Literacy Education, NC State University

Angela M. Wiseman, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Literacy Education at North Carolina State University and Affiliated Faculty at the Center for Visual Literacies at San Diego State University, where her scholarship advances critical visual and multimodal qualitative methods for understanding how youth... Read More →

Wednesday October 7, 2026 1:30pm - 2:00pm EDT
Circular Church

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IVLA 2026 Charleston

Angela Wiseman

Kevin Oliver

Mary Estrada

Michael Cook

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Success you have shared X tickets.

IVLA 2026 Charleston

Angela Wiseman

Kevin Oliver

Mary Estrada

Michael Cook

Attendees (2)

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