Challenging Surveillance: Linguistic Justice in the College Classroom

Abstract

In challenging hegemonic ideologies such as linguistic practices through feminist methodologies, we acknowledge college classrooms as a site of resistance through transparent and ethical pedagogical practices. This paper adopts Trinh T. Minh-ha’s notion of resistance by placing linguistic justice in conversation with surveillance and feminist studies. In seeking linguistic justice, we argue that classroom surveillance of language, or gatekeeping what is linguistically "appropriate" for pedagogical endeavors, is disciplinary power in action. We developed a six-step question/example guide (TEA) for instructors to consider when entering the classroom space (whether virtual or in-person). It is our goal to reflect on the information provided to discuss some potential strategies for communicating and connecting with students about surveillance of linguistic structures.