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When "They" are also "Us": The Role of Pedagogy and Programming in Helping Students of Color (Re) Negotiate Race and Identity

Blue, Dionne A.

Abstract Details

2000, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, EDU Teaching and Learning.
The Opening Doors Summer Research Institute, a summer research program working to reverse negative retention trends among students of color in higher education, provides the focus for the research study. The purpose of the study was to examine the experiences of students participating in a program designed to introduce students of color to the expectations of graduate study in education. The second purpose was to understand the ways that programs offering both systems of support, and challenging academic environments that are critical, multicultural, and meaningful, help students with the process of negotiating identity and community. Questions used to guide the study were: 1) How are racial/ethnic/cultural identities and differences re-constructed within culturally diverse groups of students of color? 2) How does developing/nurturing relationships help students to define themselves as people of color within and against socially constructed dichotomies of self and other? 3) What pedagogical strategies help the maintenance of a positive racial/ethnic/cultural identity for students of color as they negotiate cultural and racial issues within various contexts? Critical theories, qualitative research methods, and models of racial and ethnic identity development were used to address these questions. Findings suggest that the curriculum, instruction, and approach of Opening Doors was instrumental in helping students create communities of academic and cultural support, by facilitating examinations of race and identity, which allowed students to develop new conceptions that did not rely on stereotypes or oppressive images. Data also suggest that educators must: 1) provide environments for intellectual development and self-reflection that are open, dialogic, and culturally relevant, 2) support students in a critical examination of their cultural identities; 3) provide models for future educators to understand the role of race in facilitating their students’ academic and cultural understandings; 4) assist students in making meaningful connections between their lived experiences and those of other students of color; and 5) help students to disrupt stereotyped conceptions of “other” in order to develop their identity in alliance with other people of color.
Cynthia B. Dillard (Advisor)
Valerie Lee (Committee Member)
Barbara Seidl (Committee Member)
Tyrone C. Howard (Committee Member)
265 p.

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Blue, D. A. (2000). When "They" are also "Us": The Role of Pedagogy and Programming in Helping Students of Color (Re) Negotiate Race and Identity [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1392886432

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Blue, Dionne. When "They" are also "Us": The Role of Pedagogy and Programming in Helping Students of Color (Re) Negotiate Race and Identity. 2000. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1392886432.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Blue, Dionne. "When "They" are also "Us": The Role of Pedagogy and Programming in Helping Students of Color (Re) Negotiate Race and Identity." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2000. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1392886432

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)