“This Is Where I Want To Be:” Pedagogical and Integrative Practices of African American Learning Communities and Their Impact on Students (original) (raw)

ADVANCING BLACK IDENTITY AND CULTURE IN PREDOMINANTLY WHITE COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES: A PROMISING PRACTICE STUDY

ADVANCING BLACK IDENTITY AND CULTURE IN PREDOMINANTLY WHITE COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES: A PROMISING PRACTICE STUDY, 2019

This study examined Black cultural and identity development, campus climate, faculty support, socioeconomic factors, retention and completion rates, and sense of belonging of Black students attending a predominately White institution. The purpose of this study was to gain insight on Black students’ perception of the role and support of staff at the Center for Black Cultural and Student Affairs in creating a sense of belonging and in advancing Black culture and identity. Using the Clark and Estes gap analysis model, findings pertaining to knowledge, motivation and organizational assets reflect the students’ perception of what staff provide at the Center. Participants reported high levels of staff knowledge related to Black identity and culture, racial development theories, and a passion for working with students. Participants also described a supportive and engaging environment that help develop a sense of belonging among Black students, and the clear alignment of the Center’s mission with the university. Recommendations include investment in human resources and program funding and bring students, staff, and faculty together and use data to address the challenges facing Black students. Keywords: completion rate, retention rate, sense of belonging, Black students, Black culture and identity, promising practice, gap analysis.

The Function of Afrocentric Curricula in Higher Education: A Case Study of Selected HBCU Institutions

2017

This study examines the role of Afrocentric curricula in higher education. Using four HBCU institutions (Dillard University, Hampton University, Howard University, and Spelman College) as a case study, the researcher selected the institutions on the basis of program quality and geographical spread. Program quality means the institutions must be accredited; geographical spread implies that the institutions must represent different parts of the country where HBCUs are concentrated. A mixed methods approach was used to analyze the data gathered from each institution's course catalog during the 2011-2012 school year. The purpose was to determine if curricula dedicated to the black experience existed. The study found that all of the four institutions offered Afrocentric curricula. However, the courses vary in terms of their breadth, scope, and function. The conclusion drawn from the findings suggests that although the offering of Afrocentric curricula supports the goal of African-centeredness at each HBCU, the offerings are not ii widespread enough to bolster the HBCUs' goal of dedication to leadership in the black community as mentioned in the institutions' mission statements. In an attempt to address the gap between the HBCUs' mission statements and what the collected data demonstrated, the researcher offered curriculum recommendations designed to enhance the effectiveness of the HBCUs as they promote black leadership in the community.

Wrapping the curriculum around their lives: Using a culturally responsive curriculum with African American adult women

This study examines how African American adult female students respond to a culturally relevant curriculum. Research confirms that adults enter college classrooms with a variety of experiences that they value and experiences to which they wish to connect. Black female students in particular possess knowledge unique to their positionality in American society, and they want to apply this knowledge to what they are learning. A curriculum that speaks to their personal experiences and ways of knowing can be a bridge to connect what they want and need to learn. Three themes emerged from this study involving Black women and culturally relevant curriculum: language validation, the fostering of positive self and group identity, and self-affirmation or affirmation of goals. The study's findings reveal that the approach of integrating students' experiences as an explicit part of the learning agenda encourages them to participate to the fullest extent in their own education.

Student and Teacher Perceptions of the Impact Ethnic Studies Courses Have on Students of Color: A Collective Case Study

2017

This qualitative research study explored student and teacher perceptions of the impact ethnic studies courses have on students of color. This study utilized conscientização or critical consciousness, authentic caring, and Critical Race Theory to understand teacher methods and strategies and the nature of instruction of ethnic studies curriculum in two urban public high schools in the Pacific Northwest. This research also examined how students perceived the curriculum and teaching strategies impacted their learning and engagement in the courses. Data collection included classroom observations, open-ended student survey, teacher and student interviews, and student work products. Data analysis included both inductive and deductive analysis. Inductive analysis revealed several themes about how teachers and students perceived ethnic studies curriculum and instruction including caring and creating classroom community, academic rigor, Critical Race Theory as a foundation for the course, di...

African American Communities: Implications for Culturally Relevant Teaching

The New Educator, 2006

We suggest that there is a powerful and affirming socialization taking place in African American communities that could be instructive to schools. This article illustrates how educators can build on the strengths found in the black community to effectively teach African American students. Relating the ethos of the barbershop to tenets of culturally relevant pedagogy, aspects of the barbershop that empower black males are made explicit. Absent in many teacher education programs is the emphasis on developing an inside understanding of students' communities and recognizing and illuminating existing best practices that differ from mainstream conceptions.

Culturally Responsive Teaching: An Investigation of Effective Practices for African American Learners

2012

Diversity increasingly characterizes the population of the United States. As the number of African Americans, Latina/os, and Asian populations increase, there will be drastic implications for teaching and learning in classrooms where students of color dominate. The purpose of this mixed methodological study was to examine the characteristics, practices and frequency of use of 52 strategies employed by two teachers in a predominately African American urban public school to determine their impact on student learning and engagement. The 52 effective and culturally responsive strategies used in this study were created by Dr. Johnnie McKinley, Professor in Educational Psychology at the University of Washington in Seattle. Furthermore, this study sought to deepen the understandings about the educational challenges of African American students as well as offer insights to teachers and instructional leaders detailing how culturally responsive teaching can effectively impact the level of engagement and ultimately achievement of African American students. This study used Activity Theory as its theoretical framework to understand how culturally responsive teaching strategies and the frequency of their use impact student engagement and motivation within the classroom. The components of the 52 strategies and practices as well as the preparation of culturally responsive teaching examined in this study, is not inclusive. However, of the 52 strategies observed by the researcher and xii executed by the teachers, it was those strategies where the teachers collectively developed and established clear goals and standards through planning of the lessons/activities and day; selected and used culturally relevant curriculum and materials that recognized people, events, traditions and cultural aspects of the students in their classroom; connected students' learning to prior knowledge; and engaged students in real-life, project-based, meaningful, challenging and relevant curriculum that were most effective in the instruction of the African American students within this study.