The Role of Education in Shaping Racial Identification

• In Event: 324 - Section on Race, Gender, and Class Roundtable Session (one-hour).
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 09. RGC, Education, and Identity

Abstract

Previous research suggests that the educational environment is important for forming racial identities, yet few scholars have empirically tested this. Using panel data from the National Educational Longitudinal Study, I demonstrate that academic experiences influence changes in racial self-identification. Logistic regression models show that racial identification changes over time in patterned ways, consistent with academic stereotypes, based on respondents’ educational experiences. Overall identifying as stigmatized racial minority, specifically Latino and black and American Indian was linked to negative academic outcomes, while identifying as white and Asian/ Pacific Islander was associated with positive academic indicators, even when controlling for previous racial identification and other demographic variables. Results suggest that stereotypes regarding the academic performance and ability of students play a role in racial identification, so that schools are not just a site that perpetuate racial inequalities through creating differences between races but that they also play a role in creating race.

Author

• Jessica Kizer, University of California-Irvine