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Open research questions in Critical Race Theory in Education

809 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 14,233 Critical Race Theory in Education papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.

What the literature leaves open

  • Further analysis of the discursive boundaries of the debate on DEI initiatives - Examination of the impact of external political attacks on DEI initiatives - Investigation of the role of institutional theory in shaping legitimacy in higher education

    “D.E.I. Is Not Working on College Campuses”: An Analysis of Liberal Opinions on DEI Initiatives · 2026 · DOI

  • The internal stability of the liberal coalition supporting DEI remains under-examined. Existing literature has not adequately assessed liberal perspectives on DEI initiatives in higher education. The paper identifies a gap in understanding the nuances of liberal opinions on DEI.

    “D.E.I. Is Not Working on College Campuses”: An Analysis of Liberal Opinions on DEI Initiatives · 2026 · DOI

  • Findings contribute to the limited research on elementary-aged BBI students in rural Great Plains-Midwest classrooms and illustrate how teacher perceptions may reflect or reproduce racialized assumptions in these contexts.

    Racialized Perceptions of Black, Brown, and Indigenous Elementary Students in Rural Great Plains–Midwest Classrooms: A QuantCrit Case Study · 2026 · DOI

  • To address this gap in the literature, we ask the following question: How and in what ways might school districts’ discursive positioning on racism in equity-oriented policies and resolutions serve as virtue signaling? Using critical discourse analysis, we find that districts position themselves as: 1) opposers of racism, 2) fixers of racism, 3) bystanders to racism, and 4) perpetrators of racism.

    Virtue Signaling or Substantive Solidarity? A Discourse Analysis of School Districts’ Positioning in Equity-Oriented Policies and Resolutions · 2026 · DOI

  • Yet it remains unclear if “school-invested” students also enact resistance and if so, what such resistance entails and means for educational and social inequality.

    “Who Is Anybody to Judge?” Educational Resistance through Recognition · 2026 · DOI

  • Teacher expectations are key predictors of student outcomes, yet how they are produced and negotiated in practice remains understudied.

    Care, Success, and Accountability: Cultural Logics, Expectation Drift, and the Complex Nature of Teacher Expectations · 2026 · DOI

  • By identifying conceptual and empirical gaps in the literature, this paper proposes a research agenda centered on African international graduate professionals in U.

    Between Two Worlds: African International Graduate Staff Navigating Race, Belonging, and Professional Identity in U.S. Higher Education · 2026

  • While scholarship has examined international student adjustment, Black student experiences, and professional socialization in student affairs separately, limited research explores the intersection of these identities among African international graduate staff who serve in campus-based roles while pursuing advanced degrees.

    Between Two Worlds: African International Graduate Staff Navigating Race, Belonging, and Professional Identity in U.S. Higher Education · 2026

  • While many studies have investigated these movements and the immediate institutional responses during that time, what remains understudied is the aftermath—the months and years following and the promises of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) made by colleges and universities.

    Circling Back: The Aftermath of Campus Activism, Racism, and Institutional Responses · 2026 · DOI

  • Little is known about the role curriculum may play in retaining EOC in K–12, urban public schools.

    Ethnic Studies, Fugivity, and Retention of K–12 Educators of Color · 2025 · DOI

  • Building on this foundation, this study employed concepts and methods that have not yet been explored in the field of art education, such as Chicana feminist epistemology and pláticas.

    Chicana Feminist Epistemology and Pláticas in Understanding Latina Art Teachers’ Experiences of Racism and Oppression · 2025 · DOI

  • Drawing on a Transnational Black Feminist Framework (TBF), we highlight the unique politics of care practiced by these teachers, revealing gaps in our cultural understanding and underscoring their vital, yet understudied, contributions to education.

    Fugitive Care: The Politics of Care Enacted by Afro-Caribbean Women Teachers · 2024 · DOI

  • In this systematic review of whiteness in higher education research from the past 20 years, I identify a gap in the literature—that whiteness in higher education organizations is under examined.

    Redressing a Gap in Higher Education and Whiteness Literature: Conceptualizing the Pervasiveness of Whiteness in Higher Education Organizations · 2024 · DOI

  • Paul Moreland was a business educator whose published work, although poorly documented, represents one of the few comprehensive attempts to assem ble the historical evidence regarding business education across Canada.

    White Collar Vocationalism: The Rise of Commercial Education in Ontario and British Columbia, 1870–1920 · 1987 · DOI

  • Systemic racism and gender inequality are major challenges that need to be addressed in STEMM education and research. The current STEMM education and research system in Canada is not immune to exclusion and discrimination. Many pinch points on the ladder from student to professional can lead to exclusionary practices or discrimination.

    Benefits to Canada of a Network That’s ‘All About Being Black’ in STEMM · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in the current STEMM education and research system in Canada, which is not inclusive and equitable. It highlights the need for a more nuanced understanding of the experiences of Black and other historically marginalized people in STEMM.

    Benefits to Canada of a Network That’s ‘All About Being Black’ in STEMM · 2026 · DOI

  • The current approach to trauma-informed practice is often detached from the realities of racial violence and inequity. There is a need for a more nuanced understanding of the ways in which racialized emotions shape trauma-informed practice.

    Teaching with a Racialized Heart: Reframing Emotion as Theory and Praxis in Trauma-Informed Education · 2026 · DOI

  • Further analysis of the use of decoloniality and intersectionality in social movements. Investigation of the impact of the Rhodes Must Fall protests on other social movements.

    Rhodes Must Fall: Different layers of intersectionality in student protests in South Africa · 2026 · DOI

  • The lack of understanding of the different layers of intersectionality in the protests. The need to analyze the use of decoloniality and intersectionality as a collective action frame.

    Rhodes Must Fall: Different layers of intersectionality in student protests in South Africa · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in the literature on the impact of charter schools on teacher demographics and student outcomes. The study highlights the need for more research on the expansion of school busing systems and their effects on students and communities.

    Navigating Choice: School Buses as Racializing Infrastructure in Post‐Katrina New Orleans · 2026 · DOI

  • The absence of inclusivity and personalized assistance in college classrooms may lead to lower graduation rates among marginalized student groups. Social work educators need a framework to critically examine their power, privilege, pedagogical approaches and curriculum development.

    From Reflection to Action · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a need for culturally responsive and anti-racist approaches in school social work. There is a lack of research on the development and implementation of anti-racist programs.

    A Culturally Informed Response to Grief and Loss (CIRGL) · 2026 · DOI

  • The study identifies a gap in the understanding of how racialized collective memories and collective identities are formed, sustained, and/or erased in interaction with institutional politics in media discourse.

    Racial Politics and News Media Coverage of Black Resistance to Police Violence in New York, 1997–2000 · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in the discussion on the legitimacy of elite education for Black parents. The author highlights the need for a more nuanced understanding of the historical and societal disadvantages faced by Black people in the United States.

    Nothing’s Too Good for My Baby · 2026 · DOI

  • Future research should examine the deployment of racial discourses in other urban redevelopment contexts. Future research should consider the impact of racial equity discourses on urban redevelopment outcomes. Future research should analyze the responses of community members to developers' racial equity claims in different contexts.

    A Chicago Casino for Racial Equity? · 2026 · DOI

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809 open questions have been extracted from the limitations and future-work passages of 14,233 Critical Race Theory in Education papers in our library. Each one below links back to the study that raised it, so you can read the original claim in context.

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