Becoming a Hurdler: How Learning Settings Afford Identities

Abstract

In this article, we present a model for thinking about how learning settings provide resources for the development of the practice-linked identities of participants, drawing on data from a study on an African American high school track and field team. What does it mean to make an identity available in the context of a learning setting? In this article, we draw on current theories in anthropology, psychology, sociology, and sociocultural theory to develop a conceptual frame that might be helpful in addressing these questions. We focus on how individuals are offered (and how they take up) identities in cultural activities. We define three types of identity resources that were made available to student-athletes learning to run track and explore how they took shape in teaching and learning interactions in track. [identity, learning, African American students, culture]

Learners in Transition Between Contexts

“…Nasir and Cooks (2009) suggested that Wenger "reconceptualizes learning from an in-the-head phenomenon to a matter of engagement, participation, and membership in a community of practice" (p. 42). The modes of belonging indicate how people position themselves in relationship to communities of practice, and thus the forms of becoming that are possible.…”

Who is Whistling Vivaldi? How Black football players engage with stereotype threats in college

“…This students' response was to assuage the stereotype threat by becoming an active participant in class by purposefully, and even defiantly, proving tacit beliefs wrong. In this case, mitigating stereotype threat required conscious agency and self-efficacy: "Within these figured worlds, identity is constructed as individuals both act with agency in authoring themselves and are acted upon by social others as they are positioned (as members, nonmembers, or certain kinds of members" (Nasir & Cooks, 2009). Authoring his own identity as a Black male athlete, this participant actively creates conditions for positive perceptions.…”

Relevance and Care in Teacher Practices: Supporting African American Students as Learners

“…Case study data of secondary schools with high percentages of collegeattending graduates (Lewis-Charp & Law, 2014), insights from students reporting satisfaction and engagement with their schooling experiences (Antrop-González & DeJesús, 2006;LewisCharp & Law, 2014) and studies conducted in out of school contexts provide additional evidence that African American students willingly assume apprentice, or learner, roles in settings in which it feels accessible and worthwhile to do so (Nasir & Cooks, 2009;. Within and outside of the classroom, relevant experiences assist students in assuming identities and behaviors that are congruent with learning content, skills and essential understandings of a discipline.…”

“…In addition to potentially influencing student performance and mental productivity, the way teachers see students within their classrooms and the relationships they have with them can also affect the resources available to students as they continue to carve out a sense of self (Nasir & Cooks, 2009). Case study data of secondary schools with high percentages of collegeattending graduates (Lewis-Charp & Law, 2014), insights from students reporting satisfaction and engagement with their schooling experiences (Antrop-González & DeJesús, 2006;LewisCharp & Law, 2014) and studies conducted in out of school contexts provide additional evidence that African American students willingly assume apprentice, or learner, roles in settings in which it feels accessible and worthwhile to do so (Nasir & Cooks, 2009;.…”

“…Troubled by a history of minimizing the capacity of African Americans and riddled by the effects of longstanding biases, stereotypes, fears and social tensions, the importance of exploring how to create learning environments in which students experience relevant curriculum and instruction and genuine support and encouragement to invest as learners is of critical importance. By examining African American students' participation in classroom and extracurricular activities, Nasir (2005) and others (Nasir & Cooks, 2009; have provided glimpses into ways in which students position themselves as learners.…”