Date of Award
1-20-2025
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Education
First Advisor
Katherine Phillippo
Abstract
Research on racially matching teachers of color with students of color has demonstrated a plethora of benefits, whether it is in West-Indian teachers with West-Indian students (Warikoo, 2004), Mexicana educators with Mexicana students (Sosa-Provencio, 2019), or Black students with Black teachers (Brooms, 2017). Black teachers are warrior spirits, acknowledging education as a “racial, cultural, linguistic, and spiritual reclamation” for Black students (Sosa-Provencio, 2018). In this study, I sought to understand how the racial matching between Black teachers and Black students can impact Black students’ identity and achievement. Numerous studies say racial matching helps students, but only a few focus on how. By focusing on Black students and their voices—which are often invisible in literature—we can better understand how Black teachers impact Black students’ identity instead of stopping at the mere fact that there is an impact. Based on the analysis of teacher interviews, student interviews, and the Worrell racial identity scale, findings revealed that Black teachers and Black students overlap in what they believe the role of the Black teacher is in their racial identity development. Black teachers and Black students articulated Black teachers as nurturers through affirming Black identity and providing family/kinship. However, Black teachers differed from Black students in highlighting two key findings: Black students inform Black teachers’ racial identity development just as much as Black teachers inform Black students’ racial identity development (reciprocity), and Black teachers spoke on the negative consequences of racial matching, seen through: a heavy emotional toll, disappointment in the Black community, anti-Blackness, and toxicity towards Black students. Black students also mentioned the emotional and physical harm that occur when racial matching is present without love. These findings suggest that racial matching is not enough for positive racial identity development; the racial matching must be coupled with love and care.
Recommended Citation
Lennix, Crystal Gloria, "Like Teacher, Like Student: An Exploration of Racial Matching on Black Student Identity Development in Secondary Education" (2025). Dissertations. 4154.
https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss/4154
