Creating research spaces for underserved communities: Expanding and extending intersectionality in contemporary educational contexts

Abstract

Methods: Intersectionality has extended beyond the tenets of race, gender and class to include queer communities, religious issues, literacy concerns, pedagogical styles, etc. in South Africa, the European Union and beyond. Intersectionality is no longer solely relegated to the needs of African American women germane to the United States.

Aim(s): This paper is also aimed at engaging researchers and practitioners in an intellectual dialog that may contribute to the ever-expanding research on intersectionality to include the United States, European Union, South Africa and other global communities.

Background: Educators are cognisant of the dense demographic shifts and inequities in primary and secondary schools. The call for guidance, resources and policy is critically needed; the disproportionalities consistent in schools have manifested themselves in school disciplinary practices and student achievement. The manuscript encourages discourse and provides a roadmap to examine intersectionality’s expansion critically and how that expansion can aid in improving the lives of K-12 public education students on an international scale. Additionally, the manuscript addresses whether intersectionality or its expansion served as a pivotal voice for marginalised communities and structures domestically and abroad.