Black Joy in the High School Classroom: An Exploration into Deeper Learning

• In Event: Culturally Sustaining Pedagogies in Mathematics Education: Constructing a New Vision for Research and Classroom Practices

Abstract

Objectives or Purposes
This descriptive narrative qualitative research study analyzed interview data from nine Black American high school students to describe and examine their experiences of Black Joy in the mathematics classroom (Creswell & Creswell, 2017). The study primarily sought to explore how Black students leveraged Black Joy in their high school mathematics classrooms to access learning experiences and to resist perceived deficit ideologies (Tichavakunda, 2021; Gorski, 2011).

Theoretical Framework
The theoretical framework of Black Joy guided this research. As a theoretical framework,
Black Joy centers the joy, love, and exuberance of being alive and Black, antithetical to the
historical centering of the trauma and pain of experiencing anti-Black racism (Love, 2019). Black Joy is one of many cultural practices that have sustained Black communities (Lewis-Giggetts, 2022). Furthermore, as a classroom practice, Black Joy contributes to Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy (Alim et al., 2020).

Methods, Techniques, or Modes of Inquiry
Because this study sought to observe and capture the lived experience of students, the
researcher employed an inductive coding methodology (Saldaña, 2021). All data coding occurred in two cycles, including initial and axial coding. The coding cycles yielded the following themes: Black Joy as connection, Black Joy as motivation for and because of excellence, and Black Joy as a critical component of learning. These themes demonstrated how students accessed Black Joy to connect with their peers in the classroom, to make learning a communal experience, to learn mathematics deeply, and to craft meaningful mathematical knowledge.

Results and/or Substantiated Conclusions
Overall, two main conclusions resulted from the study. The results suggested a positive
connection between Black Joy and deeper learning in the high school mathematics classroom.
The results also suggested a positive connection between Black Joy, implementing Culturally
Sustaining Pedagogical practices, and the cultivation of Rightful Presence for Black students (Calabrese Barton & Tan, 2019; Alim et al., 2020). Black Joy helped students and educators cultivate Rightful Presence by contributing to a classroom culture celebrating Black students’ humanity and their mathematical thought.

Scientific or Scholarly Significance
While limited by its small sample size, this study contributes to the existing gap in the literature on exploring Black Joy in the high school mathematics classroom. To encourage future research in this topic, the researcher invites the reader into an intellectual exploration of Black Joy as a real means of liberation in the high school mathematics classroom. This paper ends by providing concrete takeaways educators can use in their mathematics classrooms to foster Black Joy and deeper learning.

Author

• Toniann Maniscalco, College of William & Mary