A Culturally Sensitive Reconceptualization of Self-Determination Theory: An Avenue Toward Racial Equity in Middle-Grades Mathematics

• In Event: Affect and Motivation in Mathematics Education

Abstract

Pedagogical frameworks leveraging self-determination theory often privilege students’ autonomy over their relatedness and competence, two needs that are particularly salient for Black and Latine students given their communal cultural orientations and awareness of racial-ethnic stereotypes impugning their mathematical capabilities. Our mixed methods study conceptualizes autonomy, relatedness, and competence-supporting teaching practices (i.e., those that center Black and Latine students’ relatedness and competence alongside their autonomy), assesses their predictiveness of 1,800 Black and Latine students’ (grades 6-8) motivational outcomes using multilevel modeling, and examines how teachers operationalize such practices in the classroom using state-space grids (SSGs). Results demonstrate that teachers can leverage these practices in diverse ways to support Black & Latine students’ motivation in middle-grade mathematics classrooms.

Authors

• Jingyun Wu, Indiana University

• Chino Ekwueme, University of Michigan

• Kyle M. Boomhower, Spectrum Health & Wellness

• Eunkyoung Elaine Cha, University of Georgia

• Tiana C. Victor, Dover High School

• Jamaal Matthews, University of Michigan