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Exploring Intersectionality in Education: the Intersection of Gender, Race, Disability, and Class

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Exploring Intersectionality in Education: the Intersection of Gender, Race, Disability, and Class University of Northern Iowa UNI ScholarWorks Dissertations and Theses @ UNI Student Work 2006 Exploring intersectionality in education: The intersection of gender, race, disability, and class Amy J. Petersen University of Northern Iowa Let us know how access to this document benefits ouy Copyright ©2016 Amy J. Petersen Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.uni.edu/etd Part of the Special Education and Teaching Commons Recommended Citation Petersen, Amy J., "Exploring intersectionality in education: The intersection of gender, race, disability, and class" (2006). Dissertations and Theses @ UNI. 327. https://scholarworks.uni.edu/etd/327 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Work at UNI ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations and Theses @ UNI by an authorized administrator of UNI ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. EXPLORING INTERSECTIONALITY IN EDUCATION: THE INTERSECTION OF GENDER, RACE, DISABILITY, AND CLASS An Abstract of a Dissertation Submitted In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Education Approved: Amy J. Petersen University of Northern Iowa December 2006 ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to explore the intersection of gender, race, disability, and class within education. Specifically, I examined the educational experiences of African American women labeled with a disability and from a disadvantaged socio-economic class. Employing qualitative methodology and methods, I interviewed four adult African American women from disadvantaged socio-economic groups to gain a deeper understanding of their lived educational experiences. The story that emerged from this research was each participant's strength. Their stories revealed that each woman persistently and continually engaged in the world around them in order to negotiate, evade, and resist the dominant ideology surrounding the discourses of race, gender, disability, and class. The results indicated that the participants' lived educational experiences centered on three themes: educational and social barriers, questions of identity, and frustration at the intersections of gender, race, disability, and class. This study reaffirmed the need to talk openly and candidly about how race, disability,,class, and gender influence the lived educational experiences of individuals located within multiply stigmatized oppression. The results of this study offer a number of implications for educators, students, and future research. Of these implications, the need for educators to know students intimately and holistically was reaffirmed. Educators must acknowledge all aspects of a student's identity and create classroom communities where the discourse of difference is positioned as positive. This study also highlighted the need for educators to assist students in channeling their strengths in meaningful and productive ways. Finally, educators must provide students with opportunities to resist and challenge pervasive stereotypes and oppressive circumstances in the classroom and wider society. EXPLORING INTERSECTIONALITY IN EDUCATION: THE INTERSECTION OF GENDER, RACE, DISABILITY, AND CLASS A Dissertation Submitted In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Education Approved: mber Amy J. Petersen University of Northern Iowa December 2006 11 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The writing of this dissertation, while a deeply personal undertaking, would not have been possible without the encouragement and support of many individuals. Of these individuals, I am especially grateful for the overwhelming support of my committee members. Dr. Deborah J. Gallagher, Dr. Sandra Alper, Dr. John K. Smith, Dr. Kent Sandstrom, Dr. John Henning, and Dr. Phil Hodkinson, all graciously provided me with their time, energy, and patience. Foremost, I am thankful to Dr. Sandra Alper and Dr. Deborah J. Gallagher for developing and writing the grant entitled: Preparing Inclusive Leaders for Schools of the 21 51 Century. This grant (#H325D010037), sponsored by the US Department of Education, made it financially feasible to return to graduate school as a full-time doctoral student. As a recipient of this grant, I was afforded numerous opportunities to explore my research interests, immerse myself in scholarship, and engage in the academic community through participation at local and national conferences. I am also deeply indebted to Dr. Deborah Gallagher for serving as my academic advisor and dissertation committee chair. Throughout my graduate career, she provided an exemplary model of scholarship, teaching, and service. Her understanding, warmth, and commitment to education inspired and opened doors of opportunity that may have otherwise not existed. With that unwavering support, I had the great pleasure of completing my doctoral program and writing a dissertation that creatively engaged me as a qualitative researcher, educator, scholar, and individual. lll Additionally, I am grateful to have worked under the guidance of each of my committee members. I am thankful to Dr. John Henning who suggested very early in my graduate career that I consider pursuing a doctorate. I am also fortunate to have had many conversations with Dr. John Smith about this research. These conversations were especially important and valuable as they challenged me as a researcher and scholar. I am thankful to Dr. Kent Sandstrom for his advice, suggestions, and questions. These comments always served as a catalyst leading me to expand my line ofreasoning and thought. I also benefited greatly from Dr. Sandra Alper's professionalism and continued insistence on excellence. Last, I am extremely thankful to have had the opportunity to work with Dr. Phil Hodkinson. A professor at the University of Leeds in the United Kingdom, he did not hesitate to serve as a member of my committee. He provided many excellent and thought-provoking avenues for exploration. Of course, this dissertation would not have materialized without the patience and support of family and friends. Foremost, I am thankfully for my dad, Leonard Nielsen, for instilling in me the value of an education. This is a lesson I continue to be motivated from and one that I hope to pass on to my daughter, Charli. To her, I am also thankful, as she continues to fill me with a desire to work towards a just and equitable education for all. From a more practical standpoint, but nonetheless important, I was helped by many individuals. I was lucky to have always had my mother, Bette Nielsen, and my mother-n-law, Delores Petersen at my disposal for babysitting. Additionally, I was fortunate to have had many friends near enough to complain to and an editor willing to IV kindly instruct me in the rules of grammar. Above all, I am deeply indebted to my husband, Steve. It was with his unconditional love and support that I was able to pursue this endeavor. I would also like to acknowledge and thank my participants for so willingly sharing their lives with me. While my relationship with my participants began as one of a stranger, I quickly became immersed in their lives and stories in a way that is difficult to describe. Simply, they left a lasting impression. v TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................... ..... .. ... .. 1 Background ................................................................................................................... 2 Purpose ........................................................................................................................... 4 A History of Oppression and Discrimination .............................................................. .4 Social Class ... .... ....................................................................................................... 6 Disability ......................................... ...................................................................... 11 Race .......................................................................... ............................................. 17 Gender .................................................. .................................................................. 23 A History of Resistance ............................................................................................... 30 Constructing Race, Class, Gender, and Disability ....................................................... 34 Constructing Normalcy .................................................................................. ........ 35 Constructing Differences ............................................................................. ......... .40 CHAPTER 2: INTERSECTIONALITY .............................. .. .. ... ...................................... .45 Intersectionality Theorized ... ... ................................................................................... .45 The Importance of Intersectionality..,·· ......................................................................... .49 Research in Intersectionality ......................................................................... ............... 52 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY AND METHODS ....................................................... 60 Research Design ........................................................................................................... 60 Ethical Considerations .................... .......... .. .................... ....................................... 65
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