“Switchin' My Style Up!”

Abstract

This case study explored the multiple ways in which a Black adolescent girl represented self across three contexts, including her participation in an online Facebook Book Club, a face-to-face focus group, and a face-to-face journal writing session at an urban public library. Black Girls’ Literacies Framework was the perspective implemented in this case study. Several data collection methods were used, including an online book club discussion a semi-structured focus group interview, a journal writing session, and field observations. Data collection began with discussions in the online Facebook Book Club over the course of the first week, followed by a face-to-face focus group interview in the second week, and a journal writing session immediately following. Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) was used to interpret the data. Findings revealed the Black girl participant (1) disrupted hegemonic ideologies designed to perpetuate the marginalization of Black girls’ intersecting gendered and racialized identities (2) employed White Mainstream English in the Facebook discussion (3) code meshed (merged White Mainstream English and Black Language) in both the face-to-face focus group interview and the face-to-face writing session. The study provides strategies adults can use to support Black girls’ literacy and language practices, particularly in the urban secondary classroom.