Hold the Line at 99: Reflections of Identity, Race, and Relationships in the Professional and Educational Experiences of Retired Teachers of Color
2018-05
Loading...
View/Download File
Persistent link to this item
Statistics
View StatisticsJournal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Title
Hold the Line at 99: Reflections of Identity, Race, and Relationships in the Professional and Educational Experiences of Retired Teachers of Color
Alternative title
Authors
Published Date
2018-05
Publisher
Type
Thesis or Dissertation
Abstract
Abstract The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the reflections of identity, race, and relationships in the professional and educational experiences of retired African American teachers. The findings contribute knowledge to the field of education about how race mediates collegial relationships through identifying how racialized dynamics are remembered and understood by African American teachers within the context of their careers over time. The study amplifies the voices of Black educators in historically White-dominated professional and academic spaces. The stories and perspectives of retired African American public school teachers about their teaching careers can be a starting point for seeing, understanding, and appreciating the complexities and nuances of promoting racially just organizational dynamics in US public schools. Through this phenomenological study, I answered the following questions: 1. In what ways do retired African American public school teachers describe the historical and contemporary context of US race relations in schools and in society, and the implications for urban public schools, especially in relation to their own work? 2. In what ways do retired African American public school teachers conceptualize their personal identities and collegial relationships in the context of their workplaces over time? 3. In what ways did retired African American urban public school teachers evaluate how, when, and why race was talked about, if at all, either formally or informally in schools? I organized the findings of this study into three main themes that emerged during individual interviews with ten retired African American public school teachers in Chicago and the greater Chicago area. The themes include: 1) the perpetuation of the myth of racial progress: national-level racism; 2) the problem of racial segregation for schools and societies: school-level racism; and 3) the potential of relational networks for enhancing racial justice: prospects for change. The findings demonstrate that strengthening teacher relationships through facilitated cross-racial dialogue may be important for improving the professional experiences of African American teachers and ultimately for addressing systemic injustices as a way forward for accomplishing racial justice in schools and society. Key Words: cross-racial, social networks, identity, dialogue, professional development
Description
University of Minnesota Ph.D. dissertation. May 2018. Major: Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development. Advisors: Karen Louis, Christopher Johnstone. 1 computer file (PDF); x, 193 pages.
Related to
Replaces
License
Collections
Series/Report Number
Funding information
Isbn identifier
Doi identifier
Previously Published Citation
Other identifiers
Suggested citation
Yeboah, Mary. (2018). Hold the Line at 99: Reflections of Identity, Race, and Relationships in the Professional and Educational Experiences of Retired Teachers of Color. Retrieved from the University Digital Conservancy, https://hdl.handle.net/11299/199040.
Content distributed via the University Digital Conservancy may be subject to additional license and use restrictions applied by the depositor. By using these files, users agree to the Terms of Use. Materials in the UDC may contain content that is disturbing and/or harmful. For more information, please see our statement on harmful content in digital repositories.