Winning Proposal: "Toward an Anti-Racist teacher Self-Efficacy Scale”

This critical quantitative study of the influence of whiteness and white fragility on social studies teaching seeks to address the following research questions: To what degree do teachers demonstrate sensitivity to white fragility, anti-racist teaching self-efficacy, and culturally responsive teaching self-efficacy? Does a teachers’ sensitivity to race-based stress moderate their attachment to culturally responsive or anti-racist teaching? This study seeks to develop a series of quantitative scales designed to better inform social studies educators and teacher educators as to how these barriers inform praxis, in pursuit of challenging the persistence of White Social Studies (Chandler & Branscombe, 2015). Through the creation of white fragility and anti-racist teacher self-efficacy scales this study also seeks to better articulate the nuances of non-racist, colorblind teaching in pursuit of moving the field toward an agentic, anti-racist stance in the classroom.

The researchers will present a paper during the 2017 or the 2018 meeting of the College and University Faculty Assembly (CUFA) and/or at the NCSS conference and will submit a manuscript for publication in a juried, blind review journal within one year after the end of the grant period.

About the proposal authors:

Andrea M. Hawkman, a doctoral candidate in learning, teaching, and curriculum at the University of Missouri draws on critical theories of race to examine the ways in which teachers and students talk and learn about race and racism, investigate how education policy intersects social studies instruction and curriculum, and prepare social studies teachers for anti-racist praxis.

Ryan T. Knowles, an assistant professor at Utah State University of social studies education and quantitative research methods, has particular interest in calling into question traditional dichotomies of quantitative and qualitative research through the use of critical theory to drive quantitative research design.

Antonio J. Castro, an associate professor of social studies education at the University of Missouri, focuses on critical multicultural citizenship education along with the recruitment and retention of diverse teachers.