Experiences of Racialization In Online Undergraduate Classrooms
Open Access
- Author:
- Zipf, Sarah
- Graduate Program:
- Higher Education
- Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Document Type:
- Dissertation
- Date of Defense:
- April 22, 2021
- Committee Members:
- Gabriela Richard, Outside Unit & Field Member
Karen Paulson, Major Field Member
Kevin Kinser, Major Field Member
Alicia Dowd, Chair & Dissertation Advisor
Kevin Kinser, Program Head/Chair - Keywords:
- online education
racialization
survey
Cultural Historical Activity Theory
mixed methods case study - Abstract:
- Racialization, the process by which society's systems and organizations build and reassert hierarchies through the social construct of race, is deeply embedded in society. Educational systems in the United States, influenced by these socio-cultural practices, are rooted in racialization. Higher education literature indicates that students of different races experience the college climate differently (see Harper & Hurtado, 2007) and that colorblind and color-evasive environments reaffirm hurtful practices of racialization (Jayakumar, 2015). Online education is often viewed as a color-evasive environment because physical interactions are absent, yet studies show that other online spaces are not immune to racist behaviors. The growth in online education makes it necessary to study how racist systems and ideas influence the technology-based educational environment and understand student experiences of racialization. Racialization in the online classroom was conceptualized as formed by the general campus, academic and racial climates, created by racial perceptions and expectations of faculty and students in the class, and salience of racism to student respondents. This mixed-methods case study collected data from sixty-four student surveys and hundreds of documents. Document analysis was supported by interviews with professional staff and faculty. The study utilized Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) as the conceptual framework to analyze individuals' experiences and is bounded by the activity system in one college at a major research university. Student survey responses indicated positive perceptions toward the general campus, academic, and racial climates. Documentary data analysis revealed a color-evasiveness environment in the sub-system of online education. The color-evasive environment did not serve to protect students of color from harmful experiences, as an assimilationist standardization was expected. This study revealed students’ experiences of racialization are based on technology-based anonymity in a color-evasive environment. Students can develop strategies using anonymity, but these practices should not remove institutional responsibility of creating safe learning environments for online students. The virtual campus provides a college experience unlike that of in-residence which requires institutions to think differently about the connections and disconnections of online students to campus. Tools can be modified to decrease the system-level anonymity for online students, bringing them closer to the campus and increasing the sense of belonging, if the system is motivated to do so. This study serves as an example for administrators about the need to interrogate how color-evasiveness is replicated into the sub-systems of their online offerings and contribute to students’ racialized experiences.