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Planting gardens versus fighting fires: A critical race narrative inquiry of Black and Latinx students’ lower participation in education abroad

McKinney, Neal Jerron
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3205-0224
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu171197676354926

Abstract Details

2024, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Educational Studies.
Education abroad personnel have relied on a 30+ years old rationale that Black and Latinx students participate in college study abroad programs at a lower rate than their white peers due to cultural differences attributed to the backgrounds of Black and Latinx students. Despite contemporary guidance from education scholars to move beyond this rationale, education abroad personnel on a whole have yet to consider if and how education abroad personnel’s discussions on participation rates of Black and Latinx students reflect racialized deficit-based thinking, a mindset that attributes disparities in educational performance to the fault of Black and Latinx students. Therefore, this qualitative research study sought to understand how: (1) education abroad personnel narrate the phenomenon of the lower participation rate of U.S. Black and Latinx college students in education abroad programs, (1a) what, if any, patterns of race and racism are present in their narrative, and (2) to understand how Black and Latinx students make meaning of these narratives. The theoretical framework for this study was critical race theory (CRT). The research design used narrative inquiry and critical race storytelling research methodology. This bricolage research design centered the lived experiences of 16 participants (11 education abroad personnel, five Black and Latinx students) in two phases, and analyzed how the education abroad personnels’ discussions of Black and Latinx students and their lower participation in education abroad are shaped by and discussed through the lens of race and racism. The findings are presented in the form of a composite stock story and composite counter-story to portray master narratives of race and racism, as well as to center the uniqueness of the voices of Black and Latinx students and their experiential knowledge as resistance against master narratives. The findings indicate: (1) education abroad personnel constructed narratives that name visibility, family, and finances as the contributing factors to the low(er) participation of Black and Latinx students in education abroad opportunities, (2) their narratives reflected patterns of a racialized deficit mindset because education abroad personnel place Black and Latinx students themselves and their backgrounds as the primary source of their lower participation (Bensimon, 2005), and (3) Black and Latinx students validated that visibility, family, and finances are integral aspects of their lower participation; however, they also attributed that EAP have not communicated how education abroad is relevant and worth the investment toward degree completion. The findings of this study forge a critical implication that EAP are overlooking their own influence as an underlying explanation for the lower participation of Black and Latinx students. Moreover, the findings implicate the extent to which EAP have over-relied on the lower participation rationale cultivating a detrimental fixation and an incomplete picture of Black and Latinx student participation in education abroad experiences (Contreras, 2020).
Stephen J. Quaye (Advisor)
Stephen J. Quaye (Committee Chair)
Keely Croxton (Committee Member)
Tatiana Suspitsyna (Committee Member)
Kristen J. Mills (Committee Member)
177 p.
Higher Education
Education abroad, study abroad, critical race theory, diversity, inclusion, Black, Latinx, students of color, equity, advising, narrative inquiry, composite storytelling, critical race storytelling

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • McKinney, N. J. (2024). Planting gardens versus fighting fires: A critical race narrative inquiry of Black and Latinx students’ lower participation in education abroad [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu171197676354926

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • McKinney, Neal. Planting gardens versus fighting fires: A critical race narrative inquiry of Black and Latinx students’ lower participation in education abroad. 2024. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu171197676354926.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • McKinney, Neal. "Planting gardens versus fighting fires: A critical race narrative inquiry of Black and Latinx students’ lower participation in education abroad." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2024. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu171197676354926

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu171197676354926
431
© 2024, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.