Teacher-Researcher profile
Photo Credit : Shuana Niessen
Tana Burrows is a social studies and history teacher at Balfour Collegiate High School and a sessional instructor for the Faculty of Education , U of R . She successfully defended her dissertation in November 2013 . Her dissertation was deemed meritorious and worthy of an award . The following is an interview with Dr . Burrows .
1
What was the intent of your research ?
The intent of my research was threefold : First , I hoped to gain a deeper appreciation of the ways in which students who are categorized or racialized White in a senior high school social studies classroom perceive their racialized identity and its connections to privilege . Closely related to this exploration , I examined my assumptions and understandings as they have developed over time due to my racialization and other aspects of my subject positioning ( such as socio-economic class , language , gender , sexuality , etc .). Third , I examined how I , as a racialized White teacher , contributed to the students ’ perceptions , critical or otherwise . This inquiry was informed by Critical Race theory ( CRT ) and related approaches to critical race studies and was conceptualized as a qualitative ethnographic and auto-ethnographic study . The analysis of the student- and teacher-generated data involved critical discourse analysis .
2
What circumstances led you to research the topic of your dissertation ?
I became interested in this research area for a number of reasons . First , I was increasingly uncomfortable with the seemingly uncritical acceptance of dominant discourses and nationalist narratives in my social studies classroom ( a space wherein I hoped students would learn or continue to be critically engaged , lifelong learners ). For example , students often readily construct Canada to be a tolerant and accepting nation even though together we examine several historical and contemporary non-examples of these claims ( like the devastating experiences of many First Nations peoples at government sanctioned residential schools , racist immigration policies , and inequitable economic , legal , social , and educational realities today ). It has been my experience that even after these examinations , we seem to almost naturally perpetuate a pride in ourselves and in the nation as students often note how great Canada is and how lucky they feel to be Canadian . Even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary , rather than rethinking their glowing recommendations of Canada as a peaceful , kind , and caring nation , students often either dismiss these negative events or issues or view them as minor blips in an otherwise spotless record , thereby essentially “ whitewashing our racist history ” ( Lund , 2006 , p . 206 ). While I can appreciate the desire to be proud of one ’ s nation , these nationalistic claims often precluded more critical examinations of our histories and contemporary society that required interrogations of the nation and its policies . Hence , rather than encouraging the development of critically engaged thinkers who acknowledge the complexities and inequities within society , it seems as though our shared experiences often enabled the perpetuation or ( re ) inscription of a nationalistic and inequitable status quo .
Second , with respect to educational policies and practices , it was becoming increasingly evident to me that the ways in which we were approaching teaching of and for diversity ( often under the umbrella of multicultural , Aboriginal , and / or treaty education ) and teaching for equity in mainstream educational spaces were not meeting with success ( as defined by our stated goals such as equitable graduation rates or equitable access to programming ). We were not ( and still are not ) ensuring equitable opportunities and outcomes for all students , nor were we reaching other social justice ideals like equality or the elimination of racial discrimination . While I was not able to articulate why we were falling short of these goals , I was beginning to appreciate that something significantly more than what we were doing was necessary . Hence this research inquiry grew from my desire to address the seemingly uncritical acceptance of the status quo in my classroom and to problematize my own pedagogical understandings and practices ( as they reflect dominant approaches to teaching of and for diversity and equity in this province ) so that I could continued on page 13
Page 12