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The Manfestation of the African-Centered Educational Philosophy in the Pedagogical Practices of an Elementary Education Science Teacher

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The Manfestation of the African-Centered Educational Philosophy in the Pedagogical Practices of an Elementary Education Science Teacher Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University Early Childhood and Elementary Education Early Childhood and Elementary Education Dissertations Department 5-17-2019 The Manfestation of the African-Centered Educational Philosophy in the Pedagogical Practices of an Elementary Education Science Teacher Akua Appiagyei Georgia State University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/ece_diss Recommended Citation Appiagyei, Akua, "The Manfestation of the African-Centered Educational Philosophy in the Pedagogical Practices of an Elementary Education Science Teacher." Dissertation, Georgia State University, 2019. https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/ece_diss/45 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Early Childhood and Elementary Education Department at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Early Childhood and Elementary Education Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ACCEPTANCE This dissertation, THE MANIFESTATION OF THE AFRICAN-CENTERED EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY IN THE PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICES OF AN ELEMENTARY EDUCATION SCIENCE TEACHER, by AKUA APPIAGYEI, was prepared under the direction of the candidate’s Dissertation Advisory Committee. It is accepted by the committee members in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree, Doctor of Education, in the College of Education & Human Development, Georgia State University. The Dissertation Advisory Committee and the student’s Department Chairperson, as representatives of the faculty, certify that this dissertation has met all standards of excellence and scholarship as determined by the faculty. _________________________________ Janice B. Fournillier, Ph.D. Committee Chair _________________________________ _________________________________ Joyce E. King, Ph.D. Yali Zhao, Ph.D. Committee Member Committee Member _________________________________ Date _________________________________ Lynn Hart, Ph.D. Chairperson, Department of Early Childhood and Elementary Education _________________________________ Paul A. Alberto, Ph.D. Dean, College of Education & Human Devel- opment AUTHOR’S STATEMENT By presenting this dissertation as a partial fulfillment of the requirements for the advanced degree from Georgia State University, I agree that the library of Georgia State University shall make it available for inspection and circulation in accordance with its regulations governing materials of this type. I agree that permission to quote, to copy from, or to publish this dissertation may be granted by the professor under whose direction it was written, by the College of Education and Human Development’s Director of Graduate Studies, or by me. Such quoting, copying, or publishing must be solely for scholarly purposes and will not involve potential financial gain. It is understood that any copying from or publication of this dissertation which involves potential financial gain will not be allowed without my written permission. AKUA APPIAGYEI NOTICE TO BORROWERS All dissertations deposited in the Georgia State University library must be used in accordance with the stipulations prescribed by the author in the preceding statement. The author of this dissertation is: Akua Appiagyei Early Childhood & Elementary Education College of Education & Human Development Georgia State University The director of this dissertation is: Janice Fournillier, Ph.D. Educational Policy Studies College of Education & Human Development Georgia State University Atlanta, GA 30303 CURRICULUM VITAE Akua Appiagyei ADDRESS: 5703 Keys Way Lithonia, GA 30058 EDUCATION: Doctor of Education 2019 Georgia State University Atlanta, Georgia Curriculum and Instruction Early Childhood and Elemen- tary Education Master’s Degree 2009 Georgia State University Atlanta, Georgia Early Childhood and Ele- mentary Education Bachelor’s Degree 2004 Rutgers University New Brunswick, New Jersey Communication, Africana Studies PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: 2018-present Second Grade Teacher Dekalb County School District Stone Mountain, GA 2012-Present Director Stretch-N-Grow of Atlanta Lithonia, GA 2008-2012 Third Grade Teacher Dekalb County School District Stone Mountain GA PRESENTATIONS: Appiagyei, A. (2016, October). The Manifestation of the African-centered Curriculum in the Pedagogical Practices of Teachers in an African–centered School during Science Instruc- tion. Georgia Educational Research Association, Augusta, Georgia. PUBLICATIONS: Appiagyei, A. (2019) Review of Joyce Piert's Alchemy of the Soul: An African-Centered Educa- tion. Journal of Negro Ed. Winter 2019. PROFESSIONAL SOCIETIES AND ORGANIZATIONS 2015-present National Association for Multicultural Education THE MANIFESTATION OF THE AFRICAN-CENTERED EDUCATIONAL PHILOSO- PHY IN THE PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICES OF AN ELEMENTARY EDUCATION SCIENCE TEACHER By AKUA APPIAGYEI Under the Direction of Janice Fournillier ABSTRACT The educational difficulties faced by African-American students in American public schools have led to a quest for authentic solutions. These solutions have included a call for pedagogical practices that recognize and infuse students' culture into the learning environment. It is the case, however, that the acknowledgment of student culture is not evident in all classrooms, or in all disciplines. Many educators seem to misunderstand how to utilize student cultural identity to benefit student learning efficiently. The remedy might lie in providing more references for how student-centeredness for the African-American student can be implemented. This qualitative case study used an Afrocentric framework to link the discourse on culturally relevant teaching in mainstream schools with that of African-centered schools. I examined the practices of an ele- mentary education science teacher in an African-centered school, and how she translated the Af- rican-centered curriculum into effective instructional methods, in a discipline as seemingly cul- ture-neutral as science. The findings of this study are organized around the Afrocentric tenets of centrism, critical analysis and consciousness, and offer practical expressions of these tenets in the elementary science classroom. The findings suggest the importance of teacher mindset re- garding centered pedagogical practices, and a need for teachers to prioritize their own knowledge and consciousness regarding the history and current scientific concerns relevant to people of Af- rican-descent. There is clearly a need for an acknowledgement of the foundational quality of so- cio-political science education at the elementary level. Doing so may help to reconcile some of the difficulties educators experience in addressing the socio-political aspects of elementary sci- ence. This study can contribute to the strengthening, empowering, and promoting of agency within educators of African-American students in all educational contexts. INDEX WORDS: Culturally relevant teaching, culturally relevant pedagogy, African- centered pedagogy, teacher pedagogical practices, Afrocentric education, socio-political science education THE MANIFESTATION OF THE AFRICAN-CENTERED EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY IN THE PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICES OF AN ELEMENTARY EDUCATION SCIENCE TEACHER By AKUA APPIAGYEI A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Education in Curriculum and Instruction in Early Childhood Education in the College of Education and Human Development Georgia State University Atlanta, GA 2019 Copyright by Akua Appiagyei 2019 ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First and foremost, I would like to thank my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, whose I am, and by whose grace I am able to do ALL things. I would also like to thank my committee chair, Dr. Janice Fournillier, for her patience, her time, her guidance, her wisdom, and her honesty throughout this process. Thank you Dr. Fournillier! I have learned so much from you, and I am forever grateful. Thank you also to my dissertation committee members Dr. Joyce King, whose work con- tinues to inspire me daily, and Dr. Yali Zhao, whose encouragement and kind words have always uplifted my spirit. I do not take for granted every second you have dedicated to my work. Thank you! I also thank my mother and father, Charity Dwira and Robert Osei. I reap from your hard work and your many, many sacrifices. You have cheered me on, and willed good things for me. You have allowed me to be who I am, always, and instilled in me a love for people and a heart of service. You are, truly, an embodiment of who I hope to be for all my students. To you, and to all who do for their children as you have, I dedicate my work. To the friends and family whose prayers kept me going— namely the Opoku-Akyeam- pong family, who are, in fact, the blessing and not the blessees—thank you. I especially acknowledge my sister friend Sylvia Barnes for her support, and her selfless ability to do for oth- ers. You cooked, cleaned and prayed for me through this process; the many times I could not find the energy to do these things for myself, you did. You are God-sent, and I appreciate you! I would finally like to thank the administrators of the Asempa School (pseudonym), who so generously shared with me their amazing school, their brilliant students, and a view point that has forever changed the way I interact with my own students. To Auntie Eneola (pseudonym), in iii whose classroom I had the privilege of learning, I also say
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