Real or Ideal? A Narrative Literature Review Addressing White Privilege in Teacher Education

Abstract

A narrative literature review was conducted to examine how researchers address the concept of White privilege in teacher education using critical race theory. A Boolean search revealed 26 articles met criteria for inclusion. Findings show most researchers ( n = 15, 55%) investigated perceptions of White privilege within individual multicultural education courses and not comprehensively at the teacher education program level. Many White preservice teachers had difficulty connecting race-based privilege with systemic inequities. Implications for future research and training preservice teachers are provided.

What Have You Done for Me Lately? Educational Research and Urban Schools

“…Teachers who lack an understanding of systemic oppression in relation to race-based privilege may not have the capacity to work with educational researchers of P-12 urban schools to develop phronetic knowledge. Bennett, Driver, and Trent (2017) completed a narrative literature review addressing White privilege in teacher education and found that only one researcher (Page, 2010) explained the concept was addressed within multiple, recursive courses in her teacher education program. The majority of researchers who addressed the concept of White privilege in teacher education completed studies within single multicultural or diversity education courses (Bennett et al, 2017).…”

Tackling discrimination and systemic racism in academic and workplace settings

“…Taken further, race-based data is important for employers, nursing associations and regulatory bodies to monitor and to aspire to attain equity in ethnicity demographics. Similarly, changes in the curricula should include concepts like cultural humility and White privilege to increase learners' knowledge about racism and to stop the perpetuation of it in academic and health institutions (Bennett et al, 2019).…”

Building Solidarity with Black Nurses to Dismantle Systemic and Structural Racism in Nursing

“…Nursing schools should prepare undergraduate students to care for patients of all colors and races. Undergraduate students are taught to provide patients and their families with culturally safe care regardless of race, gender, culture or socioeconomic status (Bennett et al, 2020). However, during pathophysiology labs, nursing students are not exposed to manikins of color.…”