High School Students Of Color Research Articles

Teaching health justice and reimagining narratives of place through community‐driven science practices

AbstractThis study explores how a biology teacher from a summer science program engaged high school students of color in a three‐week science unit exploring community health at the intersection of history, race, place, and power. The goal of this study is to better understand what community‐driven science looks like in a science classroom when a health equity unit is guided by a biology teacher who engages the socio‐historical, political, and relational aspects of community structure and agency. Using student and instructor interviews, program observations, and student artifacts, I examine how the instructor's positioning as a Black woman scientist shaped her goals and vision and the instructional and pedagogical resources made available during the unit. In addition, I explore how engaging in community‐driven science practices during the unit such as critical inquiry and data analysis supported students' sense making about community health and the possibilities they imagined for their communities. Findings illuminate how engaging community health at the intersection of history, race, place, and power shaped engagement in community‐driven science practices and supported student sense making in ways that surfaced challenges, tensions, and opportunities for disrupting and reimagining community narratives. Further, finding highlight the importance of an instructor's lived experiences and pedagogical vision in supporting emergent forms of student agency and place remaking, and generating possibilities for community healing and hope.

Why Continuity of STEM-Medicine Participation Matters: Exploring a Culture of Transformation and the Optimization of College Socialization

This study examined the impact of an out-of-school science, technology, engineering, and mathematics-medicine (STEM-M) program in a large U.S. metropolitan area designed to support the learning, development, and educational resilience of high-achieving high school students of color. Students highlighted that a key aspect of the program was the cultivation of what we termed a “culture of transformation.” Using a multi-year study (2016–2019), we completed 72 interviews and conducted in-depth qualitative analysis across six cohorts of students ( n = 37). In this article, we propose an expanded conceptual model of college socialization for students of color that leverages their engagement with (1) equitable resources, (2) relevant opportunities, (3) diverse knowledge, and (4) meaningful relationships. The relationship between early STEM-M career interest and youth socialization in related out-of-school activities that address larger societal inequities in school success and life and career outcomes warrants further study.

Navigating the “Dual Pandemics”: The Cumulative Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic and Rise in Awareness of Racial Injustices among High School Students of Color in Urban Schools

We explored the psychological and educational impact of distance learning during the COVID-19 and racial injustice pandemics. The sample included 19 urban high school students of Color from the San Francisco Bay Area. Interview data were analyzed using Reflexive Thematic Analysis revealing seven themes: (1) challenges learning from home; (2) shifts that impact students’ experience with school; (3) emotions emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic; (4) increased awareness and engagement related to racial injustices; (5) emotional reactions to the rise in awareness to racial injustices; (6) shifts in identity due to social isolation; and (7) coping strategies and support needed.

The Effects of Student-Teacher Race Congruency on Student Feelings of Stereotype Threat

Stereotype threat has been shown to adversely affect performance in academic sectors; therefore, it is imperative to pinpoint factors that increase or reduce feelings of stereotype threat in order to work toward building solutions. Considering that the current literature is limited on the topic of racial stereotype threat in education, this study aims to evaluate whether the presence of student-teacher race congruency can impact feelings of stereotype threat in high school students of color. A digital survey was created using modified Stigma Consciousness Questionnaire measures, and a causal-comparative inquiry method was employed to compare the resulting data between three different racial or ethnic groups.

Authentic Marine Research Experiences for Low-Income and First Generation High School Students Used to Level the Playing Field and Decrease Attrition in STEM

Summer research experiences are often life-changing for first generation high school students of color, especially in the marine biology field. The University of Southern California (USC) Leslie and Bill McMorrow Neighborhood Academic Initiative (USC NAI) partners with STEM professionals, laboratory scientists, local marine-based field sites, marine educators, and laboratory managers to facilitate hands-on, inquiry-based research and learning experiences for the high school students that participate in their program. These partnerships collaborate with instructors to deliver an ocean research methods course to the students. The learning goals of the course include providing the foundational scientific skills needed to succeed in the STEM workforce and learning about various marine related careers. As a result of the ocean research methods course and other STEM interventions with USC NAI, 42% of NAI grads who have gone to USC have declared a STEM major as freshmen since 2013.

There are two I’s in motivation: Interpersonal dimensions of science self-efficacy among racially diverse adolescent youth

With the increased growth of career opportunities in STEM fields, educators and policymakers have sought to better understand the nature and development of students’ motivation to pursue science academic and career pathways successfully. However, our understanding of motivational constructs such as self-efficacy has mostly been based on studies of predominantly White samples, neglecting the perspectives and experiences of students from historically marginalized groups underrepresented in STEM academic and career pathways. In the present study, we examined science motivation in six high school students of color who participated in a brief, near peer mentoring program with undergraduate mentors of color. Deductive and inductive coding of semi-structured interviews with mentees and mentors revealed that science self-efficacy not only has a salient future-oriented component, but also centers around the importance of forming and maintaining interpersonal connections with others through proxy agency and help-seeking behaviors. These data point to the utility of a sociocultural perspective in expanding our understanding of self-efficacy—and motivational processes more generally—in a way that is more inclusive of the experiences of racial and ethnic minority youth.

“Teachers Don’t Really Encourage it”: A Critical Race Theory Analysis of High School Students’ of Color Perceptions of the Teaching Profession

ABSTRACT Seeking to enhance efforts to diversify the teaching profession, this article centers the educational experiences of high school Students of Color. Using a Critical Race Theory framework, this study examines the relationship between Students’ of Color school experiences and their perceptions of the teaching profession. Findings reveal that these students perceive the teaching profession as a boring, undervalued, and white profession, and that conversations about pursuing college and exploring a career in teaching are absent from the classroom or presented as only the purview of white students. Race conscious recommendations to encourage and support Students of Color to pursue college and to explore a teaching career are presented.

Passing the Mic: Toward Culturally Responsive Out of School Time Leadership

The aim of this study was to explore the application of culturally responsive school leadership (CRSL) in an out of school time organization (OST). This was accomplished by analyzing how the actions of leaders both enabled and constrained CRSL. Research was conducted with Inspire Mentoring an OST organization that provides mentoring services to approximately 90-120 high school students of color from freshman through senior year. Approximately 60% of the mentors identify as people of color. The data collected for this qualitative case study occurred over 6 months and included: 6 semi-structured interviews with executive leaders and adult mentors, 5 observations of organizational meetings and community workshops, and reviewed documents from Inspire Mentoring. The leadership practices observed were analyzed using the behaviors of CRSL. This study suggest that positional OST leaders should become more connected to their community understanding longstanding inequities, interrogate their own worldviews, and work in tandem with minoritized youth and community members to address cultural youth development needs.

Barriers to Access and University Schools of Music: A Collective Case Study of Urban High School Students of Color and Their Teachers

Abstract Although there are benefits to a racially and culturally diverse teaching workforce, the music teaching profession remains predominantly White. Using an “opportunity gap” framework, this study aimed to discover what, if any, barriers to access to applying to university schools of music—a first step in becoming music teachers—exist according to high school students of color and their music teachers. Employing a collective case study methodology, the researchers observed classes, interviewed music teachers, and conducted focus groups in two high schools in a city in the northeast United States. Findings suggest that the teachers and students valued high standards, and they found local culture and community engagement to be an important aspect of their music education. However, ultimately students did not want to audition or found the process difficult for the following reasons: the audition process did not align with students’ values of community music making; there is an assumption that auditioning students have participated in prerequisite activities, including private instruction and honors ensembles; students did not possess knowledge of the unspoken rules of audition procedures; and participants found the university requirements, including nonmusic standards and transitioning to college, to be difficult. Based on these findings, changes to the audition and recruitment processes, including community engagement, are proposed.

Developing Workforce Diversity in the Health Professions: A Social Justice Perspective

PurposePeople of color often face challenges in accessing equitable healthcare. Disparities in healthcare pose very real moral and ethical social justice dilemmas for society, and prevent efforts to improve the nation's health and manage escalating healthcare costs. A diverse healthcare workforce is necessary as a means to help care for an increasingly diverse patient population. MethodThis paper focuses on programmatic and research information that is a collaborative effort between a number of researchers and educators in schools of medicine and allied healthcare. The paper looks at the current state of racial and ethnic diversity in the health professions and describes the social justice implications of a representative healthcare workforce. Using a “pipeline to practice” model, the authors will present information spanning the pipeline from encouraging high school students of color to enter the allied healthcare professions to introducing undergraduate and graduate students in health professions program to responsive policy making and cross-cultural communication. The authors reviewed the research literature across multiple institutions and professional health programs, and include illustrative case studies. ResultsThe authors found that overall, the healthcare workforce is becoming more diverse however, with the majority of people of color in healthcare jobs remaining in entry-level and often lower paying jobs. The need to increase the diversity of the healthcare workforce in all fields of allied health is a continuing need. The most promising practices tended to be comprehensive programs that include a combination of social support, academic support, and financial support. DiscussionThis information has great significance for health professions education programs as they strive to diversify their student populations, retain students of color, and provide culturally responsive education and training. This interdisciplinary collaborative perspective illustrates what can be learned from varied health professional programs as well as making new connections across often disconnected practice settings.

“I think at first glance people would not expect me to be interested in science”: Exploring the racialized science experiences of high school students of color

AbstractThe underrepresentation of high school students of color in advanced science courses and the need to increase racial diversity in science fields is well documented. The persistence of racial disparities in science suggests that factors influencing participation include and extend beyond those currently being explored. This study explores how high school students of color make sense of racialized narratives about who does and can do science in circulation in society and their lives, and how this shapes their positioning and identity construction in science. Using interviews and surveys this study examines youths' accounts of their racialized science experiences, including how they envision scientists, make sense of racial disparities in the science community, and navigate their positioning in science. In addition, this study examines how youths' sense of their science ability, as a salient aspect of science identity, shapes the forms of navigation accessible to them, and thus, the futures they imagine in science. By sharing the complexity of students' sense making and the tensions they express as they negotiate their personal goals, science experiences, and messages they receive from racialized narratives, findings highlight the disproportionate work youth of color in this study do, as well as their resilience to navigate racialized narratives in science. This research sheds light on the experiences of high school students of color at a time in their schooling when they are making decisions about who they can become and the possible futures available to them. Implications from this study promote centering race within a critical, sociocultural, and ecological context when exploring identity construction for youth of color in science. Furthermore, findings underscore the need to create learning experiences that provide opportunities for youth of color to author narratives for their own possibilities of belonging and becoming in science in order to support inclusive pathways.

A latent class analysis of cognitive empowerment and ethnic identity: An examination of heterogeneity between profile groups on dimensions of emotional psychological empowerment and social justice orientation among urban youth of color.

Psychological empowerment (PE) encompasses key aspects of youth development and civic engagement. Empowerment scholarship has largely focused on the intrapersonal or emotional component of PE, which considers perceptions of control and self-efficacy, specifically in the sociopolitical sphere. Fewer studies have assessed the interactional or cognitive component of PE. Even less have examined the empirical association aspects of PE, including cognitive empowerment, with conceptually related variables, such as ethnic identity. Those studies that are present have shown that the association between aspects of PE and ethnic identity are complex. The current study of urban high school students of color (N = 383; 53.1% female; 75% Hispanic/Latinx) investigates the heterogeneity present between cognitive empowerment and ethnic identity. Latent class cluster analyses were conducted and five distinct profile groups emerged. Differences were observed on the basis of profile groups of cognitive empowerment and ethnic identity on self-reported dimensions of emotional PE (e.g., leadership and policy control) and social justice orientation. The majority of study participants were clustered in groups that identified moderate to high levels of both cognitive empowerment and ethnic identity. Results provide useful insights for theory and programming.

A study of psychological sense of community as a mediator between supportive social systems, school belongingness, and outcome behaviors among urban high school students of color.

Psychological sense of community (SOC) has been examined minimally among the youth of color, and as a mediating variable, as well as construct implicated in promoting wellness. Using data from a sample of 401 students of color (M age = 16.55, standard deviation = 1.31; 54.7% female; 57% Hispanic/Latina[o]) from an underserved northeastern US urban community, we examined the mediating relationship of psychological SOC between social support, participation in youth-based community programs, and outcomes including school belongingness, risk behaviors such as substance use and violent behavior, and psychological symptoms, including depression. Results indicated that access to social supports and youth-based community programs was negatively associated with risk behaviors and experiencing depressive symptoms, through both psychological SOC and school belongingness. Implications include the need for community-based activities for youth that not only foster support but encourage a positive psychological SOC and in-turn offset negative developmental trajectories and risk behaviors.

Introducing Students of Color to Health Sciences Research: An Evaluation of the Health Disparities Summer Internship Program.

The goal of this analysis is to assess the effectiveness of a summer program designed to introduce high school students of color to health disparities research. A total of 73 students (69.9% Black, 68.5% female and 80.6% either junior/senior) participated in the 4-week Health Disparities Summer Internship Program (HDSIP) during the years 2012-2015. Students attended lectures covering topics such as health disparities, community-based participatory research (CBPR), immigrant health, and policy and advocacy. While working with community-based organizations, students gained hands-on experience related to issues discussed in class. Students completed research projects and provided suggestions for health policy change. Pre/post surveys were completed to evaluate the program. After participating in the HDSIP, students demonstrated heightened awareness of the social determinants of health, especially in regards to racial discrimination (p = .023); borderline statistically significant increases were shown for income (p = .082), community safety (p = .058), and healthcare access (p = .076). Most students (82.1%) planned to advocate for changes in their community; an increase from the initial 65.2% (p = .052). About nine out of ten students (89.6%) reported being satisfied with the summer program; the majority reported improvement in analytical skills, CBPR methods, and oral/communication skills. Increasing diversity in the health workforce has widely been proposed as a means of addressing health disparities. Introducing minority students to health professions can serve as a catalyst for lasting changes in health outcomes. The HDSIP has increased students' awareness of social determinants of health and has fostered their interest in improving the health of minority populations.

“Do you see me?” Power and visibility in applied theatre with black male youth and the police

ABSTRACTThis article accounts the author’s experience as co-facilitator of the pilot program of “The Justice Project,” an applied theatre project in which high school students of color presented an original performance and interactive theatre workshop to police officers to explore the police-civilian dynamic. As a white middle-class female teacher working with male high school students of color, the author’s perceived hypervisibility due to her demographic positioning was shattered during the culminating event of the residency. Held at a police academy, the director of the police academy announced a gang task force officer would be scanning the high school students prior to the workshop. The police academy’s assumed position of power brought to light the hypervisibility of these students due to their gender, race, age, and class. Using Critical Race Feminism Theory, this article deconstructs the shifts in power and visibility that occurred during this conflict; the cultural complexities within these power shifts; and how championing the counternarrative served to construct a new visibility for the minority male students.

“We Need a Song”: Sustaining Critical Youth Organizing Literacies Through World Humanities

ABSTRACTThis article intervenes in the long-standing conversations around which youth activism, literacies, and civic engagement take place. In an effort to expand the boundaries of activism to include the work of youth critical literacies within the classroom, this article highlights the work of four female high school students of color as they bring attention to human sex trafficking. Findings show that students are introduced to and given the space to engage in “critical youth organizing literacies” through their class project. Therefore, through similar projects, classrooms become sites where young people learn to select and critique texts in order to mobilize peers and community members.

Knowing Obama: How High School Students of Color Learn About the 44th President

Drawing from a theory of racial literacy and literature on phenomenon after 2008 election, this case study examines how high school students of color have learned about Barack as a racial and political figure. Findings suggest that schools can be unfriendly spaces for learning about these topics, with history and social studies courses failing to address Barack or election in a meaningful way. However, students pick up rich, though scattered, information through out-of-school sources such as family, community, and media. These findings suggest a need for greater consideration of Obama-related content in formal curriculum. The findings also imply that teachers must provide opportunities for students to contextualize, extend, and make sense of their out-of-school learning about race and in academic safety of school environment. Keywords: Race, Barack Obama, Social Studies, Racial Literacy ********** Educators need to know what happens in world of children with whom they work. They need to know universe of their dreams, language with which they skillfully defend themselves from aggressiveness of their world, what they know independently of school, and how they know it. (Freire, 2005, p.130, italics added) Few single events in recent decades could match sociopolitical and racial significance of Barack Obama's election in 2008. Obama's resounding victory over Senator John McCain signaled a milestone with national and global import (Smith & King, 2012). In his inaugural speech, himself acknowledged historic significance of his election: This is meaning of our liberty and our creed - why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath. (President Obama's Inaugural Address, 2009, January 21) As and others have suggested, 2008 election represented a crucial step toward increased rights and prosperity for people of color in U.S., a step many civil rights leaders feared they might not see in their lifetimes (Bell, 2009; Bobo, 2011). The Post-Racial Era With historic 2008 election came public conversations about extent to which a new era had been inaugurated alongside Obama, a time and place broadly referred to as post-racial America. Bobo (2011) described ethos as one in which American society has genuinely moved beyond race, so much so that we as a nation are now ready to transcend disabling racial divisions of past (p. 14). To cite a few examples of presence of this narrative in popular media, The New York Times ran its November 4th headline, Obama Elected President as Racial Barrier Falls (Nagoumey, 2008), Thomas Friedman (2008) declared that Nov. 4, 2008 officially ended American Civil War, and Time's Joe Klein noted that older forms of racial identity had now been replaced by the celebration of pluralism and cross-racial synergy (cited in Giroux, 2010). And as MSNBC's Chris Mathews infamously reflected after watching Obama's second State of Union address: I was trying to think about who he was tonight. It's interesting: he is post-racial, by all appearances. I forgot he was black tonight for an hour. You know, he's gone a long way to become a leader of this country, and passed so much history, in just a year or two. I mean, it's something we don't even think about. (Calderone, 2010, January 27) Mathews' fraught sentiments, as well as aforementioned headlines and commentary, suggest that nation need not consider Obama's background again. The country has put scar of race behind itself. Despite euphoria in wake of Obama's election, critics sought to counter or temper narrative of post-racialism. …

Understanding Urban High School Students of Color Motivation to Teach: Validating the FIT-Choice Scale

The Factors Influencing Teaching Choice (FIT-Choice) scale was completed by 86 high school students of color prior to beginning a class focusing on motivating students to become interested in teaching. Findings based on confirmatory factor analysis support the underlying FIT-Choice scale factor structure reported in previous studies. Students’ perceptions about teaching and motivations to teach were significantly lower compared with predominantly White female pre-service and in-service teachers for the majority of factors. The high school students of color were most drawn to teaching by their respect for the proficiency required of a good teacher.

Reciprocal Dialogue Between Educational Decision Makers and Students of Color

Purpose: This article explores the possibilities for reciprocal dialogue between educational decision makers and Students of Color. Such dialogue—defined as interactions in which participants build on each other’s words—may provide the means to develop creative ways to address manifestations of systemic racism in education. The article uses the concept of Third Space to investigate how educational decision makers responded to a group of high school Students of Color advocating for change. Research Method: The data for the article come from two studies investigating the influence of the students in the group, who were engaged in youth participatory action research. The analysis focuses on interviews conducted with decision makers who attended the group’s presentations. Findings: The analysis revealed that many educational decision makers responded to the group’s presentations in ways that limited the potential for future reciprocal dialogue with students. These decision makers’ responses most often focused on aspects of the students’ performance at presentations. In contrast, the responses that promoted reciprocal dialogue, which were rare, focused on the content of the presentations. Implications for Research and Practice: The study identifies discursive preconditions of reciprocal dialogue—an aspect of Third Spaces—and demonstrates the potential of such dialogue in challenging systemic racism in education. In light of these insights, future research should examine (a) the relationship of reciprocal dialogue to possibilities for shared decision making and (b) the ways that such decision making may challenge or fail to challenge aspects of systemic racism in education.

PERCEIVED BARRIERS TO HIGHER EDUCATION IN SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, AND MATHEMATICS

The underrepresentation of people of color in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) has become an increasing concern nationwide, with efforts focused on understanding mechanisms causing underrepresentation and implementing policies and interventions to increase diversity within STEM fields. Given the structural barriers in educational access and opportunity and the social/psychological barriers facing underrepresented students of color, this study utilizes frameworks of stress, coping, and stigmatization within a sample of 152 high-performing high school students of color to: (a) Examine students' perceptions of internal and external barriers to STEM higher education, (b) Address the intersectionality of race and gender by assessing whether perceptions of barriers vary by race and gender, (c) Explore relationships between perceived barriers and STEM aspirations, and (d) Examine coping mechanisms to overcome perceived barriers to STEM degrees. Survey and focus group results revealed that despite academic ability, students perceived high levels of internal and external barriers to pursuing STEM studies in higher education. While these perceptions did not impact attitudes toward math and science, they were significantly related to a decrease in STEM career aspirations. Male students perceived significantly fewer internal and external barriers than female students, indicating unique challenges faced by female students of color. Despite perceiving internal and external barriers, students demonstrated confidence in overcoming barriers and discussed positive and adaptive coping strategies. This study concludes with implications for improving opportunities for students of color to enter and persist in STEM fields through K-12, higher education, and out-of-school programming, research, and policy.