Teaching Italian Immigration in the US South: A Redesign of the Italian American Studies Curriculum through Inclusive Teaching and Social Justice Pedagogy

Abstract This essay presents a syllabus redesign for a course in Italian American studies. The redesign provides an example of how renewal and adaptation allow our discipline to stay relevant in the shifting landscape of the humanities. This project was conceived within the framework of social justice pedagogy and inclusive teaching, and it is based on the notion that inclusion requires intentional and deliberate strategies. By adopting this approach, and adding structure to learning environments, instructors can promote feelings of inclusion, support student success, and ensure that more of our students reach their goals. To achieve these goals, the original course content was expanded to include the experience of Italian immigrants in the southern United States and their role in Confederate memorialization following the American Civil War (1861–65). As professors around the country face the difficult task of managing explosive issues in their classrooms, this article argues that by using inclusive teaching practices, instructors can successfully teach political and social controversies. These strategies are presented in hopes they could be used and tested by other educators in the field.