Remixing Resilience: A Critical Examination of Urban Middle School Learning Environments among Resilient African American Learners

Abstract

This study examines a sample of African American students attending urban middle schools in a Southern city, and considers their perceptions of learning environments within mathematics classrooms. This study concluded that variables like Academic Self-Concept, Mathematics Anxiety, Satisfaction, Involvement, and Academic Aspiration varied significantly among higher and lower performing students. These variables are informed by the classic resilience literature on learning environment that tends to be less culturally affirming. In an effort to move resilience theory away from racial ideologies, we reconceptualize resilience as a cultural trait common among African American learners that should not be conceptualized dichotomously nor hierarchically

A longitudinal examination of the relations between motivation, math achievement, and STEM career aspirations among Black students

“…Despite this toxic sociocultural context, Black brilliance for mathematics has endured, a testament to the resilience and persistence of Black children (see Berry et al, 2014;Joseph et al, 2017 for reviews). Resilience is a common cultural strength among Black learners (James et al, 2022), and is thus part of their cultural milieu. For example, some Black students have remained motivated to learn and perform well in mathematics despite awareness of the discrimination and barriers they faced as Black students (Berry, 2008;Berry et al, 2014).…”