Papers by Melanie Bertrand
Peabody Journal of Education, 2022
ABSTRACT Despite receiving little academic attention, open enrollment has the greatest potential ... more ABSTRACT Despite receiving little academic attention, open enrollment has the greatest potential among school choice policies to transform the governance of local school districts because all student transfers occur within the public school system, meaning that families and governance structures in two (or more) school districts are impacted by open-enrollment decisions. In this conceptual disconnection we demonstrate how open enrollment complicates the traditional educational ecosystem dramatically by altering existing relationships and introducing new actors and relationships into how school districts establish and implement policies. We then complicate the traditional analysis of open enrollment through the lens of Critical Policy Analysis, alongside an example from an Arizona school district, to illustrate the ways that racism and other forms of oppression are often overlooked, yet salient in (mis)shaping democratic governance in a political ecology disrupted by open enrollment.
Equity & Excellence in Education, 2022
Educational Leadership, 2015
The United States education system denies many Black and Latina/o students a quality education du... more The United States education system denies many Black and Latina/o students a quality education due to systemic racism, which is manifested in racial inequalities in access to educational resources. These disparities are multifaceted. For instance, Latina/o and Black students have fewer opportunities to take college preparatory courses than their white peers (Darling-Hammond, 2004a; Fanelli, Bertrand, Rogers, Medina, & Freelon, 2010; J. Rogers, Fanelli, & Bertrand, 2009). Also, there are inequalities in access to qualified and experienced teachers (Darling-Hammond, 2004a), college counselors (Fanelli et al., 2010), technology (Margolis, 2008), and schools that are not overcrowded (Fanelli et al., 2010).My dissertation research examines how a group of youth and adults called the Council challenges these manifestations of systemic racism while engaging in Youth Participatory Action Research--youth-driven, critical research and advocacy. The Council includes about 30 Black and Latina/o ...
Urban Education, 2016
This article explores decision makers’ responses of surprise or amazement to Students of Color en... more This article explores decision makers’ responses of surprise or amazement to Students of Color engaged in youth participatory action research (YPAR). To address this topic, I draw upon data collected from a yearlong qualitative study of a YPAR group, applying the theoretical aspects of critical discourse analysis. The findings indicate that the decision makers in the sample expressed surprise at three aspects of YPAR: the students’ (a) capacity as researchers, (b) professionalism, and (c) motivation. These responses—termed “the discourse of surprise”—may have constrained the transformative potential of the students’ research.
Equity & Excellence in Education, 2017
American Educational Research Journal, 2015
This article examines an understudied aspect of teachers’ sensemaking of student learning data: t... more This article examines an understudied aspect of teachers’ sensemaking of student learning data: the way in which teachers explain the causes of the outcomes observed in data. Drawing on sensemaking and attribution theory and data collected in six middle schools, we find that while teachers most often attributed outcomes to their own instruction, they also frequently focused on supposedly stable student characteristics. By citing these characteristics as explanations for the results analyzed, teachers may have inhibited reflection on their practice and reinforced low expectations for English language learners (ELLs) and students in special education. These findings yield implications for (a) the effectiveness of data use reforms and (b) equity in the education of ELLs and students in special education.
Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies, 2017
Now that I am a researcher, I am analyzing, comparing and contrasting different communities. I ha... more Now that I am a researcher, I am analyzing, comparing and contrasting different communities. I have the ability to recognize the similarities and differences between urban and suburban areas. The second interview I liked was at Beverly High. What I liked about the interview was that the kids were honest. They admitted that the only reason their school gets a lot of funds and has a lot of money is because of the name Beverly Hills. (Cynthia, high school student)
Educational Administration Quarterly, 2014
Purpose: This article explores the possibilities for reciprocal dialogue between educational deci... more Purpose: This article explores the possibilities for reciprocal dialogue between educational decision makers and Students of Color. Such dialogue—defined as interactions in which participants build on each other’s words—may provide the means to develop creative ways to address manifestations of systemic racism in education. The article uses the concept of Third Space to investigate how educational decision makers responded to a group of high school Students of Color advocating for change. Research Method: The data for the article come from two studies investigating the influence of the students in the group, who were engaged in youth participatory action research. The analysis focuses on interviews conducted with decision makers who attended the group’s presentations. Findings: The analysis revealed that many educational decision makers responded to the group’s presentations in ways that limited the potential for future reciprocal dialogue with students. These decision makers’ respo...
Educational Policy, 2014
Despite a growing body of research on data use in education, there has been relatively little foc... more Despite a growing body of research on data use in education, there has been relatively little focus on the role of students. This article begins to fill this gap by exploring teacher and administrator reports on engaging students in data use at six middle schools. Even though teachers expressed a belief that involving students in data use would motivate students, they often enacted potentially demotivating, performance-oriented classroom structures: sharing data publically, comparing results with others, focusing on status, and providing limited feedback/support on how to close gaps in knowledge. School and district conditions and accountability policies shaped these classroom practices. In some cases, these contextual factors pressed teachers to focus on performance; in others, it buffered them, allowing for a greater emphasis on individual student learning. The authors contribute a theoretically driven, motivational perspective on data use and a cautionary tale of the “trickle-dow...
education policy analysis archives, 2015
Policy insiders across party lines increasingly acknowledge educational “gaps,” yet they talk abo... more Policy insiders across party lines increasingly acknowledge educational “gaps,” yet they talk about this inequity in very different ways. Though some critique disparities through a structural lens, others use deficit discourse, blaming families of color and working-class families for educational outcomes. This study examines how state policy insiders explain educational inequity, shedding light on the complex relationship between language and the maintenance of systemic racism and classism in education. Drawing upon a unique data set of interviews with 50 policy insiders in one state in the United States, we found three main discourses used to explain inequity in education, each of which cited a different cause: 1) structural inequity, 2) perceived deficits of families and communities, and 3) teachers unions and teacher seniority. Policy insiders used often-veiled discursive strategies to advance their discourses. For instance, those that used deficit discourse: 1) asserted that tho...
Urban Education, 2020
Research indicates that youth, especially those facing injustice, such as youth of Color in urban... more Research indicates that youth, especially those facing injustice, such as youth of Color in urban settings, are essential participants in educational decision-making. However, due to adultism and i...
Teachers College Record, 2015
This chapter explores the influence of a youth participatory action research (YPAR) group, viewin... more This chapter explores the influence of a youth participatory action research (YPAR) group, viewing the group's efforts as challenges to manifestations of racial inequality in education, such as the inequitable distribution of educational resources. The authors examine how individuals in positions of relative power-teachers, school administrators, and public officialsrespond to the group's advocacy efforts. The analysis illustrates the complexity of the group's influence: Some individuals report that the Council sparks meaningful changes, while others have negative reactions. Overall, the chapter sheds light on the ways that YPAR can encourage change in education by incorporating the voices of Black and Latina/o youth into educational policy and practice. "What really stuck with me was this idea of traditional versus organic forms of leadership. .. and that it's my responsibility to help my students develop as leaders."-Ms. Bauman 1 Ms. Bauman, a high school teacher, made this remark after attending a presentation by the California-based Council of Youth Research, 2 a group of Black and Latina/o high school students and adult allies engaged in youth participatory action research (YPAR)-youth-driven research and advocacy. She was reflecting on a part of the presentation in which the students used Gramsci's (1971) concept of traditional and organic leadership to frame their findings about the potential of students as leaders. Ms. Bauman's strong response is significant because she taught at a school that serves a majority of students of color, meaning that she was in a position to enact the Council's vision. her reaction points to the potential of the Council, and YPAR generally, to promote improved educational conditions for Latina/o and Black students.
Propelled by accountability policies, leaders have touted data-driven decision making as a means ... more Propelled by accountability policies, leaders have touted data-driven decision making as a means to improve K-12 student outcomes and drive equity, as teachers analyze data to change instruction. However, many data-driven decision-making reforms have failed to challenge inequity. Melanie Bertrand and Julie Marsh’s study of six middle schools shows that teachers’ deficit thinking about emergent bilingual students, students with disabilities, and “struggling” students contributes to this failure of data reforms. They argue that blaming these groups for test scores ultimately works to uphold systemic racism, white supremacy, and other forms of injustice, and they conclude by offering recommendations for policy and practice.
Practitioners and scholars have argued that youth participatory action research (YPAR) challenges... more Practitioners and scholars have argued that youth participatory action research (YPAR) challenges systemic injustice in education, as youth and adults research mechanisms of oppression and propose recommendations. However, oftentimes YPAR does not lead to new policies, as institutional decision-makers ignore youth’s moral pleas and empirical evidence. In this conceptual article, we propose a consideration of the ways in which YPAR can mobilize power bases using youth organizing and institutionally sanctioned decision-making. We argue that being attuned to power bases provides YPAR groups a more reliable means, in comparison to moral pleas, to move from YPAR findings to shifts in policy and practice.
Peabody Journal of Education
Critical Studies in Education
Journal of Education Policy
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Papers by Melanie Bertrand