(2021). Missing the Sociopolitical: Examining Discourses of Writing in a US High-Performing, Urban Middle School. English Teaching: Practice and Critique, v20 n1 p33-50. Purpose: This paper aims to examine two teachers' beliefs and practices on teaching writing at an urban, high-performing middle school to determine: What discourses of writing are being taught in an urban, high-performing US public middle school? What factors prevent or enable particular discourses? Design/methodology/approach: Drawing on case study methods, this study uses a single-case design with two seventh-grade teachers at a high-performing urban school as embedded units of analysis. Data collection took place over one semester. Data sources included observations and interviews with the two teachers, an interview with an administrator and multiple instructional artifacts, including unit and lesson plans. Observational data were analyzed using a priori code for writing discourses (Ivanic, 2004) and interview data were analyzed for factors affecting instruction using open, axial and selective coding. Findings: Both teachers enacted extended multi-discourse writing instruction… [Direct]
(2021). Culturally Responsive Teaching in the Classroom. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, The University of North Carolina at Greensboro. The purpose of this study was to determine the challenges and successes that educators encounter when incorporating Culturally Responsive Instruction (CRI) in their classrooms. I conducted a basic qualitative study involving four teachers and two administrators in the Washington County School District to assess teachers' experiences incorporating cultural responsiveness within their practice. Participants provided background information about themselves within the interviews, such as their own racial identity and experiences. Also, participants provided their level of education and professional development experiences. Additionally, they responded to specific questions about Culturally Responsive Instruction and provided examples of success and challenges that they have encountered in their classrooms. The research study answered one prevailing question: "What does culturally responsive instruction look like when it is implemented in an elementary school classroom?" The… [Direct]
(2017). Immigrant Students' Rights to Attend Public Schools (Derechos De Los Estudiantes Inmigrantes a Asistir a Escuelas P√∫blicas). Intercultural Development Research Association By law, public schools must serve all children. The education of undocumented students is guaranteed by the "Plyler vs. Doe" decision, and certain procedures must be followed when registering immigrant children in school to avoid violation of their civil rights. In "Plyler vs. Doe," the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that children of undocumented workers and children who themselves are undocumented have the same right to attend public primary and secondary schools as do U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Like other students, children of undocumented workers in fact are required under state laws to attend school until they reach a mandated age. School personnel–especially principals and those involved with student registration and enrollment–should be aware that they have no legal obligation to enforce U.S. immigration laws. Practices that deny or discourage immigrant children and families from public schooling do the following: (1) Victimize children; (2) Are… [PDF]
(2015). Risky Business: Mathematics Teachers Using Creative Insubordination. North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education, Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (37th, East Lansing, MI, Nov 5-8, 2015). In an era of high stakes education and the persistence of racism, classism, and the politics of language, there is evidence that teachers may benefit from learning creative insubordination, the bending of rules in order to advocate for all students to learn mathematics. Even so, we know little about how or why teachers decide to take risks when stakes are high. This study examines the experiences of secondary mathematics teachers moving from pre-service to full-time teaching and their choices of whether or not to use creative insubordination in their working contexts. It highlights three rationales that justify taking risks: 1) Changing the minds/practices of others, 2) Projecting an identity one can be proud of, and 3) Modeling advocacy behavior for bystanders. Implications for future research and teacher education are offered. [For the complete proceedings, see ED583989.]… [PDF]
(2021). Evolution of Racism in Spanish Music Textbooks: A Real Path towards Interculturality through Images?. Journal for Multicultural Education, v15 n3 p313-329. Purpose: An analysis of the images in music education textbooks for primary education has shown how the images do not fully reflect the human diversity present in the classroom and, therefore, continue to perpetuate positions that can lead to racism. The purpose of this paper is the analysis of the images to carried out has demonstrated how little progress has been made in the representation of diversity and how, in the 21st century, stereotypes continue to persist in the representation of cultural diversity. Design/methodology/approach: The quantitative and qualitative data collected after analysing more than 2,600 images have shown that despite the considerable increase in the use of images in music textbooks, typical clich√©s about what instruments are played in the world and how those who play them are represented are still present. Findings: The results also show how the images reflect the migratory flows experienced in each country. All of this has led to important conclusions,… [Direct]
(2021). Dividing Lines: Racially Unequal School Boundaries in US Public School Systems. Research Report. Urban Institute Segregation on the basis of race or ethnicity is one of the most enduring and pervasive inequities in US public education. School segregation is determined not only by residential sorting and families' preferences but by local policy choices such as the drawing of school attendance boundaries. This report examines the role of individual school attendance boundaries in perpetuating racial and ethnic segregation in urban school systems. Our findings show that in many cases, small changes to the attendance boundaries of neighboring schools could make a big difference for school integration. We analyze census and school attendance boundary map data, evaluating the boundary lines dividing attendance rights between every pair of neighboring public schools in US metropolitan areas. We find more than 2,000 pairs of neighboring public schools that are racially unequal, both in residential demographics and school enrollment. We also find that inequality between these schools–many of which are… [PDF]
(2016). An Exploration of Linguistic Neo-Colonialism through Educational Language Policy–An Irish Perspective. Journal for Critical Education Policy Studies, v14 n3 p97-130 Dec. In this paper, educational language policy is explored through the lens of linguistic neo-colonialism in Ireland in the case of learners of English as an Additional Language. The perspective of Ireland as a decolonized nation may have an impact on current language policy. Arguments for an additive approach to language and identity, language maintenance and the preservation of linguistic human rights make the case for avoiding subtractive bilingualism as a form of linguistic neo-colonialism. Social class and racism can lead to linguistic oppression that must be addressed critically by all stakeholders and policy makers at macro and micro levels. A transformation in linguistic oppression has potential to address these issues within communities. It is therefore essential that all children are afforded the opportunity to develop their language skills to the fullest extent possible, in order to gain maximum access to education and the structures and norms that constitute the society of… [PDF]
(2017). Teaching about Racial Equity Issues in Teacher Education Programs. Advances in Race and Ethnicity in Education This chapter addresses the National Association for the Education of Young Children's ethical principle of "First Do No Harm" from the perspective of racial equity issues that seemingly are not obvious to educators or often overlooked in the education of Black children. Two complementary points are made. First, many educators tend to view discrimination in terms of intentional and overt actions, but may not realize how they can and do inadvertently harm children during everyday classroom routines, instructional practices, policies, and curriculum that position African American culture invisible or abnormal. Second, even though teachers might not be cognizant or aware of institutional racism that is endemic in policies, instruction, curriculum, practices, and routines, their involvement in these practices represents an ethical problem and violates the "do no harm" principle. While most P-12 teachers and teacher educators agree in theory with the idea of valuing… [Direct]
(2019). Academically Talented Undergraduate Black Women's Range of Beliefs Regarding Identity and Experience in STEM. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, The Pennsylvania State University. Though gains have been made in broadening participation in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) for underserved and historically marginalized groups, challenges remain with recruiting, retaining, and graduating Black women in STEM. This study offers a nuanced response to this underrepresentation and centers on participants' understandings of race and gender across the contexts of high school, family, society, peer interactions, and college. Bronfenbrenner's ecological model, Crenshaw's intersectionality, and Collins' Black feminist thought, taken together, were utilized to explore Black women's range of beliefs about race and gender in relation to how they see themselves and others accessing and thriving in STEM. Qualitative research methods (narrative inquiry) were used to explore the range of beliefs held about race and gender by 24 academically talented Black women in a merit-based STEM summer bridge program at a predominately white institution. Participants reflected… [Direct]
(2016). Creative Disruption and the Potential of Writing at HBCUs. Composition Studies, v44 n2 p172-178 Fall. Intensified visibility of racialized violence in the United States, as it relates to policing and the criminal justice system, raises questions about the purpose and application of higher education. College students all over the world attend school within a striking global portrait of antiracist protest occurring on social media, on their campuses, and in their communities, cities, and nations. Despite the fact that this context obviously draws attention to the relationships among race, racism, and language, many people continue to describe America and other parts of the Western world as "post-racial" (Ikard and Teasley; Orbe; Rich; Tesler; Wise). The term post-racial linguistically cleanses the English language and its cultures from the ethical responsibility of differentiating between a long, continuous history of racism and its ongoing impact on cultural difference. In this article the authors assert that Black students attending HBCUs are especially violated by this… [Direct]
(2024). How White-Presenting Latina Undergraduate Students Make Sense of and Experience Their Racial Identity. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, The Florida State University. How Latinas experience their racial identity is unique when viewed through the Black and white racial dichotomy that exists in the United States. In Latin America, race is understood to be phenotypical and determined based off the color of your skin, whereas in the United States, race is often understood to be genotypical (Darity et. al, 2005), and designed to classify its citizens as "white" and "nonwhite." These classifications force Latinas to select a racial grouping that they might not fully feel represents them. For Latinas who racially appear as white, but ethnically identify with their family's country of origin, a certain dissonance can arise that can blur their perception of self. Living and learning in the United States as someone who presents racially as white but is a member of a marginalized community can provide insight to how whiteness shows up in certain spaces and functions as epidermic capital (Herring & Hynes, 2017). This study is inspired… [Direct]
(2022). Marketing Race in Post-Affirmative Action Contexts. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Michigan. While there have been multiple instances of digital manipulation and mishandling of images of racially minoritized individuals by college and universities, most of the literature on higher education marketing is limited to the study of the images themselves. In this comparative case study, I consider both the racial representations found in the undergraduate recruitment materials of four selective, public institutions restricted by their use of race in admissions, as well as how marketing and communications professionals create and understand these representations in a post-affirmative action context. A theoretical framework that engages racial capitalism, power, and the critical race theory tenets of color-evasiveness, interest convergence, and Whiteness as property, guides this dissertation. Using content and social semiotics analysis, I examined how racially minoritized individuals are represented compared to their White counterparts in 872 images gathered from print and digital… [Direct]
(1998). Teaching and Learning in a Diverse World: Multicultural Education for Young Children. Second Edition. This book introduces new themes to the multicultural conversation, including moral development, economic diversity, environmental concerns, and consumerism. The book explains that multicultural education is not just about racial and ethnic diversity, though it still focuses on racism and other biases in education for children who are poor and of color. There are 10 chapters in two parts. Chapter 1, \Growing Up in a World of Contradictions and Injustices: A Multicultural Response,\ discusses links between multicultural and environmental issues, multicultural goals for children, parent and teacher roles, and approaching multicultural issues. Part 1, \Contexts of Learning,\ includes: (2) \We Are All Learning\; (3) \The Context of Race\; (4) \The Economic Context\; (5) \The Context of Culture;\ (6) \The Context of Gender and Sexual Orientation\; and (7) \The Context of Abilities and Disabilities.\ Part 2, \Everyday Multiculturalism: Practical Applications,\ includes (8) \Challenging Our…
(2020). Teaching Microaggressions, Identity, and Social Justice: A Reflective, Experiential and Collaborative Pedagogical Approach. International Journal of Higher Education, v9 n4 p184-198. The purpose of social work is actualized through its commitment to diversity and differences in practice, as well as human rights, social, economic, and environmental justice. A review of literature on microaggressions and oppression against marginalized and vulnerable populations suggests important themes that social work instructors need to examine with students. It is unclear to what extent instructors use pedagogical tools to gain knowledge, skills, and critical consciousness to navigate social justice contents and manage difficult conversations with diverse student groups in class settings. Not much attention is paid in social work education on how well instructors are prepared to teach this content in depth and what challenges they face when facilitating highly sensitive and difficult discussions with students. This article described and evaluated five sets of reflective, experiential, and collaborative activities in a social justice course designed to help social work students… [PDF]
(2020). Reading 'Fundamental British Values' through Children's Gothic: Imperialism, History, Pedagogy. Children's Literature in Education, v51 n1 p21-40 Mar. This paper reads the U.K. Government's "fundamental British values" project alongside two children's Gothic novels, "Coram Boy" (2000) by Jamila Gavin and "City of Ghosts" (2009) by Bali Rai. In 2011 the U.K. Government outlined what it described as "fundamental British values" (FBV), making it a requirement for U.K. schools to promote these values. Many critics have shown that the root of FBV lies in Islamophobia and imperialist nostalgia and suggested that the promotion of "British" values in school will exclude minority groups already under siege from racist elements in contemporary Britain. Other critics argue that the promotion of FBV reduces opportunities to explore issues of belonging, belief, and nationhood in the classroom. This article argues that the Gothic fictions of Jamila Gavin and Bali Rai offer a space in which to critically examine British history (and so, its values) in a way that is acutely relevant to these… [Direct]