Date Thesis Awarded
4-2014
Access Type
Honors Thesis -- Access Restricted On-Campus Only
Degree Name
Bachelors of Arts (BA)
Department
Interdisciplinary Studies
Advisor
Jamel K. Donnor
Committee Members
Robert Vinson
Jeremy Stoddard
Abstract
A literature review, which examined the work of John Ogbu and Signithia Fordham on the notion of “the burden of ‘acting White’”, and ethnographic interviews with African American college students were used to explore the nature of students’ experiences with race and education. More specifically, the study explored the role of racial identity in educational settings, whether academic achievement was ever associated with being White or “acting White,” and if these potential associations affected student attitudes, decisions, or behaviors. The study concluded that role of race in African American students’ educational experiences is specific to each individual student and the way the student has assigned meaning to interactions with other individuals, such as parents, peers, and teachers, and community and system forces.
Recommended Citation
Grech, Mary E., "Towards an Understanding of Race and Academic Achievement in the Lives of African American Students" (2014). Undergraduate Honors Theses. William & Mary. Paper 41.
https://scholarworks.wm.edu/honorstheses/41
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