Critical Race Theory (CRT) revolutionized how we investigate race in education. Centralizing counter-stories from people of color becomes essential for decentralizing white normative discourse--a process we refer to as realities within the Black imagination. Yet, few studies examine how whites respond to centering the Black imagination, especially…

This exploratory study examined white undergraduate students' (a) racial attitudes towards Asian Americans, (b) principled policy attitudes toward affirmative action, and (c) self-interest in relation to their support for college-based affirmative action policies for Asian Americans at a Midwestern university. A sample (n = 264, 28% male, 72%…

This article reports on a case study that investigated how six Japanese American youth interpreted the effectiveness and relevance of extra-curricular diversity initiatives at their Midwestern middle and secondary public schools. These initiatives were intended to raise cultural awareness, but ultimately promoted cultural fetishism and racially…

This research is a cross-site analysis of how white, male, college students see their Asian American peers. Semi-structured interviews with 43 white males were conducted at two universities that differed substantially in their representation of Asian American students. The interviews were theoretically framed by Critical Whiteness Studies and Bobo…

This article considers how after-school digital media clubs, as an example of informal learning, can provide meaningful opportunities for youth to participate in the creation of interest-driven learning ecologies through media production. Ethnographic research was conducted in two after-school digital media clubs at a large, ethnically diverse,…

This qualitative case study investigates how service-learning may enable self-direction and the development of a critical consciousness for marginalized high school students by exploring the dynamics of service-learning through a theoretical framework of critical theory. Service-learning is theorized to counter the oppressive nature of schooling…

This article chronicles how a group of university researchers initiated a research and professional development project called Culture of Care at a large high school in the Denver Metropolitan area. After implementation, Latino/Hispanic students and their parents maintained the project. It was the charge of Latino/Hispanic parents to dismantle the…

This article investigates three teacher learners' service learning experiences, in order to explore the extent to which approaches to service learning can lead to legitimate learning outcomes tied to transformative teacher growth and situated in tenets of social justice. Using student interview data, the author posits that service learning…

Breaking down the social, political, and cultural processes through which race, class, and gender worldviews are established, ideological literacies help students look closely at the intricate, contradictory meanings in texts. The purpose of developing ideological literacies in urban youth is so they become more socially conscious of the…

This article describes how Norwegian compulsory education, both philosophically and practically, reflects the institutionalized democratic values of the larger social and political community of Norway. It examines, through the application of collective and structural lenses of analysis, how shifting demographics in this social and political…

The aftermath of 9/11 and the current surge of revolutions in North Africa and the Middle East have caused Muslim Americans to be either demonized or forgotten altogether, despite the significance of their everyday navigation of both Islamic and democratic values and unique efforts toward identity construction. The neglect of the Muslim American…

Although Muslims have a significant presence at American universities, they are largely ignored by campus policies and resources and may find it difficult to reconcile their university experience with their religious values and practices. Using bicultural acculturation as a theoretical lens along with interviews and document analysis, this…

Despite acknowledgement among social justice educators about the need to infuse anti-bias lessons in K-12 curricula, discussions of disability oppression are silent in schools. Token efforts at addressing the topic of disability generally manifest as "disability awareness day(s)" and often include "disability simulations,"…

This article responds to two long-standing dilemmas that limit the effectiveness of language education for students who speak and write in African American Language (AAL): (1) the gap between theory and research on AAL and classroom practice, and (2) the need for critical language pedagogies. This article presents the effectiveness of a critical…

African American youth have been disciplined and dismissed from classrooms for engaging in culturally-based communication practices that teachers misinterpret and perceive as disruptive. Teachers have significant power in how they communicate with their students. White teachers should be especially aware of this power because misunderstandings…