Bic Ngo
Associate Professor
Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison
culture and teaching, Immigrant education
Curriculum and Instruction
Room 152C PeikH
159 Pillsbury Dr S E
Tel: 612/625-7520
bcngo@umn.edu
Office hours:
On sabbatical for the 2012 academic year
Areas of Interest
Exploration of understandings and influences of “culture” and “difference” on immigrant students' education, and the implications for how we theorize immigrant identity, culturally relevant pedagogy, and anti-oppressive education.
Research Interests
My research and teaching interests focus on culturally relevant pedagogy, urban and multicultural education in general and immigrant education in particular.
In my research, I examine: 1) the ways in which the education of immigrant students are shaped by dynamic power relations as they play out at the intersection(s) of race, ethnicity, class and gender; and 2) the ways in which classroom and school practices may mitigate educational and social inequalities. I engage interdisciplinary conceptual frameworks, including critical, cultural and feminist theories. I have drawn on the work of Homi Bhabha, Michel Foucault, Judith Butler, among others, to explicate, critique and re-imagine the lives of immigrant students, the work of urban teachers, and the role(s) of critical multicultural education.
I have worked extensively with Hmong American and Lao American students, families and communities in the Twin Cities area. In a case study with Hmong college students, I explored the social, cultural and economic negotiations among working-class, first-generation students as well as the affect of race, ethnicity, class and gender on their educational experiences. In an ethnographic study of Lao immigrant students at an urban, public high school I examined the ways in which we teach and talk about cultural difference within the contexts of “culture” and “cultural identity.” Most recently, my research projects have included an ethnographic study involving Hmong American high school students, parents, and community leaders.
By looking at how “culture” and “cultural difference” play out in the practices of schools, teachers and students, I seek to reveal the complexities of urban education and the implications for teaching immigrant students. In my research and teaching, I am committed to working toward equity and social justice.
Courses taught
- CI 8146—Critical Ethnography in Education
- CI 8156—Asian American Education
- CI 8155—Immigrant Families and U.S. Schools
- CI 8154—Culturally Relevant Pedagogy
- CI 8148—Conducting Qualitative Studies in Educational Contexts
- CI 8131—Critical Examination of Curriculum in Context
Selected Publications
Ngo, B. (2010). Unresolved identities: Discourse, ambivalence and urban immigrant students. New York: SUNY Press.
Ngo, B. (2010). Doing “diversity” at Dynamic High: Problems and possibilities of multicultural education in practice. Education and Urban Society, 42(4), 373-495.
Ngo, B. (2009). Ambivalent urban, immigrant identities: The incompleteness of Lao American student identities. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 22(2), 201-220.
Ngo, B. (2008). Beyond “culture clash” understandings of immigrant experiences. Theory into Practice, 47(1), 4-11.
Ngo, B. (2008). The affective consequences of cultural capital: Feelings of powerlessness, gratitude and faith among refugee Hmong parents. Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement, 3, 1-16.
Ngo, B., and Lee, S. (2007). Complicating the image of model minority success: A review of Southeast Asian American education. Review of Educational Research, 77(4), 415-453.
Kumashiro, K. and Ngo, B. (Eds.) (2007). Six lenses for anti-oppressive education: Partial stories, improbable conversations. New York: Peter Lang Publishers.
Ngo, B., Bigelow, M., and Wahlstrom, K. (2007). The transition of Wat Tham Krabok Hmong children to Saint Paul Public Schools: Perspectives of teachers, principals and Hmong parents. Hmong Studies Journal, 8.
Ngo, B. (2006). Learning from the margins: Southeast and South Asian American education in context.Race, Ethnicity and Education, 9(1), 51-65.
Ngo, B. (2003). Citing discourses: Making sense of homophobia and heteronormativity at Dynamic High School. Equity and Excellence in Education, 36(2), 115-124.
Ngo, B. (2002). Contesting “culture”: The perspectives of Hmong American female students on early marriage. Anthropology and Education Quarterly, 33(2), 163-188.
Revised April 2011
