The reading trajectory of African Americans males within the PreK-12 special education system has been at the forefront of scholarship. This case study was to understand how Zion's misidentification may have influenced his reading experiences. The inequalities Zion encountered in Special Education are examined through the Critical Race Theory and…

This study examines how three teachers working at a South Central high school teach critically about race and place. While building on the "spatial turn" in social science, the article draws on Critical Race Spatial Analysis to advance literature at the intersection of race, place, and pedagogy. Additionally, the article utilizes…

The overarching purpose of this article is to introduce A Gardening Metaphor (AGM) as an evolving framework for accelerating the closure of racial achievement gaps in America. Toward this end, we provide: (a) an examination of the racial disparities in education that are disproportionately experienced by Black children; (b) a rationale for why…

Our research is guided by the aim to use counterstories pedagogically in teacher education. We report on counterstory-based parent teacher conference simulations, where composite case narratives support teacher candidates in taking up asset-based perspectives. Our work rests upon the assertion that asset-based framing must not remain purely…

The effects of professional teacher dispositions on student development have been widely documented. Yet there is limited discussion of the impact of socially just dispositions. The present study critically examines the relationship between justice-oriented mind-sets in preservice teachers and their perceptions of teaching in urban schools. Using…

This qualitative case study explores how an African American woman social studies teacher made sense of the construct of citizenship utilizing historical and experiential knowledge. The multiple intersections of the participant's identity affected the ways in which she understood and taught citizenship to her high school students. She chose to…

By exploring how liberalism is at work through a federally driven effort to improve academic achievement in schools serving youth of color and those from low-income communities, this article attempts to advance an understanding of the mechanisms that reify structural inequity in urban schools. Based on both a critical analysis of School…

How do school district administrators make sense of educational equity as they undertake reform? This study examines tracking policymaking in two urban school districts. Using case studies and an interpretive approach, the study highlights school district leaders' shifting ways of making sense of tracking and (in)equity while facing achievement…

This case study is the first known employing flow in educational administration in the United States. Using Csikszentmihalyi's flow theory and Dantley's purpose-driven leadership, an administrator's practices were examined with respect to two guiding questions: (a) is purposefulness integral to closing extant gaps in achievement, and (b) are the…

The current goals of the standards-based reform environment can be limiting to teachers' freedom and creativity. This occurs at a time when immigrant diversity transforms U.S. cities and innovative pedagogical responses are increasingly necessary. The confluence of these two processes is underexplored. Ethnography in New York City and Los Angeles…

In this article, we examine a residency program that was developed to prepare teachers specifically for New York City schools--the Bard College Master of Arts in Teaching Urban Teacher Residency program. This focused preparation on the particular urban context of New York City provides us with a unique opportunity to examine the nature of…

This narrative analysis case study challenges the education reform movement's fascination with "grit," the notion that a non-cognitive trait like persistence is at the core of disparate educational outcomes and the answer to our inequitable education system. Through analysis of the narratives and meaning-making processes of Elijah, a…

In the context of high-stakes accountability, education-related policy efforts have aimed to address the improvement of persistently low-achieving (PLA) schools via turnaround reform strategies. Such strategies provide opportunities for educational leaders to influence the process; however, limited research examining the role of the assistant…

Although education reforms have been designed to improve academic achievement for all students, there may be intervening factors, such as teacher expectations, that interfere with the success of these initiatives. This ethnographic case study examined student and teacher perspectives on an urban high school reform, and how that reform was…

This article uses counter-storytelling to examine how four urban African American mothers understand and discuss the role of Common Core State Standards (CCSS) in their children's education. Counter-storytelling is used as an oppositional framework to dominant stories privileged by educational systems. Findings conclude how parents posit valid…