Before discussing critical approaches to college access and college readiness, it is important to provide a shared understanding of the key concepts offered in this review. Below are key definitions, starting with our understanding of the constructs of college access and college readiness. Additionally, these constructs bring about conversations regarding non-cognitive factors. Throughout their education, students of color have the unique experience of coping with inequities that may hinder their competence and confidence in the school context. These inequities are under the guise of a White-dominant culture. Thus, the glossary provides definitions of constructs related to Whiteness and White-dominant culture. Negative identity formation, along with other inadequate school experiences, warrant the need for practices that are both anti-racist, equitable and culturally relevant. Thus, we provide information regarding the aforementioned constructs. Finally, when discussing culture, it is essential to have an understanding of different terminology related to various groups of people. Thus, we provide definitions for two common groups involved in equity work: BIPOC and Latinx.
College Access: Efforts to promote K-12 students’ participation in postsecondary education (efforts often intertwine with college readiness efforts; Pitcher & Shahjahan, 2017).
College Readiness: The degree to which previous experiences have prepared a student for success in postsecondary education (Conley, 2008).
Despite critiques in the literature (see David Conley section), researchers agree that the most common factors that influence students’ ability to be college ready are the following (Baker, Clay, & Gratama, 2005):
- College Awareness: Providing students with information regarding college attendance, such as admission requirements and goal-setting for a career and education. Awareness should begin in elementary and middle school. For example, teachers of elementary-aged students can foster college-going aspirations by inviting speakers during a career day.
- College Eligibility: Completing all courses required for college admissions. It is important for schools to believe that students can achieve at the college level. Doing so encourages staff to reassess their curriculum and provide students with more rigorous curricula commensurate with college-level work.
- College Preparation: Having the skills needed to persist and succeed in college. College preparation encourages schools to prepare students to deeply analyze their work in order to incorporate this skill in postsecondary education.
Non-Cognitive: The personal attributes that can influence a student’s success in college. This includes characteristics like academic perseverance, academic self-efficacy, and interpersonal skills (Bowman et al., 2018). It is important for educators to focus on skills that can help students succeed in college while also taking into consideration the non-cognitive attributes that they already possess and building upon them.
Whiteness & White-dominant Culture: White-dominant culture can be referred to as a sociopolitical environment that favors Whiteness (i.e., thoughts, beliefs, and experiences) (Liu et al., 2019). The education system is made up of White-dominant culture (Lander, 2014); thus, students from non-dominant (non-White) backgrounds often have negative experiences within the school context because their thoughts, beliefs, and experiences may differ from that of the dominant culture (Lander, 2014). Whiteness can expand to the core of curriculum and pedagogy in a way that is invisible unless examining the culture of a school through a critical lens (Matias et al., 2016). This is why Whiteness is harmful and, yet, continues to exist—it can be embedded into policy and culture without being questioned because it can be seen as the norm. Systems, customs, and practices that are considered the norm are actually Whiteness that is invisible to the non-critical eye. Thus, BIPOC and low-income students navigating a school culture includes them having to learn and perform from a Eurocentric curriculum which is not designed to be tailored to them.
White Supremacy: The notion in which White people should control power and resources (Liu, 2017). White supremacy has a longstanding history of preventing children of color from receiving adequate opportunities and academic experiences (Picower & Mayorga, 2015). This is because the policies, procedures, and practices used in the education system are constructed to only advantage White people (Lander, 2014). Thus, students of color receive inadequate schooling because it is not designed to meet their needs. White supremacy is so ingrained into education policy that arguments for racial equity have been met with criticism. Thus, students of color living in a White-dominant culture and under White supremacist views are susceptible to inadequate school experiences as compared to their White peers.
Identity: Who people (in this case, students) believe they are and the qualities they possess (Spencer, 2018). Inadequate school experiences can influence students’ identity formation. For example, navigating White-dominant school cultures can lead to students feeling as though they are unwanted and not adequate students (Brooms, 2019) and, subsequently, should not pursue postsecondary education.
Anti-racist Education: Education practices and ideologies that are aware of and work to counteract racism (Lynch et al., 2017). Anti-racist education works by challenging and addressing racism. It does so by increasing students’ sociopolitical consciousness (i.e., the ability to critically examine the social and political forces influencing a society as well as one’s status in it; Seider et al., 2018). Sociopolitical consciousness in students of color has many advantages, including an increase in resilience and academic engagement (Seider et al., 2018).
Equitable School Practices: Practices that ensure that students are receiving equal outcomes. It differs from equality in that equality ensures that students are given the same treatment (Stone, 2019). Equity ensures that students of color—who have the unique experience of navigating a White-dominate school culture—have the support they need to succeed academically.
Critical Consciousness: The ability to critique social inequities and the motivation to take action to address social inequities (Friere, 1973). Critical consciousness allows students of color to (1) form relationships with students who are like-minded and can support them, (2) achieve despite stereotype threat, and (3) prepare themselves for the microaggressions and other harmful interactions that they may experience as ethnic minorities (Kolluri & Tierney, 2020).
Culturally Responsive Practices: Practices that utilize the cultural heritage and context of both students and educators (Milner, 2016). This can look like a number of things (see Practices section), including incorporating children’s lived experiences into word problems or designing classroom environments to be familiar to different students. Culturally relevant pedagogy, as illustrated by Gloria Ladson-Billings (1995), also includes the development of critical consciousness in students.
Sociocultural Perspective: Sociocultural perspective exists to understand individuals within larger social, cultural, and historical contexts (Eun, 2016). Sociocultural perspectives take into account that the culture of a school may be unfamiliar to some students. That, combined with social influences that serve to demean their existence, can make for an unfulfilling experience for students of color.
When discussing culture, it is essential to have an understanding of different terminology.
BIPOC: A relatively newer acronym to refer to Black, Indigenous, and people of color. While research has not been conducted to explicitly examine opinions on the acronym, several news articles have provided information regarding its history and critiques from the general public (Garcia, 2020).
- History: The term BIPOC came into fruition following critiques of the term POC or people of color. In particular, critics believed that the term POC was too broad, particularly when discussing matters for specific groups of people. POC face varying types of discrimination and racism.
- Critiques: Similar to POC, BIPOC can prove to de-emphasize the struggles of one particular ethnic group. It is suggested, when referring to one particular group of people, to avoid using umbrella terms such as BIPOC. However, when referring to a collective group of people who are non-White, it is okay to refer to them as such.
Latinx: Term used to refer to both women and men of Latin American origin or descent.
- History: Initially, the term Latino came under fire once modern feminism examined the noninclusive nature of the term. Initial replacements for the term included Latino/a and other such terms that provided for more inclusion. However, more recent gender-fluid activists have tried to push beyond the binary nature of such terms. Thus, the term Latinx was created to become inclusive of all genders and move away from binarism (Garcia, 2020).
- Critiques: While a noble change, the term has received criticism, primarily from native Spanish-speaking populations. This is due to the fact that Spanish is a gendered language, and changing terms to be gender-fluid essentially attacks the entire language and, subsequently, the culture (Garcia, 2020).
