A Seat at the Kitchen Table: The Lived Experiences of Black Female Preservice Teachers in an Urban Education Cohort

ABSTRACT

The authors of this qualitative study provided Black female preservice teachers in an urban cohort at a predominantly white institution a seat at the kitchen table to share their racialized and gendered experiences. The research questions centered around the experiences of Black female preservice teachers, their participation in anti-racist spaces, and the role of critical for teacher educator programs in coursework and program development. The authors drew on Critical Race Theory and Critical Race Feminism as theoretical frameworks. Findings include the cultivation of sisterhood based on multi-layered identities and experiences, how the participants navigate racial fatigue on and off campus, and how the participants embody an intergenerational alliance between them and Black faculty members. Implications for practice are included.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Kamania Wynter-Hoyte

Kamania Wynter-Hoyte is an assistant professor in the Teacher Education Department at University of South Carolina. Her scholarship is anchored in anti-racist pedagogies that foster liberation in teacher education and early childhood spaces. Kamania is a recipient of 2018 NCTE’s Early Childhood Assembly Early Literacy Educator of the Year Award.

Nathaniel Bryan

Nathaniel Bryan is an assistant professor in the Department of Teacher Education at Miami University (Ohio). His research focuses on constructed identities and pedagogical styles of Black male teachers and the schooling and childhood play experiences of Black boys in early childhood education. He is the 2020 recipient of the AERA’s SIG Critical Perspectives on Early Childhood Education Emerging Scholar Award.

Kerrie Singleton

Kerrie Singleton is a first year law student at Howard University. Prior to attending law school, she taught pre-kindergarten in Berkeley County School District, South Carolina, and first grade in Williamsburg County School District, South Carolina. She intends to utilize her experience as an early childhood educator and practice education law upon completion of her program. She aspires to advocate for marginalized communities through the development of systematic equitable policies.

Tyler Grant

Tyler Grant is a third grade educator at Hyatt Park Elementary in South Carolina. She is also a graduate student at Grand Canyon University studying Curriculum and Instruction.

Tanisha Goff

Tanisha Goff is a first grade teacher in Charleston, South Carolina. She graduated Magna Cum Laude with leadership distinction in professional and civic engagement. She is also a recipient of the Early Childhood Education Senior Award and Holmes Honor Student.

Daizha Green

Daizha Green is a second grade teacher at Carver Lyon Elementary in the Language Immersion Program. Prior to teaching, she served as President for the student organization Race, Ethnicity, and Advocacy in Childhood (REACH). She is a recipient of the 2018 Martin Luther King Social Justice and Newton Civic Fellows Award.

Ieesha Rowe

Ieesha Rowe is a paraprofessional in Illinois at Stratford Middle School, which implements restorative practice. She is a wife, proud mother, and revitalized educator.