This study explores the perspectives of four economically disadvantaged, Black students who have been labeled as learning disabled and placed in the Special Education program. The voices of the students interviewed are used to develop unique, first-hand understandings of the cause of disproportionality among poor, Black children in Special Education with a learning dis/ability. Results from the data collected through individual and group interviews suggest that students do not regard themselves as dis/abled as they find themselves capable of learning and executing non-academic tasks that relate to their lived reality. Therefore, I argue that a historical, and therefore systemic, devaluation of the culture of poor, Black children has led many students to be erroneously viewed and classified as incapable by the American Education System.
","abstract_html":"<p>This study explores the perspectives of four economically disadvantaged, Black students who have been labeled as learning disabled and placed in the Special Education program. The voices of the students interviewed are used to develop unique, first-hand understandings of the cause of disproportionality among poor, Black children in Special Education with a learning dis/ability. Results from the data collected through individual and group interviews suggest that students do not regard themselves as dis/abled as they find themselves capable of learning and executing non-academic tasks that relate to their lived reality. Therefore, I argue that a historical, and therefore systemic, devaluation of the culture of poor, Black children has led many students to be erroneously viewed and classified as incapable by the American Education System.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Duncan, Nadine"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Doctor of Education in Special Education - General Curriculum (Ed.D)","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Education","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Dr. Natasha Thornton","Dr. Nihal Khote"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2019,"date_issued":"2019-05-07T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2019-05-07T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:43:33Z","subjects":["Critical Race Theory","Special Education","disproportionality","African-American","Black","Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy","Special Education and Teaching"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/speceddoc_etd/5","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Dr. Natasha Thornton","Dr. Nihal Khote"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Duncan, Nadine"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Education"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Education in Special Education - General Curriculum (Ed.D)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Critical Race Theory","Special Education","disproportionality","African-American","Black","Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy","Special Education and Teaching"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/speceddoc_etd/5"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This study explores the perspectives of four economically disadvantaged, Black students who have been labeled as learning disabled and placed in the Special Education program. The voices of the students interviewed are used to develop unique, first-hand understandings of the cause of disproportionality among poor, Black children in Special Education with a learning dis/ability. Results from the data collected through individual and group interviews suggest that students do not regard themselves as dis/abled as they find themselves capable of learning and executing non-academic tasks that relate to their lived reality. Therefore, I argue that a historical, and therefore systemic, devaluation of the culture of poor, Black children has led many students to be erroneously viewed and classified as incapable by the American Education System.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Voices from the Margin: A Qualitative Study on the Perspectives of Economically Disadvantaged, Black Students Identified as Learning Disabled"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Dr. Natasha Thornton","Dr. Nihal Khote"],"dc:creator":["Duncan, Nadine"],"dc:description.abstract":["This study explores the perspectives of four economically disadvantaged, Black students who have been labeled as learning disabled and placed in the Special Education program. The voices of the students interviewed are used to develop unique, first-hand understandings of the cause of disproportionality among poor, Black children in Special Education with a learning dis/ability. Results from the data collected through individual and group interviews suggest that students do not regard themselves as dis/abled as they find themselves capable of learning and executing non-academic tasks that relate to their lived reality. Therefore, I argue that a historical, and therefore systemic, devaluation of the culture of poor, Black children has led many students to be erroneously viewed and classified as incapable by the American Education System.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/speceddoc_etd/5"],"dc:subject":["Critical Race Theory","Special Education","disproportionality","African-American","Black","Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy","Special Education and Teaching"],"dc:title":["Voices from the Margin: A Qualitative Study on the Perspectives of Economically Disadvantaged, Black Students Identified as Learning Disabled"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Education"],"thesis:degree_level":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Education in Special Education - General Curriculum (Ed.D)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:43:33Z"}