Living and Learning Through a Pandemic: African Immigrant Students and COVID-19

• In Event: Equity, Curriculum, and Identity

Abstract

This study examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the school and home experiences of African high school students in New York City. Drawing from Critical Race Theory, it investigates how the anti-Black and anti-immigrant sociopolitical context of 2020 in the U.S. shaped their experiences with the pandemic. This study uses semi-structured interviews and journals to capture how factors such as quarantine and remote learning shaped these students’ lives. Findings show that the pandemic and social uprising pushed African students to reflect on their mortality and place in the world and further shaped their future goals. Findings suggest the needs for schools and family/community to work together to support the mental and academic needs of African students.

Author

• Mercy Agyepong, New York University
  Presenting Author