Teaching, Learning, Policy & Leadership Theses and Dissertations
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2759
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Item Investigating the Stories of Success of Students who are African American and Male in AP English(2019) McArdle, Erin E; Turner, Jennifer D; Education Policy, and Leadership; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Students who are African American and male living in the United States have been marginalized from gifted and talented and Advanced Placement (AP) classes in public education. Students who have enrolled in specifically AP English and have taken an AP English exam have been shown to outperform other types of students in college (Barnard-Brak, McGaha-Garnett, & Burely, 2011; Cech, 2008; Chajewski, Mattern, & Shaw, 2011; Hargrove, Godin, & Dodd, 2008; Keng & Dodd, 2008; Mattern, Marini, & Shaw, 2013; Mustafa & Compton, 2017; Patterson & Ewing, 2013). Attending college and earning a collegiate degree offers a multitude of benefits; however, “college entrance and matriculation for African America students remains critically low,” especially for males (Curry & Shillingford, 2015, p. 14). This research study examined how students who are African American and male came to enroll in an AP English course, how they maintained their success in an AP English course, what and who influenced them along the way, and what later impact AP English had on their lives, especially as collegiate scholars. The researcher was the participants’ high school AP English teacher and relied on her personal experiences in teaching AP English to frame her research. The participants attended a high school where the ethnicity demographics of students closely mirrored the ethnicity percentages of the U.S. population. The school is well-funded, well-staffed and serves a middle class socio-economic population. Despite this, African American male students who attend this school continue to be underrepresented in AP English courses and in completing and passing AP English exams. Using a cross-comparison of eight distinct case studies following qualitative research protocol, the researcher was able to interview and create narratives of the participants’ experiences in AP English. This dissertation analyzes and synthesizes findings from the interviews to establish how the participants enrolled in AP English and maintained success. Additionally, the study focused on the influences on their success and the later impact on their lives. The findings from this study suggest that for the participants, college acceptance and completion as a “nonnegotiable” significantly influenced their conviction for taking AP English. The participants determined that AP English would influence college acceptance, which is part of the “educational game” students are aware of when attempting to market themselves for college enrollment. Teachers, family members, and peers in G.T. and AP classes were described as influential on enrollment and success. This study led to the discussion of how to include more students who are African American males in AP English class. It also contributes to educational policy that continues to weigh the pros and cons of offering AP English courses.Item Mentor to Muse: The Lived Experiences of African American Female Mentors(2014) Gamble, Wyletta Sheree; Hultgren, Francine H; Curriculum and Instruction; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)In this phenomenological study, I explore the lived experiences of six African American female mentors working with African American female youth. The mentors in this study range in age from twenties through fifties and are employed in various fields including education, healthcare and youth development. Having become mentors through formal and informal avenues, the mentors are referred to as muses because of their desire to build meaningful relationships with their mentees and serve as sources of inspiration who are willing to listen and learn from their mentees. The works of philosophers Martin Heidegger, Hans-Georg Gadamer and Edward Casey are intertwined with the writings of Black feminist scholars such as Patricia Hill Collins and Audre Lorde, while Max van Manen guides the phenomenological process with pedagogical insights and reminders. Through individual conversations with each muse, the power in care and the importance of listening in mentoring relationships is uncovered as essential components. Weaving through the simple, yet profound narrative around sustaining relationships with African American female youth are topics that need continued exploration, particularly in educational settings. Through the muses sharing their own experiences with mentoring, race and working with African American female youth, themes connected to gender, race, struggle and triumph emerge. The significance of place, the complexities of Black femininity, and the benefits of genuine dialogue are all explored in ways that bring new understanding to African American female experiences and how they connect to today's educational climate. This study concludes with phenomenological recommendations for educational stakeholders to pursue partnerships with school, family and community. Including the voices of community pedagogues, such as mentors, and other adults who work with our youth outside of the school setting, can help to strengthen the academic experience for both educators and these students. With a primary focus of educational change centered on the ideas of adults, it is also recommended that educational decisions become more inclusive with the insights of students, parents and community members. Continuing the dialogue with community pedagogues can help uncover more of the missing pedagogical insights beneficial to African American female students and their future achievement and success.Item Embracing mathematics identity in an African-centered school: Construction and interaction of racial and mathematical student identities(2010) Nyamekye, Farhaana; Chazan, Daniel; Curriculum and Instruction; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)ABSTRACT Title of Document: EMBRACING MATHEMATICS IDENTITY IN AN AFRICAN-CENTERED SCHOOL: CONSTRUCTION AND INTERACTION OF RACIAL AND MATHEMATICAL STUDENT IDENTITIES Farhaana Nyamekye, Ph.D, 2010 Directed By: Associate Professor of Mathematics Education, Daniel Chazan, Curriculum and Instruction This dissertation is a report of a multiple case study of eight seventh grade African American students attending an African-centered school. This African-centered school is attended solely by children of African descent and adheres to a system of African cultural values, focusing on culture, relationships, and academic excellence. The report provides in depth case analyses of two of these students as they navigate their multiple identities. The foci of the analyses are on the students' construction of their math learner identities and racial identities and on their construction of both of these identities taken together. Phenomenological variant of ecological systems theory illuminates the challenges and supports that these students encounter in constructing their identities. The mathematics and racial socialization practices within the school and within the students' home environments are documented within this report as support mechanisms that provide opportunities for the students to construct identities as African American mathematics learners. The findings suggest that academic spaces that reduce the stress of racism and help students to value their racial identity may be particularly important spaces for other African American mathematics learners. The findings also have positive implications for the implementation of African and African American cultural practices and programs that can help other African American learners to positively construct identities as both African Americans and math learners. The documented findings raise critical questions about whether other African American learners that share the historical legacy of enslavement with the students in this study would benefit from African-centered schooling, despite the heterogeneity within this population.Item Can STEM Initiatives Be Social Justice Oriented: An Analysis of Urban School Reform Via Smaller Learning Communities(2010) Mete, Ryan Jared; MacDonald, Victoria-Maria; Education Policy, and Leadership; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)STEM is an acronym that stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. STEM academies are theme-based curricula that have gained considerable attention on the national level. The intended outcome of a STEM curriculum is to raise career awareness and increase college and graduate level enrollment in science and engineering in order to ultimately restore the United States' position as a worldwide leader in technological innovation. In 2008, a group of middle school teachers in Maryland designed a STEM academy to address the achievement gap between African American and white students at their school. The founding teachers used a combination of thematic curriculum and structural redesign via a process called "looping" to create a school-within-a-school model that focused on average-performing and at-risk students. This study explores the process these teachers underwent to implement a differentiated STEM program to a diverse student body in an urban middle school.Item The Case for Degree Completion: African American Transfer Students at a Traditionally White Institution(2009) Younger, Toyia Kiana; Fries-Britt, Sharon L; Education Policy, and Leadership; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The purpose of this dissertation was to identify and understand the factors that contribute to the degree completion of African American transfer students at a traditionally White institution. Through qualitative methods and a case study design, the current study provides an examination of the educational journey of thirteen, African American recent college graduates. Using semi-structured individual interviews, data from the participants were collected, transcribed, and analyzed drawing from several major theoretical perspectives on college student persistence. Variables examined included interactions with faculty and with peers, racial experiences on campus, and support services offered to transfer students by the institution. Findings indicated that African American transfer students identified strong support networks, confidence in their ability to learn, intrinsic motivation and having clear educational goals as factors which contributed to their degree completion at a traditionally White institution. Implications for campus policies and practices, as well as recommendations for future research are presented.