Implications with Identifying Gifted Black Students: A Study of Implicit Bias

The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine if implicit bias among Indiana educators might affect the identification of gifted Black students for programming. Educators, within school districts with high minority populations, were asked to provide a demographic survey and then take the Implicit Association Test (IAT). Survey data were then collected to determine if potential demographic information like gender, race, the possession of a high ability license, years of experience, highest collegiate degree, or their professional role had a statistical significance when compared to their IAT score. Using t-tests and one-way ANOVAs, demographic data were able to be interpreted against the participant's IAT score. Although a case for bias was revealed in the descriptive analysis, there was no significant difference that was found with Indiana educator demographic data. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]