ERIC EJ847143: Resistance and Renegotiation: Preservice Teacher Interactions with and Reactions to Multicultural Education Course Content

2009·0.24 MB·English

by  ERIC

Research
Resistance and Renegotiation
Preservice Teacher Interactions with and Reactions
to Multicultural Education Course Content
Aja E. LaDuke
New awareness of the power of point of have not previously considered themselves and sociopolitical realities of others. The
view provided students a basis for much to be raced, classed, or even cultural be- importance of tackling this affirmation is
reflection about their values and beliefs; ings (Assaf & Dooley, 2006; Clark, 1999; magnified when juxtaposed with current
however, many became angry and re-
Galman, 2006; Ryan, 2006). This keeps demographics. Over one-third of students
sistant when they found their attitudes
most preservice teachers far from relat- in American public schools are students of
about the reality they wanted to believe
ing concepts of race, class, and culture to color, a number that is rapidly increasing
in were in conflict with the reality they
experienced while ‘wearing the shoes’ of the realm of teaching and learning in a while the teaching force remains over-
another person. (Ahlquist, 1991, p. 163) meaningful way. whelmingly White (Nieto & Bode, 2008;
One goal of multicultural education Sleeter 2001).
Although many programs ascribe
courses is to provide a forum to discuss As potentially the only meeting
to promoting and celebrating diversity,
the experiences of those belonging to grounds within most teacher education
traditional teacher preparation rarely cen-
nondominant groups based on race, eth- programs for these conflicting realities
tralizes multicultural education courses.
nicity, language, class, gender, physical and visions of schools prior to preservice
Instead, these courses are often “added
ability, religion, and sexual orientation, teachers’ entrance into the field, investiga-
on” to or disconnected from the rest of the
among others (Nieto & Bode, 2008). As tion of the multicultural teacher education
program (Dilworth, 1992; Vavrus, 2002).
Roberta Ahlquist (1991) describes in the classroom and its dynamics is imperative.
Multicultural education courses and other
quote above, these experiences do not This article critically examines the in-
courses that address diversity often ask
constitute the realities of most preservice teractions between members of a college
the preservice teachers enrolled to reflect
teachers sitting in multicultural education classroom community, consisting of 26
critically on their own identities through
classrooms. An overwhelming majority of predominantly White female students
the lenses of power and privilege.
White preservice teachers are unfamiliar and their instructor, a man of color, in a
Given the peripheral positioning of
with these realities, particularly those of graduate multicultural education course.
courses of this nature in their preparation,
people of color (Gay & Kirkland, 2003; Data collection and analysis were guided
one could expect preservice teachers to be
Cochran-Smith, 2004). by the following research question: How
unfamiliar and uncomfortable with this
Few preservice teachers have deeply do White preservice teachers’ interact with
process, resulting in cognitive dissonance
considered the possibility that another in- and react to the content of a multicultural
as well as a certain level of resistance.
dividual’s world view could be so profoundly education course, particularly in regards
Many aspiring teachers, and people in
different from their own, particularly within to issues of race?
general, aspire to be “colorblind” (Irvine,
the shared spaces of schools. Schools are fair
2003; Milner, 2006; Sleeter, 2001). This
and democratic in the minds of many White Theoretical Framework
ideology assumes that color, race, and eth-
preservice teachers, who often categorize and Methodology
nicity should not be considered in explana-
their own public schooling experiences as
tions of how people are treated (Gillespie, largely positive, or at least benign (Michie, I approach this work from a sociocul-
Asbaugh, & DeFiore, 2002), and therefore 2007; Ryan, 2006). tural perspective, which views knowledge
relieves teachers of the responsibility of Multicultural education courses typi- and identities as constantly in a process
explicitly addressing race and ethnicity in cally propose alternate visions exploring of negotiation and renegotiation through
their classrooms. how schools, for many, do not live up to the discourse (Gee, 1999) and narrative
The majority of preservice and inser- democratic ideals they claim, but instead (Wortham, 2001). These negotiations take
vice teachers are White, European Ameri- serve as vehicles to perpetuate inequal- place in both smaller microcultures (Ryan,
can, middle-class, monolingual women ity. Instructors of multicultural education 2006) and discourse communities (Gee,
(Gay & Howard, 2000) living in a society courses are faced with the double-edged 1999) and within a larger sociopolitical
in which whiteness is positioned as the challenge of encouraging White preservice context (Nieto & Bode, 2008). This is a par-
norm (Weiler, 1988). Consequently, many teachers to not only consider this new and ticularly appropriate lens given that mul-
disheartening view, but to realize that it is ticultural education classrooms, although
Aja E. LaDuke is a doctoral candidate
likely the view held by many of their stu- not all the same, often serve as sites where
in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction
dents. In other words, White students are multiple discourses are presented.
of the Neag School of Education
asked to identify themselves as cultural be- Sonia Nieto and Patty Bode (2008)
at the University of Connecticut,
ings, as well as to affirm the sociocultural consider this exposure to multiple voices
Storrs, Connecticut.
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to be essential for preservice teachers to education candidates and had little if any course content, conversations in class, and
develop identities as multicultural people work experience. online forum posts. These biweekly posts
and, in turn, identities as multicultural The course, entitled Multicultural Ed- were completed by students in response
educators. Preservice teachers are chal- ucation, was designed to explore the ways to designated prompts provided by either
lenged to integrate these new perspec- in which educational opportunities are im- the instructor or their peers, and relating
tives with their existing worldviews, a pacted by sociocultural and sociopolitical to topics discussed in class or the assigned
reorientation process that can be both factors including, but not limited to, rac- readings.
“exhausting and difficult” (Nieto & Bode, ism, classism, sexism, and homophobia. To To gain more insight, I offered all
2008, p. 425). accomplish this, the instructor constructed students the opportunity to be interviewed
Lori Assaf and Caitlin Dooley (2006) activities challenging prospective teachers about their experiences in the course upon
describe this process in the Bakhtinian to consider their own multiple identities, its completion. Interviews were arranged
tradition of “ideological becoming,” in the lived realities of others, and the role of and conducted with a small subset of the
which individuals’ internally persuasive education as a system of social reproduc- class. The interview questions were open-
discourses interact with authoritative tion. The instructor presented an overview ended and designed to promote conversa-
discourses. “As a person interacts within of multicultural issues by organizing each tion around student perceptions of the
society, authoritative discourses can actu- week’s discussion around the school and course, both initial and final.
ally bleed into and become internally per- life experiences of a traditionally under- All data sources, including transcrip-
suasive discourses. Theoretically, the two represented group. tions of the interviews, were analyzed
discourses are always in back-and-forth The instructor for the course was a La- using inductive coding methods and ana-
movement as an individual’s ideologies tino man, well-versed in the field of multi- lytical memos (Lincoln & Guba, 1985). I
are shaped” (p. 43). cultural education. He began teaching the shared data and my analyses with the
This research operates under the course examined for this study with seven instructor and class members for member
belief that preservice teachers and all years of prior experience in teaching mul- checking purposes and considerations of
individuals construct and negotiate mul- ticultural education courses, as well as a validity.
tiple identities in their movement between doctoral degree in Language, Literacy and This work does not proclaim to be gen-
different communities and contexts (Co- Culture and several published research ar- eralizable to all populations of prospective
chran-Smith, 2004). Therefore the multi- ticles concerning culturally relevant peda- teachers, but rather seeks to contribute to
cultural identity development of preservice gogy. The instructor designed the course the existing body of literature on multi-
teachers is not viewed as following a linear to encourage discussion and dialogue, both cultural teacher development. This aligns
and monodirectional path. peer-to-peer and student-to-instructor. with the hope that improved teacher edu-
This was implemented through initial cation will lead to an improvement in the
Participants and Setting discussions to begin each class meeting, quality of K-12 education, particularly for
as well as several group activities assigned traditionally underrepresented students.
The invitation to participate was ex-
during the class period.
tended to and accepted by all members of
Preservice Teacher Resistance
a graduate level multicultural education
course at a large public university in the Procedures to Multicultural Education
Northeastern U.S. Using conventions of I attended all class meetings, observed
Student resistance has been widely
ethnographic research, I immersed myself interactions, and recorded my observations
researched within the context of K-12
into this classroom community of preservice through ethnographic field notes. It is typi-
public schools, particularly in reference
teachers and their instructor throughout cal for doctoral students to take courses
to culturally, linguistically, and economi-
a 15-week multicultural education course. with teacher education students. There-
cally diverse students resisting dominant
The course is offered as one option to fulfill fore, to my knowledge, my presence was
school culture centered on White, middle
a three credit diversity requirement for the not a distraction. Although not a formal
class, monolingual norms (Finn, 1999;
teacher preparation program. Other op- member of the teacher education cohort in
Ogbu, 1992). Daniel Solórzano and Dolores
tions include courses in bilingual education question, I share the same White, Europe-
Delgado Bernal (2001) contend that the
and biliteracy, teaching English language an American, female, monolingual identity
majority of this work focuses on working-
learners, and international education. The as the majority of my participants.
class males and forms of resistance that
aforementioned preservice teachers were As a product of the same cultural
are characterized as self-defeating for
in their final semester of the program dur- forces and influences, I realize that this
these students. They have extended the
ing the time of this study, and anticipated factors into my researcher subjectivity, in
work to illuminate positive forms of resis-
joining the teaching force in the following both data collection and analysis. My lens
tance exhibited by traditionally oppressed
academic year. for observation was influenced by my own
students, in particular a form of resistance
The class met once a week, after most role as a doctoral student, as a supervisor
that is characterized by a social justice
students’ internship fieldwork in schools. of student teachers, as a former elemen-
agenda and a desire to change their sub-
Twenty-four of the 26 students were fe- tary school teacher, and also as a gradu-
ordinated status. Solórzano and Delgado
male, 23 White, and one Latina. Of the ate of the teacher preparation program in
Bernal (2001) refer to this phenomenon
two male students, one was White and which the course is embedded.
as transformative resistance, which dif-
the other an international student from While this emic perspective may pres-
fers from the resistance reported by most
Latin America. The ages of the students ent certain challenges, it also allows for a
researchers.
ranged between early to mid-twenties. more accurate, complete analysis. As a par-
Building on existing studies such as
Most students were “traditional” teacher ticipant observer, I had complete access to
these, my research concerns student re-
MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION
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sistance with new actors in a new context. These students are accustomed to seeing sion and injustice when the message is
These actors are not working-class male the world from an individual viewpoint, delivered by someone who has “made it”
students of color in K-12 schools, but White without acknowledgement of institutional (Ladson-Billings, 1996). One manifesta-
middle to upper-class female students influences. Embedded within this indi- tion of this resistance may be reflected in
in a program of higher education. In the vidualistic view is often a staunch belief in instructor evaluations. Several studies
context of this study, students are not re- meritocracy, making examples of unearned have determined that professors of color
sisting in an attempt to improve unfair or privilege even harder to swallow. often receive lower scores than their White
inequitable school policies and conditions Furthermore, racism is conceptualized counterparts (Williams, 2007).
that they have been forced to endure, but at the level of the individual. Preservice
instead are resisting the notion that these teacher visions of themselves as nonracist Findings
inequities can and do exist. are directly challenged. Students are then
The notion of resistance was a promi-
In addition, unlike K-12 students de- confronted with the decision to resist these
nent theme throughout the data sources.
scribed in many resistance studies, these revelations or renegotiate their reality to
In what follows I describe the various
students are able to simultaneously resist include them. The majority of preservice
ways in which preservice teachers enacted
and experience school success in ways teachers hold tightly to their world views
resistant stances. First, I describe how
that it is traditionally conceptualized, for in an attempt to preserve their identities
preservice teachers performed resistance
example producing quality work and earn- as nonprejudiced, hard workers who have
through acts of silence. Then, I explore the
ing high grades. In instances when this is earned their status and benefits. Unlike
ways in which preservice teachers vocally
not the case, students often do not question Kohl’s definition of not-learning, this resis-
resisted the content and requirements of
their power or right to challenge instruc- tance is clearly a decision of convenience.
the multicultural education course. Next,
tors or policies, and in some extreme cases Current literature demonstrates that
I discuss preservice teacher resistance to
will even go to the lengths of involving most multicultural education courses
buying into or accepting roles as vehicles
external parties or representation. move beyond modeling the infusion of
for educational change.
For these reasons, this brand of resis- multicultural texts and resources into a
In addition to examining resistance,
tance does not qualify as transformative standard curriculum, or the additive ap-
I explore significant moments in which
resistance, or self-defeating resistance. proach to multiculturalism as described
students engaged in the complex process
However, the two contexts, K-12 schools by James Banks (1995). Instead, when
of ideological renegotiation. Finally, I dis-
and the higher education classroom, may well-executed, these courses engage pre-
cuss the implications for the preparation of
be more similar than they seem in this service teachers in a process of raising
teachers to work with students of diverse
particular case. Potential cultural conflict their awareness of power dynamics and
backgrounds.
as described by Lisa Delpit (1995) may inequities in our educational system and
still be at play, particularly in a context broader society (Chizhik & Chizhik, 2005;
Resistance as Silence
involving predominantly White students Sleeter, 2001; Ukpokodu, 2003).
with a professor of color. Although this Many White preservice teachers are This refusal to talk is often the only way
aspect of the classroom community was receptive to this process when highlighting a child has to fight against the author-
not the focus of this study, it is important curricula, texts, and media images, but are ity and power of adults. But this critical
examination of classroom silence by
to acknowledge this contextual factor as considerably less so when asked to move
those for whom school is a successful, if
a possible root of resistance. In essence, the microscope onto themselves and their
not gratifying, experience is new terrain.
the dynamic resembles typical student own assumptions, opinions, and attitudes
(Ladson-Billings, 1996, p. 82)
resistance seen in K-12 settings, but with regarding race, class, and ethnicity and
a reverse in power relations. their connections to education. This self- Contrary to existing literature describ-
Herbert Kohl (1994) defines student examination was a cornerstone of this ing the silencing effect of predominantly
resistance as seen in K-12 schools as the particular multicultural education course, White teacher education programs on
act of “not-learning,” which he warns and many argue it is the most important preservice teachers of color (Delpit, 1995;
should not be mistaken for failure or in- component of multicultural teacher devel- Sleeter, 2001), or examinations of self-
ability to learn. The act of not-learning is opment (Brown, 2004; Chizhik & Chizhik, defeating resistance of K-12 students of
not a decision of convenience, rather “it 2005; Clark & O’Donnell, 1999). color (Kohl, 1994; Ogbu, 1992), this work
involves effort, and often rejection of even Students are asked to become intro- explores the seemingly deliberate silences
the most compassionate and well-designed spective about their own status, and how of preservice teachers in the majority. As
teaching, occurring most often in the face that positions them in the power dynamics the course progressed over the semester,
of challenges to one’s personal and family of schools and society. An inevitable result it became clear that members of the class
loyalties, integrity, and identity” (Kohl, of this intense process is the realization relied on a small group of students to en-
1994, p. 4). of the unearned power and privilege of gage in discussion with the instructor.
Core content of contemporary multicul- Whites at the expense of subordinated The majority of students provided
tural education, namely the examination groups. Moreover, an added layer of com- occasional responses to the content and
of institutionalized systems of racism and plexity appears when White students are another small group of students did not
privilege, present these same challenges engaged in addressing concepts such as participate in any class discussions. This
to White preservice teachers. For example, privilege, oppression, and institutional occurred in spite of the classroom climate
when students are challenged to de-center racism with a professor of color, as is the created by the instructor, which was con-
Whiteness and view the world from an al- case in this study. ducive to and encouraged self-reflective
ternative standpoint, responses are often Students may question the magnitude discussion. The climate resembled previ-
highly charged (Clark & O’Donnell, 1999). or even the existence of societal oppres- ous multicultural education and critical
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pedagogy courses I had taken in which a intentional acts of resistance or defiance to make their own meanings from these
safe space was established for students to (Ladson-Billings, 1996). definitions.
take risks and initiate dialogue to promote One pattern that emerged was the The majority of the students in the
growth. tendency to shift conversations of race to course acknowledged the existence of
In addition, the instructor made ex- matters of class or economic differences. prejudice and discrimination, but they
plicit connections between self-reflective The “class, not race” response was offered were less willing, if not unwilling, to ac-
discussion and engaging in the process in response to several examples, including cept the relationship between racism and
of multicultural development needed to a film depicting two schools in the same institutional power. Given that Whites are
be successful educators of culturally and district with clearly unbalanced resources. a dominant group with institutional power,
linguistically diverse students. Further- Many were unwilling to identify or exam- the logical progression of thought led them
more, both the syllabus and the instruc- ine the intersectionalities between class to the conclusion that prejudiced or dis-
tor addressed the role of participation and race until prompted by the instructor, criminatory acts committed by Whites fell
in grading from the onset of the course. and still showed resistance to the idea that under the definition of racism, while those
When reminded of this component in the two were closely related. Preservice committed by people of color did not.
the last two weeks of the semester, some teachers also utilized this argument when Resistance to this conclusion mani-
members of this group opted to chime in discussing their own professional develop- fested in a variety of ways, but was par-
on the class discussion, but others stayed ment districts. ticularly salient during the discussion of
silent. This was a surprising finding due to In describing an affluent district in a disturbing phenomenon which received
heightened grade-consciousness typical of which several preservice teachers are considerable media attention during the
many preservice teachers (Ahlquist, 1991; placed for fieldwork assignments, one course. Class discussions regularly opened
Ukpokodu, 2003). student claimed, “But Greenbury [pseud- with dialogue about local, national, or
Discussions occurred in both whole onym] has more resources; it’s not because global events related to multicultural
group and small group formats. Small of race.” Geneva Gay and Kipchoge Kirk- education as identified by the instructor or
groups were often used as a strategy to land (2003) reported similar comments the students themselves and consequently,
elicit conversation for students less likely to from preservice teachers, such as “it’s media coverage of several racially themed
share their thoughts in the larger forum. I more about economic status than race college parties was brought up both in class
noted that even in the less-intimidating set- because there are more differences within and in the online discussion forum.
ting of a group of four, several of these silent than among groups” (p. 183). This shift in The group read articles about, and
teachers still chose not to participate. analysis is another form of subtle silence, viewed photos of, a highly publicized ra-
One of the interviewees, a vocal mem- in which students are speaking and partici- cially themed party that featured White
ber of the classroom community, noted that pating, but intentionally maneuvering the college students dressed in “ghetto” attire,
her expectations of the class discussions, dialogue to alternate issues, and in turn with some individuals in blackface. This
which had been influenced by peers who silencing potential discussions on race. included an article about one of these par-
had taken the class the previous semester, ties that had taken place within their own
were not met. Resisting Racism institution.
Several preservice teachers in the
Um, I guess I kind of expected it to be more Resistance also took the form of verbal
course responded by equating these par-
of a discussion than it ended up… I was debate. Several of the vocal students in the
ties with “White Trash” parties portraying
kind of disappointed a little bit in that. class challenged the instructor in discus-
Not in the class, but the people I guess. It sions of race and racism. Before detailing stereotypes of Whites in low socioeco-
was always the same people talking and nomic groups that they had either heard
how this resistance was expressed, it is
the same points of view, which is OK, but I of or attended themselves. The instructor
important to share how these terms are
don’t know if that just became a habit, you juxtaposed the two types of parties, fram-
commonly defined by the field of multi-
know it was just routine. And other people ing them with the power plus prejudice
were just like, oh you know, we’ll just sit cultural education, and as a result, how
definition of racism to encourage them
back. Because I haven’t said anything and they were represented by the instructor.
to consider the possibility that they were
it’s already half way through the semester In keeping with the pluralistic perspective
not exactly the same. However, students
and I can’t say anything now. of multicultural education, the instructor
resisted.
made it clear that students were not being
Students were often silent or reluctant One student commented, “I disagree.
asked to agree with the definitions, nor
to answer questions about historical facts ‘Golf pro and tennis ho’ parties make fun
were they absolute, and invited dialogue
or statistics regarding students or people of rich White kids—it’s the same thing.”
about them.
of color. This student attributed lack of re- Comments like these contested the work-
However, for the purposes of discus-
sponse to the lack of diversity in the class, ing definition of racism for the class, which
sion, they would adopt definitions of terms
inferring that she and her White peers did incorporated the idea that institutional
like racism that were consistent with those
not possess the cultural knowledge to make power and privilege are primarily held
in assigned texts and the larger fields of
significant contributions to particular dis- by members of dominant groups, such as
multicultural education and social justice
cussions. Although this may be the case, Whites, males, and heterosexuals.
education. As a result, race was presented
it is important to consider the possibility Resistance to this definition continued
as a social construction, and racism was
that these silences were attempts to steer into conversations about affirmative action
explained as the combination of preju-
discussion away from the topic of race. and scholarship programs for students of
dice and institutional power (Jackson,
To conclude that all silences were due to color. Reading and course discussions cen-
1976; Nieto & Bode, 2008; Tatum, 1997).
lack of knowledge could falsely dismiss tered on issues of social reproduction and
Students were invited by the instructor
the possibility that these silences were how institutional systems, including K-12
MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION
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schooling, contribute to the perpetuation representative of this group asked the in- want to teach in Camden, but it’s danger-
of the status quo. structor if they would be allowed to count ous. Do I live there?” and “What are they
Despite the instructor’s focus on un- this past experience as their cultural im- going to do to me?”
equal opportunity, which included detailed mersion, and more specifically whether or These comments uncovered problem-
descriptions of systemic ways in which not they could complete the assignment by atic perceptions of students and the family
people of color and others are marginalized examining White people living in London. members of students in urban areas. The in-
through hiring and college admission pro- Other preservice teachers outside of structor addressed this and challenged the
cesses, several White preservice teachers this cohort also explicitly inquired about group to examine the assumptions made
in the course proclaimed that programs conducting immersion experiences with about “dangerous” schools and communities
of this nature were examples of “reverse another ethnic group, but remaining through several prompts. For one prompt,
racism.” After stating that not all students within the White racial category. In keep- the instructor pointed out that most major
have equal access to the university and ex- ing with the assignment, and likely the school shootings occurred in middle-class
ploring the racialized nature of “legacy” at broader goals of the course, the instructor or affluent suburbs, with the perpetrators
predominantly White institutions, the in- persisted with the original directions, being White teenage males. The majority of
structor received the following response: encouraging students to cross racial and students resisted despite this point being
cultural lines and suggesting that the reiterated by video materials viewed during
But poor White people in trailer parks
London cohort members investigate Islam course meetings. One woman retorted with,
don’t have access either…It sounds like
in the context of London. “But in urban areas the shootings and crime
reverse racism. I can’t agree with you. I
have a friend from home who is Puerto It is important to note that the assign- are going on outside of the school building
Rican and she got a scholarship. I didn’t ment did not ask the preservice teachers to on the streets.”
get a dime, so I’m thinking, ‘you bitch!’ approach strangers, and instead suggested During the course the instructor asked
choosing “one cultural group with whom the preservice teachers in the class, “How
Another preservice teacher chimed
they currently work or have significant many of you want to teach in urban areas?”
in, expressing frustration from opening
interaction.” However, due to limited expe- About half of the students responded posi-
emails advertising scholarships that were
riences with individuals of color, students tively by raising their hands. Coupled with
“all for minority students.” These com-
may have misinterpreted the assignment. the statements of apprehension above, I
ments reflected resistance to the concept
In many cases, White preservice and in- determined that there were missionary
of White privilege and demonstrate the
service teachers’ primary experiences with overtones to preservice teacher thinking
propensity of students to move analysis
Americans of color are the ones they have about working with students in urban ar-
away from race, often on to issues of class
with the students of color in their classes eas, and a desire to make their classrooms
and socioeconomic status.
(Howard, 1999; Sleeter, 1992). “safe havens” for students to escape from
Also, despite the instructor’s lead,
These requests to alter the cultural their unstable home lives.
most students refused to acknowledge
immersion assignment were somewhat Christine Clark (1999) warns that this
the benefits of diversity in the teaching
indicative of preservice teachers’ lack of outlook perpetuates a brand of colonial-
force and the possible value added to their
recognition of their own students and their ism, and the “White as rescuer” mythology
preparation by learning with and from
families as sources of cultural knowledge, often reinforced in the media. The teacher
preservice teachers of color. It is possible
or sources of knowledge that could play education program in which this course is
that this is at least partially attributed to
a part in the enhancement of their own embedded reinforces the idea of “getting to
the colorblind ideology held by many White
teaching. In addition, fieldwork in urban know your students” as an essential com-
preservice teachers.
schools, when not paired with thorough ponent to successful teaching. This idea is
race and class analysis, can lead to rein- widely, if not universally accepted, by both
Resistance to Border Crossing
forcement of existing stereotypes about preservice and inservice teachers.
One particularly interesting manifes- diverse students (Milner, 2006; Sleeter, However, judging by comments such
tation of resistance occurred in response to 2001; Vavrus, 2002). as those above, the process of learning
a paper assigned by the instructor asking The cultural immersion assign- about students and building relationships
students to cross cultural borders (Giroux, ment and the interactions related to it with them seems to be conceptualized in
1992). The project, a cultural immersion uncovered some of these stereotypes as limited ways. I would argue that many
reflection, asked the students to select a well as introducing the question of how teachers feel comfortable inviting parents
cultural group with which they did not comfortable teachers feel, or do not feel, and community members into their class-
identify and to explore it through a variety entering the communities of the students rooms to share cultural stories, demonstra-
of ethnographic methods. When reviewing that they teach. tions, or artifacts with their students. In
the assignment in class, the instructor Later in the course, open discussion contrast, many are resistant to methods of
specified that the preservice teachers about crossing both cultural and geo- tapping into student “funds of knowledge”
would be required to choose an ethnic graphical borders led to heated debate. (Moll, Amanti, Neff & González, 1992)
group outside of their own racial umbrella The instructor raised the claim that ef- that involve entering contexts outside of
(White, African American/Black, Latino/ fective teachers, particularly of culturally the classroom, including home visits and
Hispanic, Asian, Native American). and linguistically diverse students, are participation in community events.
A cohort of women in the class had closely connected to, if not living in, the
participated in a study abroad program communities from which their students The Question of Responsibility
sponsored by the school of education. come. Preservice teachers in the class were
Instead of welcoming an opportunity to particularly defensive and resistant to this White preservice teachers in the
explore a new and unfamiliar culture, a claim, reacting with comments such as, “I course often asserted their alliance with
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the struggle to end injustices based on privilege is the means to this equality. Although still struggling with recogniz-
race, but failed to recognize themselves I would be willing to join in the fight, ing overt racism, as evidenced by responses
as to blame for any form of racial oppres- although am not sure as to how much of to the racially-themed college parties,
a sacrifice I would make. Being sensitive
sion, either blatant or subversive. Not preservice teachers became more adept at
to the issue is a given, as I consider my
only did they deny this responsibility for naming racist acts or comments they had
privilege now an acknowledged privilege.
themselves, but also for those that they seen or heard in their daily lives. Even the
Still, as [name] stated, minority groups
identified as part of their peer group. must be responsible to lead the quest for elements of the content that received the
Namely, when asked to respond to an change. I am sympathetic to these issues most resistance had been reconsidered by
online post featuring the racially-themed and would love to make a difference, but the conclusion of the course. For example,
college parties, many defended the college leadership must come from the minor- on the issue of spending time in communi-
students in the photographs. Although ity group. I totally agree that I have a ties with reputations as “bad” neighbor-
responsibility as an educator to make my
these students had committed a blatantly hoods, one student countered with:
students all aware of this situation.
racist act, several preservice teachers
I had a roommate who was mugged in the
argued that because racism was not the Clearly, this student sees her role in
center of Wentfield [pseudonym] (affluent
intention that these parties and similar oc- the fight for racial equality as a passive
town), so there you go. Despite how you
currences should not be labeled in this way. one. She begins her response with the may feel, it’s home to them (students),
Written posts included the following: phrase, “if the opportunity arose,” which so you don’t want to pass on that it’s a
shows that she does not think this oppor- scary place.
I’m not sure how I feel about these parties.
tunity has presented itself, nor does she
I’m pretty torn because on the one hand I In addition to the contentious issue of
envision herself as a catalyst in creating
can see how it was obviously offensive to border crossing, some preservice teachers
the black community. Stuffing the back of it. The role of creating awareness is not showed evidence of rethinking the work-
your pants to mock what you believe is a paired with one of taking action. Elizabeth
ing definition of racism used for the class,
characteristic of black women is ridicu- Denevi and Nicholas Pastan (2006) note a
which was fodder for several resistant
lous and very shallow. At the same time, pattern for White students to be “on board”
comments throughout the course.
I do not think that the individuals who with the cause if they are not being asked
threw these parties had any racist intent.
to change their own lives significantly, Oh, and then, by the definition of racism
Themed parties are just that, parties.
as is echoed by this preservice teacher’s that we used in class. I understand it, but
Something to do on the weekend for fun.
stance against relinquishing privilege to I don’t think I still agree with it because
Of course fun at the expense of someone
I still think discrimination is discrimina-
else is not good, but it wasn’t meant to solve the problem.
tion, but…I don’t know. But I say I agree
enhance some racial divide on campus. These types of responses are viewed as
with it. So yeah, I guess for that. I guess
another manifestation of White privilege,
In follow up discussions in class, some I lied. Sorry. I completely understand
in which Whites substitute recognition of it, but I don’t think that I would use it
students admitted to either attending or
and guilt over privilege in place of real as my definition. Although when people
knowing friends who had attended par-
action (Denevi & Pastan, 2006; Levine- have said stuff um, like they’ll say a rac-
ties of this nature. As mentioned earlier,
Rasky, 2000). Additionally, the lack of ac- ist comment and then say ‘Wait, was that
some brought the focus back to issues of tion or desire to act against racism is also racist?’ and I’m like, ‘Yes it is, because…”
socioeconomic class while others, as in the and then I explain it, so I guess maybe I’m
traced to the belief that racism does not
examples above, condoned the behavior getting it more, but…
affect Whites directly, and is a cause only
because it was not meant to evoke racial
for “the other” (Denevi & Pastan, 2006; Gil- This data shows evidence of this pre-
conflict but rather to have “fun” or “a good
lespie, Ashbaugh, & DeFiore, 2002). White service teacher’s process of negotiating
time.” Ahlquist (1991) describes similar
preservice teachers need exposure to these her own definition of racism based on her
responses from students in her course.
powerful examples of their contemporaries preconceptions as well as new information
“Most students agreed that racism and
engaging in authentic social change and gained from the course and instructor.
sexism were everywhere. They insisted,
ally behavior to help motivate them move John Raible and Jason Irizarry (2007) view
however, that they were neither respon-
beyond awareness and into action (Chizhik this internal negotiation as falling within
sible for, nor engaged in racist or sexist
& Chizhik, 2005; Gillespie et al., 2002). “a postmodern view of identity in which
practices” (p. 162).
one subject can be said to occupy multiple,
Although most students were resis-
Renegotiating Reality even competing or contradictory, subject
tant to the concept of White privilege, some
positions at the same time” (p. 193).
showed evidence of beginning a process of Attempts to renegotiate previously
The empirical work conducted by Eli-
acceptance or at least acknowledgment of “colorblind” visions were evident through
nor Brown (2004) in her own multicultural
it. However, this was not associated with a preservice teacher comments made in sup-
education course reflects the same idea
responsibility to take on antiracist identi- port of the content presented, standing out
of individual students holding conflicting
ties or actions. Instead many preservice among a sea of resistance. It is important
opinions on a topic and leaning towards
teachers conceptualized their responsibili- to note that no individual in the class was a
one viewpoint or the other depending on
ties as being limited to creating awareness constant resistor or acceptor of the content,
the community or context.
for their future students, and not involv- but instead would offer a combination of
ing making changes to their own lives or resistant and nonresistant remarks. This The study found that students may vac-
lifestyles. demonstrated the back and forth nature illate between acceptance and rejection
that characterizes the process of becoming of multicultural tenets (accepting some
I do believe if the opportunity arose, I an antiracist, multicultural person (Nieto rejecting others) or (accepting/rejecting
should join in the action for racial equal- information when presented) depending
& Bode, 2008).
ity. Yet, I do not believe that relinquishing on (1) when and how the information is
MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION
42
Research
conveyed, (2) their concept of “self” at that do the least amount of work necessary to existing world views is a crucial factor in
point, (3) congruity of the information with receive an acceptable overall grade? Per- minimizing resistance and misinterpreta-
current perceptions, and (4) their ability
haps the preservice teachers concentrated tions of multicultural education pedagogy
to develop alliances with peers for ego
their efforts into written assignments and content (Chizhik & Chizhik, 2005;
protection.” (p. 139)
rather than class discussion, knowing that King, 1991). Instructors face a unique chal-
Preservice teachers not only contra- participation was included in grading but lenge to appeal to students’ tendencies and
dicted themselves within the duration not weighted as heavily. preferences to view the world on personal
of the course, but sometimes within a Similarly, resistance to the cultural terms in order to engage them, but to per-
singular class period, or in some cases immersion project may have emerged from sist in challenging them to participate in
within minutes of a previous statement. a desire to save time rather than feelings of institutional and sociological analyses.
Although this could be interpreted as lack apprehension. Although I name resistance Diane Gillespie, Leslie Ashbaugh,
of conviction, in this context it is considered as the driving force behind these behaviors, and JoAnn DeFiore (2002) relate ways in
a natural and necessary component in the others may consider these academic evalu- which sharing their own stories of struggle
development of multicultural educators. ation factors to have a greater role. to “act justly and remain race cognizant”
Preservice teachers do not change their have reached their preservice teachers,
entire world view with a single incident Implications for Teacher Education but warn against overemphasis on the
but rather a series of events and interac- personal. “Dwelling on the personal…can
These findings have important impli-
tions in both informal and formal settings, inadvertently devalue the need for our
cations for teacher education in terms of
making it a “slow and stumbling journey” white middle-class women students to
program and course design as well as the
(Cochran-Smith, 2004) rather than a race undertake and participate in larger social
ground level of instructor/student interac-
to a finish line. reform movements” (p. 246).
tion. First and foremost, it is imperative
Roberta Ahlquist (1991) argues that
for teacher education programs to intro-
Alternate Interpretations it is not only important to help preservice
duce multicultural education and social
teachers become aware of the role they are
With the theoretical framework of foundations coursework early in preservice
asked to play in perpetuating oppression
this research in mind, I recognize that my teachers’ experience. Brown (2004) reported
as educators, but also to aid them to “find
ethnographic description of preservice that the juniors in her study showed more
ways to take an oppositional stance to an
teacher resistance to multicultural educa- growth in cultural sensitivity than the
oppressive role” (p. 158). One way to do this
tion course content offers only one of many seniors or graduate students, which con-
is to offer accessible examples of Whites,
potential perspectives. For example, the trasted with her hypothesis that students
and White educators specifically, enacting
recurring silences noted could perhaps be with higher educational attainment would
multiple identities and participating in
attributed to a combination of personali- be more willing to embrace cross-cultural
social change and ally behavior.
ties, and those who chose not to participate differences. Although long term gains from
Clark (1999) describes herself as an
in discussions may have been following a stand-alone courses are rare (Sleeter, 2001),
“antiracist racist,” stating that in order
long established pattern of not participat- when substantial gains are made, age and
to make progress toward becoming an
ing in any class discussions, regardless of class rank can prove to be a critical factor.
antiracist, you must simultaneously admit
the course or content. Not only should multicultural educa-
to your identity as a racist. Raible and
Voiced opposition to content can also tion be introduced earlier, but it should
Irizarry (2007) present accounts of teach-
be interpreted in multiple ways. Although also be sustained as a central component
ers who have developed what they call
the statements made were often in conflict to teacher preparation. As exists now
“post-White” identities that allow them
with pillars of multicultural education, in isolated pockets with dependence on
to successfully connect with and advo-
such as the acknowledgement of racism individual course selection and faculty
cate for their students of color. Gillespie,
and privilege, the very action of making dispositions, an indirect message is sent
Ashbaugh, and DeFiore (2002) respond to
these statements aligns strongly with by schools of education that issues of
students’ accusations of “White bashing,”
another important pillar—the practice culture are an afterthought rather than a
by describing how they have created alter-
of being a critical consumer of informa- controlling factor permeating all facets of
nate White identities that allow them to
tion. In this respect, resistance can be teaching and learning in school and com-
simultaneously own their White privilege
construed as a positive response. “It can munity contexts.
and “be proactive in changing societal
be viewed as a healthy response to contro- When viewing teacher education as a
circumstances” (p. 245).
versial material, as critical questioning, curriculum, this is a form of the “add in”
Until Whites arrive at an understand-
and as a lack of willingness by students approach that multicultural educators warn
ing of the fact that they are also negatively
to conform blindly to the expectations of against. This same approach was likely
impacted by racism, and that the benefits
others” (Ahlquist, 1991). practiced in the K-12 schools that today’s
of antiracism outweigh those of racism, the
In regards to resistance to course as- preservice teachers attended, resulting in
willingness to take action will remain low
signments, I would be remiss to ignore the their simplified definitions of culture. These
(Clark & O’Donnell, 1999; Denevi & Pas-
possibility that these preservice teachers incomplete definitions include visions of
tan, 2006). Consequently, multicultural
were struck with a case of “senioritis,” culture as fixed or static, and easily broken
educators are charged with making these
given the placement of the course in the down into categories like food, music, and
benefits visible and tangible for preservice
final year of study. To what degree were behavior. (Hoffman, 1996).
teachers.
they engaged in the practice of “doing On the level of instructor/student
For this reason, it is important for
school” (Pope, 2001) and trying to coast interaction, instructors’ understanding of
multicultural educators to continue to
through the semester, or in other words, preservice teachers’ preconceptions and
promote border crossing and dialogue
SPRING 2009
43
Research
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opportunities, when matched with deep New Press. Implications for urban education. Urban
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tential to demonstrate these benefits in a
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meaningful way.
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