Teacher Education and Whiteness and Whiteness in Teacher Education in the United States

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheryl E. Matias ◽  
Naomi W. Nishi ◽  
Geneva L. Sarcedo
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Critical Race Theory ◽  
White Supremacy ◽  
The United States ◽  
People Of Color ◽  
Theoretical Frameworks ◽  
Critical Whiteness Studies ◽  
Preparation Programs ◽  
K 12 ◽  
The Impact

A litany of literature exists on teacher preparation programs, known as teacher education, and whiteness, which is the historical, systematic, and structural processes that maintain the race-based superiority of white people over people of color. The theoretical frameworks of Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Critical Whiteness Studies (CWS) are used to explore whiteness and teacher education separately; whiteness within teacher education; the impact of teacher education and whiteness on white educators, educators of Color, and their students; and cautions and recommendations for teacher education and whiteness. Although teacher education and whiteness are situated within the current US sociopolitical context, the historical colonial contexts of other countries may find parallel examples of whiteness. Within this context, the historical purposes behind teacher education and the need for quality teachers in an increasingly diverse student population are identified using transdisciplinary approaches in CRT and CWS to define and describe operations of whiteness in teacher education. Particularly, race education scholars entertain the psychoanalytic, philosophical, and sociological ruminations of race, racism, and white supremacy in society and education to understand more fully how whiteness operates within teacher education. For example, an analysis of psychological attachments found in racial identities, particularly between whiteness and Blackness, helps to fully comprehend racial dynamics between teachers, who are overwhelmingly racially identified as white, and students, who are predominantly racially identified as of Color. Whiteness in teacher education, left intact, ultimately affects K-12 schooling and students, particularly students of Color, in ways that recycle institutionalized white supremacy in schooling practices. Acknowledging how reinforcing hegemonic whiteness in teacher education ultimately reifies institutional white supremacy in education altogether; implications and cautions as well as recommendations are offered to debunk the hegemonic whiteness that inoculates teacher education. Note: To symbolically reverse the racial hierarchy in our research, the authors opt to use lowercase lettering for white and whiteness, and to capitalize “people of Color” to recognize it as a proper noun along with Black and Brown.

scholarly journals The Social Justice Teaching Collaborative: A Collective Turn Towards Critical Teacher Education

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 21-39
Author(s):  
Brittany A Aronson ◽  
Racheal Banda ◽  
Ashley Johnson ◽  
Molly Kelly ◽  
Raquel Radina ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Critical Race Theory ◽  
Critical Pedagogy ◽  
Inclusive Education ◽  
Collaborative Work ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Theoretical Frameworks ◽  
Critical Whiteness Studies ◽  
Social Justice Teaching

In this article, we share the collaborative curricular work of an interdisciplinary Social Justice Teaching Collaborative (SJTC) from a PWI university. Members of the SJTC worked strategically to center social justice across required courses pre-service teachers are required to take: Introduction to Education, Sociocultural Studies in Education, and Inclusive Education. We share our conceptualization of social justice and guiding theoretical frameworks that have shaped our pedagogy and curriculum. These frameworks include democratic education, critical pedagogy, critical race theory, critical whiteness studies, critical disability studies, and feminist and intersectionality theory. We then detail changes made across courses including examples of readings and assignments. Finally, we conclude by offering reflections, challenges, and lessons learned for collaborative work within teacher education and educational leadership. 

En La Lucha: The Struggles and Triumphs of Latino/a Preservice Teachers

2011 ◽  
Vol 113 (12) ◽  
pp. 2804-2835
Author(s):  
Jason G. Irizarry
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Teacher Education ◽  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Teacher Preparation ◽  
Critical Race Theory ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
Teacher Preparation Programs ◽  
Race Theory ◽  
Preparation Programs ◽  
K 12

Background/Context Several studies have argued that the academic struggles of Latino/a students are connected, at least in part, to the dearth of Latino/a teachers and other school personnel who may be better equipped to meet the needs of this group. Others have suggested that there are significant academic benefits to having a more diverse teaching force. Despite significant population growth among Latinos/as in the United States, the teaching force remains overwhelmingly White, as Latino/a students continue to be underrepresented in institutions of higher education and, more specifically, within teacher education programs. Purpose/Objective/Focus of the Study Given the failure of teacher preparation programs to attract and retain more Latino/a students, and the implications that the shortage of qualified teachers has on Latino/a and other K–12 students, it is vital to learn from the challenges and successes of Latino/a preservice teachers to improve the ways in which teachers of diverse backgrounds are attracted into the field and prepared for this work. This article reports the findings of an ethnographic study in which a cohort of Latino/a preservice teachers was followed from the teachers’ recruitment into college, through their undergraduate years and, for most, their eventual transition into the teaching profession. Setting All the participants were undergraduate students enrolled in the teacher education program at a Predominantly White Institution (PWI) of higher education in the northeastern United States. Participants A cohort of 5 Latino/a preservice teachers recruited to the institution as part of a minority teacher recruitment program participated in the study. Research Design This article draws from data collected ethnographically, using phenome-nological interviews, observations, field notes, and student work products to document barriers that students encountered while navigating their preservice teacher education program. The author critically examines how this cohort of Latino/a undergraduates experienced systematic silencing, the result of the acts of individual agents and institutional practices and policies that manifested in overt and subtle forms of subordination. Findings The study reveals how subordination serves to marginalize students of color by hindering their full, active participation in teacher preparation programs through the silencing of their voices. Using critical race theory (CRT) and Latino/a critical race theory (LatCrit) as analytic lenses, the author describes multiple sites within the institution of higher education where students experienced silencing. Conclusions/Recommendations The article concludes with a discussion of implications, framed around the central tenets of CRT and LatCrit, for improving the recruitment and retention of Latino/a college students in teacher education, particularly as an important means for enhancing the educational experiences and outcomes for Latinos/as in K–12 schools.

Flipping the Classroom in a Teacher Education Course

2014 ◽  
pp. 145-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Dickenson
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Flipped Classroom ◽  
The United States ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Preparation Programs ◽  
Traditional Course ◽  
Class Time ◽  
University Preparation ◽  
K 12

Teacher education preparation programs prepare pre-service teachers for K-12 classrooms. In order to best prepare pre-service teachers, higher education institutions must be cognizant of the changes that are occurring in today’s K-12 classes. The flipped model is an approach to instruction where direct instruction and lecture is viewed at home and class time is used for collaboration and project-based learning. This approach to instruction is becoming increasingly popular in primary and secondary education classrooms throughout the United States. It is important to examine how a flipped classroom approach may influence pre-service teachers in a university preparation program. This chapter explores a case study that examined the flipped classroom in a teacher education course compared to a traditional course.

Flipping the Classroom in a Teacher Education Course

2015 ◽  
pp. 1022-1039 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Dickenson
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Flipped Classroom ◽  
The United States ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Preparation Programs ◽  
Traditional Course ◽  
Class Time ◽  
University Preparation ◽  
K 12

Teacher education preparation programs prepare pre-service teachers for K-12 classrooms. In order to best prepare pre-service teachers, higher education institutions must be cognizant of the changes that are occurring in today's K-12 classes. The flipped model is an approach to instruction where direct instruction and lecture is viewed at home and class time is used for collaboration and project-based learning. This approach to instruction is becoming increasingly popular in primary and secondary education classrooms throughout the United States. It is important to examine how a flipped classroom approach may influence pre-service teachers in a university preparation program. This chapter explores a case study that examined the flipped classroom in a teacher education course compared to a traditional course.

A Search for the Heart of Teacher Education Through Curriculum

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mari Koerner
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Teacher Preparation ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
The United States ◽  
Preparation Programs ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Alternative Pathways ◽  
Caring Teachers ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Impact

Most of the millions of teachers in public and private schools have gone through teacher preparation programs. Preparing a person to teach is a centrally important, complicated, and many-layered process that carries deep responsibilities for the people who prepare those teachers, namely, teacher educators. So, it is not surprising that, even in the face of over 1,400 research studies about its effectiveness, there are still ongoing debates about the impact of teacher preparation on teachers in classrooms. It is not uncommon to see claims that teacher preparation is vitally important and, at the same time, claims that teacher preparation makes little difference. Because of myriad philosophies and varied desired outcomes, experts who design the pedagogy and content have varying touchstones for excellence that are put into programs along with variation in courses, admission, and degree requirements. How is it possible to get to the “heart” of preparing knowledgeable and caring teachers? There seems to be no one curriculum for the thousands of people entering the classrooms across America, so how can educators design and implement the methods that will best serve students in classrooms all across the country? Many underlying philosophies and values, as well as research, steer this enterprise—which leads to more confusion and angst. There has always been the quest for a “one shoe fits all” model for definitive curriculum, so epochs in teacher preparation can be traced back to when ideas and practices shifted. Other, varied sources contribute to the implementation and goals of teacher education: state and federal governments, education college research faculty, and local Boards of Education. The necessary professional credentials should be a factor (and ideally the same in all states), but ways to obtain teaching credentials are currently multiplying as alternative pathways are being created at a rapid pace. Then, there is the central question: Who is speaking for the welfare of the children in a united voice? Certainly, everyone in this endeavor should never forget that the purpose of a free and public education, both in the United States and other countries, is to create a literate population who can support and sustain a democracy. The ongoing quest is to discover what constitutes the heart of teacher preparation.

scholarly journals Abolishing Whiteness

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (2/3) ◽  
pp. 588-615
Author(s):  
Michele D. Hanna ◽  
Heather Arnold-Renicker ◽  
Barbara Garza
Keyword(s):  
Critical Race Theory ◽  
White Supremacy ◽  
People Of Color ◽  
Learning Needs ◽  
Theoretical Frameworks ◽  
White Studies ◽  
Critical White Studies ◽  
The Social ◽  
History Of ◽  
Construction Of Whiteness

The power, privilege, and oppression paradigm that most schools of social work currently espouse to are often taught through an experiential approach to whiteness, privileging the majority of white students with the opportunity to explore their white identity at the expense of the learning of the Black/Brown, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) students in the classroom. Many BIPOC students experience these courses as a hostile environment, finding themselves and their racial group identified in contrast to whiteness – oppressed, marginalized, silenced, and powerless. This paper presents an innovative course outline using Critical Race Theory and Critical White Studies as theoretical frameworks to decenter whiteness and attend to the learning needs of BIPOC students. Using these two theoretical frameworks, students will learn the history of the racial hierarchy of humans; the social construction of whiteness, the evolution of anti-black racism and the extension to other people of color; and the relationship between white supremacy and racism.

Complexity and Transformative Learning: A Review of the Principal and Teacher Preparation Literature on Race

2021 ◽  
Vol 123 (8) ◽  
pp. 202-247
Author(s):  
Rachel Roegman ◽  
Joni Kolman ◽  
A. Lin Goodwin ◽  
Brooke Soles
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Teacher Preparation ◽  
Transformative Learning ◽  
Principal Preparation ◽  
White Supremacy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Clinical Experiences ◽  
Preparation Programs ◽  
To Come ◽  
K 12

Background: Racial inequities are a persistent reality in K–12 schools in the United States. There is a need for consensus and coordination between principals and teachers if they are to address the harm of racial inequities in education. Yet, despite this need and the interdependence of teachers and principals in schools, their preparation is profoundly distinct. Purpose: Although teacher and principal preparation practice and research are distinct, addressing racial inequities in K–12 students’ schooling experiences is central to the work within both professional arenas. In this literature review, we bring together these bodies of literature as we think about ways that preparation supports principals and teachers in developing skills, knowledge, and dispositions to counter racial inequities in their schools. We focus our review around one central question: In what ways does the teacher and principal preparation literature address candidates’ transformative learning around race? Research Design: This review focuses on peer-reviewed literature on race within teacher and principal preparation published between 2001 and 2018. We reviewed studies here that are: (1) empirical, (2) focused on principal or teacher preparation, (3) focused on preparing candidates around issues related to race or racial inequity, (4) published between 2001 and 2018, and (5) based in the United States. We ultimately identified 79 articles, 24 related to principal preparation and 55 related to teacher preparation. We drew on critical transformative learning theory to guide our analyses. Findings: Overall, we identified more commonalities between the two literatures than differences. Our review suggests that race is understood in three main ways: in terms of “difference,” “power,” and “racism.” Race-as-difference focuses on differences between individuals related to race or culture. Race-as-power emphasizes that these differences result from systemic oppressions. Race-as-racism centers racism and/or white supremacy. This review reveals complexities of transformative learning across three areas: how candidates’ backgrounds inform their learning; how clinical experiences present opportunities and constraints for learning; and how emotions influence learning. Recommendations: Preparation programs must educate teachers and principals about race-as-racism. Candidates need to come to understand the role of systemic racism in society and in schooling, beyond understanding individual differences. Critically, teacher and principal preparation faculties must work together across courses and experiences. Finally, there is a need for those who educate educators to receive preparation for this role.

A Case for Decentering Whiteness in Education

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 19-34
Author(s):  
Jamie Utt
Keyword(s):  
Critical Race Theory ◽  
White Students ◽  
Students Of Color ◽  
Ethnic Studies ◽  
Traditional Curriculum ◽  
Theoretical Frameworks ◽  
Critical Whiteness Studies ◽  
Cultural Wealth ◽  
Critical Whiteness ◽  
Social Studies Textbooks

Ethnic Studies undermines and challenges the racism inherent in dominant education systems by centering identities and epistemologies of people of Color. While much focus has been paid to the damage done to students of Color by White teachers and the White standard curriculum, this paper addresses the intellectual and material benefit White students disproportionately gain from this curriculum. Through a mixed-methods empirical study examining social studies textbooks and standards from Texas and California, the author argues that the standard White canon acts as a form of White/Western studies that directly privileges White students. Critical Race Theory, Critical Whiteness Studies, Pierre Bourdieu cultural reproduction, and Tara Yosso’s community cultural wealth provide theoretical frameworks in calling for a broader implementation of Ethnic Studies programs and pedagogies while calling for reform of traditional curriculum and standards that act as couriers of dominant capital for White students.

Dismantling White Privilege: The Black Lives Matter Movement and Environmental Justice in Canada

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheryl Teelucksingh
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Critical Race Theory ◽  
Environmental Justice ◽  
White Supremacy ◽  
Jim Crow ◽  
The United States ◽  
Conceptual Tool ◽  
Public Monuments ◽  
Black Lives Matter ◽  
Jim Crow Era

On August 12, 2017, in Charlottesville, Virginia, alt-right/White supremacy groups and Black Lives Matter (BLM) supporters came face-to-face regarding what to do about public monuments that celebrate key figures from slavery and the Jim Crow era. White supremacists and White nationalists did not hide their racist ideologies as they demanded that their privileged place in history not be erased. The BLM movement, which challenges state-sanctioned anti-Black racism, was ready to confront themes of White discontent and reverse racism, critiques of political correctness, and the assumption that racialized people should know their place and be content to be the subordinate other.It is easy to frame the events in Charlottesville as indicative of US-specific race problems. However, a sense that White spaces should prevail and an ongoing history of anti-Black racism are not unique to the United States. The rise of Canadian activism under the BLM banner also signals a movement to change Canadian forms of institutional racism in policing, education, and the labor market. This article responds to perceptions that the BLM movement has given insufficient attention to environmental concerns (Pellow 2016; Halpern 2017). Drawing on critical race theory as a conceptual tool, this article focuses on the Canadian context as part of the author’s argument in favor of greater collaboration between BLM and the environmental justice (EJ) movement in Canada. This article also engages with the common stereotype that Blacks in Canada have it better than Blacks in the United States.

“Over-zealous Parents, Over-programmed Families”: Asian Americans, Academic Achievement, and White Supremacy

2021 ◽  
pp. 233264922110184
Author(s):  
Pawan Dhingra
Keyword(s):  
Asian Americans ◽  
Asian American ◽  
White Supremacy ◽  
Minority Group ◽  
People Of Color ◽  
White Educators ◽  
Asian American Students ◽  
American Students ◽  
High Achieving ◽  
K 12

Discussions of white supremacy focus on patterns of whites’ stature over people of color across institutions. When a minority group achieves more than whites, it is not studied through the lens of white supremacy. For example, arguments of white supremacy in K-12 schools focus on the disfranchisement of African Americans and Latinxs. Discussions of high-achieving Asian American students have not been framed as such and, in fact, can be used to argue against the existence of white privilege. This article explains why this conception is false. White supremacy can be active even when people of color achieve more than whites. Drawing from interviews and observations of mostly white educators in Boston suburbs that have a significant presence of Asian American students, I demonstrate that even when Asian Americans outcompete whites in schools, white supremacy is active through two means. First, Asian Americans are applauded in ways that fit a model minority stereotype and frame other groups as not working hard enough. Second and more significantly, Asian Americans encounter anti-Asian stereotypes and are told to assimilate into the model of white educators. This treatment is institutionalized within the school system through educators’ practices and attitudes. These findings somewhat support but mostly contrast the notion of “honorary whiteness,” for they show that high-achieving minorities are not just tools of white supremacy toward other people of color but also targets of it themselves. Understanding how high-achieving minorities experience institutionalized racism demonstrates the far reach of white supremacy.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document