Race Reflections in Qualitative Research: Positionality and Race/ism in a Collaborative Research Group

• In Event: Marriott Roundtable Session 30
  In Roundtable Session: Racism and Racial Aggression in Trump's America

Abstract

Racism is a pervasive, historic, and futuristic component of society. Whiteness, at its root, maintains that white people continue to benefit from power and privilege. With these understandings in mind, a qualitative research group composed of faculty and students embarked upon research examining why teachers of color leave teaching. A parallel study, reported on here, was conducted alongside this research and used racial reflection to engage the research team in deep race-driven self and other inquiry. In their reflections, research team members explored: recognizing whiteness as normative, racialized experiences, and the implications of racial privilege for understanding and engaging in race-based research. These findings point to integrated racial reflection as a promising practice for researchers and their teams.

Authors

• Andrea M. Hawkman, Utah State University

• Sherry Marx, Utah State University

• Sarah Braden, University of Utah

• Alyson Lavigne, Utah State University

• Justin Andersen, Canyons School District

• Sara Gailey, Utah State University

• gordon geddes, Utah State University

• Isaiah Jones, Utah State University

• Shouqing Si, Utah State University

• Karen Washburn, Utah State University