Black Panthers and Black Curriculum: A Black Male Teacher-Coach's Life-Inspired Revisionist History

• In Event: Charting Alternative Lived Curriculum Pathways

Abstract

With constrained career options, Black boys disproportionately view sports as a primary means of social mobility. Thus, Black male coaches are constructed as vital gatekeepers for Black boys to access opportunities beyond their traditional communities. However, despite evidence of the significant role of sports in the Black community and quantitative data showing that Black male social studies teachers are the highest concentration of teacher-coaches by race, little research has sought to understand how the lived experiences of Black male teacher-coaches shapes their political ideology and curriculum decision-making. Utilizing Glaude’s (2001) notion of nation language, this instrumental case study seeks to disrupt stereotypical generalizations by revealing the varied sources of influence that undergird the curriculum decision-making of a Black male teacher-coach.

Author

• Daniel Thomas III, The University of Kansas