DISRUPTING THE DISCOURSE: CANADIAN BLACK WOMEN TEACHERS IN THE LIVES OF MARGINALIZED . STUDENTS KIMBERLEY TAVARES A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY GRADUATE PROGRAM IN EDUCATION YORK UNIVERSITY TORONTO, ONT ARIO · December 2013 ©Kimberley Tavares, 2013 11 ABSTRACT This dissertation begins with a specific question: What can education learn from experiences of Black women teachers about meeting the educational needs of marginalized learners? It explores this question by focusing on the pedagogical practices five Canadian Black women teachers employ to meet the learning needs of their students, particularly those most marginalized and underserviced. While their voices are generally missing in Canadian educational research literature, the present inquiry is guided by an understanding that the teaching practices of Black women teachers are individualized and contextual; they encounter and develop professional expertise from many different subjective and educational trajectories, and they learn to teach students, on multiple terms and at varied levels of success. The research pursues three lines of investigation organized by the diverse experiences of Black women teacher respondents: (1) biographical and identity formation as teachers who are Black women; (2) attitudes, strategies and negotiations as "minority" teachers in a white majority profession; (3) and what matters most to these Black women about the academic success of marginalized students while teaching and interacting with them in the classroom. Drawing upon observations and interviews, insights from the teachers highlight the educational problematic as more about the long-standing "teaching- gap" than about challenges students present. The study yields recommendations toward closing this "teaching gap" to more generally improve educational provision to all students, and more specifically to marginalized students in Canadian schools. 111 Acknowledgements It takes a village to raise a child African Proverb I humbly thank the many grandmothers, mothers and fathers who made this dissertation possible. Joy, you read, re-read and questioned me to the point of clarity and precision. Quinn, you asked no questions, you pushed me forward and you believed in me. Shae, Tsahai and Saige, you tolerated my absences, my blind focus and my dedication; your patience and love astounds me. Dr. James, from the time I was an undergraduate student you made me believe this was possible; thank-you for your time, mentorship and guidance. Dr. Mishra-Tare and Dr. Crichlow, your support, advice and encouragement made an overwhelming task possible. To my friends and colleagues who edited, offered ideas, and tolerated my crazy (Regine, Rebeca, Jane, Gurprit, Saira, Sharmin, Camille) I am blessed to have you in my life. To the Black women teachers in this study and to those who came before- thank-you for paving the way and for teaching us what an inclusive education really looks like. You all have raised me and I hope I have made you proud. Walk good, Kim IV Table of Contents Introduction ...................................................................... .'...................... 1 Chapter 1: Literature Review........................................................................ 17 Chapter 2: Research Agenda. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Chapter 3: The Roles and Responsibilities of Black Women Teachers....................... 71 Chapter 4: The Burdens and Negotiations of Black Women Teachers........................ 98 Chapter 5: Lessons from Canadian Black Women Teachers................................... 124 Chapter 6: Conclusion............................................................................... 151 References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165 Appendices............................................................................................ 178 1 Introduction "Black students, looking for the truth, demand teachers least likely to lie, least likely to perpetuate the traditions ofl ying; lies that deface the father from the memory of the child ... .lt is not that we believe only Black people can understand the Black experience .. .[but] we have born the whiplash of 'white studies' ... therefore we cannot, in sanity, pass by the potentiality ofB lack teachers" June Jordan (1989) In this study, I examine the experiences and practices of Canadian Black women teachers whose voices are largely missing in the research literature on the Canadian educational experience. Secondly, I explore the pedagogies and practices these women employ which are most successful in meeting the learning 1 needs of marginalized or underserviced students, particularly Black boys • Thirdly, I probe how their experiences can inform our understanding of the ways in which our educational ethos impacts the learning and teaching of marginalized students and teachers. 1 Throughout my dissertation I use the term Black to signify people of African ancestry, living in Canada, regardless of country of birth. I recognize that this term (and others used throughout the dissertation e.g., White) are highly problematic and have varied and conflicting meanings for readers depending on their geographical and political positions. My use of the terms is not an attempt to essentialize. Instead, I use these categories as a means of identifying the particular individuals, as defined by the categories available through census and other data sets, being addressed in my study. The term Black denotes a racial an4 cultural group, consequently, and as with all racial, ethnic, cultural groups, it is capitalized to indicate it as a proper noun (James, 2011). By marginalized Black boys, I am specifically discussing those Black male, secondary school, adolescents whose academic experiences have not been positive in terms of grades (meeting the Ontario provincial standard) and/or social inclusion (feeling a part of the school experience) as a result of social and academic exclusion (Young 1990) . 2 To achieve these three objectives, this dissertation is stnictured into six chapters. In this introduction, I map out my entry into the topic of Canadian Black women teachers. I then move into a brief conversation about the current conflicting experiences, reflections and conceptions of the successful teacher of 2 marginalized Black male students in order to situate my stance on why the voice and experiences of Black women teachers need to be central in the discourse on . how to teach marginalized youth. I then follow with chapter one which contains a review of the literature addressing the academic and professional experiences and representations of Canadian Black women teachers and Black students as a means oflocating this research within current bodies of study. The first chapter ends with a presentation of the theoretical frames - Black Feminist theory and Critical Race theory - that underpin the workings and thinking of this dissertation. The second chapter articulates my research agenda, methodologies, research questions, participants and timelines used in the development of this dissertation. The third chapter, one of three data chapters, articulates the research findings pertaining to the multiple and interconnected roles that the Black woman teacher participants in the study find themselves navigating daily. The fourth chapter, on the burdens and negotiations of Black women teachers, grapples with the tensions and contradictions these Black women in a predominantly white 2 I use Black males as the basis for thinking about marginalized students as this group consistently, over time falls to the bottom of Canadian data sets on student achievement (Brown & Sinay, 2006; Dei, 2006; Dragnea & Earling, 2008; James, 2007; 2012). 3 ·educational system navigate. The fifth chapter shares the lessons that the participants feel can help meet the learning needs of Black youth in Ontario schools. The sixth and final chapter concludes the dissertation by attempting to think about the lessons presented by these women as a means to develop the beginnings of transformative pedagogical practices that better meet the learning needs of marginalized youth in the Canadian education system. Situating the Research Questions The context for my current dissertation questions extend from a research project I conducted in 2009 (Tavares-Carter, 2009). At that time, I was particularly interested in the schooling and professional experiences of Black male educators and the possible correlation between these experiences and the under-representation of Black male teachers in secondary schools. When asked why these men chose to teach in the primary division instead of the secondary division, the respondents' answers were unequivocal: They chose to work in elementary schools instead of secondary schools because: (1) they felt under- qualified to teach in secondary schools, and (2) they believed that in elementary school, they could be better mentors and role models to Black boys, many of whom like themselves, were missing male figures in their young lives as a result of being raised in households with "only a single-mother". In thinking about the reasons contributing to the dearth of Black male educators at the secondary level I, like my respondents, did so with the belief that 4 "Black male teachers are more likely than their white counterparts to decrease [Black male student] alienation and contribute to their academic success" (Irvine, 1989, p. 55). Such a belief, I realized later, is rooted in a patriarchal discourse, whereby the place, power and position of men are thought to be paramount in the raising of boys (Gilroy, 1993). Prior to beginning my research, and thinking of myself as a Black woman teacher, I questioned my ability to fully support the needs of marginalized Black male students. I felt, in earnest, that since I was a woman educator, I lacked the ability to, what Lynn (2006) calls, 'other-father' or provide the masculine-oriented care that my respondents and researchers such as Holland (1996), Solomon (1992), and Zirkel (2002) argue balances out the female influence on Black boys' educational needs. Indeed, as one of my respondents at the time phrased it thus: "A boy can't come to his mom and talk to mom like dad ... [for] no one other than a Black man can teach a Black boy how to be a responsible Black man" (Tavares-Carter, 2009, p. 54). I wondered at the time whether it was possible then that the lack of qualifications and concerns the male respondents in my study expressed about their ability to be successful secondary teachers was, at least in part, a result of the missing male mentors and role models in their own secondary schooling lives. When I began the research, my answer to the aforementioned question was indisputably yes. However, overtime my thinking has been challenged. As I conducted my research, delved into the literature on Black masculinities, and reviewed the responses of my 5 participants, I noted an interesting and important contradiction in the respondents' arguments. The (Under) Valuing of Black Female Teachers While arguing that Black male students needed Black male mentors and role models (the primary reason they all became educators), each male respondent simultaneously credited the females-- teachers, aunts, sisters, mothers and grandmothers-- in their lives with being their prime supporters and mentors contributing to their successes. One respondent, Omar for instance, in the early part of his interview indicated that his decision to enter teaching stemmed from a desire to "break the stereotype" of what Black men in Canada are" and to teach Black youth "what it means to be a Black man" in Canadian society (Tavares- Carter, 2009, p. 46). Throughout the interview, Omar argued for the unique position that Black male teachers hold in guiding Black male youth in ways that are different from that of their white counterparts. His comments echo Lynn's (2006) research which indicates that the Black male teacher-Black male student connection tends to show a cultural competence on the part of the teacher which allows the student to more likely feel comfortable and so trust and respect the teacher. Yet, as Omar continued his interview, he insisted that it was his "strong mother and grandmother who pushed him on" (Tavares-Carter, 2009, p. 74). In fact, the only male influence Omar had while growing up was one male teacher in 6 grade nine; all the other influential individuals who contributed to his later success were females. In Omar's and the rest of my respondents' cases, the perceived need for a male-figure to support and encourage their successes ran contrary to their reality of what it took for them to be successful. More troubling, however, is that their assertions point to what I now see as a negation of the role that the support they received from female figures played in their lives. Such assertions and negations are tantamount to what Jam es (2012) calls the hegemonic discourse of our society whereby the respondents' internalization of fixed gender roles undermines individual attempts to resist racialization in their aspirations to be successful. For underlying their arguments about the need for male role models is the patriarchal and sexist supposition that the contributions of men are more important than those of women. These successful Black men, who claimed that they were marginalized while in school yet fully supported at home, effectively confirmed through their comments and successes Lawson-Bush's (2004) argument that "no aspect or component of Black male life eluded mothers in their ability to teach lessons that were necessary for manhood or the development of masculinity" (p. 384). So why then did the men in my study not recognize fully the value of the female mentors in their lives? Why was I ready to devalue my own contributions as a teacher and mother to the development of Black male youth?