The role of intersectionality in research on Teachers of Color and Indigenous Teachers

Abstract

This paper emphasizes the complexity and criticality of intersectionality in understanding the research on Teachers of Color and Indigenous Teachers (TOCIT). Cho and colleagues (2013) identified three dimensions of intersectional dialogues: how intersectionality has been used in research and teaching, how it has been used as a theory and methodology, and how it has been used in community organizations. As Cho and colleagues noted, equally as important as what intersectionality does in theory is what it does in practice. Therefore, we drew from the recently published Handbook of Research on Teachers of Color and Indigenous Teachers to highlight how intersectionality research has captured the beliefs, perspectives, retention, and recruitment of TOCIT. We begin by summarizing critical contributions from the Handbook and other recent research highlighting intersectionality in understanding and diversifying the teaching workforce. We then integrate policy impacts and implications and provide a case exemplar of how intersectionality can be thoughtfully integrated into the existing scholarship and practices to recruit and retain TOCIT.