For Your Summer Reading Pleasure – Book Review of Catherine J. Denial, A Pedagogy of Kindness (2024), volume 1 in the Teaching, Engaging, and Thriving in Higher Ed Series
by Beth Petitjean, Digital Learning Specialist, Reinert Center
Summertime! Although the livin’ might not be as seemingly idyllic as a Gershwin tune, the pace of academic life has at least slowed down a bit. This might be the perfect time for some light reading about pedagogy. But what should I read, you ask? Have no fear, dear readers, the Reinert Center is always here to help with a timely suggestion, or three in this case. Over the next few weeks, The Notebook will publish book reviews on the first three volumes published under the Teaching, Engaging, and Thriving in Higher Ed Series from the University of Oklahoma Press.
Developed in 2024 by editors James M. Lang and Michelle D. Miller and an advisory board of educational developers, “all books in the series have a solid theoretical foundation in the learning sciences and other relevant research frameworks, offer practical strategies for higher education faculty, and provide guidance for further reading and study.” These “compact, practical books” do all that and often in a manner that lets the reader dip into chapters in non-sequential order. So, kind reader, grab an icy beverage, find a cozy spot in the shade, and read on for the first installment of the summer book reviews.
Full disclosure. I first encountered Catherine Denial at the American Historical Association annual meeting in January 2019. I spent most of the meeting in a post-pneumonia haze, but I clearly remember her not only because she was talking about how to teach history but how to teach history creatively (i.e. so it wasn’t boring for non-historians) and that was something I aspired to do. To say I was thrilled to see Denial’s book as the first in this series is an understatement.
Denial fulfills the series brief by writing a concise, four-chapter book aimed at answering the question, “Why not be kind?” [9], and why not especially in an industry such as ours that is often less than kind to many of its constituents. She elaborates that “a pedagogy of kindness begins with justice. It’s not possible to teach with compassion unless we first give critical thought to who is in our classroom, why, and what obstacles they might be facing” [9-10]. Students, then, are the main object of kindness.
Although students are at the heart of this, we mustn’t forget ourselves in this equation, which is why kindness toward the self is a logical choice for chapter 1. I’ve written about this chapter in a blog from last November, so I won’t go into more detail here except to point out another key strategy Denial suggests for showing kindness to the self—professional development. She writes, “Some of my loneliest moments as an educator have been while trying to figure out what good teaching actually is … We need not go it alone in this venture. Almost every campus has a teaching and learning center” [26]. She’s right! You’re not alone in your teaching. Every one of us at the Reinert Center is here to support you (yes, even during the summer!) and we offer year-round programs in-person and virtually that will help you meet the professional development expectations in the newly approved Teaching Effectiveness Framework.
In Chapter 2, Denial reminds the reader that the syllabus is usually the first way instructors get to make an impression on students, so the tone of that syllabus matters. Is it adversarial, or supportive? A simple change, such as “you will” to “we will” suggests a shared, supportive experience, according to Denial. She also circles back to her premise about justice by asking, “who will find belonging in that document [the syllabus] and who will be turned away?” [48], a powerful question not usually asked in the context of a syllabus.
But how can I be kind when I must still give exams and essays and grades, you ask. Well, in chapter 3, Denial argues that “giving serious thought to how we’re asking students to show us what they know is a kindness” [61, my emphasis]. Her approach challenges the ableism prevalent within academia and employs Universal Design for Learning (UDL) to accommodate everyone all the time. Her simile that UDL is “like the ramp on a building that serves people pushing strollers as well as people in wheelchairs, it allows multiple groups of people greater access to learning” [66] is one of the better explanations I’ve heard for UDL. If UDL is part of our everyday teaching practice, everyone has the opportunity to succeed.
Chapter 4 on kindness in the classroom rounds out this book and offers a wealth of practical, and fun, things to do in class to get to know your students and for them to know each other. Denial observes, “Too many [students] have not found a welcome or a sense of belonging on our campuses” [82]. To counter this, she proposes we deploy the theory of Intentionally Equitable Hospitality (IEH) that “posits that the instructor of a class is the host of a gathering and must think critically about the welcome their course offers to students all semester long” [82]. This goes beyond first-day introductions and icebreakers to something Denial calls “warm-ups” at the start of each class to get students talking. Here are the fun bits: the warm-ups can be something like a game of “would you rather…?” or random questions “what’s your favorite way to eat potatoes?” [89]. Having answered questions like these sitting around the table with my Reinert Center colleagues, I can tell you warm-ups are a great way to build connections in an inclusive, welcoming way.
Denial concludes the book by returning to her opening question, “Why not be kind?” So, I’ll ask you, why not? Take the first step in being kind to yourself and read Denial’s book because this short(ish) blog barely touches on the useful suggestions within the scant 104 pages of the book. And continue your kindness to self by joining us again next week for our review of Michelle D. Miller’s A Teacher’s Guide to Learning Student Names, something that Denial, who goes by Cate, suggests is an act of kindness.
Additional Resources:
“Creating a Welcoming Classroom Environment.” Resource Guide, Reinert Center.
“How to Get to Know Your Students.” Resource Guide, Reinert Center.
“What is Universal Design for Learning?” Resource Guide, Reinert Center.
For more information or to discuss how you might incorporate these ideas into your courses, contact the Reinert Center by email or submit a consultation request form.
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