A Critical Analysis of the Perceptions and Experiences of Teachers about Diversity and Equity

Schools are not designed to accommodate or attend to the cultures and identities of all students. Despite eighty years of educational justice research focused on understanding and dismantling assimilationist models of education, our educational system continues to fail youth who identify as BIPOC and/or ethnically marginalized. In many schools, including the focal school in this case study, diversity and equity initiatives are implemented by administrators in order to move schools towards equitable education practices. Recognizing that teachers’ perceptions and experiences of diversity and equity are integral to the implementation of any diversity and equity initiative, this study analyzed five focus groups (n=31) and five one-on-one interviews (n=5) with teachers at one school. Findings reveal the importance of teacher responsibility for enacting and engaging in diversity and equity initiatives and the manner in which teachers’ fears and anxieties can hinder fostering positive teacher-student relationships with students who identify as BIPOC and/or ethnically marginalized. This case study highlights the importance of considering teacher responsibility and teacher emotions in the creation of diversity and equity initiatives. It also has implications for the design of effective professional development and the need for culturally sustaining relationships as a pedagogical practice to move schools towards educational equity.