A Longitudinal Mixed Methods Case Study of Black Boys’ Sense of Belonging in Mathematics (Poster 37)

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Saturday 8:00 a.m.
  In Poster Session: Learning and Motivation in STEM

Abstract

This study employs a mixed methods longitudinal case study to examine how three Black middle school adolescents make meaning of their sense of school belonging and ethnic-racial identity within their mathematics classrooms and the broader school climate. Given the context-dependent nature of belonging, this study positions students' developing self-perceptions as embedded within, not independent of, classroom contextual affordances and constraints. The findings demonstrate distinct profiles for how students’ belonging and identities changed over time. Sources of belonging (e.g., peers, teachers, families) previously identified in literature showed meaningful interactions with students’ ERI development. Our paper adds to the literature that centers on race and the racialized experiences in the study of sense of belonging within the mathematics classroom.

Authors

• Allison Zengilowski, Lehigh University

• Brooke Harris-Thomas, University of Michigan - Dearborn

• Jamaal Matthews, University of Michigan