Does Teacher and Student Race Congruence Help or Hinder Student Engagement in Ninth-Grade Science?

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  In Roundtable Session: Teacher Education: Can Our Voices Be Heard?

Abstract

This paper builds on research suggesting racial and cultural congruence between teachers and students can be a pedagogic resource in science classrooms. While increasing diversity among students has accelerated in past decades, there has not been a corresponding rise in the number of teachers of color entering the profession. We modeled effects of teacher race on engagement, controlling on various factors. Preliminary results were counter-intuitive. We found that teacher race congruence was significantly related to engagement for black students; however, the coefficients were negative. If the result is durable, we interpret this finding as a possibility that historical and social forces within science education explain why black science teachers are unable to bring their cultural knowledge into the classroom.

Authors

• Will J. Jordan, Temple University

• Briana L. Chang, Temple University

• Crystal Menzies, Temple University

• Julia Camille Ransom, Temple University