Exploring the Boundary-Heightening Experiences of Black Male Teachers: Lessons for Teacher Education Programs

Abstract

This article uses a phenomenological approach to explore the organizational dynamic of boundary heightening for 27 Black male teachers, across 14 schools, in one urban school district. Black male teachers described being perceived by their colleagues as either incompetent or overqualified to teach their subject matter. These experiences created workplace environments in which participants felt alienated from their colleagues. In response, these Black male teachers strategically erected social boundaries to manage interactions with their colleagues. Black male teacher diversity campaigns in education preparation programs should be informed by Black male teachers’ school-based experiences. The article shows how teacher education programs can redesign facets of their preparation to attend to the boundary-heightening and workplace experiences that Black male teachers may face in becoming teachers of record.

The conceptualization of costs and barriers of a teaching career among Latino preservice teachers

“…Further, our results indicate that some Latinos were actively encouraged by practicing teachers not to choose a teaching career. Participants' comments on these issues suggest an anticipation of social isolation and racial discrimination that male teachers of color often experience as teachers in the field (Bristol & Goings, 2018). These findings underscore the importance of understanding how Latino preservice teachers' perceptions of the profession can be shaped by family, friends, and others.…”

“…Researchers have documented evidence of racially biased teacher hiring practices, where Black and Latinx applicants are less likely to be hired than white applicants are (D'amico, Pawlewicz, Earley, & McGeehan, 2017;DuBois & Schanzenbach, 2017). Teachers of color have also reported social isolation in their jobs and stress associated with the perpetual need to fight negative racial stereotypes (Bristol & Goings, 2018;Mabokela & Madson, 2003;Milner & Hoy, 2003). Similarly, minority teachers, especially men of color, are often assigned the role of disciplinarian for students of color and have their general pedagogical skills challenged or ignored (Bristol & Goings, 2018;Brockenbrough, 2015;Milner & Hoy, 2003).…”

“…Teachers of color have also reported social isolation in their jobs and stress associated with the perpetual need to fight negative racial stereotypes (Bristol & Goings, 2018;Mabokela & Madson, 2003;Milner & Hoy, 2003). Similarly, minority teachers, especially men of color, are often assigned the role of disciplinarian for students of color and have their general pedagogical skills challenged or ignored (Bristol & Goings, 2018;Brockenbrough, 2015;Milner & Hoy, 2003). In addition, early career teachers of color are more likely to teach in high poverty, underresourced schools, where teaching conditions are highly challenging and which likely contributes to higher rates of teacher turnover (Borman & Dowling, 2008;Casey et al, 2015;Ingersoll, et al, 2014).…”

“…A fruitful direction for future research would be to understand how messages from socializers strengthen or erode a commitment to the profession, and how these influences relate to emergent professional and personal identities. It is perhaps noteworthy that race and gender were not commonly mentioned as salient barriers or cost of a teaching career, particularly in light of studies that found race and gender issues as challenges identified by preservice teachers of color in predominantly white education program (Sleeter, Neal, & Kumashiro, 2014) and by in-service male teachers of color (e.g., Bristol & Goings, 2018;Brockenbrough, 2015). The impersonal nature and written response format of the survey method together with question phrasing that did not explicitly ask about race-and gender-related costs may have discouraged students from raising complex race and gender issues.…”

The lives of teachers in diverse classrooms

“…Service learning and cultural immersion can provide for relevant field experience in teacher education. Service learning allows teachers to "work with and learn from local people in the process of doing something that teachers serve as educational leaders for an increasingly diverse student population" (Boyle-Baise and McIntyre, 2008, p. 310 [114]). Cultural immersion experiences help educators venture outside their cultural comfort zone and transform their understanding of others (Yuan H., 2018[115]).…”