Perpetual Projects of Potential: A Literature Review Tracing 60 Years of Research Questions on Black Men and Boys in Urban Education
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| Title: | Perpetual Projects of Potential: A Literature Review Tracing 60 Years of Research Questions on Black Men and Boys in Urban Education |
|---|---|
| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Daniel J. Thomas III (ORCID |
| Source: | Urban Education. 2026 61(5):865-914. |
| Availability: | SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 50 |
| Publication Date: | 2026 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Information Analyses Reports - Research |
| Education Level: | Elementary Secondary Education Higher Education Postsecondary Education |
| Descriptors: | Literature Reviews, African Americans, Males, Stereotypes, Educational Research, Educational Policy, Urban Education, African American Education, Elementary Secondary Education, African American Teachers, Context Effect, Higher Education |
| DOI: | 10.1177/00420859251371680 |
| ISSN: | 0042-0859 1552-8340 |
| Abstract: | This literature review interrogates the genealogy of questions posed about Black men and boys in "Urban Education" from 1965 to 2025, tracing how policy eras have delimited their discursive framing within educational research. Drawing on Goldberg's (1993) "racial knowledge" and Wynter's (1995) "subjective understanding," we employ a Foucauldian genealogical analysis to examine four policy periods--from the Moynihan Report to George Floyd's racial reckoning--revealing how epistemic authority has constrained research questions within deficit, pathologizing frameworks. We argue that such questions recursively bind Black males to predetermined assumptions, reinforcing their construction as perpetual projects of potential. This review challenges researchers to resist expedient, market-driven inquiries to challenge the cyclical reproduction of racialized narratives. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1500832 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | This literature review interrogates the genealogy of questions posed about Black men and boys in "Urban Education" from 1965 to 2025, tracing how policy eras have delimited their discursive framing within educational research. Drawing on Goldberg's (1993) "racial knowledge" and Wynter's (1995) "subjective understanding," we employ a Foucauldian genealogical analysis to examine four policy periods--from the Moynihan Report to George Floyd's racial reckoning--revealing how epistemic authority has constrained research questions within deficit, pathologizing frameworks. We argue that such questions recursively bind Black males to predetermined assumptions, reinforcing their construction as perpetual projects of potential. This review challenges researchers to resist expedient, market-driven inquiries to challenge the cyclical reproduction of racialized narratives. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 0042-0859 1552-8340 |
| DOI: | 10.1177/00420859251371680 |
