ebook img

learning and living while black PDF

233 Pages·2013·1.74 MB·English
by  
Save to my drive
Quick download
Download
Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.

Preview learning and living while black

LEARNING AND LIVING WHILE BLACK: BLACK STUDENTS, WHITE UNIVERSITIES, AND THE AGE OF POST-AFFIRMATIVE ACTION AND POST- RACIALISM by ROSALIND REAVES DISSERTATION Submitted to the Graduate School of Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY 2013 MAJOR: EDUCATIONAL EVALUATION AND RESEARCH Approved by: ________________________________________ Advisor Date ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ DEDICATION Dedicated to the memory of Latasha Harlins & Trayvon Martin ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS It is often said that “it takes a village to raise a child.” In my case, it has taken a village to help nurture this dissertation to fruition. I wish to thank, first and foremost, my most amazing advisor and dissertation committee chair, Dr. Karen L. Tonso. I appreciate Dr. Tonso for always setting the bar high and expecting nothing less than my best work; for her time and unfaltering support of my research and development as a scholar; for her encouragement and reassurance when the going got tough, and for her passion for social justice, which continues to inspire. Without a doubt, I am the better student, scholar and activist for having had Dr. T. in my corner. My many, many thanks. And to my equally awesome dissertation committee, Drs. Phyllis Vroom, Monte Piliawsky and Gail Fahoome: My utmost gratitude for taking time out of your exceptionally busy schedules and lives to assist with this dissertation. Your insightful comments and constructive feedback at different stages of my research were invaluable. Many thanks for your support, and for the opportunity to work with such a distinguished group of scholars. I am deeply humbled. I am also profoundly thankful for the love and support of so many individuals who have been a part of my journey. Much respect to my fellow cohort members and graduate students: Drs. Andree Sampson, Donna Coulter, Michele Weber, and Sibyl St. Clair. I appreciate and will always treasure the many study sessions, prayers, phone calls, emails and milestone celebrations along the way. Dr. Charlla Allen: Many thanks for the best, most inspirational advice an overwhelmed doctoral student could ever receive! Oh, the time and grief that it saved! Ms. Lisa Fuller: Much gratitude for lending your ear, sharing your wisdom, iii and reminding me to appreciate all the milestones along the way. Dr. Charline Barnes: I cannot thank you enough for blazing the trail and setting the best possible example for balancing work, school, and life. And lastly, my many thanks to Ms. Monequa Williams and Mr. Gary Davis, two very instrumental members of the “village,” whose support was so critical to this study. Your efforts on my behalf are appreciated beyond measure. Closer to home, my profound love and thanks to my parents, whose many life lessons and sacrifices made all of this possible. To my beloved sisters, nieces and nephew: Thanks for teaching me to not take everything, especially myself, so seriously. A million thanks as well to my aunt Bell, whose support remains one the blessings in my life. And to Keith, my dear, late brother: You are my journey’s and this dissertation’s inspiration. Thanks, big brother, and may you rest in peace. This dissertation is for you, too. Finally, I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge, with my utmost appreciation, the ten amazing women and men who helped to make this study possible. I am profoundly thankful and honored for their time and support of this research, and I wish them all the best in their future endeavors, which no doubt will make this world a better place. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Dedication ....................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................ iii List of Tables ................................................................................................................................. xi Chapter 1: Introduction .................................................................................................................. 1 Affirmative Action .............................................................................................................. 3 Post-Racialism .................................................................................................................... 4 Significance......................................................................................................................... 7 Chapter 2: Literature Review ......................................................................................................... 9 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 9 Framing the Study ............................................................................................................... 9 Blacks at PWIs: The Continuing Significance of Race ........................................ 10 Context of Choice ..................................................................................... 13 Racialized Spaces...................................................................................... 15 Faculty-Student Relationships .................................................................. 16 Lack of Recognition/Visibility ................................................................. 17 The Scourge of Race/Racism .................................................................... 18 Acting White ............................................................................................. 22 Stereotype Threat ...................................................................................... 24 Negotiating the Predominantly White Campus .................................................... 25 Historical Overview of Critical Race Theory ................................................................... 29 Critical Race Theory Defined ........................................................................................... 32 v The Centrality and Permanence of Racism. .......................................................... 32 Debunking Meritocracy and Colorblindness. ....................................................... 33 Interest Convergence. ........................................................................................... 33 Whiteness as Property. .......................................................................................... 34 Emphasis on Experiential Knowledge/Counterstorytelling. ................................. 35 Praxis: Social Action and Change. ........................................................................ 36 Critical Race Theory in K-12 and Higher Education ........................................................ 36 Ensuring Equity and Equality of Educational Opportunity .............................................. 39 Interpretations of Equality of Educational Opportunity ....................................... 41 Deliberative Participation and Nonrepression ...................................................... 44 Implications for Higher Education ........................................................................ 49 Critique of Nonrepression and Defense of Nonoppression .................................. 50 Five Faces of Oppression ...................................................................................... 54 Exploitation ............................................................................................... 55 Marginalization ......................................................................................... 56 Powerlessness ........................................................................................... 57 Cultural Imperialism ................................................................................. 58 Violence .................................................................................................... 60 Chapter 3 Methods ....................................................................................................................... 62 Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 62 The Naturalistic Paradigm ................................................................................................ 63 Researcher’s Perspective .................................................................................................. 66 vi Site Selection .................................................................................................................... 69 Participant Selection ......................................................................................................... 72 Protocol, Ethics, and Protection of Human Subjects ............................................ 73 Data Collection ................................................................................................................. 73 Semi-Structured Interviews .................................................................................. 73 Focus Group Interviews ........................................................................................ 74 Artifacts................................................................................................................. 75 Data Analysis Strategies ................................................................................................... 75 Trustworthiness in Qualitative Research .......................................................................... 77 Chapter 4: Learning And Living At Selective University— The More Things Change, The More They Remain The Same .......................................................................................................... 80 College-Going Deliberations ............................................................................................ 83 Choosing Selective................................................................................................ 83 On Not Choosing a Historically Black College or University (HBCU) ............... 85 Choosing Selective Amid Challenges to Affirmative Action ............................... 88 First Encounters: Meeting the Predominantly White Campus ......................................... 92 Culture Shock: Black Meets White ....................................................................... 92 Academic Shock: Black High School Meets the White University ..................... 96 Summer Bridge Program: Buffering Culture and Academic Shock ................... 101 Problematic Experiences with White Students ............................................................... 103 Contending with Anti-Affirmative Action Views/Rhetoric ............................... 103 Racial Stereotyping ............................................................................................. 108 vii Academic Incompetence ......................................................................... 108 Loud and “Ghetto” .................................................................................. 110 The Angry, Violent, Criminal Black Male ............................................. 111 Black Male Student As Athlete ............................................................... 112 Stereotyping the Predominantly Black City ........................................... 114 Other Racially Offensive or Insensitive Experiences ............................. 115 Characterizing the Campus Environment ............................................... 119 Negative Effects of Anti-Affirmative Action Rhetoric and Racial Stereotyping ........... 122 Self-Doubt and Fear of Speaking Up .................................................................. 122 Representing the Race and Assimilating ............................................................ 124 Withdrawal/Self-Sabotage .................................................................................. 126 Persevering at Selective .................................................................................................. 128 Friends and Family ............................................................................................. 128 Social Student Organizations .............................................................................. 133 Academic and Civic Student Organizations ....................................................... 134 Black Student Organization ................................................................................ 137 Faculty and Staff of Color................................................................................... 140 White Faculty ...................................................................................................... 145 White Staff .......................................................................................................... 149 Reimagining Selective .................................................................................................... 153 Fairness at Selective: Separate and Unequal ...................................................... 154 Towards Greater Equity: Re-Making Selective .................................................. 158 viii Academic and Social Support Programs ................................................. 159 Black Faculty .......................................................................................... 160 Mentoring ................................................................................................ 161 Culturally-Inclusive Curriculum and Programming ............................... 162 Orienting Black Students: Participants Offer Advice ......................................... 166 Summary ......................................................................................................................... 169 Chapter 5: Discussion Of Findings—The Persistent Significance Of Race ............................... 172 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 172 Black Students' Decision to Attend a Predominantly White University......................... 173 Black Students Learning and Living in a White University ........................................... 175 Impact on Black Students’ Sense of Well-Being and Academic Achievement ............. 179 Coping With Learning and Living at a Predominantly White University ...................... 179 Race and Racism in the Experiences of Black Students at PWIs ................................... 181 Educational Opportunities Afforded Black Students Compared to Whites.................... 182 Experiences of Black Students Exemplifying Forms of Oppression .............................. 185 Exploitation ......................................................................................................... 185 Marginalization. .................................................................................................. 185 Powerlessness. .................................................................................................... 186 Violence. ............................................................................................................. 186 Cultural Imperialism. .......................................................................................... 187 Limitations ...................................................................................................................... 188 Possibilities for Future Research .................................................................................... 188 ix Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 191 Appendix A Institutional Review Board Approval Form ........................................................... 193 Appendix B Behavioral Research Informed Consent ................................................................. 194 Appendix C Semi-Structured Interview Protocol ....................................................................... 197 Appendix D Participant Contact Form ....................................................................................... 201 Appendix E Group Interview Protocol ....................................................................................... 202 References ................................................................................................................................... 206 Abstract ....................................................................................................................................... 220 Autobiographical Statement........................................................................................................ 222 x

See more

The list of books you might like

Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.