In this article, Linn Posey-Maddox, Maxine McKinney de Royston, Alea R. Holman, Raquel M. Rall, and Rachel A. Johnson examine Black parents’ educational decision-making in the racial and educational contexts of predominantly white suburban districts, majority-Black urban schools with an Afrocentric focus, and racially diverse urban public and private schools. Undertaking a qualitative meta-analysis, they ask, How and why is anti-Black racism salient in Black parents’ educational decision-making around schooling? Their findings reveal that race and anti-Black racism are central to Black parents’ school choice decisions. Specifically, they shape the trade-offs parents made in choosing a school for their child(ren), their ongoing risk assessments regarding the potential for racialized harm in their child(ren)’s schooling, and their continuous decision-making about whether to keep their child enrolled or move them to a different school. Regardless of geography, school type, grade level, and/or social class, race and anti-Black racism shape Black parents’ educational decision-making as they work to ensure that their child(ren) receive a high-quality education within highly racialized schooling contexts.
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Spring 2021
Research Article|
April 20 2021
No Choice Is the “Right” Choice: Black Parents’ Educational Decision-Making in Their Search for a “Good” School
LINN POSEY-MADDOX;
LINN POSEY-MADDOX
University of Wisconsin–Madison
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MAXINE MCKINNEY de ROYSTON;
MAXINE MCKINNEY de ROYSTON
University of Wisconsin–Madison
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RAQUEL M. RALL;
RAQUEL M. RALL
University of California, Riverside
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RACHEL A. JOHNSON
RACHEL A. JOHNSON
University of Wisconsin–Madison
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Harvard Educational Review (2021) 91 (1): 38–61.
Citation
LINN POSEY-MADDOX, MAXINE MCKINNEY de ROYSTON, ALEA R. HOLMAN, RAQUEL M. RALL, RACHEL A. JOHNSON; No Choice Is the “Right” Choice: Black Parents’ Educational Decision-Making in Their Search for a “Good” School. Harvard Educational Review 1 March 2021; 91 (1): 38–61. doi: https://doi.org/10.17763/1943-5045-91.1.38
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