Suspected, Surveilled, Singled-Out, and Sentenced: An Assumption of Criminality for Black Males in Early Learning

The purpose of this study was to illuminate how Black boys are framed and engaged in early childhood education, from the narratives of the parents of Black children. Using critical race counter-storytelling, four interwoven themes emerged from this study. The stories from the narratives of the parents depicted a viewpoint that their sons were assumed to be troublemakers, surveilled by teachers, and policed for small infractions, singled-out for punishment among their peers, and subjected to harsher and more prolonged punishments for perceived wrongdoing. We characterized this experience through the moniker suspected, surveilled, singled-out, and sentenced to account for the four areas where an assumption of criminality manifests in early learning.