Equitability not Just Equality: A Critical Examination of Urban Schools, Urban Teachers, and the Teacher-Student Relationship

Briana D. Davis

Advisor: Richard T Craig, PhD, Department of Communication

Committee Members: Timothy Gibson, Anne Nicotera

Horizon Hall, #5225
April 04, 2025, 11:00 AM to 01:00 PM

Abstract:

Education policy and practice in the U.S. has for centuries been saturated with antiblackness and suggest that the Black body is less-than-human and unworthy of a quality education. Scholars have regarded antiblackness as a particular disdain for Black people as reflected in American structures, laws, and policies (Dumas & Ross, 2016). This study aimed to reveal how antiblackness has infested urban schools through ideologies upheld in the urban school and by examining the impact the structure has on teachers' identities and perceptions about urban student identities. Utilizing Critical Race Theory (CRT) tenets, this study conceptualizes urban schools as an ideological space that transmits antiblack ideology regarding student academic achievement and behavior. This qualitative study utilized an in-methods triangulation by combining urban teachers (N=22) interviews with the researcher's autoethnographic accounts to understand how teachers perceive the urban school structure, its impact on their teacher's identities, and perceptions of student identities. The findings reveal that teachers make sense of the urban school through its academic and behavioral climate, with these factors significantly shaping their identities. Teachers identified urban student identities in four categories: High-Achieving Good Behavior (HAGB), High-Achieving Bad Behavior (HABB), Low-Achieving Good Behavior (LAGB), and Low-Achieving Bad Behavior (LABB). This categorization reflects how teachers navigate their classrooms and informs the process of othering in urban schools. This study revealed that teacher perceptions of student identities influence teacher-student relationships and underscores the importance of advocating for the equitable learning experiences for Black and brown children.
Key words: Antiblackness, Urban Schools, Ideology, Critical Race Theory, Teacher-student Relationships, Othering
 
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ZOOM link : https://gmu.zoom.us/j/2516901548