Curriculum of Violence: The Impact on Students of Color by Creating "Safe Spaces" in a Predominantly White University

• In Event: Racial Violence on Campus

Abstract

While many studies have explained the challenges of first-generation low-income students of color from the perspectives of social class differences, my study shows that these students experience additional challenges due to their negative and traumatic interactions as racial minorities, referred as curriculum of violence, discouraging them from seeking support to institutional agents. While the impact of hidden curriculum has been extensively discussed, the concept of curriculum as a source of violence for students has been little examined in higher education studies. Through an in-depth interview with students of color at a predominantly white university, I examine the violence that these students experience through the normalized practices and values maintained in universities.

Author

• Jaein Lee, Harvard University