Teacher-Child Racial Congruence and Young Children's Preschool Adjustment
Terrance Knox-Lane1, Craig S Bailey2, Annette Ponnock2
1Florida International University.
Early Childhood Research Quarterly
|September 4, 2023
Summary
Teacher race matching impacts preschool adjustment, with effects varying by child race and gender. This study highlights how racial congruence and child demographics influence early educational experiences.
Area of Science:
- Child Development
- Educational Psychology
- Sociology of Education
Background:
- Teacher-child racial congruence is increasingly recognized as a factor in early education.
- Previous research has explored its impact, but the moderating roles of child race and gender require further investigation.
- Understanding these dynamics is crucial for fostering equitable preschool environments.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the association between teacher-child racial congruence and preschool adjustment.
- To investigate whether child gender moderates the relationship between racial congruence and adjustment.
- To explore how these associations differ across racial groups.
Main Methods:
- Utilized multi-level structural equation modeling with data from 259 preschoolers and 44 teachers across 16 centers.
- Assessed preschool adjustment through teacher reports and direct child assessments.
- Accounted for classroom- and center-level variance, along with child-level covariates.
Main Results:
- Found significant main effects for child gender and teacher-child racial congruence, but not child race.
- Revealed significant higher-order interactions, indicating that the impact of racial congruence is moderated by child race and gender.
- Observed varied effects: White girls with White teachers scored higher on adjustment, while Black boys with Black teachers showed mixed results compared to those with White teachers.
Conclusions:
- Teacher-child racial congruence is associated with preschool adjustment, but this relationship is complex and moderated by child race and gender.
- Findings suggest that the benefits or drawbacks of racial congruence are not uniform across all children.
- Further research is needed to elucidate the underlying mechanisms driving these nuanced associations.
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