Browsing by Subject "Teacher"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    Are the racial disparities in school discipline the result of or a function of systemic racism mediated by educators' dispositions?
    (2015-08-28) Williams, Nathaniel Andrew; Scheurich, James Joseph; Hughes, Robin Lee; Skiba, Russell; Murtadha, Khaula H.
    With over 40 years of research on the well-documented issue of racial disparities in school discipline, scholars have begun to explore a plethora of plausible causalities for this phenomenon. Recent literature on the causal agents have centered on cultural differences and/or racial prejudices held by educators. Building from this emerging logic, this dissertation specifically focused on the disposition (e.g. enduring traits, character type, mentality, and temperament) of educators and its influence, if any, on discipline-related outcomes. Additionally, this exploratory study sought to build a conceptual map for future research to explore how educators' dispositions may act as conduits between systemic racism and the historic racial disparities in discipline-related outcomes. Through an intensive, multiyear embedded case study of four middle schools with both high and low rates of racial disproportionality in school discipline and with the creation and use of the Four Domains, this dissertation explored whether discipline-related outcomes are the result of systemic racism mediated by educators' dispositions. Findings from the analysis suggested the existence of shared characteristics among the dispositions of those categorized as high and low referring. Specific to those findings, trends within low referring teachers suggested that low referring teachers maintain high and consistent expectations of student behavior, but allowed for flexibility in how their discipline response was mediated out among their students. Despite a deferred approach within discipline response, low referring teachers were consistent and did not show favoritism. On the contrary, high referring teachers were inconsistent with their responses and demonstrated biases in actions and beliefs. Accordingly, it was found that high referring teachers held racially deficit beliefs about Black students and their families. Additionally, high referring teachers were more represented by the Four Domains in comparison to lower referring teachers. As a result, findings from the Four Domains support the existence of a causal link among systemic racism, higher referring teachers, and racial disparities in school discipline. In particular, it was found that classroom teachers engage in and hold racially deficit views of Blacks and these same teachers disproportionately refer Black students for out-of-school suspension.
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    Spooks, Saviors, and Saltwater: Counter-Narratives of Black Male Math Teachers
    (2025-04) Taylor, Evan Marquise; Morton, Crystal; Hayes, Cleveland; Kazembe, Lasana; Nguyễn, Thu Sương Thị; Sumpter, Daniella Ann Cook
    This phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of four Black male mathematics teachers in large U.S. urban areas, applying Critical Race Theory to examine the impact of education policies on their professional and political identities. The study aimed to contribute to the collection of narratives on the experiences of Black mathematics teachers, particularly Black men. To foreground these experiences, participant interview data is presented as a stage play in the form of instructive vignettes, centering the experiences, knowledge, and identity formation of Black male math teachers. By examining these intersecting identities across contexts, this study offers insights for policymakers and researchers to use in crafting supportive policies and practices that foster political identity development among Black men in the profession of teaching mathematics. Through interviews, the author explores participants’ relationships with mathematics, their responses to anti-Blackness in mathematics assessments, and the development of their professional identities, with each vignette serving as a counter-narrative for analysis and interpretation.
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    The Bhagavad Gita, Psychological Safety, and the Medical Learning Environment
    (Elsevier, 2025) Lala, Anuradha; Cho, Logan D.; Kalra, Ankur; Medicine, School of Medicine
    The art of medical education is increasingly emphasized in academic medicine as we have begun to appreciate how much potential there is for improvement from traditional paradigms. The medical learning environment poses unique challenges wherein the transmission of information from teacher to student is critical and yet psychological safety is a core principle required for effective learning. Drawing from the Bhagavad Gita, this piece seeks to highlight how Lord Krishna, the teacher, and Arjuna, the learner, depict the idyllic teacher–student relationship, exemplifying the essence of psychological safety. This article offers several practices clinical educators can imbibe to maximize psychological safety in the medical learning environment at distinct phases of learning: prelearning, learning, and postlearning. Ultimately, effective learning is a bidirectional process that can be a fulfilling and rewarding experience for the student and teacher alike, where all spirits are uplifted.