Black Male Teachers as Fictive Kin and Community Teachers in the Lives of Black Boys in Early Childhood Education

• In Event: Community-Based Teaching and Teacher Education as Transformative Praxis for Educational Equity

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
Research studies have long documented the important roles Black male teachers play in the lives of Black boys. Yet, few Black males teach in early childhood classrooms (Author, 2021). Carey (2020) refers to Black male teachers who are virtually non-existent in classrooms as the ‘missing misters.’ This non-existence of teachers means that Black boys enter and leave early childhood classrooms without experiencing the presence, pedagogies, and practices of Black male teachers. Black male teachers are and have always serve as both fictive kin and community teachers. According to scholars (Cook, 2010; Fordham, 1996), fictive kin are individuals who are not biologically related to Black children but take on familial roles to meet their academic and social needs in and beyond schools, and community teachers “develop the contextualized knowledge of culture, community, and identity of children and their families as the core of their teaching practices” (Murrell, 2000, p. 340). The purpose of this presentation is to highlight the fictive kinship networks and the community-based practices of three Black male teachers in early childhood classrooms in the South. The following research question is advanced for this qualitative study: How do Black male teachers curate fictive kinship networks and engage in community-based practices to support the academic and social needs of Black boys in early childhood classrooms?

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

A multidimensional theoretical framework including culturally relevant pedagogy, fictive kinship networks and community-based teaching guide this study. Culturally relevant pedagogy (CRP) connects the cultural experiences of children of color to teaching and learning to ensure academic success, cultural competence, and sociopolitical awareness (Ladson-Billings, 2009). CRP is antithetical to traditional modes of teaching that prioritizes White, middle-class
culture in schools, schooling, and curriculum.
Fictive kinship network describes social and economic relationships maintained between individuals who did not naturally have any blood ties (Cook, 2010; Fordham, 1996; Stack, 1974). Cook (2008) extended the concept of fictive kinship network to the field of education including three considerations: (1) fostering collaboration, cooperation, and solidarity; (2) advocating and supporting the non-academic needs of Black students; and (3) building resiliency in Black students. Community-based teaching centers on ways Black teachers elevate the cultural wealth and wisdom of the community to teach children (Murrell, 2000).

METHODS AND DATA SOURCES

The author uses portraiture methodology which is “a method of qualitative research that blurs the boundaries of aesthetics and empiricism…” (p. xv). Semi-structured and unstructured interviews, classroom observations, and field notes are used to co-create portraits (Bhattacharya, 2020).

RESULTS AND SIGNIFICANCE

Three Black male teachers curated fictive kinship networks including former Black teachers and professors who gave them insights on how to support the academic and social needs of Black boys in early childhood education; they also used the cultural wisdom from the boys’ communities to support them. This study illuminates the possibilities of Black male teachers’ presence, pedagogies, and practices.

Author

• Nathaniel Bryan, University of Texas at Austin