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Physical Review Physics Education Research
written by Amy D. Robertson, Verónica N. Vèlez, W. Tali Hairston, and Eduardo Bonilla-Silva
Mainstream physics teaching and learning produces material outcomes that, when analyzed through the lens of Critical Race Theory, point to white supremacy, or "the systemic maintenance of the dominant position that produces white privilege" (Battey & Levya, 2016). In particular, the continued, extreme underrepresentation of People of Color in physics and a growing number of first-person accounts of the harm that People of Color experience in physics classrooms and departments speak to a system that valorizes whiteness and marginalizes People of Color. If we take Critical Race Theory as a lens, we expect that maintaining white supremacy in physics happens in part via discipline-specific instantiations of broader mechanisms that reproduce whiteness. In this study, we illustrate one such mechanism: race evasiveness, a powerful ideology that uses race-neutral discourse to explain away racialized phenomena, evading race as a shaping force in social phenomena. We offer examples from interviews with twelve university physics faculty, showing what race-evasive discourses can look like in physics and how physics epistemologies, discourses, and stories reify race-evasive frames. This work aims to support faculty in refusing race evasiveness in physics teaching and learning, toward developing race-conscious analyses that can help us challenge white supremacy in our discipline.
Physical Review Physics Education Research: Volume 19, Issue 1, Pages 010115
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Education Foundations
- Sample Population
= Instructor: Faculty
- Societal Issues
= Race Issues
- Teacher Characteristics
Education Practices
- Learning Environment
- Pedagogy
- Recruitment
= Diversity
General Physics
- Physics Education Research
- Professional Development
- Graduate/Professional
- Reference Material
= Research study
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Access Rights:
Free access
License:
This material is released under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.
Rights Holder:
American Physical Society
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.19.010115
NSF Numbers:
EES
in
STEM-1760761
Keywords:
CRT, CRT in STEM, consequentialism, deontology, inclusivity, physics identity, physics instructor beliefs, racial equity
Record Creator:
Metadata instance created March 28, 2023 by Lyle Barbato
Record Updated:
December 14, 2023 by Caroline Hall
Last Update
when Cataloged:
March 1, 2023
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AIP Format
A. Robertson, V. Vélez, W. Hairston, and E. Bonilla-Silva, , Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 19 (1), 010115 (2023), WWW Document, (https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.19.010115).
AJP/PRST-PER
A. Robertson, V. Vélez, W. Hairston, and E. Bonilla-Silva, Race-evasive frames in physics and physics education: Results from an interview study, Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 19 (1), 010115 (2023), <https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.19.010115>.
APA Format
Robertson, A., Vélez, V., Hairston, W., & Bonilla-Silva, E. (2023, March 1). Race-evasive frames in physics and physics education: Results from an interview study. Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res., 19(1), 010115. Retrieved May 1, 2025, from https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.19.010115
Chicago Format
Robertson, A, V. Vélez, W. Hairston, and E. Bonilla-Silva. "Race-evasive frames in physics and physics education: Results from an interview study." Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 19, no. 1, (March 1, 2023): 010115, https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.19.010115 (accessed 1 May 2025).
MLA Format
Robertson, Amy, Veronica N. Vélez, W. Tali Hairston, and Eduardo Bonilla-Silva. "Race-evasive frames in physics and physics education: Results from an interview study." Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 19.1 (2023): 010115. 1 May 2025 <https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.19.010115>.
BibTeX Export Format
@article{ Author = "Amy Robertson and Veronica N. Vélez and W. Tali Hairston and Eduardo Bonilla-Silva", Title = {Race-evasive frames in physics and physics education: Results from an interview study}, Journal = {Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res.}, Volume = {19}, Number = {1}, Pages = {010115}, Month = {March}, Year = {2023} }
Refer Export Format

%A Amy Robertson %A Veronica N. Vélez %A W. Tali Hairston %A Eduardo Bonilla-Silva %T Race-evasive frames in physics and physics education: Results from an interview study %J Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. %V 19 %N 1 %D March 1, 2023 %P 010115 %U https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.19.010115 %O application/pdf

EndNote Export Format

%0 Journal Article %A Robertson, Amy %A Vélez, Veronica N. %A Hairston, W. Tali %A Bonilla-Silva, Eduardo %D March 1, 2023 %T Race-evasive frames in physics and physics education: Results from an interview study %J Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. %V 19 %N 1 %P 010115 %8 March 1, 2023 %U https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.19.010115


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