• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Contextual Matters: Teachers' Perceptions of the Success of Antiracist Classroom Practices

Posted on: Saturday, 9 July 2005, 03:01 CDT

ABSTRACT

The author examined teachers' perceptions of the influence of school climate on the implementation of antiracist multicultural practices learned through professional development. The author interviewed 7 educators 1 year after they completed an antiracist multicultural professional development course to determine the extent to which the educators had transformed knowledge acquired from the course to classroom practice and to determine factors influencing those transformations. Qualitative data revealed that participants perceived that school climate influenced the implementation of multicultural practice and that school and district leadership seemed to have a profound effect on setting the tone for school climate. In schools where participants perceived a positive climate for change concerning multicultural issues (i.e., participants felt supported in their antiracist efforts and received encouragement to further their multicultural competence), they were optimistic that their schools would continue to strive for more equitable teaching and learning conditions for all their students.

Key words: influence of school climate, long-term success of antiracist classroom practices, teachers' perceptions

The growing disparity between the racial background of students who attend our nation's public schools and the teachers who educate these students often means that teachers have limited knowledge of their students' families or communities. The deficiency in practicing teachers' knowledge and experience, referred to as the "demographic imperative" (Paccione, 2000, p. 982), has been an important factor in researchers' drive to develop antiracist multicultural staff development programs1 for teachers. Such efforts in staff development are not new, however. For over 20 years, schools and school districts have offered in-service workshops for teachers that focus on multicultural education; many of the workshops have attempted to change teacher attitudes about race and racism and increase teachers' "multicultural competence"2 within short periods of time. Most multicultural scholars and teacher educators purport, however, that altering deepseated beliefs about race and ethnicity involves processes that take time if they are to have any lasting effects on teachers' ability to teach multiculturally (Banks, 1994; Derman-Sparks & Phillips, 1997; Nieto & Rolon, 1997; Sleeter, 2001; Zeichner & Hoeft, 1996).

Recently, schools and school districts have offered teachers more extensive antiracist multicultural professional development programs that are aligned with university courses or include cultural immersion field experiences, or both. Research that examines the effectiveness of the longer term efforts of antiracist, multicultural professional development on teacher perspectives or instructional practices, or both, is limited, however (Zeichner 6k Hoeft, 1996). The few studies that examine whether teachers are more prepared to interact with a diverse body of students or whether they implement antiracist multicultural curricula after professional development, or both, tend to focus on a single factor as being responsible for the success or failure of professional development efforts. Some researchers, for example, highlighted features of specific professional development programs such as the program's philosophy or the instructional methods used (Kailin, 1994; Lawrence & Tatum, 1997b; Mahan & Rains, 1990; Schniedewind, 2001), whereas others measured individual teacher change, such as changes in racial identity development (Elliott, 1996; Lawrence & Tatum, 1997a, 1997b) as being responsible for the outcomes. Seldom do studies of multicultural professional development examine school context or interactions among school personnel as factors that influence teachers' commitment to, and implementation of, multicultural practices learned during professional development. Yet, a school's environment and the nature of the interactions among individuals may provide some insight into teachers' ability to follow through with their commitment to enact change (Alvarado et al., 1999; Lawrence &. Krause, 1996).

Teacher Commitment and School Context

During antiracist multicultural professional development, many teachers voice a commitment to change their teaching practices (Lawrence & Tatum, 1997a, 1997b); acting on that commitment, however, is another matter. As with other new learning, transferring knowledge and skills gained during professional development to the classroom is not straightforward (Stein, Smith, & Silver, 1999). In addition, bringing issues of race into classrooms that have traditionally maintained a culture of silence about racial issues (Grant & Zozakiewicz, 1995) is a difficult challenge. The difficulties of knowledge transformation and the highly charged nature of dealing with race call for an examination of the context of schools and its influence on teacher commitment to teach multiculturally.

Research has shown that teacher development is highly influenced by the school or organizational context (Sleeter, 1992; Sparks & Loucks-Horsley, 1990; Zeichner & Hoeft, 1996). Studies of teacher commitment report that conditions of schooling (e.g., school climate and working conditions) directly impact teachers' commitment to change (Leithwood, Jantzi, & Fernandez, 1994). Studies on educational change efforts reveal that major changes are seldom effective unless all parties involved in teaching and learning- teachers, students, parents, and school administrators-support the proposed changes (Metz, 1990; Tyack & Cuban, 1995). It follows, then, that teacher commitment acquired through professional development would be strengthened in situations where conditions of schooling are favorable for change and weakened where conditions are unfavorable.

Teacher Perceptions

Perceptual psychologist and educator, Arthur Combs, has written extensively about the importance of the beliefs and perceptions that teachers hold (Combs, 1962, 1974, 1982; Combs, Miser, & Whitaker, 1999). If, as perceptual psychologists contend, people behave according to what they perceive, then perceptions can have a profound effect on the teaching-learning process. Many teachers continue to perceive, for example, that students of color and those from low-income homes are deficient in a myriad of ways (Gay, 2000; Haberman & Post, 1992; Sleeter, 1993). Teachers' perceptions of students, once formed, are fairly static and difficult to change, especially perceptions of students viewed as "different" (Lightfoot, 1978). Those perceptions then influence the expectations that teachers have for their students and hinder teachers' ability to estimate accurately students' learning potential (Ferguson, 1998). Some researchers suggest that teachers' perceptions, expectations, and behaviors are powerful enough to be partly responsible for (a) the underachievement of students of color and of students from low- income homes and (b) the Black-White achievement gap in test scores (Ferguson; Scheurich & Skrla, 2003).

Clearly, teachers' perceptions about others matter, as well as teachers' perceptions about schools and schooling. Scheurich and Skrla (2003) suggested that one reason why all schools are not equitable and excellent learning institutions in which all children succeed is because educators do not believe that such schools are possible. Envisioning possibilities and perceiving that change is achievable are necessary and vital precursors to action.

The Present Study

I focused on whether and how teachers' perceptions of school climate that influence their implementation of antiracist multicultural practices learned through professional development stem from an ongoing exploration of the influence of antiracist professional development on classroom practice. The specific professional development that I studied was a semester-long course, "Effective Antiracist Classroom Practice for All Students," which schools offered annually to practicing teachers. The primary goal of the course, taught by bi-racial teams of instructors, was to help teachers create multicultural, antiracist classrooms in which children of all backgrounds felt affirmed and were able to achieve academic success.5

The educators who participated in the 3rd year of the course included 20 K-12 classroom teachers and 1 school administrator from four school districts in the northeast United States: Arbordale, Riverville, Medborough, and Red Point.4 The four school districts all had a predominantly White teaching force, whereas the student population was racially mixed in varying degrees: (a) Medborough, a middle-class town, had a student body that was primarily White (96%); (b) Riverville, an urban area, had a student population that was primarily of color (75%); and (c) Arbordale and Red Point, both university towns, were predominantly White, but had a visible presence of students of color in the public schools (30% and 15%, respectively).

The racial/ethnic background of the participants in the course included 15 European Americans, 2 African Americans, and 4 Puerto Ricans. All participants voluntarily enrolled in the course to gain more knowledge about race and racism in schools and to make issues of racemore prominent in their practice. At the conclusion of the 3rd year of the course, 15 of the 21 participants volunteered to be interviewed the following year. Logistical matters relevant to the interviewers and the interviewees resulted in the selection of 7 veteran educators who became the focus of study for this article-1 educator from each of three districts and 4 educators from the Arbordale district.5 Of the 7 participants, 1 educator was a school principal, and 6 educators were classroom teachers; 5 participants were European American, 1 participant was African American, and 1 participant was Puerto Rican.

Data Collection and Analysis

The 7 participants were interviewed by either a Puerto Rican interviewer or a European American interviewer, neither of whom was associated with teaching the course. Interviewers conducted 90-min, in-depth semistructured interviews (Seidman, 1998) and used open- ended questions about participants' (a) prior teaching (or administrative) experiences; (b) knowledge gleaned from the course; (c) current work in classrooms or schools; (d) interactions with parents, colleagues, and administrators; and (e) the meaning that those activities provided for them. Interviews were conducted either in schools after the conclusion of the school day or in participants' homes. All interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim.

Three researchers (the author and two research assistants) coded the interview data individually and then met to discuss cross-case findings. To determine whether the instructional activities reported were consistent with antiracist multicultural practices, the researchers first analyzed transcript data qualitatively with attention to Lee's (1995) description of effective antiracist educational activities. Lee maintained that in order for antiracist education to be effective in altering racial status quo in schools, change must occur on three levels: (a) antiracist educational practices must permeate interactions among students, teachers, and administrators; (b) race and racism must be part of any curriculum transformation; and (c) all students must be given institutional support for their efforts to achieve academic success.

Working with a coding scheme designed in a previous study (Lawrence & Tatum, 1997b) that further delineated Lee's (1995) categories, the researchers coded interview data and categorized it according to the specific types of antiracist multicultural practices that the participants described. (An illustration of the concepts and categories arising from the coding scheme is shown in Table Al of Appendix A.) The second strand of qualitative analysis involved an open-coding approach (Strauss &. Corbin, 1990) that determined how participants conceptualized their own multicultural teaching and learning and how they felt about putting their new learning into practice in their individual schools. (A partial list of concepts and categories arising from the second strand of analysis is included in Table A2 of Appendix B.)

From the two related strands of analysis, I delineated categories of antiracist educational practices. Those practices included curricular transformations, changes in interpersonal interactions between teachers and students, and district-level organizational moves toward multicultural inclusiveness. Further analysis of the categories, in conjunction with participants' perspectives of how others in the school community viewed their new multicultural teaching and learning, revealed three themes related to participants' perspectives about school climate and its relation to their work. Participants perceived that (a) the value they placed on their present and future work was influenced by school climate, (b) collegial support (or lack thereof) contributed greatly to the school climate, and (c) school and district leadership seemed to have a profound effect in setting the tone for school climate.

Transforming Antiracist Learning Into Practice

During interviews, all participants spoke about curricular changes that they had made, including (a) helping students identify stereotypes in the media, (b) teaching the "truth" about Columbus, (c) selecting literature that was representative of the racial diversity in the United States, (d) presenting historical events from different cultural perspectives, (e) dismantling myths about people of color, (f) bringing race and racism into content-area discussions, and (g) including information about "good Whites" in history. Participants also described how behaviors outside the classroom had changed, such as speaking openly at department meetings for acknowledging inequalities they witnessed; initiating interactions with parents from racial groups different from their own; and conducting, rather than avoiding, discussions about race with students. One teacher also formed a study group to discuss and plan ways to increase the academic success of students of color in their classes.

Initially, the curricular movements and changes in behavior made by the 7 participants seem consistent with the type of movements necessary for instituting antiracist practice in schools (Lee, 1995). Yet, a closer examination of the manner in which individual participants talked about the changes revealed a striking difference and pointed to limitations in the enactment of multicultural practice.

Feelings About Current Practice and Future Change

The 4 participants from Arbordale (2 from one middle school and 2 from an elementary school) spoke about their work with determination, pride, and a sense of movement toward future changes. Betty, an African American middle school teacher, typified that determination as she described the year-long curricular project that she co-designed with her teammate.

I would say that from the course, that's what I came back with a vengeance to do, to dismantle the myths. And I started with Columbus. And so we did research on the historical documents that suggested clearly that there were others who came and given that, that's our base, we call it evidence inference, it was a great tool for me to go to. And so I said, "Here's the evidence, what can you infer from the evidence?" And then we looked at how Columbus Day is viewed around the world. And we looked at Latino communities and Latino countries. So again, prompting them to think.

Betty's teammate Cathy (who is White) designed the literature portion of the curriculum and expressed similar determination to increase students' knowledge about racial issues in her classes.

I worry that a few students are learning racist feeling from home, but I say to myself that I cannot change what they think and feel at home. But, damn it, I'm going to change what they are going to do in my classroom. I can't change the hurt, but 1 can change their behavior.

Although Cathy perceived the limitation of her ability to change "the system," she was adamant about what she would do in her classroom.

Cathy, like other participants from Arbordale, expressed pride in her work by describing the praise she received from others. In the following excerpt, she describes a parents' council night and the response to her new curriculum.

We had a turn out that rivaled anything we have had at the school. No matter what their ethnicity, no matter what their race, no matter what their class background, I have not had a negative response from any parent. And it is unusual to not have a negative response from any parent, but I'm serious. I have not heard any. I've heard nothing but praise. Parents coming and saying, "Wow, this is super!"

Cathy commented further that she felt like she was "on a honeymoon" in terms of the good feelings that she was receiving about her work.

Not only did the 4 educators from Arbordale express pride and determination in their work, but also their energy seemed to be enhanced by knowing that their antiracist multicultural work was being enacted in their district by others and would continue into the future. Sally, a Title I teacher who formed a study group at her school, spoke of her ongoing work with colleagues in the group to increase their multicultural knowledge and take action.

People have really done their part. When they come, they have read the articles and are ready to discuss. We also decided that we did not want to just talk; we wanted to do things that might look different here, that would have an effect on who was successful in this school. We made a list, and then categories. It is a pretty daunting list. If we could do all of this now, that would be wonderful. We know we can't. It's a very creative group; we have a lot on our agenda to keep us going.

In contrast to the positive, energetic expressions of the participants from Arbordale, the 3 educators from Riverville, Red Point, and Medborough, although pleased with their individual work, commented extensively during interviews on the difficulties of trying to implement change in their schools. Nina, a Puerto Rican teacher of bilingual education, spoke about the difficulties of putting her new learning into practice in a school system that she feels does not value all its students. In the following segment, she described the contrast between course learning and the reality of daily teaching in her school.

I cannot learn about issues dealing with racism and multiculturalism just to receive course credit. We should promote multicultural education where everyone is valued the same. Not where because you are white, you are worth more. Not where because you are rich, you are worth more. Not where Latino people should be taken pity on. I think this way, but this is not the way here.

Nina remarked further that she did not take this course "only to stay shut," but she realized that there may be a price to pay for speaking out because the prevailing view is that "if you speak your mind, you will get in trouble."

In addition to encountering viewpoints about racism \that seemed to oppose their beliefs, participants from Riverville, Red Point, and Medborough also met roadblocks when they tried to institute changes. Rebecca, a White, English-as-a-second-language teacher, felt that when she returned to her school after professional development, she "had a lot of theory, a lot of information, but nobody wanted to hear it." One manifestation of this attitude was revealed when Rebecca described her attempt to start a study group to explore issues of race.

I went to the principal and told her that I was thinking of starting a study group. And I asked if she would be willing to copy an article for me so I could put out an article so people could see the kind of thing I had in mind. She said, "No," and then said, "Why don't you go talk to the Affirmative Action Director; she has money for that sort of thing."

The principal then quickly dismissed her and her request.

The roadblocks and feelings of being dismissed that Nina, Rebecca, and Carol experienced do not conjure up hope and energy for future change. In addition, the perception that an active undervaluing of certain groups of students of color by staff exists does not typify an antiracist school (Lee, 1995). When people feel dismissed and undervalued, they may not feel hopeful about future change. It makes sense, then, that Nina, Rebecca, and Carol did not feel any sense of forward motion in terms of antiracist educational change. Carol's remarks captured those doubts about the future: "These issues will die and fall into the background if we don't continue to talk about them. But if no one is talking, I don't know what is going to happen."

School Climate and the Importance of Collegial Support

Expressions of possibility and uncertainty voiced by interviewees seemed to involve more than just the psychological state of the individuals speaking. Their perceptions of the school climate seemed to influence how they felt about their efforts. An examination of interviewees' relationships with colleagues revealed important differences. The educators from Arbordale spoke highly of their colleagues. Cathy, for example, remarked that her "colleagues are of a superb caliber," and she believed that they "truly love kids and knock themselves out for kids." And because she believed that her colleagues valued her work, Cathy felt that ". . . it's wonderful because I feel so supported in the building." Sally also held her colleagues in high esteem: "I feel like I work with a group of front line professionals who see that this can be different."

Betty reported a specific incident of collegial support that she and Cathy experienced during a faculty curriculum day.

On the curriculum day, we had the opportunity to educate the faculty about our theme. There were 15 or 20 choices and of all the selections, ours was the most popular. . . . And it was huge .... And that's good and makes us feel good.

Not only did that presentation give Betty and Cathy the support they needed, but also it gave them the opportunity to advance antiracist multicultural ideas as well. Betty, Carol, and Sally believed that those instances of collegial support enhanced the movement for change in Arbordale-change that they admitted was long overdue and that they speculated would take many years to implement. The school environments that the participants described positively also seemed consistent with environments that Lee (1995) and multicultural theorists (Banks & Banks, 1995; Nieto, 2000; Sleeter, 1992) identified as necessary for fostering antiracist teaching.

In contrast with the collegial support reported by Arbordale educators, interviewees from Riverville, Red Point, and Medborough spoke about the lack of collegial support that they received. All 3 of those educators acknowledged that there were many faculty in their schools who viewed their efforts in negative ways but for different reasons. For example, Nina believed that her colleagues did not support multicultural efforts because they did not want to acknowledge that racism was present in their school. Nina commented on that unacknowledged racism.

I think there is the notion of the blind person that is blind and cannot see and the person who just does not want to see. I have heard some teachers say that there is no racism here. And some Puerto Rican teachers say that they have never experienced racism. Maybe they should be entered in the Guinness Book because it almost seems unreal.

Given Nina's experience of a climate of denial, it is easy to see why she felt unsupported.

Carol experienced a similar lack of support when her efforts were perceived as being against established norms of "not doing too much." For example, when Carol invited other classroom teachers to visit her classroom to view what she and her students had created for Chinese New Year, she got "this eerie kind of sensation from certain teachers, as if they were saying, 'why did you go and do that extra thing?'" She sensed that some teachers feared the parents would want them to do "special things too," and if they did not, the teachers would be viewed as "negligent teachers." Carol believed that there was much competition at the school and realized that she had to be careful about the manner in which she addressed racism and other inequalities.

The worst thing you can do in this school setting is alienate your colleagues by telling them [to] not do this and not do that. You cannot tell people what to do, but you can role model some positive stuff without pointing a finger.

Carol seemed to tread lightly through her school; she was careful not to make waves and alienate others while trying to acknowledge the discrimination that she observed. Like the participants from Riverville and Red Point, Carol often felt isolated because of her efforts to institute change. She realized that "teachers do have a powerful voice," but because there were so few teachers who shared Carol's views, she perceived that she was "out there by yourself because the support is not there to make you feel valued."

The school climates that Carol, Nina, and Rebecca perceived existed at their schools were not ones that would enhance the development of antiracist practice. Rather than fostering antiracist discussions and behaviors among all school personnel, participants from Riverville, Red Point, and Medborough perceived that positive collegial interactions that involved antiracism were isolated, blocked, and in some cases, outwardly resisted.

Setting the Climatic Tone: The Role of School and District Leadership

Feelings of loneliness, isolation, and fear of alienation were not expressed by the 4 educators from Arbordale; rather, they felt committed, connected, and proud to be teaching antiracist multicultural education. They believed that many others in the Arbordale district felt similarly-a situation that they attributed to the leadership support that they received from administrators. Among the types of support that the district provided were funds for long-term multicultural staff development, teacher release time, and curriculum materials. The Arbordale superintendent encouraged school principals to support individual or group efforts in their schools and to foster teaching and learning environments that would enhance the academic achievement of all the students.

Joan, one of the participants in the study and a principal in the Arbordale district, appreciated the superintendent's encouragement. Along with the staff at her elementary school, Joan was determined to support changes that might influence the low academic achievement of students of color at her school. During the interview, Joan articulated four ways in which she incorporated her new knowledge. Joan recognized how issues of race had to be factored in when she made placement decisions, and she worked with her staff to increase the number of parents of color who attended parent council events. When evaluating teachers, she paid attention to whether teachers might be responding to students of color differently than to those who were White. But high on Joan's list of changes was the creation of a collegial and supportive climate for teachers regarding the implementation of antiracist practices.

Crucial to fostering a collegial climate was Joan's urging that teachers work together rather than in isolation; she encouraged teachers to "work with others, to work in teams, and to talk about individual children's needs." She also encouraged her staff to continue to learn about multicultural issues by taking courses or engaging in study groups or workshops so that all staff would have "a common language and the same level of understanding and awareness." Joan was pleased that she could respond to teachers' requests for resources for their multicultural endeavors. Because her district "put monetary resources behind the multicultural effort," she could support faculty projects and believe that she was part of a collaborative effort to promote systemwide change.

The teacher-participants from Arbordale sensed the administration's support for their efforts toward change. At different times during the interviews, the teachers' perceptions of administrative support seemed almost palpable. The 4 educators praised the administrators by saying, "the support is excellent." Sally noticed that the study group that she had formed was listed as one of the standing committees of the school for which faculty could obtain credit if they attended. That act alone gave Sally "tremendous validation" and acknowledged that the teachers' efforts were important schoolwide. That acknowledgment "felt like tremendous support!" Cathy felt similarly supported when she and Betty received a grant from the district to develop their new curriculum. She commented that her "principal was elated" and was pleased that the principal "has come to all of our presentations."

In contrast to Arbordale's reported attention toantiracist multicultural education, participants from Riverville, Red Point, and Medborough did not feel that they had administrative support for multicultural endeavors. Carol believed that in Medborough, for example, there was district encouragement for antiracist multicultural education, but it was not a priority. She believed that the superintendent "knows that the course is worthwhile, but he can't absolutely say that because then it would have to be something he would have to pay for." In Riverville, Nina believed that the teachers had some support, but felt that there was much resistance in dealing with racial issues within particular schools. For example, Nina felt that her principal was in denial about the prevalence of racism in her school and that resistance to change was strong: "You learn from your professors and they open your eyes. And then you come to a school where they want to close them."

Like Nina, Rebecca reported that in Red Point some central office support existed for multicultural endeavors, but efforts to address issues of race and inequality depended on individual school principals. For example, in Rebecca's prior position at a different school in the district, the principal made multicultural education a priority.

The school that I was at before was led by a principal, a white man, who was committed to equity for all students. And a lot of what happened at that school was in response to both his leadership and his saying that we are going to do this as well as his being able to recognize leadership from the African American staff who knew what needed to be done. So the whole school became an anti-bias school. And it wasn't perfect, but it was an environment that said that we need to have these conversations all the time.

In her current teaching assignment, however, Rebecca perceived that she and teachers who had similar views regarding antiracist multicultural education received little support from the principal. She commented on the diminished morale and energy that teachers experienced when they tried to address schoolwide aspects of inequality without the backing of the principal: "There are some people who are willing to do it, but they get no support to do it. And so they give up." Rebecca, too, often felt defeated, claiming that she "hates the culture at the school; it's draining."

From past experiences, Rebecca knew that if her principal supported antiracist multicultural education at her current school, teacher morale would be better, and more changes in curriculum and ways of interacting would occur. Because there was, in Rebecca's words, "no leadership on this issue," she believed that the status quo prevailed.

Developing Contexts for Antiracist Teacher Development

Teachers who participate in university-directed antiracist staff development courses may receive the same training, but the implementation of their new knowledge into practice happens in uniquely different contexts. Once teachers return to their individual schools, under pressure to meet the daily demands of teaching while interacting with colleagues who may or may not share the same vision for change, the prospects for success could be compromised. School administrators can play an important role in shaping school contexts, which can influence individual teacher success (Spillane, Halverson, & Diamond, 2001) as well as schoolwide endeavors (Dufour, 2001).

Research indicates that active support by principals during educational change efforts is necessary in order for these efforts to be successful (McLaughlin & Marsh, 1978; Stallings & Mohlman, 1981). Although the influence of school leadership on antiracist multicultural educational practice has not been specifically studied, research on the role of school principals in enhancing educational change in schools suggests that school leadership can have a major influence on the success of multicultural educational change by providing teachers with multiple levels of support (Riehl, 2000). School leadership can support teachers by (a) allocating resources for new teaching practices such as materials, funding, or time (ElHs, 1988); (b) promoting continued professional development opportunities (Murphy, 1994); and (c) articulating a shared vision for change (Rosenblum, Lewis, & Rossmiller, 1994).

Participants from Arbordale believed that their school and district administrators actively shaped school and district context around antiracist multicultural issues by providing funding for the initial professional development program and by allocating resources for teacher-initiated projects. It makes sense, then, that those teachers from Arbordale who worked in schools with principals whom they felt intentionally supported teachers experienced success and maintained momentum for implementing antiracist multicultural practices. Because research has demonstrated that when school leaders are actively involved in teachers' professional development the changes tend to last longer than when principals are not involved (Fielding & Schalock, 1985), the teachers believed that the possibility for continued antiracist activities in Arbordale was promising.

Educators from Riverville, Red Point, and Medborough, however, seemed less certain about the future of antiracist multicultural education. In their view, principals' leadership for multicultural education ranged from minimal to none, and antiracist multicultural education was not a priority. Nina, Rebecca, and Carol experienced difficulty putting their new learning into practice. Those educators felt that neither they nor their colleagues collaborated with one another, and they worked alone without support from colleagues or administrators. Fullan (1982) reported that the amount of change in any new educational endeavor is influenced by the extent to which teachers interact with and support each other. Neither Nina nor Rebecca knew of any teacher-initiated study groups, team-taught multicultural courses or lessons, or other collaborative endeavors. Moreover, when Carol invited colleagues from Medborough to her classroom to view one of her curriculum projects, she perceived that some teachers felt threatened and were critical rather than supportive.

Although collegial and collaborative climates are necessary for effective educational change (DuFour, 2001; Little, 1982), Nina, Rebecca, and Carol did not believe that their principals created those climates for change. Those views about principals' leadership, combined with the lack of support that the teachers experienced, might have diminished the teachers' abilities to envision future possibilities and, instead, left them feeling drained and isolated.

As a final observation regarding Riverville, Red Point, and Medborough, however, one should note that there are a myriad of explanations for the negative views about climate, colleagues, and leadership and the sense of hopelessness about the future that Nina, Rebecca, and Carol conveyed. The possibilities underscore a critical limitation of the ptesent study. Because logistical concerns limited the sample of interviewees to only 1 educator from each of three districts, I could not determine from the available data whether the concerns that the teachers raised were indicative of the schools in which they worked or whether other educators in those schools felt similarly, or both. The exploratory nature of the study does illuminate, nonetheless, individual difficulties with workplace conditions that Nina, Rebecca, and Carol encountered and the challenges that they faced as perceived "lone voices" for change in their schools.

Implications for Antiracist School Leadership

If antiracist multicultural education is to be more than superficially effective, it must permeate the curriculum, social interactions among school personnel, and structures within schools (Banks 6k Banks, 1995; Lee, 1995; Nieto, 2000). Antiracist professional development can initiate that process. Through professional development, individual educators may experience profound shifts in thinking, attitude, and action in regard to their addressing inequities concerning race, ethnicity, and other social issues. However, some teachers experience varying degrees of success as they attempt to translate their new learning into practice in individual classrooms.

Teachers' perceptions of what they believe they need to be successful may influence their success. Studies of staff development programs that involve education reform reveal that the success of teachers' work to implement change depends on whether they believe that it is valued and supported by school personnel (Stein et al., 1999). The perceptions of the 7 educators in this study indicated that they needed more than professional development to sustain their commitment to antiracist classroom practice. The educators' feelings about their new learning and instructional practices, as well as whether other school personnel valued their efforts, suggested that school climate was important to the long-term success of their multicultural practice. For those teachers, school and district administrators played an important role in creating collegial school climates that could have supported and advanced teachers' multicultural competence.

School principals appear to be well poised to influence teacher commitment for change via the school climate that their leadership can help create (Leithwood et al., 1994). Studies that involve the role of leadership and its relation to teacher commitment reveal that respect from school staff is important to keep teachers committed to their new ways of teaching (Firestone & Rosenblum, 1988; Louis, 1992). An administrator's ability to engender that respect among the staff, as well as his or her ability to foster collegial relationships between those who try to implement change and those who do not, are aspects of leadership that are central to teacher com\mitment and to the success of new educational practices (Murphy, 1994; Murphy & Beck, 1994).

Remarks from teachers interviewed for this study highlight the need for antiracist professional development that moves beyond a corps of teachers. Although antiracist professional development for teachers is necessary for a teaching force that is predominantly White and monocultural, school administrators also must undergo their own antiracist professional development (Ryan, 2003). Supportive and facilitative aspects of leadership (Leithwood, 1992, 1994) and the respectful school climate that administrators can create may be well suited for enhancing teachers' commitment to, and practice of, antiracist multicultural teaching and learning. In order for administrators to succeed in guiding staff and establishing a supportive context for antiracist organizational change, they must be, as 1 teacher remarked, "on the same page" in terms of their views of antiracist multicultural education. Unless there is leadership for change concerning multicultural issues within the school, transformative efforts for change will remain, as some teachers described in this study, isolated in individual classrooms (Sleeter, 1992; Zeichner &. Hoeft, 1996).

Further Study

This study also highlights a long-standing limitation of multicultural professional development programs and the research that focuses on them. Too often the programs attend to individual teacher development without addressing aspects of organizational development. Yet, as depicted in this study, school context in terms of collegiality and support and the multicultural competence of principals and central office administrators could be critical to the success of the teacher professional development efforts. Those factors should be studied further. To gain more information, specifically on the role of leadership in enacting schoolwide changes that are inclusive and culturally responsive, researchers must go beyond self-reports of teachers and principals (as in this study) and examine leadership as it happens within particular organizational contexts in combination with teachers' views of that leadership (Spillane et al., 2001).

NOTES

I gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Carmen Rolon and Emily K. Vincent in conducting interviews and assisting with data analysis for this study.

1. Antiracist multicultural professional development is an approach that bears many names, such as "multicultural education" (Banks, 1993), "teaching for social justice" (Bigelow, Christensen, Karp, Miner, & Peterson, 1994), "culturally relevant teaching" (Ladson-Billings, 1994), and "culturally responsive teaching" (Gay, 2000). The central aim of all of those professional development efforts is to help educators understand the need for, and provide equitable education to, students from all racial and cultural groups.

2. Multicultural competence is a phrase used to describe a set of attributes that involves attaining a level of specific knowledge, shifts in attitude regarding race and ethnicity, and displays of behaviors such that one can successfully interact with diverse populations in multicultural settings. Conveying respect is also a part of multicultural competence (Wallace, 2000).

3. Course content focused on (a) an examination of racism and related forms of discrimination that have interfered with the educational attainment of many children, (b) an exploration of theories of racial identity development and how they inform student- teacher interactions, and (c) applications of those theories to classroom practice. Among the course activities were readings, videos, discussions, reflective writings, a field experience, and a culminating action plan for classroom implementation, all of which the authors designed to enable educators to understand the individual, cultural, and institutional manifestations of racism (and other forms of discrimination) in their schools and to help create and support a climate of high expectations and academic success for all their students. For a more detailed description of the course, discussions, and assignments, see Lawrence 6k Tatum (1997a, 1997b).

4. The names of the school districts, as well as the participants, are pseudonyms.

5. More than 200 educators from area school districts voluntarily completed the course during a 5-year period. Among the graduates of the course were K-12 teachers, curriculum coordinators, elementary and middle school principals, assistant principals, and one superintendent. The 7 educators selected for this study were typical of the group of educators who enrolled in this course: 2 participants were middle school teachers, 3 participants taught at the elementary level, 1 participant was a high school teacher, and 1 participant was a school principal. The racial and ethnic background of the enrollees also parallels the usual enrollment in the course: 5 European American, 1 African American, and 1 Puerto Rican.

REFERENCES

Alvarado, C., Burnley, L., Derman-Sparks, L., Huffman, E., jimenez, L. I., Labyzon, J., et al. (1999). In our own way: How anti- bias work shapes our lives. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf Press.

Banks, J. A. (1993). Multicultural education: Historical development, dimensions, and practice. Review of Research in Education, 19, 3-49.

Banks, J. A. (1994). Multiethnic education: Theory and practice (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Banks, J. A., & Banks, C. A. M. (1995). Equity pedagogy: An essential component of multicultural education. Theory Into Practice, 34, 152-158.

Bigelovv, B., Christensen, L, Karp, S., Miner, B., & Peterson, B. (1994). Creating classrooms for social justice. In B. Bigelow, L. Christensen, S. Karp, B. Miner, 6k B. Peterson (Eds.), Rethinking our classrooms: Teaching for equity and social justice (pp. 4-5). Milwaukee, WI: Rethinking Schools, Ltd.

Combs, A. W. (Ed.). (1962). Perceiving, behaving, becoming: A new focus for education. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Combs, A. W. (1974). The professional education of teachers: A humanistic approach to teacher preparation. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Combs, A. W. (1982). Personal approach to teaching: Beliefs that make a difference. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Combs, A. W., Miser, A. B., & Whitaker, K. S. (1999). On becoming a school leader: A person-centered challenge. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Dcrman-Sparks, L., & Phillips, C. B. (1997). Teaching/learning antiracism: A developmental approach. New York: Teachers College Press.

DuFour, R. (2001). In the right context. Journal of Staff Development, 22(1), 14-17.

Elliott, P. R. (1996). Testifying on racism: African-American educators, racial identity, and anti-racism staff development in schools. (Doctoral dissertation, University of Massachusetts, 1996). Dissertation Abstracts International, 57/10, 4201.

Ellis, S. (1988). Putting it all together: An integrated staff development program. In S. Caldwell (Ed.), Staff development: A handbook of effective practices. Oxford, OH: National Staff Development Council.

Ferguson, R. F. (1998). Teachers' perceptions and expectations and the Black-White test score gap. In C. Jencks & M. Phillips (Eds.), The Black-White test score gap (pp. 298-317). Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press.

Fielding, G., & Schalock, H. (1985). Promoting the professional development of teachers and administrators. Eugene, OR: ERIC Clearinghouse on Educational Management.

Firestone, W. A., 6k Rosenblum, S. (1988). The alienation and commitment of students and teachers in urban high schools. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 10, 285-300.

Fullan, M. (1982). The meaning of educational change. Toronto: OISE Press.

Gay, G. (2000). Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research and practice. New York: Teachers College Press.

Grant, C. A., 6k Zozakiewicz, C. A. (1995). Student teachers, cooperating teachers and supervisors: Interrupting the multicultural silences of student teaching. In J. M. Larking 6k C. E. Sleeter (Eds.), Developing multicultural teacher education curricula (pp. 259-273). Albany: SUNY Press.

Haberman, M., 6k Post, L. (1992). Does direct experience change education students' perceptions of low income minority children? The Midwestern Educational Researcher, 5(2), 29-31.

Kailin, J. (1994). Anti-racist staff development for teachers: Considerations of race, class, and gender. Teaching and Teacher Education, 10, 169-184.

Ladson-Billirigs, G. (1994). The dreamkeepers: Successful teachers of African-American teachers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Lawrence, S. M., 6k Krause, H. E. (1996). Multicultural teaching in a monocultural school: One cooperating teacher's personal and political challenges. Equity and Excellence in Education, 29(2), 30- 36.

Lawrence, S. M., 6k Tatum, B. D. (1997a). White educators as allies: Moving from awareness to action. In M. Fine, L. Weiss, L. Powell, 6k M. Wong (Eds.), Off-white: Readings of race, power and society (pp. 333-342). New York: Routledge.

Lawrence, S. M., 6k Tatum, B. D. (1997b). Teachers in transition: The impact of antiracist professional development on classroom practice. Teachers College Record, 99(1), 162-178.

Lee, E. (1995). Letters to Marcia: A teacher's guide to antiracist education. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Cross Cultural Communication Centre.

Leithwood, K. A. (1992). The move toward transformational leadership. Educational Leadership, 49(5), 8-12.

Leithwood, K. A. (1994). Leadership for school restructuring. Educational Administration Quarterly, 30, 498-618.

Leithwood, K. A., Jantzi, D., & Fernandez, A. (1994). Transformational leadership and teachers' commitment to change. In J. Murphy & K. S. Lewis (Eds.), Reshaping the principalship: Insights from transformational reform efforts (pp. 77-98). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Lightfoot, S. L. (1978). Worlds apart: Relationships between families and schools. New \York: Basic Books.

Little, J. W. (1982). Norms of collegiality and experimentation: Workplace conditions of school success. American Educational Research Journal, 19(3), 325-340.

Louis, K. S. (1992). Restructuring and the problem of teachers' work. In A. Liberman (Ed.), The changing contexts of teaching: yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education (Vol. 10, pp. 138-157). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Mahan, J., & Rains, F. (1990). Inservice teachers expand their cultural knowledge and approaches through practica in American Indian communities. Journal of American Indian Education, 29(2), 11- 24.

McLaughlin, M., & Marsh, D. (1978). Staff development and school change. Teachers College Record, 80(1), 69-84.

Metz, M. H. (1990). Real school: A universal drama amid disparate experience. In D. E. Mitchell & M. E. Goetz (Eds.), Education politics for the new century (pp. 5-91). London: Palmer Press.

Murphy, J. (1994). Transformation change and the evolving role of the principal. In J. Murphy & K. S. Lewis (Eds.), Reshaping the principalship: Insights from transformationai reform efforts (pp. 20- 53). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Murphy, J., & Beck, L. G. (1994). Restructuring the principalship: Challenges and possibilities. In J. Murphy & K. S. Lewis (Eds.), Reshaping the principalship: Insights from transformational reform efforts (pp. 3-19). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Nieto, S. (2000). Affirming diversity: The sociopolitical context of multicultural education (3rd ed.). White Plains, NY: Longman.

Nieto, S., & Rolon, C. (1997). Preparation and professional development of teachers: A perspective from two Latinas. In J. J. Irvine (Ed.), Critical knowledge for diverse teachers and learners (pp. 93-128). Washington, DC: American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education.

Paccione, A. V. (2000). Developing a commitment to multicultural education. Teachers College Record, 102, 980-1005.

Riehl, C. J. (2000). The principal's role in creating inclusive schools for diverse students: A review of normative, empirical, and critical literature on the practice of educational administration. Review of Educational Research, 70(1), 55-81.

Rosenblum, S., Lewis, K. S., & Rossmiller, R. A. (1994). School leadership and teacher quality of work life in restructuring schools. InJ. Murphy & K. S. Lewis (Eds.), Reshaping the principalship: Insights from transformational reform efforts (pp. 99- 122). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Ryan, J. (2003). Educational administrators' perceptions of racism in diverse school contexts. Race, Ethnicity and Education, 6(2), 145-164.

Scheurich, J. J., &. Skrla, L. (2003). Leadership for equity and excellence. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Schniedewind, N. (2001). Embracing the rainbow: An integrated approach to diversity education. Multicultural Perspectives, 3(1), 23-31.

Seidman, I. (1998). Interviewing as qualitative research: A guide for researchers in education and the social sciences (2nd ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.

Sleeter, C. E. (1992). Keeper of the American dream: A study of staff development and multicultural education. London: Palmer Press.

Sleeter, C. E. (1993). How white teachers construct race. In C. McCarthy & W. Crichlow (Eds.), Race, identity and representation in education (pp. 157-171). New York: Routledge.

Sleeter, C. E. (2001). Preparing teachers for culturally diverse schools: Research and the overwhelming presence of whiteness. Journal of Teacher Education, 52(2), 94-106.

Sparks, D., & Loucks-Horsley, S. (1990). Models of staff development. In W. R. Houston, M. Haberman, &. J. Sikula (Eds.), Handbook of research on teacher education (pp. 234-250). New York: Macmillan.

Spillane, J. P., Halverson, R., & Diamond, J. B. (2001). Investigating school leadership practice: A distributed perspective. Educational Researcher, 30(3), 23-28.

Stallings, J., & Mohlman, G. (1981). School policy, leadership style, teacher change, and student behavior in eight schools (Final report). Washington, DC: National Institute of Education.

Stein, M. K., Smith, M. S., & Silver, E. A. (1999). The development of professional developers: Learning to assist teachers in new settings in new ways. Harvard Education Review, 69, 237-269.

Strauss, A. L., & Corbin, J. (1990). Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

Tyack, D. B., & Cuban, L. (1995). Tinkering toward Utopia: A century of public school reform. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Wallace, B. C. (2000). A call for change in multicultural training at graduate schools of education: Educating to end oppression and for social justice. Teachers College Record, 102, 1087-1111.

Zeichner, K., & Hoeft, K. (1996). Teacher socialization for cultural diversity. In J. Sikula, T. J. Buttery, & E. Guyton (Eds.), Handbook of research on teacher education (2nd ed., pp. 525-547). New York: Macmillan.

SANDRA M. LAWRENCE

Mount Holyoke College

Address correspondence to Sandra M. Lawrence, Psychology & Education Department, Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, MA 01075. (E-mail: slaurrenc@mtholyoke.edu)

SANDRA M. LAWRENCE is an associate professor, Department of Psychology and Education, Mount Holyoke College, Massachusetts. Her interests include antiracist, multicultural education, White racial identity, qualitative research methods, and teacher education.

APPENDIX A

APPENDIX A

APPENDIX A

APPENDIX B

APPENDIX B

APPENDIX B

APPENDIX B

Copyright HELDREF PUBLICATIONS Jul/Aug 2005

Source: Journal of Educational Research, The

More News in this Category