Happy 263rd Birthday Chief Justice John Marshall! On this day little fanfare and even less discussion will center on this national milestone. This is unfortunate, perhaps even a little bit tragic. For when Marshall passed away in 1835 the Liberty Bell was tolled for the last time—in commemorating the sad news the bell was forever [...]
Like fingerprints, each student comes with their own unique perspective; and on top of that, their perspective will also be influenced by social, cultural and political practices. It is this diversity that makes our lives interesting. When we accept that these differences occur, it gives us the ability to learn, to develop our own ideas [...]
Last year I revisited James Baldwin’s “A Talk to Teachers” before starting the school year. I encouraged myself and other teachers committed to social justice to “go for broke.” I did lots of work I felt proud of in our classroom last year, working with our 5th graders to understand, analyze, and combat racism. They culminated [...]
"Those who can teach. Those who can't make laws about teaching."This is a motto that makes its rounds around social media whenever a politician or philanthropist develops a plan that will not only cure schools of all the social ills in society, but will finally get teachers to do "their job". As teachers, we chuckle [...]
I’m 35 years old and I have seen social media evolve for better and for worse. Back in the day, my first social media accounts were My Space, Black Planet, and Facebook. I didn’t use My Space or Black Planet long, but Black Planet, a social networking site for black people, served its purpose because [...]