Countering Educational Disparities Among Black Boys and Black Adolescent Boys from Pre-K to High School: A Life Course-Intersectional Perspective

Abstract

Accounts of educational opportunity gaps for Black boys are overwhelmingly focused on later years of development. Achievement and discipline disparities are evident across their lifespan. Life course and intersectionality theories were used to develop a framework for understanding obstacles Black boys face during their preschool through high school years. Outlining the cumulative impact of threats and protective factors for their academic success provides insight for supporting Black boys at various developmental stages. Implications include tools for families, educators, and practitioners. This perspective will enhance the collective understanding of the resiliency of Black boys and support their educational success throughout the life course.

Toward A Black PlayCrit in Educational Leadership: What School Leaders Need to Know About Black Boyhood Play

“…Not only have research studies acknowledged the ways in which early childhood education has academically failed Black boys, but there is also ample information about how it has failed them socially when teachers are unable to meet their needs in culturally relevant and affirming ways. Consistent with a compendium of research studies on Black boys' social outcomes (Gilliam et al, 2016;Miller-Dyce et al, 2020;Moore et al, 2018;Nasir et al, 2019;Wint et al, 2021), Wright and Counsell (2018) have noted that early childhood education is a discipline hub for Black boys. Indeed, rather than educating them, early childhood educators school them by over-disciplining and under-educating them (Shujaa, 1994).…”

Intersectionality in Educational Psychology and Curriculum Studies: A Critical Review

“…We argue that numerous learning theories can be reconceptualized under this theoretical framework. For instance, Wint et al, (2022) integrated intersectionality into Life Course Theory to identify risk factors and supports at multiple levels at various developmental stages of Black boys and adolescents calling for a change in the deficit narratives and highlighting learners' strengths and resistance. Next presented is an example of how we can reconceptualize the Bioecological Model (Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 2007), a development model of change and continuity of individual learner and groups, under the theoretical framework of intersectionality.…”

Resisting racism in school

“…(p. xxi) Much of the research about schooling for Black boys and young men focuses on disparities in outcomes such as test scores (Assari et al, 2021); graduation rates (Kafele, 2012; National Center for Education Statistics, 2022); and discipline rates (Chu & Ready, 2018;Skiba, Arredondo, & Rausch, 2014;Skiba & Losen, 2015). However, structural inequality and endemic antiblackness impact Black boys throughout their schooling experiences in ways statistics alone do not capture (Wint et al, 2022).…”