Authors:
Luis A. Leyva, Ph.D., Vanderbilt University

Policy Memo #7

Calculus classroom instruction linked to inequitable
opportunities for classroom participation and STEM retention
among Black and Latinx women
SUMMARY
Undergraduate calculus classrooms function as white, patriarchal spaces (Leyva, in press) in mathematics
education where exclusionary ideologies and structures thrive and reinforce racialized-gendered inequities,
including use of these introductory courses to funnel students ‘not cut out for STEM’ away from more
advanced classes. A recent study (Leyva et al., accepted) explored the ways in which historically
marginalized students, including Black and Latinx women pursing computing and engineering degrees,
perceived undergraduate calculus instruction as a racialized and gendered experience. During individual and
group interviews, the women conveyed how stereotypes of mathematical ability and representation in
mathematical spaces collided with seemingly neutral instructional practices, giving rise to racialized and
gendered mechanisms of devaluing their contributions and activating ideas of not belonging in STEM. While
calculus faculty may be unaware of how their attitudes and seemingly neutral instructional practices reinforce
the white and patriarchal culture of mathematics, these classroom environments nevertheless marginalize
women of color and contributes to attrition in computing and engineering majors. To bring about more
inclusive environments and equitable experiences, mathematics departments must prioritize incentives and
supports for faculty to critically examine how their instructional practices are rooted in racialized and
gendered ideologies, especially in introductory courses like calculus where decisions of STEM persistence
are readily made. Further, a reconsideration of higher education policies embedded with logics of elitism and
hierarchal forms of mathematical knowledge that situate calculus as a racialized-gendered filter of STEM
majors is warranted.

“Math is supposed to be a White, Asian male type
area… You’re encroaching on a space that
doesn’t belong to you of that society says
doesn’t belong to you. And that’s very
disheartening in the sense that women are
already not going into STEM fields for these
exact reasons. Women and minority STEM
applicants just don’t feel supported in that
sense.
~Jasmine, Black woman,
computer science major

Black and Latinx women felt stereotyped,
vulnerable, and subject to
double standards in undergraduate
calculus classes

“I feel like minorities already...It's already difficult to
get through certain classes because you don't have
the support system. It's maybe just you and a
couple of other kids. You're a little bit more isolated.
You have a lot more pressure to succeed because
it's not typical for…other people of your race to
succeed…For me, it's the whole ‘People said I
couldn't and, therefore, I'm going to and I'm going
to do it well.’ When things like this happen, I'm like,
‘Am I on the level the professor said? If I'm not, what
am I doing wrong?’ And again you're adding stress to
your class and you're making it a lot more difficult for
the student to focus on learning…You put pressure
on things, it can go one of two ways. The student
can crack or the student gets through it. More
often than not, if you don’t have a support system
there, you crack.
~Nadine, Black woman,
engineering major

References
Leyva, L. A. (in press). Black women's counter-stories of resilience and within-group tensions across white, patriarchal spaces of mathematics
education. To appear in the Journal for Research in Mathematics Education.
Leyva, L. A., Quea, R., Weber, K., Battey, D., & López, D. (accepted). Detailing racialized and gendered mechanisms of undergraduate precalculus
and calculus classroom instruction. To appear in Cognition & Instruction.

For more information contact Dr. Leyva at luis.a.leyva@vanderbilt.edu