Racial microaggressions in higher education: perceptions and experiences of STEM students at the Federal University of Alfenas.

Racial microaggressions are manifested in interpersonal relationships resulting from structural racism. They can be understood as subtle and nebulous forms of verbal, non-verbal, or visual insult directed at people based on their race, often done automatically or unintentionally by the aggressors, but which negatively impact the lives of those who experience them. In mathematics education research, few works have problematized how Black students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) programs have experienced racial microaggressions throughout their academic trajectory. In this study, we present the research results in which we sought to fill this gap by identifying students’ experiences in STEM programs with racial microaggressions in their university careers. The study included STEM students at the Federal University of Alfenas (n=390). They answered the Scale of Academic, Social, and Survival Experiences in STEM (EASS-STEM). The results indicate that students between the ages of 20 and 30 more clearly identify aspects related to racial microaggressions. Additionally, Black students are those who experience racial microaggressions more intensely, even with scores higher than Pardo students, who also make up the group of Black students in Brazil. This shows that skin color is directly related to experiences with racism and racial microaggressions faced by students in these programs. The results also demonstrate that, despite overcoming the access barrier, Black affirmative-action students must endure the challenge of surviving academically due to the structural violence they experience during their academic careers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]