The Social Studies

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Concepts of Democracy and Citizenship: Views of

African American Teachers

Valerie Ooka Pang & Rich Gibson

To cite this article: Valerie Ooka Pang & Rich Gibson (2001) Concepts of Democracy and
Citizenship: Views of African American Teachers, The Social Studies, 92:6, 260-266, DOI:
10.1080/00377990109604013

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Published online: 02 Apr 2010.

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Concepts of Democracy and
Citizenship: Views of African
American Teachers
VALERIE OOKA PANG
RICH GIBSON
E thnic diversity in our teaching
force is limited. In fact, most
teachers are middle-class, European
American women (Rong and Preissle
1997), a stark contrast to the U.S. stu-
dent population. In the largest twenty-
five school districts, children from
underrepresented ethnic groups make
up the majority, and many children
come from low-income families. Those
data illustrate the huge social discon-
nect, children coming to school with
values, languages, experiences, histori-
cal backgrounds, and expectations that
may be different from their teachers’.
From another viewpoint, the data sup-
port the conclusion that teachers may
come to school with deeply entrenched
ways of teaching to which the culturally
diverse students of our schools may not
respond (Cochran-Smith 1997). Let us
consider what such information means
to the social studies.
It is critical that teacher-educators in
the foundational discipline of social
studies review the deeply entrenched
curriculum, which is often described as
Eurocentric in orientation. “When cul-
tural transmission is emphasized, the
VALERIE OOKA PANG is a professor and
RICH GIBSON is an associate professor in
the College f Education at San Diego State
University in California.
260 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER2001 THE SOCIAL STUDIES
intent is to use the social studies curricu-
lum to promote social adaptation . . . .
This approach is politically conservative,
valuing stability and common standards
of thought and behavior” (Ross 1997,7).
According to that orientation, schools
serve as one of the primary social insti-
tutions whose job is to transmit the polit-
ical and social values of democracy, cul-
tural assimilation, and nationalism to
native-born students and immigrants.
However, as Nelson has reminded us,
“Nationalistic pride also constructs static
and false boundaries for knowledge, lim-
iting examination of human issues. . . .
Studies of nationalistic history and civics
taught in schools show that nations
manipulate their own histories, creating
and sustaining myths to inspire and per-
petuate national chauvinism through
schooling” (Nelson 1996, 17).
The United States is a nation of con-
tradictions. As a country, two of our tra-
ditional values are equality and plural-
ism; however, there are inconsistencies
between U.S. ideals and the experiences
of many of its citizens. Often, the voic-
es of teachers of color are not heard
(Delpit 1995; Foster 1998). Conse-
quently, it is critical that social studies
includes the voices of all communities
and integrates the perspectives of educa-
tors from underrepresented groups to
address the gap between the ideals of
justice and the reality of oppression in
U.S. society.
Social studies is the one area in the
school curriculum that is most directed
toward matters of racism, sexism, and
class structure. It embodies more than
the traditional concept of facts and ideas
from the disciplines of history and
geography. As Nelson and Pang wrote,
“It is the subject most concerned with
human ideas, ideals, and practices. It is
also the field most concerned with con-
troversy and the critical examination of
divergent views. This dual focus, study
of the human condition and examination
of controversy, makes social studies the
ideal location for study of racism and
prejudice” (2001, 149). It is essential
that the teaching force bring to the
classroom insightful knowledge about
human issues and methods to address
them critically.
With this article, we describe the
beliefs, experiences, and values that four
African American teachers bring to
social studies education about democra-
cy and citizenship. Our research focused
on the beliefs that the teachers held about
democratic concepts and how their value
system and cultural viewpoints affected
what and how they taught. Black educa-
tors are far more than physical role mod-
els, and they bring diverse family histo-
ries, value orientations, and experiences
to students in the classroom, attributes
often not found in textbooks or view-
points often omitted.
Our Methods for Gathering
Information
We chose four self-identified African
American participants who are mentor
teachers in the same school district in
southern California. Each educator
taught in an inner-city school, where
most of the students were African
American.
We collected data by conducting
structured, two-hour interviews with the
four teachers. With the permission of
each participant, the interviews were
tape-recorded and then transcribed. In
addition to the interview data, we
observed the teachers during at least
eight hours of classroom instruction and
wrote our observations.
For the interviews, we used questions
from the International Association for
the Evaluation of Educational Achieve-
ment Civic Education Project (Torney-
Purta, Schwille, and Amadeo 1999).
The questions dealt with the issues of
citizenship, civic education, and democ-
racy, and the teachers also voiced their
thoughts about teaching in the United
States. We asked them about their con-
cept of democracy, how they taught
about the rights and responsibilities of
citizenship, and how they assessed stu-
dents’ knowledge of those concepts. We
asked about their concept of the term
American and what they taught about
people of color.
Results and Discussion
The four African American teachers
indicated that they considered social
studies to be a critical subject in schools
and that they taught such aspects of the
field as classroom rules and social skills
throughout the school day. Unfortunate-
ly, they are currently not able to teach a
great deal of social studies content
because their district has mandated a
daily, three-hour literacy block, which
leaves little time for other subjects.
Much of their teaching in social studies
is shaped by African American history,
a strong appreciation for civil rights,
and family and personal experiences
with racism.
The African American teachers stated
that they believed their viewpoints were
rarely considered or seen as important in
their schools, which is in line with the
research of Delpit (1995). They believed
their input was continually excluded by
many mainstream teachers and adminis-
The African American teachers believed that their
viewpoints were not considered important and
were rarely addressed. In their own classrooms,
they discussed race, culture, and social class
with their students.
trators, who were from either the African
American or the white communities. In
their own classrooms, however, the four
teachers continually raised questions
about race, culture, and social class with
their students, even if the textbooks they
used did not, and they integrated those
topics into their class discussions. Lip-
man (1998) had also noted the powerful
theme of disempowerment that she
found among the African American
teachers she studied in a complex
ethnography of two schools. The key
themes that we found in our study and
the remarks of the four teachers follow.
Theme 1-Racism and Civil Rights
Each of the four teachers comment-
ed on the relationship between racism
and the lack of civil and human rights.
One of the strongest themes that came
from the study was the teachers’ discus-
sion of oppression and its negative
impact on self-image development and
opportunities for advancement.
Fred, who teaches third grade, knew
the force of racial discrimination and
was conscious of its impact on his life.
Fred was a more traditional teacher and
used a great deal of whole class ses-
sions. His manner was somewhat formal
and he smiled throughout the day. He
expected his students to be responsible
for their own learning because he
THE SOCIAL STUDIES
believed that self-disciplined learning
means that one has more control over
one’s life. He made pointed comments
about white males in power, to whom he
referred as “the man.” With his com-
ments, Fred presented his students with
his perspective, emphasizing that the
importance of fighting for civil and
human rights is at the core of his belief
system.
I have a picture of Malcolm X and Mar-
tin Luther King on my wall and below
that is President Kennedy because that’s
the name of the school, Kennedy. Mal-
colm X and Martin are in a picture
together and they are pointing at the tem-
ple of their mind. What I . . .[tell my stu-
dents] is they’re pointing to their mind as
thinkers. No matter what went on in their
life personally, they’re always thinking.
As they rose, they had to stand for some-
thing and one day you’re going to have to
stand for something and be willing to die
for it. That’s what these men did, and if
you learn from your history what p a t
men of color have done and how they
survived or how they died then you will
understand . . . where you’re going and
what is expected of you and what may
happen to you.
I’ve learned the system that “the man”
works in is very clandestine. He’ll do it in
a very clandestine way so., . I tell my stu-
dents, “You’re still a slave to the system if
you don’t have the knowledge in order to
combat that ignorance. You’re still a slave
to the system if you do not have the
knowledge to combat the ignorance in
this society. That ignorance is those who
are prejudiced, those who use terms or
words or certain things to keep you
excluded from the whole population.”
In extending his explanation of what
happened to Malcolm X,Fred reported
his own experiences with prejudiced
teachers.
And I’ve had experiences other ways
where people, they mean well, but they
NOVEMBERlDECEMBER 2001 261
 say it in a way where if you have it in
your heart and if you’re not strong
enough, you will be let down. You’ll feel
that you can’t be this because this person
said that. But because what I’ve experi-
enced through life, I know no one can tell
me what I can’t be because everything
that someone tells me that I can’t do, I
will try, if it’s something that’s positive, I
will try to reach that. An example is I was
told by tests that I would get frustrated
and drop out of college.
These tests I took to go to college. And
then my counselor read them to me and
said that these tests show that you’ll go to
college. You can get in college, but you
will not graduate. You’ll get frustrated.
The pressure will get to you. You’ll get
frustrated and drop out. I told her given
the opportunity, that’s not true. I will do it.
And I did. I went on to prove it, [becom-
ing] the first one in my family to graduate.
Jessica, another teacher we inter-
viewed, had also felt the bias of a
teacher. When we asked what she taught
about people of color, Jessica, a third-
grade teacher, talked about how she had
once been humiliated by a teacher. She
wanted to make sure that other children
were not so demeaned. Jessica also dis-
cussed a vivid image from an elemen-
tary social studies textbook that present-
ed a racist view of Native Americans
and African Americans.
Jessica is a process-oriented teacher.
When we observed her, we noted that
she was not likely to give an answer to
her students. Rather, she used a ques-
tioning method that encouraged stu-
dents to reflect on possible answers. She
explained the importance of a teacher’s
getting children to work with each other
in open and just ways. Jessica is a pro-
gressive. She had less structure in her
classroom, and her students were self-
directed learners. Although Jessica has a
soft voice, her room was always quiet.
Jessica modeled the importance of
equality and respect in her classroom,
and her students followed her example.
I remember being in the third grade, and
my third-grade teacher-her name was
Mrs. Brown-had a very heavy Southern
accent. I remember her reading to the
class a story of little Black Sambo. It
made me feel extremely uncomfortable,
and it really sticks out in my mind.
And the way that she treated me was like
I was a bother. I don’t know if it was
262 N0VEMBERL)ECEMBER2001 THE SOCIAL STUDIES
racial or what, but I know she was from Americans over the last 200 years. And
the South. It seemed like she treated me it’s surprising that it wasn’t brought out a
differently than she did the other children, long time ago. It should have always been
and I can recall going to school and not a part of a social studies lesson. To leave
learning about African American people it out is like saying to the rest of the world
or any other people. I [also] remember it’s not worth knowing. Your history is not
going to the dentist’s office, looking at as good as ours. We just promote our his-
magazines and not seeing any images of tory; yours is not that good so we won’t.
myself, you know, and the same thing as That’s the way it’s been; it hasn’t been
watching television growing up. talked about.
And so when I made the decision to We talked about George Washington
become a teacher, . . . it was like I don’t Carver, who discovered the importance of
want any other children to, regardless of crop rotation and all the wonderful uses
who they were or where they came from, of the peanut. Planting peanuts , . . and
to have those feelings of not seeing rotating the way their crops were set up
images of themselves in the literature or [was necessary] because when they grew
[not] being part of our class discussions cotton; the cotton draws all the nutrients
or [not] pulling in the information fiom out of the soil. You can’t grow anything
the media about different groups. I never out of the soil after cotton. And so what
wanted the students that I work with to they did was they set up their crops so that
have those feelings that I had growing up after they grew cotton here one season,
and being a student. Students in isolation, then they would move them over here
not being validated. . . where there were peanuts there before.
Peanuts put nutrients back into the soil,
Several sublayers emerged from the plus you get the peanuts. So he discov-
teachers’ interviews. On a basic level, ered that he would rotate them around
students must be taught about the contri- like that so that once the cotton was
pulled up, he would plant cotton some-
butions of African Americans. Young place else and plant peanuts where the
people can learn the roles they can play cotton was. [That] would rejuvenate the
in fighting for civil rights by watching soil again.
their parents and other significant people
George Washington Carver has always
in their lives. Finally, students must be been part of the canon of social studies
taught how to identify myths and how to texts. It is not true that he was excluded;
think critically about the impact of race in fact, he was repeatedly included, even
in society. Students need to learn about in the 40s and 50s, because he was an
African American role models who have acceptable black guy who promoted the
idea that black people are really backward
contributed to the historical and social and should get used to it, gradually work-
development of the United States. ing out of their backwardness. Later, he
Robert, who is an African American was usually cited as an alternative to
third-grade teacher, is structured and tra- DuBois.
ditional in his teaching and uses a major-
Jessica said she also included discus-
ity of whole-class lessons. He continual-
sion in her classes about the contribu-
ly asks his students questions to help
tions of African Americans, mentioning
them focus on targeted learning objec-
teaching about Charles Drew and Hani-
tives. Robert brought in information
et Tubman. She has integrated poetry
about various African American scien-
from such contemporary poets as Maya
tists, believing that the omission of the
Angelou and Nicki Giovanni and has
contributions of African Americans is
found that children enjoy the works of
disturbing and damages the view that
Langston Hughes and Paul Lawrence
children develop about African Ameri-
Dunbar.
cans and their role in the development of
Sarah, a first-grade teacher who also
the United States. The act of exclusion
included many different African Ameri-
reinforces the myth of white superiority.
can role models, talked about Charles
The inclusion of African American role
Drew and several others. She reported,
models can also be marginalized, as
Robert explained in his discussion of
During the school year, we always study
George Washington Carver. . . . a lot of biographies, and we talk
about different people. And I take those
There is just a wealth of information out opportunities, whenever the holidays
there about the achievements of African come, to talk about special Americans. I
 remember one year [the students] said,
“Are they dead too?” I said, “Well. unfor-
tunately, a lot of our American heroes
have passed on. We [do] have some liv-
ing ones. My favorite living one is Colin
Powell.” I always talk about Dr.Charles
Drew, and I always focus on Elijah
McCoy because for sciences, he is an
important role model.
Myths about democracy and equality
abound, and they are used to teach chil-
dren about an ideal society. Sarah com-
mented on how students are taught the
myths about our country in social stud-
ies classes, often through their lessons
about heroes.
We had a lot more realistic information
on American heroes because we learned
as children in grade school about our
founding fathers and we learned some of
the myths. When we got to college, we
were really able to understand and accept
that they [founding fathers] were human
just like everyone else. [For] me, it was
really an awakening when I got to college
to learn about Benjamin Franklin and
Thomas Jefferson, that they were human.
Theme 2-Responsibility of Citizenship
The rights and responsibilities of cit-
izenship demand that people speak up to
advance the cause of social justice. Peo-
ple not only have rights as citizens of
the United States but also have the
responsibility to work toward a com-
mon good that has awareness of civil
rights and respect for the individual and
for ethnic diversity at its foundation.
Robert believed he had a responsibil-
ity to work toward change in his school,
and as part of that belief, he talked about
speaking out. That is difficult in a soci-
ety in which the viewpoints of African
Americans are not valued. Robert spoke
about that responsibility:
Sometimes, professionally, I have to deal
with it [injustices] because I get the
impression from nonblack teachers that
their view is the only one worth hearing.
Mine can’t possibly be right because it’s
coming from me, an African American.
And they don’t come out and say that, but
their attitude and their demeanorjust tell
you that they really don’t appreciate your
having your comment. I don’t care that
they don’t want to hear it. I have a right
just like they do to express a complete
thought. So, when I feel the need, I do so.
Theme 3-Social Justice
Democracy and social justice are
interwoven values and represent the
ideals of our country. Although we strive
for equality and justice, those values
have not been reached in our society, in
which people of color are often not treat-
ed equally. The four teachers commented
on the issue of slavery. In many of their
remarks, the four seemed to question the
reality of our democracy because as
African Americans, they are often placed
at the margin of our system. They are
ignored in social studies textbooks; they
are not respected by other teachers; and
they encountered prejudice as students.
Robert reiterated the importance of
students’ learning about the social
oppression many African American men
confront in society, When we asked
Robert about what he taught about U.S.
government and legal institutions, he
talked at length about the high rate of
incarceration among black men. Robert
believed that racism contributed to the
ovempresentation of black men in U.S.
prisons.
[Incarceration] is a reality for a lot of
African Americans in [my] city. Whether
or not they have a parent, they may have
a cousin or brother or a neighbor that’s
incarcerated, so it’s something that comes
up. “My Dad can’t be here because he’s in
jail,” or little Johnny’s not acting right
because his dad has been sent away for
murder!.
It’s sad when you hear those stories, but it
is a reality. It exists. It happens. It’s preva-
lent, and you just hear a lot about it. It’s
not foreign to the kids.
Of course it’s negative, but it’s not so
negative that it stops young people from
falling into that same trap. .. I think the
I
impact sometimes may be, it kind of
breeds a lack of motivation to try to do
better. . . that there’s somethingbetter for
me to strive for and it kind of takes a lit-
tle bit away from that. So, part of my
teaching is to say, “Yes, the legal system
and the government , . . can work, but you
have to learn how to use it. You have to be
a part of it to a degree. You don’t have to
like it all, and if you don’t l i i it, then
there are ways to go about doing some-
thing about it.”
Robert also talked directly about the
impact of the values of democracy and
their reality.
THE SOCIAL STUDIES
At some point, I do discuss the Constitu-
tion-what it means and what it meant at
the time it was written. I think,in m opti-
mistic way, that it was written for a partic-
ular purpose, but I think it was written for
a particular group of people and excluded
others. And some peoplg may have under-
stood that it meant all men as it’s written,
but in fact, it didn’t in practice. The Con-
stitution didn’t really mean that. So there’s
a purpose for government and it’s a posi-
tive one, but it hasn’t always exhibited
itself that way. We talk about the govern-
ment, the police department, the president,
the vice president, things like that.
Theme 4-Slavery
Slavery and other racial issues must
be discussed in depth in schools, and
teachers must not shy away from those
difficult discussions. Their personal and
family histories can extend the knowl-
edge presented in the social studies text-
books about the issues dealing with
race, class, and gender. Slavery is the
historical foundation for the practices of
segregation; to understand segregation,
students must study slavery.
Democracy does not always mean
fairness. Each teacher thought it was
critical for students to examine issues
like slavery to demonstrate that citizens
must continue to fight for social justice.
The teachers did not shy away from or
feel uncomfortable talking about slav-
ery. They commented on the contradic-
tions in a nation that promoted human
and civil rights throughout the globe.
Robert’s comments follow.
Let’s just take slavery, for example. A
question will come up like that, and it
may not necessarily be during social stud-
ies. It can be in an excerpt from a book,
let’s say, by Virginia Hamilton. She’s
written some stories, and one of those sto-
ries was in our reader, and I was explain-
ing [it] to the children. It has somethingto
do with runaway slaves. So, in trying to
explain, you know,how can a democratic
government have slavery, and that’s a dif-
ficult idea for young African American
children because all they know is what
they have lived for the last eight or nine
years. It’s very hard for them to under-
stand that at some point black people
were treated like animals. So, I have to
say this is the way it was, we weren’t
accepted as being total human beings.
Well, that’s not fair, I understand that, but
this is reality; this is what actually took
NOVEMBERlDECEMBER 2001 263
 place. And because that idea of democra-
cy was in place, there were many people
who felt it was unfair and they rebelled
and they fought against that idea, that
notion. That’s how change came about
when people just spoke out on issues
where they just felt in their heart that it
just wasn’t fair. Basically, that’s what I’m
trying to do, show them examples like
that where. . .let me mention Rosa Parks.
Why did Rosa Parks have to sit in the
back of the bus? Well, you know, the rea-
With their personal and family histories, African
American teachers can extend the knowledge
presented in social studies textbooks about race,
class, and gender.
son for that was because those were laws
that were made by whites at the time, and
they had the power; they controlled. It’s
not fair, and I understand it’s not fair, and
blacks learned it wasn’t fair and they
decided to boycott to bring this injustice
to the forefront, and that’s when things
changed in terms of at least riding the bus
in Montgomery. So, I share examples like
that because it’s hard for them to under-
stand. They think they should just be able
to get on the bus anywhere, anytime, and
ride the bus, and I had to explain to them
that it hasn’t always been that way in this
country.
Robert’s African American students
were disturbed by the injustices they
learned about in social studies. When
asked how the students responded to
that, this is what he said:
At first their response is one of, I guess, of
being upset, and they speak in terms of
what they would do to oppose that which
is sometimes very violent or sometimes
not violent. But they would say they
would just get up and leave, and I said
that if you did that and you were caught
they would make an example of you. You
could be whipped they would cut your
foot off, something like that, maybe set an
example in front of the other slaves so
they wouldn’t take a chance to do that.
Following up on that response,
Robert explained in more! detail the kind
of personal injustice African Americans
were subjected to because of institution-
alized racism.
264 NOVEMBEIUDECEMBER2001 THE SOCIAL STUDIES
Well, at that point they’re [his African
American students] kind of in shock that
those kinds of things happened. So, they
kind of quiet down. I said, you know, that
it was very Micult for parents [who] had
to be very particular in the way they
raised their kids because they had to raise
them in a way that would make them sur-
vive. And whether you may see them as
being an Uncle Tom or something, saying
“Yes Master, Yes Missy, I’ll do it for you.”
But when you did, that they were satisfied
and they wouldn’t harass you anymore.
So those were just some of the things of
basic survival that African Americans had
to go through during that time.
Along with Robert’s discussion of
slavery was another message that
African Americans have worked hard to
fight discrimination and to make the
ideals of democracy a reality. Robert
believed that, in its original intent, our
democracy was meant for white men
with financial resources.
We [African Americans] were able to
endure and succeed, even though we went
through all the hardships during times of
slavery.
Robert also discussed the inability of
social studies textbooks to provide a
comprehensive understanding of the
lives of various people in the United
States. The African American commu-
nity has been affected in many ways by
slavery. The following example, which
Robert shared, is rarely included in text-
books:
You know, there are many things going on
in the country simultaneously. It wasn’t
like everything is so compartmentalized
as it is in the book. Many things were
happening at the same time. In the fourth
grade, we talk about California history in
our social studies. So one of the things I
brought to them was the fact that many
blacks ran away . . . to California, [to]
what we now know as California, and
they lived there. They ran away to live
there because there was no slavery, and
they believed they could be accepted
on their own merit. So many African
Americans stayed here, married Indians,
married Mexicans, started farms and
ranches and had very successful lives
in California. Our history books don’t
talk about that part of California history
that much.
Theme 5-Sharing Personal Histories
With their personal and family histo-
ries, African American teachers can
extend the knowledge presented in
social studies textbooks about the issues
dealing with race, class, and gender.
Jessica shares information about her
own family if it relates to the social
studies issues being studied. When the
students were studying the election
process, she spoke to them about her
family’s views on the importance of vot-
ing. In addition, Jessica talks about
institutional racism and how it affected
her life when she was growing up in the
South. Although she said in the inter-
view that children have had limited
exposure to aspects of segregation from
their social studies textbooks, they still
do not have any comprehensive under-
standing of the concept. Jessica felt it
was beneficial for students if she illus-
trated the concept with her own experi-
ences. She told the students how she
was confronted with the negative prac-
tices of institutional racism.
I provide a little bit more of my own per-
sonal experience. I talk a lot about that-
about the time I spent growing up in the
South and the transition I made coming to
live here. And I bring a lot of my own per-
sonal experience of family members. For
example, through the election period I
discussed with my students how I recall
my grandmother and my aunts and uncles
being part of formal study groups so they
could take the literacy test that would
make them eligible to vote and how later
on that became against the law to have lit-
eracy tests. But I talk to them about how I
remember them sitting together and the
joy that they experienced when they
passed the test. I talk to them you know
being a little girl and going into dime
stores and seeing the colored drinking
fountain and the white drinking fountain.
 Just things like that that happened during
my growing up, my own personal expe-
riences.
Theme &Respect for Individuals
The four teachers agreed that respect
for the humanity of each person is criti-
cal in a democracy. They each used that
word in their discussions, and it seemed
to be a powerful word in the communi-
ties where they were brought up and
where they now live. To them, the word
respect refers to respect for the humani-
ty of the person.
Robert, a believer in respect and
care, said:
Before teaching ever takes place, for me,
I think children need to be nurtured. They
need to be loved; they need to be respect-
ed; they need to feel like you care. When
they sense that, then you’ve got them and
then you can do anything with them. They
are more open to learning then, even if it’s
difficult. If they think you don’t care and
they’re having a problem, they’re going to
continue to have a problem because they
may not even share with you that they’re
having a problem. They’re going to with-
draw and stay away, but when you touch
them emotionally, I think you can begin
to do all kinds of things with them, and
then you can try different things.
Jessica described the actions of
another teacher in her school, whom she
saw as admirable. That teacher was
attempting to put equality and respect
into school practices. He observed the
lack of crosscultural communication
between black and Latino students. The
PE teacher developed activities to
encourage children to learn about each
other as humans and about each other’s
interests, which often have ethnic roots.
In this case, the two groups had differ-
ent interests in sports.
The PE teacher mixed African American
and Mexican students in various groups,
learning basketball and soccer. He also
included girls in these activities too,
because for a long time the boys dominat-
ed. The boys would not let the girls par-
ticipate, Mexican boys only wanted to
play soccer. African American boys only
wanted to play basketball and football.
Their sports were somewhat culturally
segregated. What the PE teacher has done
is rotate the boys between soccer and bas-
ketball. This way you have your Hispanic
children learning how to play basketball
and the African American boys and Other
boys learning Soccer ski*1s* One
of the things the teacher set up. A teacher
here took it himself. He
the problem and the conflicts between
ethnic groups.
Conclusion
During our interviews with the four
African American teachers, in which
~ ~~ ~ ~
The four African American teachers viewed asocial
studies as a self-llmlting subject If it does not
include the histories of under-represented people.
They lamented that few teachers understand the
complexity of racism.
they commented on their concepts of
democracy, citizenship, rights, and
responsibilities, we recognized that the
most salient theme throughout their
responses was the issue of race. The
construct of race played an important,
and most often a negative, role in their
lives. That negative role energized the
educators to examine and discuss their
experiences with racism. As Marcuse
(1988) has written, the negativity of
racism can cause people to examine and
evaluate their experiences. Because the
focus of the interviews was citizenship,
we did not ask direct questions about
racism. The four teachers interviewed,
however, saw race as a powerful politi-
cal and social construct that affected
their lives on personal, cultural, and
institutional levels. They saw racism as
a system of beliefs that dehumanized
those who are its target (Gibson 1999)
and as a construct that has been created
to stigmatize, distance, or elevate peo-
ple from the mainstream. Racism legit-
imized the domination of those in the
privileged white collective (Pang 2001).
They each believed eliminating preju-
dice and discrimination from schools
and citing important role models to be
their major goals and responsibilities as
teachers.
The teachers viewed social studies as
a self-limiting subject, if its curriculum
THE SOCIAL STUDIES
is defined by traditional historians who
have not included the histories of under-
represented people. They lamented the
fact that elementary-level textbooks
often follow the work of the powerful
and leave the powerless invisible and
unexamined. They spoke about school
administrators who often disregarded
their opinions and about their concern
that administrators and other teachers
did not welcome their voices at faculty
~~~ ~ ~
meetings. Administrators, both black
and white, often responded defensively
to their remarks and offered little
encouragement for their advancement.
When preparing their students to be
active citizens, the four teachers
endeavored to assist them in recogniz-
ing, understanding, and addressing
racism. They tackled issues dealing with
slavery, drawing on their intimate and
direct connections to the experiences of
their enslaved ancestors. By helping stu-
dents develop a historical understanding
of the effects of racism, they echoed the
views of Lipman (1998), who wrote that
few teachers understand the complexity
of racism and how to address its
inequities.
Although the four teachers believed
that students should work for social jus-
tice, they did not discuss methods to
teach their students social action strate-
gies. They also did not discuss curricu-
lum and instruction that taught decision
making and social action skills, which,
according to Gibson (1999), is a com-
mon shortcoming in many teachers that
must be addressed.
Recognizing the value of democracy,
they also saw the contradictions
between its ideals and reality. By
including the biographies of those who
struggled and fought for civil rights, the
teachers not only validated the contribu-
NOVEMBEWDECEMBER 2001 265
tions of blacks to their students but also
provided them with an education in
which ethnic diversity was part of the
curriculum. Although they believed that
race relations have improved, the teach-
ers expressed doubts about the true
nature of democracy in the United
States because of the constant racism
that they and their families continued to
experience.
The four teachers felt the pressure of
the national and local movements to
achieve literacy standards and the
emphasis in the school district on stan-
dardized test performances. W o of the
teachers indicated their unhappiness
with the standards and testing move-
ments and were contemplating leaving
teaching. This is what Jessica said:
I have so much to do as a teacher as far as
state standards and district standards that
I do not get the opportunity to teach much
social studies. It’s unfortunate. But that’s
the way it is. My job is dependent on how
well the children do on their achievement
tests. I have to get those children compe-
tent in reading, writing, and math so they
will do well on the tests. That takes up
most of our [classroom] time.
African American teachers come
from a diverse community in which
many feel a sense of kinship that is
founded on shared history and perspec-
tives. They come from various regions
of the country, have had different career
experiences, may speak with regional
accents, and come from different social
classes. Like the teachers in our small
sample, they share common perspec-
266 NOVEMBEWDECEMBER 2001 THE SOCIAL STUDIES
tives on racism and the importance of
respect. They bring to the classroom the
experiences of African Americans who
are only marginally included in social
studies resources, and they can engage
their students in dialogue about slavery
and other civil rights.
We recommend for future study the
response of African American teachers
to questions about racial issues.
Because the four teachers we inter-
viewed raised the issue of racism volun-
tarily, we realize that that is a complex,
socially constructed concept (Valle
1997;Omi and Winnat 1994). The com-
ments of those teachers support the con-
clusion that race plays a powerful role
in U.S. schools and society. All social
studies educators must include the study
of racism, its complexity, and its perva-
sive influence in our democratic society.
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