“I hope I can show The Outsiders movie virtually through zoom this year!” Teacher A remarked at the meeting. “I know, that is the highlight of our kids’ year; they absolutely love reading this book and watching the movie,” Teacher B replied. My two colleagues (white females) discussed a book read by our middle […]
Social Justice
America’s Reckoning: How Will Teachers Go Into Their Classrooms Tomorrow?
“How do we teach kids about this tomorrow?” This seems to be the question every American social studies teacher is asking themselves this evening, clutching the notion of the American republic in their hands like a broken teacup. As America continues to be ripped in two from its seams to its soul, we have, over […]
Beyond George Floyd: Making a Difference—Access, Application, Admonishment
Guest Writer: Archie R. Wortham, Ph.D., Professor of Speech “Equity doesn’t mean equality.” I am the product of a segregated school. I saw people sprayed with fire hoses; removed from lunch counter sit-ins. I used second or third handed textbooks. I was black, back then a Negro, but my ‘negro’ cousins and I went to […]
Publishing So White: 7 Essential Black Young Adult Authors
Last week, The New York Times published a piece examining the whiteness in the publishing industry. (Thank you to Pod Save the People for bringing it to my attention in your underreported news section. I learn something new from you every week!) In the five major publications, they analyzed, from 1950-2018, 95% of their authors […]
Now That Betsy Devos is on Her Way Out, Here Are 7 Picks for Her Replacement
There’s a lot to celebrate with Joe Biden’s election. The glass ceiling shattered when Madame Vice President Kamala Harris stepped onto the acceptance stage in suffragette white. Black women turned out in record numbers, truly changing the trajectory of the election (thanks, Stacey Abrams!) The fear that many of us lived with under Trump is […]
“Patriotic Education” is a Problem
Last week, TheEducatorsRoom hosted a Twitter Chat titled “Is Teaching Political?” It was a conversation prompted in part by President Trump’s announcement of a commission–The 1776 Commission–to design a “patriotic education” program one month earlier. At the heart of his plan is an opinion that “left-wing indoctrination in our schools” is destroying the country. Instead […]
The F Word: Feminism in 2020
The F Word: Feminism in 2020 I’ll never forget the moment I explained feminism to a freshman boy. In my first year of teaching, a precocious student asked me why I used “Ms.” in my name. My partner and I are committed to each other without the institution of marriage and childless by choice. But, […]
Good Teaching Is Political…Or At Least It Should Be
Several weeks ago, President Trump announced his plans for a patriotic education commission, dubbed the 1776 Commission. He simultaneously criticized teachers for indoctrinating students and urged them to focus on America’s strengths; the president has confused indoctrination and education. Picking and choosing what history to emphasize or highlight based on how it makes the nation […]