Across the Spectrum: The Implications of Racial Socialization for Diverse Children and Youth

Session Type: Symposium

Abstract

Racial/ethnically diverse youth regularly experience in-school racial encounters that have implications for academic achievement and social acceptance (Thomas & Stevenson, 2009). This symposium features four empirical studies that examine racial socialization, defined as “the transmission and acquisition of intellectual, affective, and behavioral skills to protect and affirm racial self-efficacy, then reappraise and negotiate racially stressful encounters” across the developmental lifespan (Stevenson, 2013). While research exists, this symposium offers nuanced insight into youth racial socialization experiences inclusive of groups that are often marginalized and underperform within the American education system. The authors make suggestions for how schools might adopt professional development training, comprehensive curriculum and create institutional policies that are sensitive to the experiences and educational needs of diverse youth.

Sub Unit

• Division G - Social Context of Education / Section 2: Education in Multicultural Contexts Within and Across Subject Areas

Chair

• Howard C. Stevenson, University of Pennsylvania

Papers

• Racial and Ethnic Socialization of Caribbean Immigrant Youth Across Home and School Contexts - Chonika Coleman King, The University of Tennessee - Knoxville

• Catching Racial Bias in a Color-Blind World: White Youth Reason With Race - Ali Michael, University of Pennsylvania Center for the Study of Race and Equity in Education; Keisha L. Bentley-Edwards, The University of Texas - Austin; Eleanora Bartoli, Arcadia University

• “What About Us?” Supporting the Need for Racially Gendered Socialization for African American Girls - Celine Thompson, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine

• Know Thyself: Implications of Racial Identity and Racial Socialization for Black Youth—Why Black History Matters - Valerie N. Adams-Bass

Discussant

• Duane E. Thomas, University of Pennsylvania