(2022). Re/Presentation of Asian Americans in 50 States' K-12 U.S. History Standards. Social Studies, v113 n4 p171-184. This study is a content analysis of K-12 U.S. history curriculum standards from 50 states regarding curricular re/presentation of Asian Americans. The guiding research questions are as follows: (1) What is the frequency of Asian American content covered in K-12 U.S. history standards from 50 states? (2) How do the standards depict Asian Americans in U.S. history? I analyzed U.S. history curriculum standards from all states using AsianCrit as a theoretical lens. The findings reveal that except for Japanese incarceration and anti-Asian immigration laws, Asian Americans are largely invisible in the state standards and, when included, they are primarily depicted as victims of nativist racism with a lack of civic agency as well as new immigrants with little contribution to nation-building. Being the first work to uncover curricular messages about Asian Americans across 50 states' standards, this study presents a necessary empirical basis for disrupting curriculum violence…. [Direct]
(2020). Critical Black Feminist Mentorship: A Review of A Middle School and University-Sponsored Program for Adolescent Black Girls. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, Eastern Michigan University. This dissertation study aims to illuminate the creation of safe spaces for marginalized youth through mentorship initiatives. Likewise, the study examines the roles of mentorship programs in transforming the lives of Black adolescent girls by providing them with tools to change the narratives depicted by society. A qualitative design was employed that used phenomenological interviewing techniques and ethnographic observations to explore the experiences of the Black adolescent girls in one university-sponsored mentorship program. The findings illustrate what is coined through this research–a critical Black feminist mentorship model that emphasizes an intersectional identity development, the actualization of voice, the creation and preservation of sisterhood and solidarity, and consciousness raising. The results, implications, and future research possibilities are discussed. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further… [Direct]
(2024). Urban School District Performance: A Longitudinal Analysis of Achievement. Urban Education, v59 n3 p849-877. We used the Stanford education data archive (SEDA) data to examine the heterogeneity among urban school districts in the United States. The SEDA 2.1 includes data sets on students' mathematics (Math) and English language arts (ELA) achievement from 2008 to 2014 at the district level. Growth mixture modeling was used to uncover the underlying growth trajectories for urban student achievement from the third to the eighth grade. Two and three growth patterns were observed for ELA and Math achievement, respectively, over time. We used the critical theoretical framework QuantCrit to centralize race in the analysis of the data and shared implications for future research…. [Direct]
(2024). Affect and the Force of Counter Stories: Learning Racial Literacy through Thinking and Feeling. Pedagogy, Culture and Society, v32 n5 p1307-1324. This paper contributes to international scholarship on racial literacy in teacher education. Specifically, we consider filmic counter stories as bodies that carry an affective charge with the potential to ignite dialogic and embodied/emotional learning. The football documentary The Final Quarter is our case study. This film traces the racially explosive final years of First Nations Australian, Adam Goodes' elite playing career. The film floodlights football as a site for public pedagogy where people learn racism, with the film offering means of developing racial literacy through examining its encounters. The paper describes racial literacy and establishes affect/embodiment as a contribution to the field. We analyse the film using an affective-discursive lens and genealogical methodology and consider implications for teacher education. We argue that language is insufficient for understanding racism and that the affective intensities activated by film may help to pedagogically… [Direct]
(2024). Tales of (Under)Representation: Afro-Latinx in Spanish as a Heritage Language Textbooks. Hispania, v107 n2-3 p255-272. The present study examines the lack of representation of minority communities in the existing literature by examining the representation of Afro-Latinxs in texts and visuals in seven Spanish as a Heritage Language (SHL) textbooks, and the ideologies behind these representations. Drawing upon Norman Fairclough's (1995) model for conducting Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) and Gunther Kress and Theo van Leeuwen's (2001, 2006) grammar of visual design, this current study analyzes text (readings, descriptions, labels, among others) and visuals (people, pictures, buildings, artifacts, among others) in these textbooks. The findings suggest that Afro-Latinx are hardly represented in SHL textbooks. There were only 38 textual representations in the seven SHL textbooks examined and only 18 images clearly referencing Afro-Latinx. This underrepresentation is in line with the ideology of erasure. In addition, ideologies of collectivization and tourism discourse were found throughout the… [Direct]
(2011). The Routledge International Handbook of Critical Education. Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group "The Routledge International Handbook of Critical Education" is the first authoritative reference work to provide an international analysis of the relationship between power, knowledge, education, and schooling. Rather than focusing solely on questions of how we teach efficiently and effectively, contributors to this volume push further to also think critically about education's relationship to economic, political, and cultural power. The various sections of this book integrate into their analyses the conceptual, political, pedagogic, and practical histories, tensions, and resources that have established critical education as one of the most vital and growing movements within the field of education, including topics such as: (1) social movements and pedagogic work; (2) critical research methods for critical education; (3) the politics of practice and the recreation of theory; and (4) the freirian legacy. With a comprehensive introduction by Michael W. Apple, Wayne Au, and… [Direct]
(2011). Demystifying the Lens of Color: Examining the Relationship between Academic Achievement and Racial Identity. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, The University of New Mexico. The purpose of this mixed methods research study was to examine the dynamic interaction between the racial and academic identities of African American, undergraduate students who were enrolled full time at an academic institution of higher education that was both a Hispanic-serving institution (HSI), and a predominately White institution (PWI). The two main research questions addressed by this study were: 1. To what extent does the racial identity of African American, undergraduate students shape their expectations and beliefs about succeeding at the higher education level; and 2. What is the relationship between students' racial identity, selected aspects of their university environment, and students interactions with prior environments including their home environment (i.e., family structure and background) with their academic achievement while matriculating towards a bachelor's degree? Racial identity has been noted as a variable that impacts academic achievement within the realm… [Direct]
(2023). A Sense of Belonging within the Imaginative Constraints of Racial Realism: A Critical Race Analysis of Latinx Students' Racialized Experiences during the Trump Presidency. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education (QSE), v36 n1 p26-41. The continued significance of Derrick Bell's "theory of racial realism" is exemplified by the exclusionary sociopolitical and institutional climate that Latinx students experienced throughout the Trump presidency. I utilize various tenets from CRT and LatCrit as analytical and methodological tools for conducting a qualitative study at four colleges and universities in Southern California that explores how the Trump presidency influenced Latinx students' "sense of belonging" on college campuses and within the broader U.S. The findings reveal how the Trump presidency influenced the lives of Latinx students in interpersonal and superstructural ways. However, I problematize the concept of "sense of belonging" within the context of racial realism by arguing that it is counterproductive to cultivate a sense of belonging within an endemically racist society and/or higher education institution. I provide pragmatic and theoretical implications for how higher… [Direct]
(2023). Reimagining Curricula: Effects of Cultural (In)Sensitivity of Curricula on Racially Minoritised Students' Engagement. Studies in Higher Education, v48 n2 p283-298. Imperatives to eliminate racial inequalities in higher education (HE) have led to calls for diversification of curricula. Qualitative evidence is growing about racially minoritised students' perceptions of their curricula and its impact on them. Yet there are no specific instruments to facilitate evaluation of curricular diversification and its impact on students. We examined the relationship between students' perceptions of the cultural sensitivity of their curriculum and their engagement, as measured by students' interactions with their teachers and their interest in their programme of study. To do so, we conceptualised and developed a new set of four Culturally Sensitive Curriculum Scales, making a significant, original conceptual and methodological contribution. A racially diverse sample of second through postgraduate students primarily in arts, humanities and social sciences (N = 262; 189 F) rated the cultural sensitivity of the curriculum of their programme, their interactions… [Direct]
(2023). Reimagining LRA in the Spirit of a Transcendent Approach to Literacy. Literacy Research: Theory, Method, and Practice, v72 n1 p50-73. This invited paper highlights the reflections of expert panelists who were spontaneously called upon, graciously accepted, and quickly organized to respond thoughtfully and compellingly to Dr. Arlette Willis' powerful and timely Oscar Causey address at the 2022 Literacy Research Association (LRA) annual conference. In her address, Dr. Willis issued a clarion call for a Transcendent Approach to Literacy (TAL) to a space where "We re-create literacy as an equitable and moral construct" (Willis, 2023, p. 133). This paper comprises Dr. Alfred Tatum's comprehensive introduction, the cogent reflections on TAL by panelists Dr. Josh Coleman, Dr. Marcus Croom, Dr. Matthew Deroo, Dr. Michiko Hikida, Dr. Emily Machado, Dr. Patriann Smith, Dr. Chad Waldron, and Dr. Rahat Zaidi, and Dr. Willis' eloquent epilogue. In her epilogue, she provides not an ending but the genesis of a movement forward for the LRA community to "be brave" and actively and genuinely engage in a TAL that… [Direct]
(2023). Committed Pedagogy: Intersectionality in the Spanish Classroom. International Society for Technology, Education, and Science, Paper presented at the International Conference on Humanities, Social and Education Sciences (iHSES) (Denver, CO, Apr 13-16, 2023). Representations of a nation's history work as a powerful tool to consolidate a collective identity and build trust in the nation. School textbooks are ideological products that disseminate official ideas about a collective past and heritage; their depictions have an impact on shared understandings of a nation's history. However, what is included and excluded from the official historical narrative is selective. Usually, Spanish educators have to use the materials established by the department. Unfortunately, it is very common to find in these books certain representations of Hispanic countries based on stereotypes. This presentation discusses notions of bell hooks — namely her concepts on teaching for social justice and intersectionality — and practical examples of textbooks to learn new ways to promote critical thinking of students and also educators. This has implications for classroom management, but also for curriculum design and education for social justice. This promotes… [PDF]
(2006). Entering the Academy: Exploring the Socialization Experiences of African American Male. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College. This study explored the socialization experiences of African American male faculty at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and predominately White institutions (PWIs). Rosch and Reich's Enculturation Model was used as the theoretical framework. To gain a better understanding of the socialization experiences of African American male faculty, a group that has traditionally been underrepresented and marginalized in academia, Critical Race Theory (CRT) was incorporated into the study. More specifically, counter-storytelling, a basic tenet of CRT, was used to learn the stories that African American male faculty tell about their socialization experiences. A mixed methodology research design was utilized. Interviews were conducted with 16 full-time tenured and tenure-track African American male faculty at both institutional types in Phase I. In Phase II, 128 African American male participants responded to a questionnaire about their socialization experiences. The findings of… [Direct]
(2022). Constructing the Ghetto: An Analysis of the Representation of Black Urban Communities in Urban and Community Sociology Courses. Race, Ethnicity and Education, v25 n4 p526-545. This article uses analysis of 72 syllabi to investigate portrayals of Black urban communities in undergraduate Urban and Community Sociology courses taught in colleges and universities in the United States. The authors conducted keyword analyses of the syllabi and content analyses of the assigned readings. Although professors' course descriptions do not focus on poverty, segregation, and crime, assigned readings relating to Black communities largely focus on those topics. The authors argue that urban sociology classes reproduce the 'iconic ghetto,' the lens through which Black urban communities are perceived. This pattern poses a risk of reinforcing current structures of racial inequality. This study identifies a need for more nuanced representations of Black communities within undergraduate Urban and Community Sociology classrooms, particularly in terms of required readings and assignments. The authors provide pedagogical and methodological suggestions around the use of… [Direct]
(2022). Hall Pass: DACA Recipients' Experiences "Passing" in Higher Education. Equity & Excellence in Education, v55 n1-2 p87-104. Undocumented students face numerous hardships in their pursuit of higher education. Those who are part of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program experience some improved college access and tuition affordability, but many administrative and financial barriers continue to impede their educational pursuits. This qualitative work explores how DACA recipients attempt to circumvent those limitations by "Hall Passing." The concept of "Hall Passing" combines the familiar concept to most attendees of U.S. schools of the hall pass (written, conditional, permission granted to students to be out of the locational bounds typically expected) and the concept of the act of "passing." "Passing" is when some members of marginalized groups modify or conceal characteristics that identify them as the Other. The new concept of "Hall Passing" came out of the results of this study which found that DACAmented students at predominantly white… [Direct]
(2022). Feeling Fear as Power and Oppression: An Examination of Black and White Fear in Virginia's U.S. History Standards and Curriculum Framework. Theory and Research in Social Education, v50 n3 p431-463. Fear has shaped events throughout U.S. history, as those who have possessed fear have weaponized this emotion to justify violence and oppression while others have used fear as an impetus for radical resistance. Fear, however, has been an under-researched emotion in history education. Using critical discourse analysis methods, in this article I aim to move fear from the periphery to the forefront by analyzing how fear is discussed in Virginia's U.S. History Standards and Curriculum Framework. Drawing from theories of BlackCrit and Feeling Power, three findings emerged from this study: The standards only describe fear as an emotion possessed by white people, the inclusion of Black suffering does not lead to Black fear, and Black people do not fear. This work illuminates the importance of examining emotions, particularly fear, in social studies education and has implications for both K-12 teachers and teacher education…. [Direct]