Accelerated Christian Education: a case study of the use of race in voucher-funded private Christian schools |
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| Authors: | Jonny Scaramanga |
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| Institution: | Department of Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment, UCL Institute of Education, UK |
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| Abstract: | President Donald Trump has promised an expansion of voucher programs for private schools in the United States. Private Christian schools are likely beneficiaries of such an expansion, but little research has been conducted about the curricula they use or their suitability for public funds. This article describes and critiques the depiction of race in Accelerated Christian Education, a curriculum used in some voucher-funded schools in the United States, as well as in private schools in 140 countries. It employs content analysis and qualitative documentary analysis of the curriculum workbooks, and builds on Christian Smith and Michael Emerson’s theoretical framework of white evangelicals’ ‘cultural toolkit’ to explain the ideas about race in the curriculum. The paper finds that in addition to some overt racism, the system promulgates a worldview which does not have the capacity to recognize or oppose systemic injustice. It is argued that such a curriculum is not a suitable recipient of federal funding. |
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| Keywords: | Christian Education educational vouchers private schools race racial relations |
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