The Description of Critical Ethnography

Merriam describes it as an attempt “to interpret the culture but also [to] expose cultural systems that oppress and marginalize certain groups of people” (36). A combination of studying culture and changing that culture (or empowering a group of people)?  Is this what I am looking to do?  Am I trying to raise an awareness of the U.S. culture and its effects on middle school students mathematics achievement?

Schein (1996) writes that organizational culture can only be evolved through genuine change in behavior that occurs over time.  Critical ethnography can be a mechanism for uncovering the culture that results in marginalization while also raising awareness of behaviors that need to be changed.

Schein, E. H. (1996). Leadership and organizational culture. In F. Hesselbein, M. Goldsmith, & R. Beckhard (Eds.), Drucker Foundation Future Series: The leader of the future: New visions, strategies, and practices for the next era (pp. 59-70). San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass.