Identity-Safe Math Classrooms: Intersectionality of Gender and Race

• In Event: 25.083 - MTCC Roundtable Session Eight
  In Roundtable Session: 25.083-2 - Identity, Equity, and Mathematics Education

Abstract

This study examined the lived experiences of 15 racialized women during their math schooling, each were enrolled in a teacher education degree. Two questions framed our study: What are the math schooling experiences of female minority teacher candidates (TCs)? How can these narratives inform educators to foster identity-safe environments and interrogate implicit bias in math classrooms? Interview transcripts and journal entries were analyzed and we reported disparities each TC experienced as adolescent girls of colour in math classes. Three themes emerged from the data: 1) stereotype threat and model minority misconceptions, 2) advocacy as deficiency, and 3) math as an elitist area of study. The intersecting identities of gender and race played a significant role in participants’ math identity development.

Authors

• Mary Reid, OISE/University of Toronto

• Steven Mark Reid, OISE/University of Toronto