Intersectionality in education is able to inform that social identities has a huge impact on an individual's education. Gender, race, and class are some of the top three social identities that affect educational experiences and outcomes. More people need to be aware that there are underlying issues within education that produce inequality not only within social identities, but within receiving equal opportunity for students. One of the most important lessons I've learned about intersectionality is that it has allowed me to be more wary of which social identities cross with one another in regards to inequality and understand why they intersect.
See also Intersectionality and Education
Intersectionality in Education
Movements in history has brought the people of today to where they are. The Women’s Suffrage has given more equality to women just as how the Civil Rights Movement has given more equality to people of color. The way both women and people of color have been treated has drastically improved since the beginning of the 20th century. They can attend college without judgment, vote, and own property without it having to be under the husband’s name. However, there are still issues of inequality for women and people of color and it has affected their life within education. Women still receive sexist remarks in regards to what they should and shouldn’t learn. Rather than be a scientist, women should go for something “softer” because it’s not difficult. People of color still experience racism in subtle ways such as finding a job. Students in school with different socioeconomic statuses and social identities will experience their education unequally because not everyone is receiving the same amount of educational opportunities. This essay will discuss five different readings that regard social issues within education and possible ways to overcome and make them aware to other individuals.
In the essay, “Race, Gender, Class and Education” by Jeanne Ballantine, she discusses the intersectionality between three major social identities and its relation to education. One of the first aspects she mentions within the essay is the relationship between social class and academic achievement. Within social class is a dichotomy of high and low class, which can determine which individuals have different educational outcomes and experiences. In a high social class, individuals with a higher socioeconomic status will have more opportunities to obtain educational success and have a better outcome than those who are from a lower socioeconomic status. It is because with more money within the family, parents are able to send their children off to schools that have more funding to be able to provide higher quality teachers, textbooks, extracurricular activities, and more classes. Cultural backgrounds play a factor in how individuals within social class and education. People of color tend to be within a lower socioeconomic status, which puts them at having less opportunities. Since race has social issues within itself due to prejudice and racism, it adds more of a problem when individuals obtain an education and may not have the same equal opportunities as those people of privilege. The author then ties gender in along with race, class, and its relationship with education. Lower class, non-white, female students are at the bottom of hierarchy when it comes to obtaining success. Each social identity has problems because they aren’t known to hold more privilege. Within the education system comes its issues of teachers and how they treat students and what could be improved within the classroom in regards to promoting equal opportunities for all social identities.
In the article “”You Won’t Believe What They Said in Class Today”: Professors’ Reflections on Student Resistance in Multicultural Education Courses” by Dunn et al, they discuss different perspectives of educators and their experiences in teaching courses. These educators reflect on how their social identities influence on the way they teach their students. They also discuss how their students will bring up questions that relate to power and oppression, and the educators must figure out how to deal with those questions. For example, in the article a white professor from a college wrote about how rather than experiencing racism, she is affected by it. It brings up an interesting point in that white people don’t experience the same kind of discrimination that people of color do, but it can deeply affect them. A way it has affected this certain professor was that she was able to acknowledge her privilege as a white person and use it to her advantage in teaching. She is able to discuss privilege to her students and look at it in an objective manner. While looking at privilege in such a perspective, she recognizes that she won’t be subjected to racial discrimination because white people typically don’t receive racist comments as much as people of color do. This white professor is able to have a discussion with her students and not make it about her because she doesn’t’ have any experiences regarding racism. She can learn from her students who may be of color and listen to their story.
The readings “Race, Gender, Class and Education” and “”You Won’t Believe What They Said in Class Today”: Professors’ Reflections on Student Resistance in Multicultural Education Courses” share a connection with one another in regards to teachers in education. Ballantine recognizes the issue that there are teachers that may not treat their students equally because of their gender. Male children are praised more by teachers when performing activities that are related to science and math. Female children are encouraged to be more passive and quiet as well as to play with their dolls and kitchen toys. Such toys do not promote having skills that could help in science and math. In the article written by Dunn et al, they bring up issues of race and class within the classroom similar to what Ballantine brought up. In some schools, teachers are predominantly white, which may offer a feeling of disconnection between students of color and the teachers. The students may not feel like they could come to their teacher for a problem that may deal with race because the teacher might not be able to relate and empathize. However, there is a contrast in these kinds of situations. In the Dunn et al article, white professors and teachers find their white privilege to be beneficial when students of color confront them with issues about racism. They see their white skin to be of a bystander because they’re able to step away from racism, since having white skin is the predominant race in the United States. They can look at racism objectively and recognize the issues within it rather than have a biased viewpoint. Some students of color may have an issue talking to their teacher about racism and other social issues, but others may not have the issue if their teacher addresses that it’s okay to discuss such issues. It’s important that teachers in the education system make sure their students can come and talk to them about what’s making them uncomfortable and be able to listen to such problems. It would help in gradually accomplishing one of the millennium development goals.
In the reading “Mixing Bodies and Minds: Race, Class, and ‘Mixed Schooling’ controversies in New Orleans and Atlanta” by Joseph O. Jewell, it explores the idea of social reproduction between class and race. One of the main products of social reproduction the author talks about is creating ideologies where certain privileges within a social identity are held at a higher power. For example, the author discusses how race and class are able to hold hierarchy within themselves. Having white skin is the predominant race within the United States, which gives more privilege to those who are white. Having a higher socioeconomic status also grants more privilege to those who belong to such social class. When having both white skin and a high socioeconomic status, it gives those individuals more access to resources and opportunities, especially within education. Depending on the neighborhood and economy within an area, a school within it may not hold as many opportunities as one in a richer neighborhood. Thus, creating a sense of segregation since individuals won’t be receiving the equal amount of opportunities.
In the essay “Poverty, Education, Gender and the Millennium Development Goals: Reflections on Boundaries and Intersectionality” by Elaine Unterhalter, the author expresses great concern for social issues. Such social issues include gender inequality, poverty, and a lack for education in many parts of the nation. The author also focuses on the effect these social issues have brought to the United States. For example, she mentions that social distance and blaming has caused the oppressed to be invisible whereas the privilege are gaining power. Unterhalter explains the purpose of millennium development goals, which are to target the social issues around the world such as extreme poverty and racism. In the Dunn et al article regarding professors’ opinions about their experience in teaching, one of the professors bring up an interesting perspective on discussing racism in classrooms. She uses her white privilege to be able to separate from being part of racism and objectify it. When listening to her students’ experiences about them being a person of color, she can listen and not be affected by it. It would be an excellent way for students to open up and be able to talk to their professor because the professor won’t be biased. The technique in how the professor discusses racism could be part of the solution in talking about the issue and making it more aware to everyone that it still exists and people of color continue to deal with it.
In the book “Gender, Class and Education” by Stephen Walker and Len Barton, they talk about their personal experience with women and education. They bring up the question of whether men will ever understand what a woman’s experience is like in education without have sexist remarks towards it. For example, a sexist remark that could be made towards women in education is women aren’t good in the science and math field. The author discusses this issue of sexist remarking and its influence within gender stereotyping in school. This way of thinking could have been reinforced during elementary school when boys are given certain toys to play with that encourage them to pursue in the field of math and science. As for girls, they’re given baby dolls and kitchen kits, which may encourage them to be homemakers and not pursue in higher education. There are similarities shown between the “Gender, Class and Education” and “Mixing Bodies and Minds: Race, Class, and ‘Mixed Schooling’ controversies in New Orleans and Atlanta” readings in regards to social issues within education. A segregation between high- and low-class individuals has caused a gap in how many students receive equal opportunities and outcomes in education. Jewell’s proposition in fixing this gap is to start mixing students of different socioeconomic status and races with each other so there’s more equality in regards to education. In Unterhalter’s article regarding millennium development goals, one of the objectives to fixing education would be to create an atmosphere where there would be more equal opportunity for students of different social identities. It would also be beneficial to have teachers of different backgrounds to be teaching because they could relate to issues of racism and connect on a deeper level with students who may be facing such issues. However, teachers who have white skin should recognize that they haven’t experienced racism like people of color have, so it would be very important that they take note of how their students are feeling in the classroom and to let them know that communicating such social issues can help. Being more aware about the issues of racism, classism, and sexism in education is needed because it can help in tackling them. If such social issues are aware, then more people can take action in helping to eliminate them.
After the Civil Rights Movement and Women’s Suffrage, many people believe that racism and sexism doesn’t exist anymore because “it has been fixed.” However, such issues still exist and have been for many years. There may be more equality for women and less racist names directed at people of color, but there are issues that go far deeper. There may be more women pursuing college than men, but several women aren’t going into the math and science field. Racism still exists in many ways besides name-calling. There are people of color who have more troubles finding a job, getting a house, or even walking around a store than white people. It’s the little ways in that racism comes in that may be hard for white people to recognize because they aren’t experiencing it like people of color are. Segregation of high- and low-class individuals is a rising issue because students aren’t receiving the same opportunities, thus, giving privileged students a head-start in furthering their education. With being able to take note in what the millennium development goals are and recognizing social issues within education, then more individuals can step in and help create a more equal society for our students to live in. The lives and happiness of our students is highly important because they are the future. They are the people who will be taking care of the older generations and teaching the newer generations how to make the world we live in a better place.
References
- Ballantine, J.. (1993). Race, gender, class and education. Race, Sex & Class, 1(1), 65–92. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.library.ewu.edu/stable/41680040
- Dunn, A. H., Dotson, E. K., Ford, J. C., & Roberts, M. A. (2014). “You won't believe what they said in class today”: Professors’ reflections on student resistance in multicultural education courses. Multicultural Perspectives, 16(2), 93-98. doi:10.1080/15210960.2014.899779
- Jewell, J. O. (2014). Mixing bodies and minds: race, class and ‘mixed schooling’ controversies in New Orleans and Atlanta, 1874–87. Patterns of Prejudice, 48(1), 25-45. doi:10.1080/0031322X.2013.877700
- Unterhalter, E.. (2012). Poverty, education, gender and the millennium development goals: reflections on boundaries and intersectionality. Theory and Research in Education, 10(3), 253-274. doi: 10.1177/1477878512459394
- Walker, S., & Barton, L. (2013).Gender, Class and Education (Routledge Revivals). Routledge
Annotated Bibliography: Selected Sources on Intersectionality and Intersectionality in Education
- Anthias, F.. (2012). Hierarchies of social location, class and intersectionality: towards a translocational frame. International Sociology, 28(1), 121-138. doi: 10.1177/0268580912463155
This article discusses approaches in which hierarchy is viewed in a variety of ways. Some of these ways include how hierarchy works within class structure and how it intersects with social identities such as ethnicity, race, and gender. The information inside this article can be useful in applying the structure of hierarchy within education. It could aid in understanding how individuals within a certain class or race may have advantages or disadvantages in school against other students. It may also aid in figuring out how to diminish the hierarchical ways within school so that students can achieve equal educational opportunities.
In this article, it talks about how due to new restrictions replacing old laws about standardized testing, it has shaped the way African Americans receive an education. Not only was standardized testing separating race, but class as well between privileged and non-privileged African Americans. If African American children are born under prestige and well-privileged families, then they are seen as being more successful in standardized testing. With the use of this article, it can help in looking at how class and education intersect and that it’s not just race. It also provides an interesting perspective on that it’s not just black and white students being separated, but rather high- and low-class black students in regards to testing.
This article provides some information and statistics regarding the population of social class within different types of educational backgrounds. The article also explains how people with certain socioeconomic statuses experience different educational opportunities and outcomes. Not only does it talk about the intersection between class, race, and education, but gender as well. It brings up an excellent point how boys and girls in education receive treatment from teachers depending on their gender. This information would greatly help in looking deeper into intersectionality of class, education, race, as well as gender. Since it provides statistics, it aids in giving factual information.
This article discusses some of the most recognized social identities such as: race, class, and gender. They are distinct from other identities in how they interlock and become powerful in creating social ideologies in cultures. This information can be useful towards the project in that these three social identities intersect in human life experience. These experiences include one of the biggest life moments, which is education. The information within the article can help identify issues within the intersectionality of race, class, and gender. It’s important to recognize these issues in the educational institutions since most individuals experience the division between privileged and under-privileged opportunities.
The article breaks down what socioeconomic status (SES) means and how there’s a division between upper and lower SES students. The article also talks about the concepts of privilege and oppression as well as how they can be used in understanding the issues within the intersectionality of race, class, and gender. It brings up the debating issues of racism, classism, and sexism, which commonly brings discomfort. For the project, it could help in bringing more awareness to the issues of racism, classism, and sexism as well as how privilege and oppression still exist in educational institutions. Since the project will be a website, more people will have access to the information and become aware of it.
- Dunn, A. H., Dotson, E. K., Ford, J. C., & Roberts, M. A. (2014). “You won't believe what they said in class today”: Professors’ reflections on student resistance in multicultural education courses. Multicultural Perspectives, 16(2), 93-98. doi:10.1080/15210960.2014.899779
The article begins by professors from colleges asking their selves personal questions about education, power, and privilege. It then goes into talking about college professors of different races and their teaching experiences in multi-cultural classrooms as well as multi-cultural courses. They discuss how they bring up oppression and privilege issues in their classrooms as well as how to deal and overcome it. This article offers personal insight from professors that are in a position of power that could be useful towards the project. It will be interesting to hear the perspective of someone in power since many essays are by oppressed people.
- Gillborn, D. (2015). Intersectionality, critical race theory, and the primacy of racism: race, class, gender, and disability in education. Qualitative Inquiry, 21(3), 277-287. doi: 10.1177/1077800414557827
This reading explores intersectionality as part of the critical race theory directed towards problems in education. Critical race theory closely looks at the framework within society that has an Chicana Feminism and LGBTQ Communties integration of race and power. This theory also looks into the integration of race, class, and gender and the issues it raises. The article goes further in the discussion as to how the critical race theory is applied in education and how intersectionality relates to it. This reading can aid in discussing more about the concept of critical race theory and how it challenges the issues of racism, classism, and sexism within education.
- Horsford, S. D. (2012). This bridge called my leadership: an essay on black women as bridge leaders in education. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education (QSE), 25(1), 11-22. doi: 10.1080/09518398.2011.647726
This reading discusses the perspective of Black women leaders and their experience with diversity, oppression, and social justice in education. They discuss race, class, privilege, and how it causes divisions in gaining educational opportunities between different social identities. This article offers the perspectives of Black women in education, whom have experienced the most oppression out of all social identities. They experience the most oppression because as a woman and as a person of color, their social identity has become overlooked and considered invisible. This article would allow people who come to the website and learn about how Black women are oppressed in education and listen to their personal stories about how they became a leader.
- Jewell, J. O. (2014). Mixing bodies and minds: race, class and ‘mixed schooling’ controversies in New Orleans and Atlanta, 1874–87. Patterns of Prejudice, 48(1), 25-45. doi:10.1080/0031322X.2013.877700
The reading explores social reproduction between race and class. Such social reproduction includes creating ideologies that certain privileges within social identities persevere more than others. It discusses how race and class can maintain hierarchies within social structures and how dominance over racial minorities are reproduced. One of the biggest examples of social reproduction of privilege and oppression is education. When schools segregate students based on their socioeconomic status, it creates a gap of educational opportunities because the school may be more funded than the other. Thus, schools with more funding provide better educational outcomes for those privileges students. Personal educational outcomes depends on the individual’s class and race. This article aids in understanding the hierarchy of race and class in how it creates privilege and oppression.
- Powers, B., & Duffy, P.B.. (2015). Making invisible intersectionality visible through theater of the oppressed in teacher education. Journal of Teacher Education, 67(1), 61-73. doi: 10.1177/0022487115607621
This reading talks about how teachers in education must be responsive in a cultural manner towards their students. This means that teachers must recognize these students’ social identity and respect them accordingly. Teachers believe there still needs work in being able to use information of intersectionality towards students and helping them respond effectively. This article can help with the project in that it educates people about social identities and how to approach those effectively and respectively. It could also help in changing ways in how students may be oppressed in classrooms and improve educational opportunities to students to be more equal.
This article talks about women of color, their position in Western culture, and the types of oppression they’ve encountered. The author mentions racial hierarchy and how it is maintained through ideologies and institutions such as school. Such ideologies include a color-based hierarchy where fairer skin is better. This article can help in the project by discussing more about racial hierarchy in institutions and understand why women of color experience the most oppression out of other social identities. It can also help in looking at women of color’s experience in education and social structures in how their identities play a role.
- Reay, D., Davies, J., David, M., & Ball, S. J.. (2001). Choices of degree or degrees of choice? Class, 'race' and the higher education choice process. Sociology, 35(4), 855–874. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.library.ewu.edu/stable/42856345
This article concentrates on the topic of decision-making in regards to applying for college. It discusses how class and race issues relate to deciding on where to attend college. In using this article for the project, it can aid in raising the issue that individuals with more privilege than others are able to get into prestigious colleges easier than those with not as much privilege. It raises the question as to what is being asked on these college applications (i.e. identifying ethnicity and/or race, income per year) and whether that solely determines an individual from being accepted to that college.
This reading brings up important topics of discussion such as the need to improve the educational system from elementary schools to four year universities. Such improvement needed is teacher preparation, strategies for teaching, and other forms of assessment in regards to standardized testing. It discusses how race, class, and gender are an influence in determining how well academics and social structures make minorities’ educational opportunities equal. However, there is a distinct gap in equality within the educational system for different races and classes. This reading can be useful for the project because it raises awareness of improvements that are needed in educational environments.
- Unterhalter, E.. (2012). Poverty, education, gender and the millennium development goals: reflections on boundaries and intersectionality. Theory and Research in Education, 10(3), 253-274. doi: 10.1177/1477878512459394
This article presents global concerns of gender inequality, lack of education, and poverty. Due to these concerns, it has led to social distance and blaming of those who are oppressed and power growth for those with privilege. To deal with such issues, millennium development goals have been created. This reading can be used towards the project in talking about millennium development goals and what they do to address issues in regards to inequality and poverty. The concept of these goals could be listed on the website to help others try to partake in raising these issues and hopefully find solutions to resolve them.
- Wilkins, A. C. (2014). Race, age, and identity transformations in the transition from high school to college for black and first-generation white men. Sociology of Education, 87(3), 171-187. doi: 10.1177/0038040714537901
This article discusses a study done between Black and first-generation white men and their experiences in a four year university. It mentions how the identities of Black men are undermined while first-generation white men are able to use their identity in finding a satisfaction through the pathway of adulthood. It demonstrates how race and class take part in academic success as well as growing as a person. The article would be useful for the project because it looks at interviews of white and Black men and their experiences in college. It can be related to and shows personal experience of inequality and differences in privilege.
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