Brandi Hinnant-Crawford | Measurement & Liberation: [Is There] Evidence We’re on the Way?

This is an excerpt of Brandi Hinnant-Crawford's keynote at Learning Forward's 2023 Annual Conference.
As a champion of improvement science and a seeker of justice, Brandi Hinnant-Crawford asks what is the evidence we need to propel liberatory action and how do we leverage evidence once we have it? An associate professor of educational leadership, College of Education, at Clemson University, Hinnant-Crawford used this keynote to examine the relationship between evidence, adult learning, and action towards liberation. She takes inspiration from educator and organizer Septima Clark who, nearly 60 years ago articulated a plan to "teach adults to learn how to learn more effectively." Guided by Clark's legacy and practical example, Hinnant-Crawford outlines the dispositions and practices necessary to gather evidence for a liberatory agenda (even in contexts where liberation is not prioritized). Hinnant-Crawford argues, if Clark leveraged literacy for liberation 60 years ago, surely measurement can be leveraged for liberatory action today.