Black Girl Literacies and the Teaching of Enslavement

• In Event: Resisting Racist Sexism: Black Girl Literacies and Black Feminist Curriculum, Pedagogy, and Activism

Abstract

Teaching the history of enslavement in the U.S. is often plagued by misinformation (Shuster et al., 2018). As a result, Black students face limited acceptable ways of responding to these narratives. When students correct misconceptions, it results in their being perceived as defiant or disrespectful (Annamma, 2017). Swallowing these falsehoods can cause mental and physical harm (Warren-Findlow, 2006), thus eliminating the potential for these hostile environments is all the more important for Black girls, as research demonstrates that they are punished to a higher degree than Black boys, despite dominant narratives and programs that suggest otherwise (Epstein et al., 2017). This paper presents data collected from a yearlong ethnographic case study of a teacher seeking to incorporate instructional practices that affirm Black girls’ literacies when the topic is enslavement.


Muhammad and Haddix (2016) point out that Black girls’ literacies are, “multiple in practice and theoretical orientations. Literacy practices were layered upon one another such that girls were never just engaged in one type of literacy” (p. 326). Price-Dennis (2016) proposed a set of recommendations that teachers could incorporate into their practices in order to support these multiple literacies. Her recommendations include drawing on the daily experiences of Black girls to inform curriculum and providing space in the school day to share digital content that affirm their multiple identities. Combined, these texts provide an important foundation to support the teaching of enslavement in a way that affirms Black girls’ literacies. These suggestions highlight the multimodal literacies Black girls draw on for sharing, celebrating and/or contesting dominant narratives in their lives.


Using discourse analysis of classroom interactions, this paper explores individual moments of instruction and unpacks teachers’ interpretations and responses to Black girls drawing from a Black girlhood framework. Data from this study comes from a yearlong case study in Northern California. Data sources include interviews with students and their teachers, classroom observations, class lesson plans and assignments. Data was coded iteratively to identify emerging themes.


Results from this study speak to the importance of incorporating culturally relevant texts, particularly when teaching about enslavement. Additionally, findings demonstrate the opportunities the teacher provided for Black girls to engage in multi-modal responses as a means of reflecting on such texts. In doing so, the participating teacher encouraged the Black girls in her class to utilize their multiple literacies in response to historical representations of enslavement and its continued aftermath.

It is critical that teachers provide Black girls with opportunities to bring in their whole selves into their coursework, particularly when the content addresses the United States’ history of anti-Black violence towards women. By incorporating these practices that draw on Black girls’ literacies, teachers can create opportunities for them to resist and reject oppressive narratives through channels that move beyond traditional academic assignments. Continued understanding of how teachers can incorporate students’ multiple literacies for agentic responses to challenging content is all the more necessary within this current political climate.

Author

• Stephanie Robillard, St. Mary's College of California
  Presenting Author