Did Anybody Hear Me? The Experiences of Asian American and Native Hawaiian Women Teaching in Hawaiʻi Charter Schools

Abstract

Parents, students, administrators and teachers all make a choice to be a part of a charter school. Since 1991 when the first charter school in the United States opened, charter schools have grown. As of 2018 over 3.3 million students across the United States attend charter schools and the projection for growth continues. In spite of making up the majority of the teaching workforce in Hawaii's public schools, we have yet to hear why they choose to teach in charter schools and what their experiences are. Using a narrative inquiry approach, analysis of semi-structured interviews and co-authored vignettes with five Asian American, Pacific Islander (AAPI) and Native Hawaiian women provided insights into their teaching journeys. This study revealed the ways in which AAPI and Native Hawaiian women teachers sought careers in teaching to emulate and perpetuate community work their parents engaged in; how the autonomy of charter schools was both a beacon and a burden; and how the women experienced and coped with racialized and gendered mistreatment. Additionally, in spite of the small sample size, this study offers considerations for how the experiences of Native Hawaiian women teachers differ from those of Asian American and Pacific Islander teachers in Hawai‘i.