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Although a significant body of research addresses teachers’ perceptions of student disruption, the views of African American teachers remain underrepresented. In particular, little is known about African American teachers’ disciplinary practices with students of the same race. The purpose of the current study was to examine if and how the concept of cultural synchronization relates to an African American middle-school teacher’s responses to student disruption. Qualitative data were gathered from an eighth-grade classroom in a public, urban middle school. The findings suggest that cultural synchronization between the teacher and her students contributed to an effective style of classroom management that differs from traditional models. The discussion highlights the importance of cultural issues as related to effective disciplinary tactics for urban African American students.

This article highlights the significance of the U.S. South in scholarly discussions regarding the academic achievement gap involving Black students. Despite national concern, patterns embedded in Black student achievement as related to geographical influences generally are ignored, especially in the South, where the majority of Black people in the United States reside. The authors refine the scholarship on the Black-White achievement gap through an analysis of racialized national spaces and population shifts, to set forth a more comprehensive understanding of school achievement than previously existed. In elucidating the nexus between race and place and the implications for Black student achievement, the authors specifically highlight the saliency of the U.S. South as a critical-and neglectedsite for the investigation of such issues.

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