Given the reality of disenfranchised and marginalized students sitting in today's classrooms, it is imperative that teachers meet the pedagogical needs of these students. I embarked on a self-study that would improve my personal pedagogy. Research shows that using elements from the theoretical frameworks of culturally relevant pedagogy, reality pedagogy, critical race theory, and critical race pedagogy can be an effective approach to teaching students that are marginalized. I designed and implemented three lessons that employed practitioner-applied pedagogical practices based on these four theoretical frameworks. This self-study identified the benefits and challenges of these lessons as they relate to the motivation and engagement of five African American male students that may potentially fail my course.