Date of Award

2019

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Education

Abstract

African American and Latinx students in the United States continue to academically perform at lower levels than their White peers as indicated by standardized testing results. While many educational efforts have attempted to close the achievement gap that exists between White students and students of Color, disparities in academic outcomes persist. The prominent discourse regarding the achievement gap emphasizes cultural deficiencies within the individual student rather than acknowledge structural and institutional factors that uphold systemic racism and White supremacy. As a result, many new instructional approaches and teaching techniques used in schools and teacher preparation programs focus on correcting the perceived deficiencies of students of Color. Doug Lemov's Teach Like a Champion 2.0: 62 Techniques That Put Students on the Path to College (TLaC 2.0) is a burgeoning teaching guide that promotes techniques intended to close the achievement gap. The instructional guide emphasizes a set taxonomy with strategies for teachers to replicate in their classrooms, and is utilized by many teacher training and educator professional development programs. This study uses document analysis research to examine TLaC 2.0 through a lens informed by Critical Race Theory. An examination of the language used within TLaC 2.0 provides further insights as to the techniques and strategies used to prepare educators in closing the achievement gap. Moreover, the findings of this study offer evidence of deficit ideology perpetuated within teacher education and professional development programs.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.

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