African American Youth's Conceptions of Competence in the Context of a Seventh-Grade Science Class

• In Event: 14.044 - Roundtable Session 2
  In Roundtable Session: 14.044-21 - Critical Race Theory and Critical Pedagogy in Science Education

Abstract

Considering learning as both constructing understandings related to a discipline’s ideas and practices and constructing identities, we explored the construct of competence–how African American youth’s conceptions of competence shape and are shaped by their experiences, knowledge, and positionalities in relation to science. Using an interpretive phenomenological analysis we analyzed semi-structured interviews conducted with eight focal students from a 7th grade science class. The youth expressed their competence in terms of classroom behavior, quiz and test grades, perceived level of difficulty of the class, and the use of Standard English. These findings suggest that explicit attention should be given to helping youth conceptualize competence in ways that reduce tensions and problematic fusions in the construction of various identities.

Authors

• Mirlanda Elizabeth Prudent, University of Illinois at Chicago

• Maria Varelas, University of Illinois at Chicago

• Justine M. Kane, Aquinas College

• Danny B. Martin, University of Illinois at Chicago