A Microethnographic Study of “Politicized Caring” in an All-Black, All-Male Alternative Classroom Setting

• In Event: Roundtable Session 22
  In Roundtable Session: What Does It Mean to “Care”? Experiences of Black Student Teachers, Black Students, and Black Teacher Mentors

Abstract

Recent studies indicate that for Black male students in particular, positive teacher-student relationships have the potential to support students’ engagement in learning and development of positive academic identities. Building on a previous study that demonstrates “politicized caring” as a central aspect of teacher-student relationships in an all-Black all-male classroom setting, this paper explores how this sort of caring is expressed to students in the micro-moments of classroom life. Drawing on micro-ethnographic methods, a classroom episode is analyzed to demonstrate how verbal as well as non-verbal modes of interaction convey politicized caring to students. Findings reveal that politicized caring is conveyed through establishing co-membership with students, a willingness to take pedagogical risks, and participation structures that cultivate unity in the classroom.

Authors

• Sepehr Vakil, University of California - Berkeley

• Maxine Ramona McKinney de Royston, University of California - Berkeley

• Jarvis Ray Givens, University of California - Berkeley

• Kihana Miraya Ross, University of California - Berkeley

• Nailah Suad Nasir, University of California - Berkeley