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“Not Backing Down”: A Narrative Inquiry Of Black Women Teachers In Urban Schools

Recent events- including the overlapping pandemics of hyper-visible racism, policebrutality, economic downturn, climate crises, and the Covid-19 virus- have reified the
significance of teacher diversity to counter structural inequalities in education. Of
particular concern are low-income urban schools. While greater teacher diversity exists
in urban schools, Black teachers - and Black women in particular- experience high
turnover compared to their white and male counterparts. Through a contextual analysis
of Black women teachers, the purpose of this study was to explore intersectionality and
identity negotiation by investigating whether professional experiences and decisionmaking
were moderated by ethno-racial and gender identities. Multiple sources of data
were collected regarding eight self-identified Black women of the African diaspora with
at least two years of experience in urban schools. Analysis of demographic surveys,
open-ended responses, and three rounds of semi-structured interviews yielded ten themes:
1) supplementing curriculum with counter-narratives and role models, 2) facilitating
conversations about race-related current events, 3) teaching the truth about American
history, 4) guiding students to navigate a racialized society, 5) experiencing microaggressions
in interracial interactions, 6) disengaging from diversity initiatives, 7)
participating in supportive intra-racial relationships, 8) avoiding gendered racial
stereotypes, 9) pursuing desired ends, and 10) redefining professionalism. The result of
this study adds to the research base regarding intersectionality and identity negotiation as
factors influencing teachers of color in urban schools. Additional recommendations are
also given to guide research, practice, and policy. / Policy, Organizational and Leadership Studies

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:TEMPLE/oai:scholarshare.temple.edu:20.500.12613/7728
Date January 2022
CreatorsGabbadon, Andrea, 0000-0002-3273-2041
ContributorsBrooks, Wanda M., 1969-, Johnson, Jennifer M., 1970-, Fergus, Edward, 1974-, Cole-Malott, Donna-Marie
PublisherTemple University. Libraries
Source SetsTemple University
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeThesis/Dissertation, Text
Format302 pages
RightsIN COPYRIGHT- This Rights Statement can be used for an Item that is in copyright. Using this statement implies that the organization making this Item available has determined that the Item is in copyright and either is the rights-holder, has obtained permission from the rights-holder(s) to make their Work(s) available, or makes the Item available under an exception or limitation to copyright (including Fair Use) that entitles it to make the Item available., http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Relationhttp://dx.doi.org/10.34944/dspace/7700, Theses and Dissertations

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