Focusing on the Non-cognitive: Developing Civic Reasoning Through Emotions of Race and Power

This study explores how the intersection of race and emotions, or racialized emotions, influenced Black high school students’ civic reasoning. Drawing from the students’ photo-elicitation and focus group interviews, we found that racialized emotions not only informed how students conceptualized civic engagement during the Civil Rights Movement but also shaped their civic participation and their critiques of legal systems and other democratic processes. These findings highlight the significant role that racialized emotions had on students’ civic reasoning, suggesting that the intersection of race and emotions is not just a peripheral aspect of civic education but rather a central component. We contend that ignoring emotions in civics instruction, standards, and curriculum not only diminishes students’ learning experiences but can also be harmful and inauthentic. To address this issue, we offer strategies for educators on how to center students’ racialized emotions in their civics instruction.