Learning Frameworks Overview

Power and historicity permeate all aspects of socio-ecological systems. This framework provides an overview of the ways power and historicity, as well as some routine dimensions associated with power and historicity in a US context, are present in learning environments and shape interactions at individual and institutional levels. This framework is intended to articulate some key concepts, and can support the development of orientations and practice that transform normative forms of power and privilege and engage learner, family, and community agency towards ethical, just, and sustainable forms of learning and being.

Key Dimensions of Identity and Relations in Power and Historicity

There are multiple dimensions and scales at which power and historicity operate. These range from power imbalances at institutional or structural levels to day-to-day interactions between children and adults. The intersectional identities of learners, their families, and educators are always interacting with one another, and reflect deeply powered and historicized relationships. There are five dimensions of relations that the Learning in Places project emphasizes–however please note there are others! These relations are key sites in which power and historicity has and continues to accumulate and are important relations for educators to be intentional about disrupting normative assumptions. These include the following:

Key Dimensions of Identity and Relations in Power and Historicity Diagram
Key Dimensions of Identity and Relations in Power and Historicity

Suggested Citation

Learning in Places Collaborative. (2021). Framework: Power and Historicity. Bothell, Seattle, WA & Evanston, IL: Learning in Places.