Black Men Matter: The Power of Poetry and Portraiture in Qualitative Research About Black Male Students

• In Event: Roundtable Session 19
  In Roundtable Session: Critical Examinations of Race and Ethnicity in Education

Abstract

Educational research illustrates that Black males are underperforming in urban high schools across the nation (Noguera, 2009). Typically over-disciplined and underserved, the schooling experiences of Black young men continue to be highlighted by violence and high dropout rates. However, little research has been conducted on how adult Black men remember their high school experiences. Using a Critical Race Theory epistemology that draws upon sociocultural conceptions of literacy and poetry as research, this dissertation explored how former Black male students aged 20-30 remembered their secondary schooling experiences and how their respective literacies (New London Group, 1996) impacted their perceptions of Black masculinities and education. Through the qualitative method of portraiture, portraits of four participants were constructed through poetry and recorded conversations.

Author

• Crystal Belle, University of Houston - Downtown