Given today’s nationwide adoption of education reforms like the weakening of urban teacher unions... more Given today’s nationwide adoption of education reforms like the weakening of urban teacher unions, closure of urban public schools, and the simultaneous proliferation of corporate charter schools, billionaire-supported education reformers frequently justify their advocacy as being “for the children;” more specifically, students of color attending “failing” urban public schools. In trumpeting such positions “for the children,” or in the best interest of children, contemporary corporate-funded education reformers of various ethnic backgrounds cast themselves as the sole constituency advocating in the best interest of low-income, urban students of color. In this article, I will briefly explore the “for the children” phraseology as a rhetorical device employed to silence dissent across a variety of topics including education reform. Finally, I will then identify blind spots in education reform advocates’ advocacy “for the children” that ultimately harms the specific children and urban Black communities whom they claim to be working on their behalf.
Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 2024
Social media is a group of technologies that offers people avenues to engage with one another in ... more Social media is a group of technologies that offers people avenues to engage with one another in a virtual and digital space through their computer or smartphone (Ober & Wildman, 2015) with young black Americans consuming social media more, proportionally, than any other demographic. As such, young Black educators are increasingly availing themselves to social media as a space to communicate and share their professional experiences with other black educators, and the world. In so doing, some young black educators opt to use their social media platform, and their institutional authority to shine a negative light on their black students and parents. In this narrative review, I explore social media consumption, shaming within the educational context, and black teachers as distinct from lower income black parents and students to argue that rather than using their positions as educators to protect their students and parents, young black teachers who have achieved middle-class status and use social media to display their professional frustrations with their black students and parents, only accomplishes the shaming of those with less power and agency-the very people black teachers traditionally protected from harm.
This chapter reviews key changes in teacher unionism as they relate to urban education in the neo... more This chapter reviews key changes in teacher unionism as they relate to urban education in the neoliberal project of mass privatization of public education, weakening of teachers unions, and gutting of public worker benefits and pensions. The intensely negative impact of neoliberal reforms on teachers’ work is studied a great deal; yet what the architects and proponents of the reforms have named as probably the most dangerous impediment to success of its project, teachers unions studied very little. The rationale in support of neoliberal educational policies supported in the United States (US) is by both Democrats and Republicans as a method of ameliorating educational inequality through increased high-stakes standardized testing, takeover of local school boards of education, district takeovers, the proliferation of pre-packaged corporate curricula, and the proliferation of charter schools and urban public school closures. The researcher becoming the researched, the phenomenon under investigation and the central unit of analysis, is the staple of autoethnography.
International Journal of Social Science And Human Research, 2023
The purpose of this qualitative study is to better understand how urban high schools prepare thei... more The purpose of this qualitative study is to better understand how urban high schools prepare their students of color (SoC) for "college and career readiness" through asking the following: What does educating for "college and career readiness" look like? How are students being educated for "college and career readiness", and How do students learn about and interpret "college and career readiness?" With these central questions and responses from two Greenwood City School District (GCSD)* principals and nine GCSD students, we learn the focus within the "college and career readiness" paradigm is largely dedicated to student's college preparation and occupational exposure, but not much in the way of introducing challenging aspects of tomorrow's occupational landscape including neoliberalism, globalization, automation, and workplace discrimination. This study concludes with recommendations that education practitioners critically deconstruct the language used to imply sufficiency of the college degree in yielding reliable, secure employment for students of color, as well as encourage more transparency with students pertaining to what likely lies ahead in the workplace of tomorrow.
While the conception of "failing schools" has proliferated the American public's (mis)understandi... more While the conception of "failing schools" has proliferated the American public's (mis)understanding of performance of low-income urban public schools unabated since A Nation at Risk, education literature suggests "failing schools" are not what has been commonly described in conventional wisdom. Here, I begin by conceptualizing conventional wisdom before describing the popular narrative affixed to "failing schools" and briefly discussing the history of standardized assessments implemented to identify "failing schools". And as the popular conception of "failing schools" position such schools as irredeemable education spaces as evidenced by students' performance on standardized tests, in this article I attempt to posit a rebuttal to that conventional wisdom, namely that "failing schools" do not exist as isolated institutional sources of academic "failure" but are byproducts of longstanding economic and policy neglect of poor urban communities by policymakers, yet serve as convenient targets for the ultra-wealthy to divert popular attention away from systemic economic inequities which created illusion of "failing schools" to begin with.
Both popular media and academic research abound with conveyances of teachers exiting the professi... more Both popular media and academic research abound with conveyances of teachers exiting the profession in frustration and exasperation. Whether the causes are connected to feelings of demoralization (Santoro, 2018) or feeling attacked both at work and in society, it is clear educators are not staying in education for as long as past generations and are leaving the profession faster. Even in trying times however, teachers, often were the vanguards in defending the sanctity of their profession, protecting quality education for students, and pushing for a better society for all against harmful governmental policies. This brief essay seeks to remind educators specifically, but indeed all readers, where teachers exhibited resistance efforts in defense of their profession in the contemporary fight over the privatization of public education, as well as highlight a few instances where teachers stood up against governmental policies to benefit the broader public.
The recent fervor over Critical Race Theory (CRT) in American public schools is the result of a c... more The recent fervor over Critical Race Theory (CRT) in American public schools is the result of a confluence of contributing factors including: an eroded news media apparatus operating within a capitalist framework where an increasing portion of the American populace consume news through hyper-partisan cable news networks and social media that comports with their individual ideological preference; the decrying of CRT in schools as the latest iteration of historically-reliable White Backlash; and a highly-effective conservative messaging apparatus skilled in fomenting White Rage based on disinformation. In this essay I will, first, briefly survey America’s collapsing contemporary news media industry before discussing contextualizing White Rage throughout American history. From there, I will transition the article’s focus to the modern conservative media machine pushing fake news highlighting the (non-existent) issue of CRT in primarily suburban public schools as an exemplification of White Rage to protect whiteness and its hegemony for political gain.
As the language of “college and career readiness” continues to permeate American public education... more As the language of “college and career readiness” continues to permeate American public education, the fixation on preparing students for college and careers is potentially harmful for students, particularly urban students of color. In promoting “college and career readiness”, certain assumptions are taken for granted: that American schools are sites of egalitarian meritocracy and not spaces of social reproduction; that tomorrow’s job market desires more individuals with formal
education, and that the jobs market will be viable for tomorrow’s willing workers. Here, we argue that as “college and career readiness” continues to be the dominant approach in American schools, it ignores the realities that the workplace of tomorrow is growing harsher as corporations continue their efforts to maximize profits by keeping labor costs low by reducing worker participation and seeking cheaper labor. Simultaneously, American students of color are more vulnerable to tomorrow’s
workplace in that they continue to experience racial discrimination coupled with the growing tenuous nature of the future domestic job market. Thus, students who are being schooled in “college and career readiness” have to contend with the possibility that, though they are more formally educated, the economy of tomorrow may still deem them expendable.
University Council for Education Administration Review, 2019
When I think about the recent successes of the demonstrations
in West Virginia (twice), Arizona, ... more When I think about the recent successes of the demonstrations in West Virginia (twice), Arizona, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Colorado, North Carolina, and more recently Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago and Oakland, I feel both a sense of encouragement and caution.
This qualitative study investigates if, and how, both current and middle-class prospective Camden... more This qualitative study investigates if, and how, both current and middle-class prospective Camden (NJ) residents' housing decisions are impacted by increased school choice through Camden's newly state-imposed Renaissance schools. Recent research suggests greater school choice options can attract and anchor middle-class families within larger, more cosmopolitan cities like New York, San Francisco, Atlanta, and Philadelphia. Here, with Camden's smaller, post-industrial urban identity, study findings suggest participants' decision to live in Camden is largely unaffected by the offering of more choice school options. Current residents reported choosing to remain in Camden due to the city's affordability and emotional connections to the city. Middle-income prospective residents indicated their decision to move to Camden is impacted by broader quality of life considerations including safety and poverty, and communicated negative perceptions of Camden's newer choice schools. This study highlights the complexity and nuance in the common understanding of urban residential decisions and school choice, particularly within smaller, non-cosmopolitan urban localities.
While the geographic focus of this article is
Camden, the needs of urban communities and
marginal... more While the geographic focus of this article is Camden, the needs of urban communities and marginalization of its residents are universal. The concerns of Camden residents, safe streets, quality housing and education, and access to decent employment, are nearly identical to those of Harlem, Liberty City, East St. Louis, Compton and everywhere in between. Thus, this article is not so much a conveyance of Camden’s unique deficiencies and residents’ unreasonable expectations of its educators in helping to facilitate local change, as it is intended to spur conversation in education literature that highlights urban residents’ expectations of their local educators, in the similar fashion in which expectations are communicated to them.
The aim of this special issue of the Journal
of School and Society is to explore the ways in
whic... more The aim of this special issue of the Journal of School and Society is to explore the ways in which urban teachers can both be and become advocates for social justice beyond the schoolhouse. Expansive literature explores the often divergent backgrounds and lived experiences between urban teachers, their students, and the communities in which they work. What is less explored is the concept of urban educators acting as agents for societal change—beyond the walls of the classroom, as they seek to combat oppressive conditions present in the communities where they teach—for the betterment of the community.
Given today’s nationwide adoption of education reforms like the weakening of urban teacher unions... more Given today’s nationwide adoption of education reforms like the weakening of urban teacher unions, closure of urban public schools, and the simultaneous proliferation of corporate charter schools, billionaire-supported education reformers frequently justify their advocacy as being “for the children;” more specifically, students of color attending “failing” urban public schools. In trumpeting such positions “for the children,” or in the best interest of children, contemporary corporate-funded education reformers of various ethnic backgrounds cast themselves as the sole constituency advocating in the best interest of low-income, urban students of color. In this article, I will briefly explore the “for the children” phraseology as a rhetorical device employed to silence dissent across a variety of topics including education reform. Finally, I will then identify blind spots in education reform advocates’ advocacy “for the children” that ultimately harms the specific children and urban Black communities whom they claim to be working on their behalf.
Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 2024
Social media is a group of technologies that offers people avenues to engage with one another in ... more Social media is a group of technologies that offers people avenues to engage with one another in a virtual and digital space through their computer or smartphone (Ober & Wildman, 2015) with young black Americans consuming social media more, proportionally, than any other demographic. As such, young Black educators are increasingly availing themselves to social media as a space to communicate and share their professional experiences with other black educators, and the world. In so doing, some young black educators opt to use their social media platform, and their institutional authority to shine a negative light on their black students and parents. In this narrative review, I explore social media consumption, shaming within the educational context, and black teachers as distinct from lower income black parents and students to argue that rather than using their positions as educators to protect their students and parents, young black teachers who have achieved middle-class status and use social media to display their professional frustrations with their black students and parents, only accomplishes the shaming of those with less power and agency-the very people black teachers traditionally protected from harm.
This chapter reviews key changes in teacher unionism as they relate to urban education in the neo... more This chapter reviews key changes in teacher unionism as they relate to urban education in the neoliberal project of mass privatization of public education, weakening of teachers unions, and gutting of public worker benefits and pensions. The intensely negative impact of neoliberal reforms on teachers’ work is studied a great deal; yet what the architects and proponents of the reforms have named as probably the most dangerous impediment to success of its project, teachers unions studied very little. The rationale in support of neoliberal educational policies supported in the United States (US) is by both Democrats and Republicans as a method of ameliorating educational inequality through increased high-stakes standardized testing, takeover of local school boards of education, district takeovers, the proliferation of pre-packaged corporate curricula, and the proliferation of charter schools and urban public school closures. The researcher becoming the researched, the phenomenon under investigation and the central unit of analysis, is the staple of autoethnography.
International Journal of Social Science And Human Research, 2023
The purpose of this qualitative study is to better understand how urban high schools prepare thei... more The purpose of this qualitative study is to better understand how urban high schools prepare their students of color (SoC) for "college and career readiness" through asking the following: What does educating for "college and career readiness" look like? How are students being educated for "college and career readiness", and How do students learn about and interpret "college and career readiness?" With these central questions and responses from two Greenwood City School District (GCSD)* principals and nine GCSD students, we learn the focus within the "college and career readiness" paradigm is largely dedicated to student's college preparation and occupational exposure, but not much in the way of introducing challenging aspects of tomorrow's occupational landscape including neoliberalism, globalization, automation, and workplace discrimination. This study concludes with recommendations that education practitioners critically deconstruct the language used to imply sufficiency of the college degree in yielding reliable, secure employment for students of color, as well as encourage more transparency with students pertaining to what likely lies ahead in the workplace of tomorrow.
While the conception of "failing schools" has proliferated the American public's (mis)understandi... more While the conception of "failing schools" has proliferated the American public's (mis)understanding of performance of low-income urban public schools unabated since A Nation at Risk, education literature suggests "failing schools" are not what has been commonly described in conventional wisdom. Here, I begin by conceptualizing conventional wisdom before describing the popular narrative affixed to "failing schools" and briefly discussing the history of standardized assessments implemented to identify "failing schools". And as the popular conception of "failing schools" position such schools as irredeemable education spaces as evidenced by students' performance on standardized tests, in this article I attempt to posit a rebuttal to that conventional wisdom, namely that "failing schools" do not exist as isolated institutional sources of academic "failure" but are byproducts of longstanding economic and policy neglect of poor urban communities by policymakers, yet serve as convenient targets for the ultra-wealthy to divert popular attention away from systemic economic inequities which created illusion of "failing schools" to begin with.
Both popular media and academic research abound with conveyances of teachers exiting the professi... more Both popular media and academic research abound with conveyances of teachers exiting the profession in frustration and exasperation. Whether the causes are connected to feelings of demoralization (Santoro, 2018) or feeling attacked both at work and in society, it is clear educators are not staying in education for as long as past generations and are leaving the profession faster. Even in trying times however, teachers, often were the vanguards in defending the sanctity of their profession, protecting quality education for students, and pushing for a better society for all against harmful governmental policies. This brief essay seeks to remind educators specifically, but indeed all readers, where teachers exhibited resistance efforts in defense of their profession in the contemporary fight over the privatization of public education, as well as highlight a few instances where teachers stood up against governmental policies to benefit the broader public.
The recent fervor over Critical Race Theory (CRT) in American public schools is the result of a c... more The recent fervor over Critical Race Theory (CRT) in American public schools is the result of a confluence of contributing factors including: an eroded news media apparatus operating within a capitalist framework where an increasing portion of the American populace consume news through hyper-partisan cable news networks and social media that comports with their individual ideological preference; the decrying of CRT in schools as the latest iteration of historically-reliable White Backlash; and a highly-effective conservative messaging apparatus skilled in fomenting White Rage based on disinformation. In this essay I will, first, briefly survey America’s collapsing contemporary news media industry before discussing contextualizing White Rage throughout American history. From there, I will transition the article’s focus to the modern conservative media machine pushing fake news highlighting the (non-existent) issue of CRT in primarily suburban public schools as an exemplification of White Rage to protect whiteness and its hegemony for political gain.
As the language of “college and career readiness” continues to permeate American public education... more As the language of “college and career readiness” continues to permeate American public education, the fixation on preparing students for college and careers is potentially harmful for students, particularly urban students of color. In promoting “college and career readiness”, certain assumptions are taken for granted: that American schools are sites of egalitarian meritocracy and not spaces of social reproduction; that tomorrow’s job market desires more individuals with formal
education, and that the jobs market will be viable for tomorrow’s willing workers. Here, we argue that as “college and career readiness” continues to be the dominant approach in American schools, it ignores the realities that the workplace of tomorrow is growing harsher as corporations continue their efforts to maximize profits by keeping labor costs low by reducing worker participation and seeking cheaper labor. Simultaneously, American students of color are more vulnerable to tomorrow’s
workplace in that they continue to experience racial discrimination coupled with the growing tenuous nature of the future domestic job market. Thus, students who are being schooled in “college and career readiness” have to contend with the possibility that, though they are more formally educated, the economy of tomorrow may still deem them expendable.
University Council for Education Administration Review, 2019
When I think about the recent successes of the demonstrations
in West Virginia (twice), Arizona, ... more When I think about the recent successes of the demonstrations in West Virginia (twice), Arizona, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Colorado, North Carolina, and more recently Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago and Oakland, I feel both a sense of encouragement and caution.
This qualitative study investigates if, and how, both current and middle-class prospective Camden... more This qualitative study investigates if, and how, both current and middle-class prospective Camden (NJ) residents' housing decisions are impacted by increased school choice through Camden's newly state-imposed Renaissance schools. Recent research suggests greater school choice options can attract and anchor middle-class families within larger, more cosmopolitan cities like New York, San Francisco, Atlanta, and Philadelphia. Here, with Camden's smaller, post-industrial urban identity, study findings suggest participants' decision to live in Camden is largely unaffected by the offering of more choice school options. Current residents reported choosing to remain in Camden due to the city's affordability and emotional connections to the city. Middle-income prospective residents indicated their decision to move to Camden is impacted by broader quality of life considerations including safety and poverty, and communicated negative perceptions of Camden's newer choice schools. This study highlights the complexity and nuance in the common understanding of urban residential decisions and school choice, particularly within smaller, non-cosmopolitan urban localities.
While the geographic focus of this article is
Camden, the needs of urban communities and
marginal... more While the geographic focus of this article is Camden, the needs of urban communities and marginalization of its residents are universal. The concerns of Camden residents, safe streets, quality housing and education, and access to decent employment, are nearly identical to those of Harlem, Liberty City, East St. Louis, Compton and everywhere in between. Thus, this article is not so much a conveyance of Camden’s unique deficiencies and residents’ unreasonable expectations of its educators in helping to facilitate local change, as it is intended to spur conversation in education literature that highlights urban residents’ expectations of their local educators, in the similar fashion in which expectations are communicated to them.
The aim of this special issue of the Journal
of School and Society is to explore the ways in
whic... more The aim of this special issue of the Journal of School and Society is to explore the ways in which urban teachers can both be and become advocates for social justice beyond the schoolhouse. Expansive literature explores the often divergent backgrounds and lived experiences between urban teachers, their students, and the communities in which they work. What is less explored is the concept of urban educators acting as agents for societal change—beyond the walls of the classroom, as they seek to combat oppressive conditions present in the communities where they teach—for the betterment of the community.
While the conception of "failing schools" has proliferated the American public's (mis)understandi... more While the conception of "failing schools" has proliferated the American public's (mis)understanding of performance of low-income urban public schools unabated since A Nation at Risk, education literature suggests "failing schools" are not what has been commonly described in conventional wisdom. Here, I begin by conceptualizing conventional wisdom before describing the popular narrative affixed to "failing schools" and briefly discussing the history of standardized assessments implemented to identify "failing schools". And as the popular conception of "failing schools" position such schools as irredeemable education spaces as evidenced by students' performance on standardized tests, in this article I attempt to posit a rebuttal to that conventional wisdom, namely that "failing schools" do not exist as isolated institutional sources of academic "failure" but are byproducts of longstanding economic and policy neglect of poor urban communities by policymakers, yet serve as convenient targets for the ultra-wealthy to divert popular attention away from systemic economic inequities which created illusion of "failing schools" to begin with.
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education, and that the jobs market will be viable for tomorrow’s willing workers. Here, we argue that as “college and career readiness” continues to be the dominant approach in American schools, it ignores the realities that the workplace of tomorrow is growing harsher as corporations continue their efforts to maximize profits by keeping labor costs low by reducing worker participation and seeking cheaper labor. Simultaneously, American students of color are more vulnerable to tomorrow’s
workplace in that they continue to experience racial discrimination coupled with the growing tenuous nature of the future domestic job market. Thus, students who are being schooled in “college and career readiness” have to contend with the possibility that, though they are more formally educated, the economy of tomorrow may still deem them expendable.
in West Virginia (twice), Arizona, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Colorado,
North Carolina, and more recently Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago
and Oakland, I feel both a sense of encouragement and caution.
Camden, the needs of urban communities and
marginalization of its residents are universal.
The concerns of Camden residents, safe streets,
quality housing and education, and access to
decent employment, are nearly identical to
those of Harlem, Liberty City, East St. Louis,
Compton and everywhere in between. Thus,
this article is not so much a conveyance of
Camden’s unique deficiencies and residents’
unreasonable expectations of its educators in
helping to facilitate local change, as it is intended to spur conversation in education literature
that highlights urban residents’ expectations of
their local educators, in the similar fashion in
which expectations are communicated to them.
of School and Society is to explore the ways in
which urban teachers can both be and become
advocates for social justice beyond the schoolhouse.
Expansive literature explores the often
divergent backgrounds and lived experiences
between urban teachers, their students, and the
communities in which they work. What is less
explored is the concept of urban educators acting
as agents for societal change—beyond the
walls of the classroom, as they seek to combat
oppressive conditions present in the communities
where they teach—for the betterment of
the community.
education, and that the jobs market will be viable for tomorrow’s willing workers. Here, we argue that as “college and career readiness” continues to be the dominant approach in American schools, it ignores the realities that the workplace of tomorrow is growing harsher as corporations continue their efforts to maximize profits by keeping labor costs low by reducing worker participation and seeking cheaper labor. Simultaneously, American students of color are more vulnerable to tomorrow’s
workplace in that they continue to experience racial discrimination coupled with the growing tenuous nature of the future domestic job market. Thus, students who are being schooled in “college and career readiness” have to contend with the possibility that, though they are more formally educated, the economy of tomorrow may still deem them expendable.
in West Virginia (twice), Arizona, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Colorado,
North Carolina, and more recently Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago
and Oakland, I feel both a sense of encouragement and caution.
Camden, the needs of urban communities and
marginalization of its residents are universal.
The concerns of Camden residents, safe streets,
quality housing and education, and access to
decent employment, are nearly identical to
those of Harlem, Liberty City, East St. Louis,
Compton and everywhere in between. Thus,
this article is not so much a conveyance of
Camden’s unique deficiencies and residents’
unreasonable expectations of its educators in
helping to facilitate local change, as it is intended to spur conversation in education literature
that highlights urban residents’ expectations of
their local educators, in the similar fashion in
which expectations are communicated to them.
of School and Society is to explore the ways in
which urban teachers can both be and become
advocates for social justice beyond the schoolhouse.
Expansive literature explores the often
divergent backgrounds and lived experiences
between urban teachers, their students, and the
communities in which they work. What is less
explored is the concept of urban educators acting
as agents for societal change—beyond the
walls of the classroom, as they seek to combat
oppressive conditions present in the communities
where they teach—for the betterment of
the community.