How White Educators Struggle Beyond Tools of Whiteness in a Black History Course

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session 5
  In Roundtable Session: White Teachers Learning About Equity and Antiracist Practice

Abstract

Research documents white educators often deploy tools of whiteness to refuse required school-based, anti-racist learning. Through a case study of white educators who voluntarily attend a Black history course in the community, this paper instead expands our understanding of anti-racist education with white participants who are committed to lifelong learning. Findings indicate participants’ extensive past learning supports them in not employing performative or emotional tools of whiteness, but that participants used coded language in contradictory ways—while still critically engaging with course content, school context, and self-reflection. This study has practical and theoretical implications for those who offer anti-racist training for white educators, scholars who study whiteness and professional development, and educators themselves.

Author

• Morgan Mayer-Jochimsen, University of Wisconsin - Madison