Lisa Delpit is an American educational researcher, writer, and speaker who is known for her work on issues of race and education. She is particularly interested in the ways that issues of power and privilege intersect with education and has written extensively on the subject.
Delpit was born in 1952 in New Orleans, Louisiana, and grew up in a working-class family. She received her Bachelor's degree from Dillard University, a historically Black university, and went on to earn her Master's and Doctorate degrees from the University of Michigan.
Throughout her career, Delpit has focused on the education of African American students and has argued that traditional educational practices often fail to meet the needs of these students. In her book "The Silenced Dialogue: Power and Pedagogy in Educating Other People's Children," Delpit discusses the importance of valuing the cultural backgrounds and experiences of students in the classroom. She argues that teachers need to recognize the ways in which their own cultural backgrounds and experiences may shape their interactions with students and work to create an inclusive and culturally responsive learning environment.
Delpit has also written about the importance of language in education and the ways in which standard English can act as a form of power. In her book "Other People's Children: Cultural Conflict in the Classroom," Delpit discusses the ways in which Black English, a dialect spoken by many African American students, is often viewed as a deficit by educators and how this can lead to misunderstandings and conflicts in the classroom. Delpit argues that teachers need to be aware of the linguistic diversity of their students and work to create a language-rich environment that values and supports the use of multiple forms of language.
In addition to her writing, Delpit is also known for her work as an educator and speaker. She has served as a professor at several universities, including Georgia State University and the University of California, Berkeley, and has given numerous talks and lectures on issues of race and education.
In conclusion, Lisa Delpit is a leading figure in the field of education and is known for her work on issues of race and power. Through her writing and speaking, she has helped to shed light on the ways in which traditional educational practices often fail to meet the needs of African American students and has argued for the importance of valuing cultural diversity and linguistic differences in the classroom.