Concerns from scholars about the exclusion of People of Color in children’s literature began in the early 20th century and continues today. The lack of children’s literature about People of Color is even more alarming in the contemporary moment, when Children of Color comprise a significant proportion of urban schools throughout the U.S. Only since the 1990’s have scholars begun to critically examine the portrayals of People of Color in children’s books. More recent research offers frameworks and methodologies for critical analyses of children’s books, namely a Critical Content Analysis that offers strategies for the examination of discursive power in literature for youth. This conceptual article theorizes how Critical Race Theory (CRT) in Education can be utilized with a Critical Content Analysis to provide a new framework for the examination of race, class, gender, (and other intersectionalities) in children’s books about People of Color— A Critical Race Content Analysis. We provide guiding principles of a Critical Race Content Analysis and analytical questions as tools for researchers and educators interested in conducting their own critical analyses of books about People of Color. Finally, we illustrate how this analysis is conducted with an example of a children’s book about immigration. This article makes important contributions to the literature on urban education that call for providing educators with tools to develop “racial literacies”.
Homelessness among U.S. K-12 students has been on the rise for decades, and it shows no signs of slowing down, especially as the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to significant unemployment. Joseph Bishop describes findings from a study of student homelessness in California. Interviews with those experiencing homelessness and those who serve them, as well as analysis of the data, reveal the obstacles that prevent these communities from receiving the help they need. These include differing definitions of homelessness, limited funding being made available, and lack of training among the educators who could help identify and support students. Because of the multifaceted nature of the problem, groups at the local, state, and national levels must find ways to work together to arrive at solutions tailored to the need.
Para las mujeres chingonas y chillonas. The women who run things despite sadness, a broken heart, depression and anxiety. We, boss bitches with too many feelings, may we always be too much. (Yessika Salgado) My lived experience as a Chicana, first-generation college student informs my interest in exploring the narratives of Latina women in doctoral programs. When I started my undergraduate career, no one in my family had completed a bachelor's degree. I am the first and only person in my family to earn a master's degree and now the first to be in a Ph.D. program. These isolating academic experiences pushed me to question: why are women like me not in advanced degree programs and leadership positions? Pérez Huber et al. (2015) report that out of 100 elementary students, only 4 Latinas will go to graduate school, and only 0.3 percent will complete a doctorate degree. These numbers confirmed what I already knew to be true from my own educational trajectory-very few Latinas are earning advanced degrees.As a result, for my own master's thesis in an Educational Leadership Doctoral program (Education Doctorate, Ed.D.), I focused on understanding the multiple identities, roles, racialized experiences, and resiliency of Latinas in an Ed.D. program.From my own education experiences and the work of other scholars (
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