Exploration of White educators’ experiences in inclusive inquiry-based critical professional development

This qualitative study explores the experiences of White educators who participated in an inclusive critical professional development series, the I3: Inclusive, Inquiry-Based Social Studies for Illinois professional development series. The selected participants of this study rated themselves as high on inclusive and inquiry-based learning practices before beginning the I3 professional development series. Findings from the study suggest that participants who expressed a high level of competence towards inclusive and inquiry-based learning approaches, and who were also highly engaged with the work throughout the I3 professional development series, still struggle to discuss the concept of inclusive learning environments in a real and meaningful way (i.e., participants struggled to discuss the concepts of race and racism). In particular, the results from this study highlight that the selected participants avoided the concepts of race and racism by way of utilizing racially coded language. Furthermore, results suggest that participants continued to avoid inclusivity and instead focused on inquiry-based learning when asked to reflect on it. Lastly, preliminary and salient findings point to the concept of fear; specifically, the fear that White educators might feel when participating in critical professional development settings that are anchored in inclusive learning environments. This study suggests that White educators who rated themselves as high on inclusive and inquiry-based learning approaches still struggled when in an inclusive critical professional development setting because of the presence of Whiteness and White fragility.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ed.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Educ Policy, Orgzn & Leadrshp

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2024

Author dc:creator

• Mullins, Samantha

Contributors dc:contributor

• Lee, Sharon
• Pak, Yoon
• Hale, Jon
• Wilson, Asif

• Critical Professional Development
• Critical Whiteness
• White Fragility
• Inquiry-based Learning
• Inclusive Teaching Practices

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2024 Samantha Mullins

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/124568

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F124568