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(Not) Discussing Race, via Books, in Mainly White Preschools Flóra Faragó
Journal of Research In Childhood Education
Abstract
This mixed-methods study investigated how two White preschool teachers, who were familiar with anti-bias pedagogy but had low training on anti-racist teaching strategies, discussed race and racism, using books, in two predo-minantly White classrooms. Teachers were observed in two classrooms, during book discussions with children, and teachers’ racial attitudes were assessed via two survey measures. The book discussions were audio- recorded and transcribed. Teachers discussed skin, hair, and eye color, and avoided naming “race” or “racism.” Teachers placed racial discrimination on the same footing as other physical differences, decreasing the significance of racism and racial discrimination. There was silence surrounding race, both from the White teachers and primarily White children. The teachers focused on encouraging children to accept all differences and minimized the salience of race, racism, and racial discrimination. Despite reporting race-conscious attitudes on the survey measures, the teachers struggled to discuss race and racism with young children in the actual classrooms. Implications are dis-cussed for teacher professional development.
Racial literacy as defined by Stevenson (2014) is an important cultural resistance strategy (e.g., positive coping strategy) for Black children and youth because it provides them with the skills needed to survive in a racist society. Stevenson’s work along with his colleague’s (Anderson et al., 2019) focuses on adolescents and those in middle childhood, yet it has inspired us to postulate how racial literacy might be fostered in young children (age 3-8). We propose a theoretical model for how racial literary can be fostered within shared-reading contexts using racially-affirming storybooks coupled with conversations grounded in the principles of ethnic- racial socialization. We posit that these conversations result in both direct influence on racial literacy and indirect influence via positive ethnic-racial identity and emotion regulation and understanding.
Pedagogical approaches that aim to counteract discrimination and injustice have been identified as potential ways to reduce pervasive and persistent inequities in education outcomes, which emerge as early as preschool. Despite this potential, however, empirical research is limited and suggests a disconnect between recommended practices for counteracting bias in early childhood education and the implementation of such approaches in everyday classrooms. The goal of the present study was to examine the extent to which early childhood education centers identified as having an intentional focus on race, culture, and bias actually implemented practices aligned with this approach across five domains of practice: Visual/Esthetic Environment, Toys and Materials, Activities, Interactions, and Organizational Climate. We conducted classroom observations and focus groups with educators and administrators in five early childhood education centers. Practices within the five domains were interpreted on a continuum from laissez-faire to anti-discrimination. Results demonstrated that educators did not consistently engage in practices consistent with an anti-discrimination approach when addressing issues of race and culture. This study provides important insights regarding explicitly addressing race/ethnicity, culture, and bias in early childhood education in a comprehensive and proactive manner, with implications for educator training.
This qualitative case study investigated how an early childhood teacher and young children in a public White-predominant kindergarten classroom engaged in critical discussions of anti-bias issues including racism, White privilege, gender stereotypes, gender nonconformity, sexism, and homophobia. Through the use of interactive read-alouds using anti-bias picture books, the study’s findings revealed that (a) the children could participate in thoughtful interactions during anti-bias read-aloud sessions and showed their complex understanding of race and gender issues; (b) the children needed substantial support to engage in activism against social injustices; (c) the children displayed a variety of responses to the discussion questions and activities related to gender-themed picture books as most children had difficulties resisting gender binary conceptions and stereotypes while some children, especially boys, were strongly empowered to embrace gender-nonconforming practices; and finally (d) some children internalized and enacted anti-immigrant, anti-Blackness, and racial/gender discriminatory actions to which the early childhood teacher often failed to either disrupt or intervene.
As Early Childhood educators, we consider the role that teachers can play in engaging
children in conversations about oppression using children's literature. Against the
backdrop of recurring racial unrest in the U.S., (e.g., the Charlottesville, Virginia and
other protests), we discuss ways texts can be used to deepen young children's
understandings about oppression. We encourage educators to equip children with
insights and strategies which will interrupt oppression in collective and intentional
ways. We also provide a brief overview of structural issues relating to oppression
(drawing from Freirean critical theory) and share 10 books that can be used to start
conversations.
In educational contexts, including early childhood settings, ableism and racism circulate interdependently to define normalcy and deviance. Book reading offers an important platform for dismantling these interlocking ideologies with young children. In this article, we examine dis/ability and race talk in the context of picture-book reading, analyzing the ways four white, nondisabled teacher candidates attempted to discursively resist deficit-based framings of dis/ability and race with small groups of young children in preschool classrooms. Findings revealed how—despite stated intentions to advance educational justice—teacher candidates drew on discourse models that reinforced status quo notions of normativity. We argue that understanding how teacher candidates navigate dis/ability and race talk with young children in the context of literacy instruction can lend insight into the teacher education experiences needed to support these critical conversations.
This study examines relationship dynamics between young immigrant children in an afterschool program, and the ways in which these children become involved in racial discrimination and exclusion whereby one group perceives itself as majority. In order to explore and understand these children’s narratives and behaviors in an in-depth and comprehensive way, this study utilizes a qualitative case study approach. Employing a sociocultural theoretical lens as an analytic tool, this study provides insight into how young immigrant children whose first languages are other than English are aware of linguistic and cultural differences among their peers in the afterschool context, and how they develop their social attitudes toward these differences, include or exclude children, and negotiate power in their relationships. The findings extend the discourse of racism beyond the Black–White framework, increase awareness and understanding of how racial discrimination plays out between young immigrant children, and highlight the need for anti-bias education for all students.
In this article, the author argues that young children are capable of and competent in discussing topics of race. Sharing picture books with racial narratives with young children is a way to help them reflect, value, and empathize with the diverse nature of society. A picture book by Jacqueline Woodson, The Other Side, is explored more deeply with a small group of preschool children. The analysis of the small-group discussion suggests that engaging in multiple interactive and open-ended read-alouds of the same text, alongside reflective teaching, can encourage the validation and valuation of People of Color as well as children’s own racial identities; critical questions and active engagement in topics of race, skin color, and tone; and engaged citizens who can ask questions and participate in dialog about social and cultural differences.
Background: Recent research has suggested vulnerability to perceived racial discrimination (PRD) as a mechanism behind high levels of depression seen in high socioeconomic status (SES) Black males. To better understand the effects of gender and SES on shaping experiences of PRD among Black youth in the United States, we used data from the Family and Community Health Study (FACHS) to explore the trajectory of PRD in Black youth by gender, SES, and place. Methods: Data came from FACHS, 1997–2017, which followed 889 children aged 10–12 years old at Wave 1 (n = 478; 53.8% females and n = 411; 46.2% males) for up to 18 years. Data were collected in seven waves. The main predictors of interest were gender, SES (parent education and annual family income), age, and place of residence. Main outcomes of interest were baseline and slope of PRD. Latent growth curve modeling (LGCM) was used for data analysis. Results: Gender, SES, place, and age were correlated with baseline and change in PRD over time. Male, high family income, and younger Black youth reported lower PRD at baseline but a larger increase in PRD over time. Youth who lived in Iowa (in a predominantly White area) reported higher PRD at baseline and also an increase in PRD over time. High parental education was not associated with baseline or change in PRD. Conclusion: In the United States, Black youth who are male, high income, and live in predominantly White areas experience an increase in PRD over time. Future research is needed on the interactions between gender, SES, and place on exposure and vulnerability of Black youth to PRD. Such research may explain the increased risk of depression in high SES Black males.
Reading literature to engage young children in critical discussions about race – and how it impacts their daily lives – is a promising practice. This study examined how two teachers and eight young children talked about skin colour as they read books about racial diversity, and the extent to which participation structures and conversational topics influenced how teachers and children constructed, resisted, and/or reproduced discourses of race and racial injustice during shared-book readings. We draw on critical perspectives on classroom discourse to understand the identities (i.e. teacher and learner) and discourses (i.e. early childhood literacy) that the children and teachers co-constructed. We suggest that teachers used shared-book reading time to enact a discourse of literacy readiness and treated the activity as an opportunity to teach academic skills (e.g. classification and colour vocabulary) through teacher recitation. During these shared-book reading experiences, we argue that teachers and children constructed skin colour as politically neutral, without acknowledging the word ‘race’ or its deeply embedded meanings in the U.S. Based on this analysis, we discuss implications for teacher educators in terms of critical literacy practice in early childhood.
This study investigated the extent to which White American mothers discuss race with their children, which topics they are willing to discuss, and why some choose not to discuss it. Data were gathered from 107 mothers of children aged 4 to 7 years. Most mothers indicated the topic was important to discuss, especially for the purpose of elimination of bias and discrimination. However, many reported having no or only vague discussions. Only 30% were categorized as having a color conscious approach, whereas 70% indicated a color blind or color mute approach. The latter seemed to presume their silence would lead children to not notice differences and thus remain unbiased. Many also indicated that they would only approach it if an issue came up or the child asked questions. Almost all mothers perceived their children to have no racial biases, but their diagnostic tools for discovering biases may be inadequate. Implications of these findings are discussed.
When young children notice and comment about physical appearance differences often associated with race, adults may experience discomfort and uncertainty about how to respond. As a result, many adults try to avoid or terminate such discussion, leaving children with unanswered questions and misunderstandings. To prepare educators to be supportive of the development of children's positive racial identity and racial awareness, it is important for educators to examine their own attitudes, biases, and knowledge about race and racism. This chapter summarizes research on children's racial identity and awareness, describes critical approaches to anti-racist education, and provides resources and strategies through which professionals can better understand themselves and the young children they serve.
This chapter draws on developmental intergroup theory, parental ethnicracial socialization literature, anti-bias curricula, and prejudice intervention studies to address the appropriateness of discussing race and racism in early childhood settings. Existing literature about teacher discussions surrounding race and racism is reviewed, best practices are shared, and the need for more research in this area is highlighted. The construct of parental ethnic-racial socialization is mapped onto early childhood antibias classroom practices. The chapter also outlines racial ideologies of teachers, specifically anti-bias and colorblind attitudes, and discusses how these ideologies may manifest in classroom practices surrounding race and racism. Colorblind ideology is problematized and dissected to show that colorblind practices may harm children. Young children's interpretations of race and racism, in light of children's cognitive developmental level, are discussed. Additionally, findings from racial prejudice intervention studies are applied to teaching. Early literacy practices surrounding race and racism are outlined with practical suggestions for teachers and teacher educators. Moreover, implications of teacher practices surrounding race and racism for children's development, professional development, and teacher education are discussed.
In spite of the contributions of previous studies about multicultural education, children’s literature, and teaching for social justice, no study had investigated their intersection. This qualitative case study explores how kindergarten-age Korean children respond to African-American characters in picture books during read-alouds. The data were collected by audio-recordings, open-ended interviews, children’s artifacts, and observational field notes. One of the findings was that the children exhibited resistance to black characters, and their resistance was shaped within their larger social and cultural surroundings such as the parents’ racial views towards black people and the dominant racial discourse of Korean community. Findings suggest that the goal of a literacy program in bilingual children’s classrooms has to be that students learn not only about biliteracy skills but also about the value and meaning of the human experience in our pluralistic society.
Many have called for re-examination of the “colorblind” philosophy to which some early educators have, tacitly or explicitly, adhered (e.g. Boutte et al. 2011; Derman-Sparks and Edwards 2010; Husband 2012). It has been argued that, while colorblind approaches may appear to be politically neutral, they actually exacerbate racial oppression. In this article, we advocate for a direct and active approach to raising conversations about race with younger preschool children. Based on the developmental nature of young children’s concepts of self and of other, our focus is on initiating discussions about concrete and observable physical aspects of human diversity associated with race. Young children notice and are curious about differences in skin color, hair texture, and facial features. Because these differences are salient, are accessible, and are of interest to young children they can serve as an effective starting point. We suggest shared reading of high quality illustrated children’s books, incorporating the principles of dialogic reading, as a potent springboard for discussions about race with very young children. Our purpose is to equip children, very early in their schooling, with a color-filled appreciation for and comfort with physical diversity of appearance. On that foundation, children may better proceed on the course of developing anti-racist attitudes.
A systematic review was conducted of studies evaluating the effects of interventions aimed at reducing ethnic prejudice and discrimination in young children. Articles published between 1980 and 2010 and including children of 8 years and under were identified, harvested, and assessed for quality, both for the exposure/program as well as for the evaluation. In total, 32 studies (14 contact and 18 media or instruction) yielded 62 effects on attitudes and 59 effects on peer relations. An overall count of the positive (40%), non-significant (50%), and negative effects (10%) indicate a mixed picture. Overall, more attitude effects (55%) than peer relations effects (25%) were positive, and media/instruction (47%) was more successful than contact (36%). Most of the effects were observed with children from a majority ethnicity: 67% of the attitude effects were positive, and media/instruction and contact were equally effective at delivering these. Few differences were found as a function of the quality of the exposure and evaluation, but differences were found depending on the context of exposure (naturally occurring or experimental manipulation) and research design (random assignment or self-selection). In conclusion, the findings were more mixed than expected, though sufficiently strong studies exist to provide lessons for future research.
Teachers often resist discussions about racism in the classroom, yet it is a topic that is frequently addressed in multicultural literature. This study examines teachers in a graduate reading program (N = 58) who used picture books reflecting African American heritage with elementary school children in a summer reading practicum. Prior to teaching children, a subset of these teachers participated in a course that addressed issues of racism, allowing for an investigation of a course effect on teachers’ comfort level with the literature and their addressing of themes that surfaced in the books. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to analyze questionnaires, planning forms, lesson evaluation forms, and transcripts of teachers using the books to test the hypothesis of a course effect and to identify the range of variation in teachers’ ways of using the literature. The teachers in both “course” and “comparison” groups tended to focus on the perspectives, feelings, and traits of the story protagonists when creating discussion questions and after-reading projects for students. Course teachers focused on the activism of Black protagonists significantly more often than comparison teachers did, although participants of both groups did not tend to represent racism as a system of White advantage. These findings suggests that literacy education programs can have an impact on teachers’ ways of using multicultural literature, but to teach in critical and transformative ways, they will need programs that strengthen their understandings of constructs such as structural racism and help them facilitate thoughtful inquiries of this concept when using multicultural literature with children.
It has been argued that intervention strategies designed to reduce racial prejudice in young children have been based on weak
theoretical models of racial stereotyping and prejudice with little effect on the reduction of racial bias. This paper examines
the social-cognitive and intergroup scholarship post-Bigler (J Soc Issues 55(4), 687–705, 1999), with an emphasis on the development of racial prejudice in young children. The purpose of this paper
is not to argue for a particular theoretical approach, but to provide an overview of some of the important pieces of research.
Findings indicate that social learning and cognitive development models need to be understood when implementing curriculum
designed to reduce racist beliefs and attitudes in young children.
Countering the position that colorblindness is desirable for teachers and children, this article encourages early childhood
education teachers to engage in conversations about race and racism with young children. We discuss why the early childhood
years are important for interrupting racism and make suggestions for helping children develop tools for addressing it. Annotated
examples of children’s drawings about racism from a second grade classroom are shared to demonstrate that young children are
not colorblind and that they think about and experience racism in their daily lives. We conclude that it is both an educational
and ethical necessity to address racism with young children.
Critical race theory (CRT) first emerged as a counterlegal scholarship to the positivistand liberal legal discourse of civil rights. This scholarly tradition argues against the slow pace of racial reform in the United States. Critical race theory begins with the notion that racism is normal in American society. It departs from mainstream legal scholarship by sometimes employing storytelling. It critiques liberalism and argues that Whites have been the primary beneficiaries of civil rights legislation.Since schooling in the USA purports to prepare citizens, CRT looks at how citizenship and race might interact. Critical race theory's usefulness in understanding education inequity is in its infancy. It requires a critique of some of the civil rights era's most cherished legal victories and educationalreform movements, such as multiculturalism. The paper concludes with words of caution about the use of CRT in education without a more thorough analysis of the legal literature upon which it is based.
Preservice teachers are socialized by their own raced, classed, and gendered experiences to expect “caring parents” to behave and contribute in certain ways to their children's schooling. Preservice teachers who come from widely divergent backgrounds from the communities in which they serve can sometimes be skeptical of parents who are not involved in children's schooling in ways that are familiar from their own upbringing. Moreover, much of the existing scholarship on parent involvement and the transition to school takes a top-down approach that discounts the important knowledge parents bring to the table. This is a study of African American parents of young children who were preparing to transition to kindergarten or first grade that proposes an alternate conversation about what we can learn from parents when we examine their ways of framing and enacting “involvement” in their children's school lives. African American parents and caregivers (N = 25) participated in qualitative interviews. Thematic analyses of the interviews revealed that participants constructed preparation for the transition to school broadly, as preparation for the “real world.” I will discuss the implications of the study for teaching, teacher education, and future research, so that preservice teachers and teacher educators can begin to build a greater imagination for parent involvement.
This qualitative case study investigated how two White female preschool teachers, who were familiar with anti-bias pedagogy, discussed gender non-conformity using a book in their classrooms. The book discussions were audio-recorded and transcribed. Teachers challenged some of the children’s gender stereotypes about gender non-conformity; however, teachers did not counter other stereotypes and kept discussions about gender non-conformity at the surface level. Children drew on their normative understandings of gender as a binary concept to make sense of gender non-conformity. Children were aware of gender-stereotyped clothing that would be deemed gender appropriate by their peers or family. Some children had difficulty understanding why a boy would wear a dress, while others challenged gender stereotypes. Teachers did not engage in in-depth discussions around gender non-conformity or around the gendered nature of bullying of a ‘girly’ boy in the book. Implications are discussed for teacher professional development and for gender-affirming early childhood pedagogy.
This article describes the process teachers at a public elementary school completed to develop and implement a developmentally appropriate, race-conscious, anti-bias curriculum in all K-5 classrooms. The study focuses on the experiences of the teachers and children in three early childhood classrooms using a case study design. Data were gathered and analyzed following one-on-one interviews with the principal and teachers, and an observation of an anti-bias lesson in one kindergarten classroom. Themes were identified following this analysis that concurred with existing literature on anti-bias education. The findings suggest the developmental appropriateness of teaching anti-bias topics to young children and the importance of iterative cycles of teacher reflection and learning as they engaged in this process. The findings further suggest that anti-bias education could be implemented at 1st-grade and kindergarten levels at a public school.
This chapter explores the contribution of racial ethnic socialization to family-school partnerships during the early childhood period. Racial ethnic socialization entails verbal and nonverbal communications to children regarding the customs, values, attitudes, and perceptions of race and/or ethnicity, and it is the means through which children become familiar with the status and/or privilege of a particular racial ethnic group. As a former slave society, the United States is a racialized society. As a racialized social system, “whiteness” is not an inert concept but quite meaningful to the social interactions experienced within such a society. Children also experience racial dynamics at an early age and early education is a setting in which racial biases can be enacted by young children. Research indicates that early education teachers are not proactive in their role as racial ethnic socializers of these young children. The authors review some of the key elements of racial ethnic socialization research, articulate essential elements of racial ethnic socialization within child care programs, and suggest practical approaches toward initiating intentional racial ethnic socialization in child care that is cocreated with families.
Recent census data indicate that student populations in U.S. classrooms continue to become increasingly racially diverse. Despite these changes, many early childhood teachers remain reluctant to teach children about race and racial justice. In this article, I argue that multicultural picture books can and should be used to promote racial awareness and racial justice among young children. I discuss reasons why early childhood teachers should abandon colorblind approaches to race and racism in their classrooms. Then, I provide a framework of multiple approaches to teaching children about race through multicultural picture books. Practical considerations are presented.
The present study queried early childhood teachers (n = 77) via online surveys about their perceptions and experiences with racial diversity, bias, and multicultural education in their schools and classrooms. While most teachers indicated the importance of discussing race related issues with children, many did not openly do so. Most reported dialogues with only vague references to race and generally took a ‘color-mute’ approach to the topic. This is in spite of the fact that many had witnessed biased behaviors and comments from both students and other teachers. Many teachers indicated perceived barriers to disseminating anti-bias messages and implementing a multicultural curriculum. Specifically they perceived parent objections and curriculum restrictions as the main barriers. Implications of these findings are discussed.
Despite the increasing emphasis in literacy education on critical pedagogies, there is minimal scholarship focusing on the implications of critical literacy in preschool (Pre-K) and kindergarten classrooms. The purpose of this article is to understand the possibility of early critical literacy as a space where young children examine books and articulate their voices on subjects related to cultural/racial diversity and equality. Adopting a qualitative case study approach, this study focuses on the creation of 'alternative texts' by 12 five-year-old children, after they read multicultural picture books in a kindergarten classroom in South Korea. As part of a larger longitudinal study, the data were collected for six months through video/audio recordings, participant observation, dialogical interviews, observational field notes, and children's written materials. The study found that writing alternative texts followed by reading multicultural books enabled children to pose questions, share opinions, and develop critical perspectives on issues related to racial/cultural diversity and equality. Findings suggest that early literacy teachers should foster a supportive literacy environment in which young children are encouraged to read literature for its subtext as a way to prompt responses of vocal multiplicity rather than limiting children by presenting a pre-determined and single answer.
It was a typical fall afternoon at Valley Middle School. Valley Middle School is a racially diverse school located in a large urban school district in the Midwest. Mrs. Jackson, the 7th grade language arts teacher, walks into the break room and sits down.
We first review current literature on three ethnic–racial dynamics that are considered to be resources and stressors in the lives of ethnic-minority youth: ethnic–racial identity, socialization, and discrimination. Next, we propose that a more contextualized view of these ethnic–racial dynamics reveals that they are interdependent, inseparable, and mutually defining and that an ecological/transactional perspective on these ethnic–racial dynamics shifts researchers’ gaze from studying them as individual-level processes to studying the features of settings that produce them. We describe what is known about how identity, socialization, and discrimination occur in four microsystems—families, peers, schools, and neighborhoods—and argue that focusing on specific characteristics of these microsystems in which particular types of identity, socialization, and discrimination processes cooccur would be informative.
IntroductionWhat We Know About Ethnic SocializationOverview of the StudyThe Salience of Ethnic-Racial Socialization to ParentsRetention of Cultural ValuesResistance Against DiscriminationPreparation for Bias:EgalitarianismPromotion of MistrustSummary and Conclusion
Research Findings: This qualitative case study examines Korean kindergartners’ literary discussions about racial/cultural diversity during a whole-group read-aloud. Using multiple sources of data, including observations, open-ended interviews, and written materials and children’s artifacts, this study found that (a) the children exhibited a biased attitude toward African characters, and their stereotypical views reflected their allegiance to their social/cultural contexts; (b) literary discussions about race provided the children with valuable opportunities to explore racial diversity, equality, injustice, and freedom; and (c) reading multicultural literature helped the children develop and practice their racial language and literacy skills. Practice or Policy: The findings of the study add several important contributions related to teaching young children multicultural literature. Reading literature should be used to provide a chance to explore real-life problems and critically analyze all of the differences children encounter on a daily basis. Teachers should encourage young children to freely share their views about diverse social issues by creating a space where children feel secure in exchanging different views. In order to create a more supportive literacy surrounding, teachers should understand how profoundly children’s social and cultural environments affect their reading practices.
Drawing on a Participatory Action Research (PAR) study that was undertaken in two Australian preschool settings this article examines strategies that support the pedagogy of teaching for social justice and outlines how these strategies raised critical consciousness of both preschoolers (aged three to five years) and early childhood educators to respect and value Difference, Diversity and Human Dignity (the Three Ds). While social justice and anti-bias curricula are of definite concern in educational circles, the conversation needs to continue because young children in the twenty-first century still have the propensity to develop very negative views regarding the Three Ds. Research has demonstrated that by the time children reach preschool age they are already proficient in the ways they appropriate and manipulate racist discourses and have developed negative attitudes and prejudices towards particular groups. The findings of the Australian study have implications for early childhood education (ECE), both nationally and internationally, to support teaching for social justice with the judicious use of children's literature, that promotes young children's understanding of and sensitivities to the Three Ds.
Elementary school-age children (N = 137, 70 boys, ages 4–10) were randomly assigned to receive one of two types of lessons aimed at increasing the inclusiveness of peer relations and improving children's ability to identify bias in media. Children in the pro-social condition were taught to identify and respond to undesirable/unfair social behaviors (e.g., teasing), whereas children in the pro-egalitarian condition were taught to respond to these same behaviors, with additional attention to gender bias (e.g., teasing about gender role nonconformity). After five lessons, children completed immediate and 6-month delayed measures of egalitarian attitudes, intergroup liking, responses to hypothetical peers’ sexist remarks, and ability to identify sexism in media. The lessons did not differentially affect children's gender egalitarian attitudes and intergroup liking. As expected, however, children in the pro-egalitarian condition were better able to identify sexism in media and to respond to peers’ sexist comments than were children in the pro-social condition.
This article reports the results of a meta-analysis of 81 research reports containing 122 intervention–control comparisons of structured programs to reduce prejudice or promote positive intergroup attitudes in children and adolescents. Overall, the analysis revealed a mean effect size of d = 0.30, indicating low to moderate intervention effects. From the great variety of different approaches, interventions based on direct contact experiences along with social-cognitive training programs designed to promote empathy and perspective taking showed the strongest effect sizes. In addition, effects varied according to the program participant's social status (higher effects for majority groups), the target out-group (lower effect sizes for ethnic vs. disabled and aged out-groups), and the type of outcome assessment (higher effects for cognitive vs. affective and behavioral measures of intergroup attitudes). The discussion considers several limitations including the lack of implementation and follow-up research as well as future direction of research on promoting intergroup relations.
ABSTRACTS
There is a pervasive silence in literacy research around matters of race, especially with both young people and white people. In this article we illustrate that young white children can and do talk about race, racism, and antiracism within the context of the literacy curriculum. Using a reconstructed framework for analyzing “white talk,” one that relies on literature in whiteness studies and critical race theory and draws on critical discourse analytic frameworks, we illustrate what talk around race sounds like for white second‐grade students and their teachers. This research makes several contributions to the literature. We provide a detailed method for coding interactional data using critical discourse analysis and a lens from critical race theory and whiteness studies. We also illustrate the instability of racial‐identity formation and the implications for teachers and students when race is addressed in primary classrooms. Ultimately, we argue that racial‐literacy development, like other literate process in the classroom, must be guided.
Existe un silencio persistente en la investigación en alfabetización en cuanto a las cuestiones de raza, especialmente con jóvenes y con blancos. En este artículo mostramos que los niños blancos hablan de raza, racismo y anti‐racismo en el contexto del currículo de alfabetización. Mediante un marco reconstruido para analizar el “habla de los blancos” basado en la literatura sobre los estudios de la “blancura”, la teoría crítica de la raza y el análisis crítico del discurso, ilustramos cómo se percibe el hablar sobre la raza entre estudiantes blancos de segundo grado y sus docentes. Esta investigación hace varias contribuciones a la literatura. Proporcionamos un método detallado para codificar los datos de la interacción usando el análisis crítico del discurso y una perspectiva de la teoría crítica de la raza y los estudios de la “blancura”. También ilustramos la inestabilidad de la formación de la identidad racial y las implicancias para docentes y estudiantes cuando se toca el tema de la raza en la escuela primaria. Por último argumentamos que el desarrollo racial de la alfabetización, como otros procesos educativos en el aula, debe ser guiado.
Es besteht ein hartnäckiges Schweigen in der Schreib‐ und Leseforschung über Rassenangelegenheiten, besonders sowohl bei jungen Leuten als auch unter Weißen. In diesem Artikel zeichnen wir auf, dass junge weiße Kinder über Rasse, Rassismus und Anti‐Rassismus innerhalb des Schreib‐ und Leselehrplankontextes sprechen können und auch sprechen. Durch Anwendung eines rekonstruierten Rahmenwerkes zum Analysieren von „weißem Gerede”, welches aufs Schreiben und Lesen von Studien darüber weiß zu sein und auf einer kritischen Rassentheorie beruht und sich auf den kritischen Diskurs analytischer Rahmenbedingungen beruft, illustrieren wir wie Gespräche um Rassenzugehörigkeit unter weißen Schülern der zweiten Klasse und ihren Lehrern klingen. Diese Untersuchung besteht aus verschiedenen Beiträgen zur Literatur. Wir vermitteln eine detaillierte Methode zum Kodieren von wechselwirksamen Daten unter Nutzung der kritischen Diskursanalyse und einem Bereich kritischer Rassentheorie und der Studien des Weißseins. Ebenfalls illustrieren wir die Instabilität in der rassenzugehörigen Identitätsformation und die Auswirkungen für Lehrer und Schüler, sobald die Rasse in Klassenräumen der Unterstufen angesprochen wird. Schließlich argumentieren wir, dass rassisch bedingte Schreib‐ und Leseentwicklung, wie andere Bildungsprozesse, im Klassenraum anleitend gesteuert werden müssen.
Il y a un silence pesant dans la recherche en lecture‐écriture au sujet des questions de race, notamment quand il s'agit de jeunes et de blancs. Dans cet article nous montrons que de jeunes enfants blancs peuvent parler et parlent effectivement de race, de racisme, et d'anti‐racisme dans le contexte du programme de lecture‐écriture. En utilisant une structure reconstruite pour analyser le « parler blanc », en relation avec la littérature des études blanches et la théorie critique de la race et qui s'inspire des structures analytiques du discours critique, nous montrons à quoi ressemble ce que disent de la race des enfants blancs de seconde année et leurs maîtres. Cette recherche fournit plusieurs contributions à la littérature. Nous apportons une méthode détaillée de codage de données interactives utilisant une analyse critique du discours et une loupe provenant de la théorie critique de la race et des études blanches. Nous montrons également l'instabilité de la formation de l'identité raciale et l'implication des maîtres et des élèves quand il est question de race à l'école primaire. Enfin, nous soutenons que le développement de la lectureé‐criture raciale, comme tout autre processus de lecture‐écriture à l'école, doit être dirigé.
African American and White parents who expressed interest in their youth's cross-ethnic peer relations discussed barriers that contributed to cross-ethnic avoidance and their efforts to bridge those barriers in their youth. African American parents routinely used discussion, efforts to create positive contact situations, modeling, and explicit statements in response to their perception that cross-ethnic relations were stymied by discrimination and a lack of grounding in African American culture. White parents relied primarily on the school and inaction to overcome barriers of an ethnically homogeneous social context, socioeconomic status differences, and a lack of understanding of African American culture. Parents' socialization efforts appeared to occur in response to parents' position as members of cultural and numerical majority versus minority groups and were further responsive to formal and informal practices of the school and peer group influences.
This paper reports on a study in which talk about ethnic diversity in preschool and first grade multiethnic classrooms was observed. Specifically we examine the interactional contexts in which ethnicity talk transpired and how such talk was handled in preschool and school settings. The analysis is based on videotaped talk in teacher-led circle-time gatherings, mealtime conversations and peer play which took place in various classrooms in two of Norway’s larger cities. All classrooms included at least one target child who spoke Turkish at home. Ethnic diversity as a topic was almost exclusively introduced by the children, and was topicalized in situations of building and demonstrating alliances, of conflict and competition, and to escalate opposition when disputes had already surfaced. Moreover, ethnic diversity was often addressed in ambiguous and multilayered ways, with talk having a factual as well as humorous dimension. Children demonstrated a subtle sensitivity to ethnicity as something delicate and sometimes difficult. Although ethnicity often transpired under relatively charged conditions, children seemed to make it relevant to the particular situations and they explored topics of differences between themselves in a relatively straightforward manner.
This article discusses the difficulties inherent in addressing racial issues with students, and acknowledges the learning curve that must take place if teachers are to feel prepared and competent handling racist, stereotyped, or prejudiced comments in the classroom. The author proposes a Multicultural Response Framework of Racial/Cultural Discourse to serve as a framework for teacher reflection and development as they respond to students' questions and comments about race. Findings from a pilot study are presented to illustrate how the framework can be used to classify teacher responses to hypothetical racial vignettes. Implications for psychologists and educators are discussed.
In this article, three educators share case studies describing racial biases and segregationist practices in early schooling. The authors draw upon critical race theory as a lens and employ critical discourse analysis to uncover classed and raced biases within and across three early childhood contexts. While the cases are situated in specific public school settings – a parent teacher association (PTA) fundraiser, a mandated literacy program, and a read‐aloud – they shed light onto a variety of contexts as these are all common phenomena in many American elementary schools. Together, the cases illustrate how racism has been normalized through familiar practices in early childhood settings. Through description and reflection, the authors suggest ways to start seeing the strange in the familiar, unpacking racialized practices across three settings, and advocating new ways of thinking about these common practices leading to change and transformation.