Portraiture as collage: ethnic studies as a methodological framework for education research

Abstract

In this article, Curammeng addresses how Ethnic Studies can inform portraiture and its capacity for qualitative research studies. Using Filipino American teachers’ narratives, Curammeng describes portraiture as collages demonstrating how such an approach offers new modes of engagement for portraitists’ collaborators and readers. The implications from this work illuminate how portraiture – through an Ethnic Studies perspective – draws attention to the multi-layered and nuanced experiences of teachers, how they make sense of their work as minoritized people, and how qualitative researchers can utilize Ethnic Studies with portraiture to capture these nuances. Finally, Curammeng argues for the consideration of ‘decipherment’ to piece together new methodological strengths for portraitists and educational research.

Keywords:

• Portraiture
• Ethnic Studies
• teachers
• social justice
• Filipino American

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1 All participants’ names are pseudonyms.

2 This is a nod to Langston Hughes’ (1987) poem, “The Negro Speaks of River,” which is the titular inspiration for Lawrence-Lightfoot’s (1994) “I’ve Known Rivers: Lives of Loss and Liberation.”

3 “Pinay refers to a Filipina American woman and is informed by the work of Dr. Dawn Bohulano Mabalon. Mabalon (2013) writes: “According to first-generation immigrants, these terms were developed specifically by Filipina/o immigrants as a nickname for Filipinas/os living or born in the United States. The earliest documented appearance of the term “Pinay” was in 1926 in the Filipino Student Bulletin. “Pinoy” and “Pinay” are now used for any Filipina/o in the Philippines or in the Diaspora” (p. 20).

4 These values emerged from the work of student activists, organizers, and community members as part of the Third World Liberation Front. In 2008, the Ethnic Studies Curriculum Collective in San Francisco Unified School applied these values to their ninth-grade Ethnic Studies course.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Edward R. Curammeng

Edward R. Curammeng is an Assistant Professor in the College of Education at California State University, Dominguez Hills. His research examines the relationship between Ethnic Studies and education in shaping the experiences of students and teachers of color. He earned his BA and MA in Asian American Studies from San Francisco State University and his PhD in Social Science and Comparative Education from UCLA.