“There’s a Thing Called the Wall”: Latinas Navigating Predominantly White High School Spaces

• In Event: Friday Roundtable Session 3:05 pm
  In Roundtable Session: Examining Raciolinguistic Ideologies (Table 27)

Abstract

In this paper, we use position theory and a raciolinguistic perspective to describe how Latine adolescents felt positioned by teachers and peers at their predominantly white high school. Specifically, we discuss how students described encountering/navigating tension in three contexts: the school at large, Advanced Placement courses, and extra-curricular enrichment programs they were enrolled in based on their status as Latine and first-generation. Findings illustrate the complexities of how racial injustice is experienced by youths of color navigating predominantly white, mainstream-English-medium spaces as well as how they are positioned from the beginning of their schooling experiences by policies that dictate the opportunities they will experience throughout their high school experiences based on specific identity markers (race, ethnicity, home language(s)).

Authors

• Rebecca E. Linares, Rowan University

• Stephany Cáceres-Mateo, University of Colorado - Boulder