LUNCH LINES Take the Stigma of Free and Reduced Lunch Off the Menu

The New Jim Crow Teachers Who Bully NEW Curriculum TT talks with Michelle Alexander Step in, speak up Teach for equity with Perspectives TTEEAACCHIHINNGG

ISSUE 48 | FALL 2014 TTOOLELERRAANNCECETOLERANCE.ORG

LUNCH LINES Take the stigma of free and reduced lunch off the menu. CELEBRATE THE A NEW FILM KIT AND TEACHER’S GUIDE FROM TEACHING TOLERANCE 50th ANNIVERSARY

One Person, ONE VOTE Discover the Role Educators and Students Played in Securing the Right to Vote

II TEACHING TOLERANCE A NEW FILM KIT AND TEACHER’S GUIDE FROM TEACHING TOLERANCE BRING SOCIAL JUSTICE TO YOUR CLASSROOM. TRY OUR OTHER FILM KITS

ONE SURVIVOR REMEMBERS Gerda Weissmann Klein’s account of surviving the Holocaust encourages thoughtful classroom discussion about a difficult-to-teach topic. Grades 6-12 streaming online

VIVA LA CAUSA An introduction to lessons about struggles for workers’ rights—both past and present. Grades 6-12

A TIME FOR JUSTICE Follow the civil rights movement from Emmett Till to the passing of the Voting On March 7, 1965, 600 civil rights activists left Selma, Alabama, Rights Act. on foot, marching for dignity and equality. Grades 6-12 • 18 days • 54 miles • 1 police attack • 1,900 National Guard troops • 2,000 U.S. Army soldiers MIGHTY TIMES THE CHILDREN’S MARCH and countless stories later … The heroic story of the … they arrived in Montgomery — and changed history. young people in Birmingham, Ala., who brought segregation to its knees. Grades 6-12

STARTING SMALL A tool for early-grades educators creating classrooms in which peace, equity and justice are guiding themes. The Selma-to-Montgomery legacy Professional Development includes the sacrifices of young people whose history is seldom told. Share their stories with your students. BULLIED A STUDENT, A SCHOOL AND A CASE THAT MADE HISTORY One student’s ordeal at You can pre-order One Person, One Vote at the hands of anti-gay tolerance.org/one-person-one-vote. bullies culminates in a message of hope. Grades 6-12 The film kit and teacher’s guide will be available this winter. Observe the 50th anniversary of the Selma-to-Montgomery marches with your students! Recommended for grades six and up. FREE TO EDUCATORS All kits include film and teacher’s guide. ORDER ONLINE! tolerance.org/material/orders TEACHING TOLERANCE ISSUE 48 | FALL 2014

DEPARTMENTS 5 Perspectives 7 Letters to the Editor 9 Ask Teaching Tolerance 11 Why I Teach Lauren Allgood may have only one year with her students, but it’s enough time to let them know 20 30 they matter. 13 Down the Hall Manuel J. Fernandez makes cultural responsiveness a “principal” priority. 15 Ed Café 59 Staff Picks 62 Story Corner Gloria and Rosa use their love of music to stand up against inequity—together. 64 One World 48 51

on the cover Lunch should be a time for kids to unwind and recharge—not to feel stigmatized for their socioeconomic status.

ILLUSTRATION BY MARK SMITH

ALL ARTICLES ARE AVAILABLE FOR EDUCATIONAL USE AT TOLERANCE.ORG/MAGAZINE/ARCHIVES. The March Continues: Five Essential Practices for Teaching the Civil Rights Movement Tear out and keep this useful guide for planning civil rights instruction!

FEATURES 20 Check It Out! Want help boosting cultural responsiveness at your school? Ask your librarian!

3-2-1-LAUNCH! 23 Lunch Lines Your guide to Teaching Tolerance’s FREE 40 44 Take the stigma out of free and 30 K-12 anti-bias curriculum. reduced lunch. BYOD? 26 Excerpt: Case Studies on Diversity Relying on personal devices at school 44 raises serious equity questions. and Social Justice Education Paul Gorski and Seema Pothini offer steps for 30 A Conversation with approaching your toughest teaching cases. Michelle Alexander Meet the Family The author of The New Jim Crow 48 Implement a successful home-visit program. talks with TT. Our experts tell you how. 404 Error: Teacher Not Found 34 Abuse of Power Online education offers options for some 51 Most bullying prevention is aimed at students—and shortchanges others. students. What happens when adults are 38 The Classroom Closet the aggressors? What if you couldn’t be you at work? 54 And the Winners Are … Meet the recipients of the 2014 Teaching Tolerance Award for Excellence in Teaching. 51 56 56 “We Spoke the Right Things” This 6-year-old taught her community a valuable lesson about fairness.

ED CAFÉ Want to build stronger relationships with students, colleagues and communities? Stop by Ed Café and sample innovative practices! (see page 15)

FALL 2014 3 HOW WILL YOUR STUDENTS LEARN ABOUT DIRECTOR Maureen B. Costello DESIGN DIRECTOR Russell Estes THE CIVIL RIGHTS MANAGING EDITORS Alice Pettway, Adrienne van der Valk WRITERS/ASSOCIATE EDITORS Monita K. Bell, Maya Lindberg MOVEMENT? NEW MEDIA CONTENT MANAGER Annah Kelley SENIOR MANAGER FOR TEACHING & LEARNING Sara Wicht TEACHING AND LEARNING SPECIALISTS Emily Chiariello, June Cara Christian PROGRAM ASSOCIATE Michele Lee ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Bridget Strength FELLOW Steffany Moyer INTERNS Margaret Sasser, Joanna Williams

DESIGN SENIOR DESIGNER Valerie Downes DESIGNERS Michelle Leland, Sunny Paulk, Scott Phillips, Kristina Turner DESIGN ASSISTANT Shannon Anderson

PRODUCTION ACCOUNTING OPERATIONS MANAGER Regina Jackson PURCHASING PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Kimberly Weaver

CONTRIBUTORS IN PERSON Lauren Allgood, Todd Bigelow, Dan Chung, Dave Constantin, Kelly Davidson, Andrew Degraff, Byron Eggenschwiler, Mike Ellis, Jesse Etsler, Blanca Gómez, Tom Griscom, Paul C. Gorski, The Civil Rights Memorial Center in Joe Hansen, Sarah Hanson, Robert Hardin, Warren Hynes, Susan Estelle Kwas, Cynthia Levinson, Montgomery, Mary Kate McDevitt, Alan McEvoy, Hellen Musselwhite, Pietari Posti, Seema G. Pothini, Sean Price, Ala., honors Jon Reinfurt, Alissa Sklar, Mark Smith, Skip Sterling, Daniel Zender

those who ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS lost their lives Lhisa Almashy, Silvestre Arcos, Anna Baldwin, Trevor Scott Barton, Jennifer Butler, Vanessa D’Egidio, for equality. Darnell Fine, Sonia Galaviz, James Hiller, Amber Strong Makaiau, Janice McRae, Tracy Oliver-Gary, Student group Demea Richards-Scott, Daniel Ian Rubin, Robert Sautter, Laurence Tan, Jennifer Trujillo, Katy Wagner tours are free! SOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER splcenter.org/civil-rights-memorial CO-FOUNDERS Morris Dees, Joseph J. Levin Jr. PRESIDENT & CEO J. Richard Cohen CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER Lisa A. Sahulka FILM OUTREACH DIRECTOR Lecia Brooks A Time for CHIEF COMMUNICATIONS Justice and & DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Wendy Via The Children's SPLC BOARD OF DIRECTORS March bring the Alan B. Howard, Chair Henry Solano, Vice Chair movement to life Bryan Fair Marsha Levick for students. Will Little James McElroy tolerance.org/teaching-kits Lida Orzeck Elden Rosenthal James Rucker Ellen Sudow Julian Bond, Emeritus ACTIVITIES Patricia Clark, Emeritus The Civil Rights Activity Book uses Joseph J. Levin, Jr., Emeritus

GRADES 4-6 puzzles, songs and EDITORIAL OFFICE + CIVIL RIGHTS ENTHUSIASTS OF ALL AGES photos to teach 400 Washington Avenue, Montgomery, AL 36104 children about EMAIL [email protected] SUBSCRIPTIONS tolerance.org/subscribe martyrs and events Teaching Tolerance is mailed twice and released for the iPad three times a year at no charge to educators. of the civil rights It is published by the Southern Poverty Law Center, a nonprofit legal and education organization. movement. For permission to reprint articles, email us at [email protected].

E H

L I S B A Printed with inks containing 27.3% renewable resources M L A C G Y A C ZI RE NE IS 100% Perspectives “The opposite of courage isn’t cowardice; it is conformity.” —Jim Hightower

We’re working on a new film at suppression, these inequities are more diffuse, harder to see, easier to Teaching Tolerance, one that rationalize as logical. In our Summer tells the story of the fight to win 2014 issue, we wrote about how we’ve all come to accept private fundrais- the vote for African Americans ing as a way of life with the result that throughout the nation, but espe- disadvantaged schools are left even farther behind economically. In this cially in places like Alabama issue, we shine the spotlight on sev- and Mississippi. eral practices that shortchange the most vulnerable students: poorly-im- Ground zero was Selma, Alabama, “the most vulnerable class of Negro plemented BYOD programs, inequita- where in early 1965, organizers professionals, all of whom owed their ble school lunch policies, and the push appointed block captains, held mass jobs to white politicians,” demon- for failing students to recover credits meetings and led marchers—including strated as a group. It’s easier to under- online rather than in a classroom. students—to the courthouse to demon- stand why they might refuse to march. Unlike the policies that prevented strate their desire to register to vote. These teachers could have ratio- black teachers from registering to vote Three weeks after the first meet- nalized that their best service was to in 1965, the inequities we address in ing, nearly every teacher at the all- continue to teach, to hope for a better this issue are not explicitly based on black Clark Elementary School left future for their students, to keep their a white-supremacist worldview. But the building and walked in a proces- heads down and to continue to put they grew out of this system, a system sion to the county courthouse. Three food on their families’ tables. At some that refused to see all people as equal. times they mounted the courthouse point, though, they could no longer We rarely intend to hurt our students steps, and each time they were pushed remain silent. and families of color, or those living in back down by the sheriff and his I hear from many teachers, coun- poverty. But too many school policies nightstick-wielding deputies. selors and administrators today who have exactly that impact, and they col- The demonstration was extraordi- live out the same dilemma. They wit- lectively make it harder to ensure that nary, according to Taylor Branch, who ness injustice daily: a culture that every child has an equal opportunity to describes it in Pillar of Fire: America marginalizes LGBT individuals, out- learn, to graduate and to succeed. in the King Years 1963-1965. Not of-school suspension practices that It’s not enough anymore to keep because the teachers succeeded in disproportionately affect children our heads down and hope we are mak- registering to vote—they didn’t—and of color, school policies that privi- ing a difference in our own class- not because they were cheered on by lege the haves over the have-nots. rooms, offices and workspaces. We more than 300 students. And they describe the obstacles: tan- need to look around our schools and What made this demonstration gled political webs, parent backlash, communities with an eye towards extraordinary was the enormous community mores, ostracism by col- equity. And—like our predecessors— courage on display that day. It was leagues, fear of losing their jobs. we need to find the courage to take a the first time in the civil rights move- When compared to the injus- stand together when we see it. ment, Branch writes, that teachers, tice of school segregation and voter —Maureen Costello

@Tolerance_org FALL 2014 5 TEACHING TOLERANCE COMMUNITY

THERE’S NO TIME. We get it. When you’re an educator, it’s hard to find the time to stay up on social justice issues—so let us do the work for you.

Join the Teaching Tolerance community, and we’ll keep you plugged in to anti-bias education news, resources and tips. That way when you have the rare spare minute, you’re all set to join the conversation with like-minded educators.

@Tolerance_org Facebook.com/TeachingTolerance ToleranceOrg

subscribe to our weekly newsletter at tolerance.org/signup LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 7 ASK TEACHING TOLERANCE 9 FREE STUFF 10 BEST OF THE BLOG 10 & 12 WHY I TEACH 11 first bell DOWN THE HALL 13 LESSONS LEARNED 14

Reader Exchange “Tongue-Tied” prompted conversation on the Web.

Thanks for the article. As far as using words, words have power. I prefer to state the following, “person who was enslaved,” as that puts the person first, circumstances after that. That includes any other descriptors, such as person who is experiencing homelessness, person who has diabetes, etc. We are all more than just one descriptor ... —Submitted by Anonymous

I like the suggestion that language matters and that the use of the term “enslaved” is important. Similarly, I think that using the passive voice is mis- leading. So, for example, saying “hundreds of thousands of people—mostly from the Carolinas and Virginia—were sold to plantation owners farther southwest” hides the people who actually did the selling. It is important for students to understand that individual people did that selling and buying. —Submitted by Anonymous

The power of words was EASIER SAID THAN DONE at Mountain Ridge Middle done this project alone. I am a recurring theme among [On “The Gentle Catalyst”] School in Highlands Ranch, going to give the speech in readers, from debating the I feel it is easier to teach Colorado. The entire 8th a couple of days and I want use of the word slave to these things in a diverse grade is doing a 243 seconds to thank you guys. You gave understanding the impor- classroom. How do you teach for change project in which me the resources, informa- tance of using the correct them when 85% are at pov- we have 243 seconds to tion, and inspiration I need pronouns when addressing erty and they are 95% white? deliver a speech on a social to make a change. I am look- transgender and gender- Anonymous injustice. Out of nearly 1,000 ing forward to making peo- fluid students. VIA TEACHING TOLERANCE 8th graders I was the only ple in my area aware of rac- MAGAZINE ONLINE one who decided to take a ism as many people do not stand against racism. While believe that it exists any- MIDDLE-SCHOOL everyone else is a three, more. Thank you! ACTIVIST INSPIRED four, or five-person group, Matt Heutmaker I’m an 8th grade student through the process I have VIA EMAIL

@Tolerance_org FALL 2014 7 first bell

article, I think an extremely valid point was missed Daniel L. Berek by the author. As a school This excellent publication library media specialist, I provides the kind of ideas am trained in book selec- we need to help children tion practices as are my col- become better (and leagues. We are the group more thoughtful) citizens that can—and should—be rather than better called on to assist class- test takers. room teachers. We must also model inclusiveness in our school libraries for all of our students and teachers. I wish the author had FACEBOOK.COM/ CHANGING LIVES ASKING FOR GENDER included the use of the pro- TEACHINGTOLERANCE.ORG IN OHIO PRONOUNS HELPS fessional book “experts”— … My students made amaz- [On “The Problem with your school librarians—as ing connections between Pronouns”] Great arti- one of his tips on how to the Civil Rights Movement cle. As a teacher, this sit- achieve this most impor- “illegal immigrants” are and the Viva La Causa uation arose once on the tant inclusivity. Classroom more political than accu- boycott based on your first day of school, and I am teachers—please allow us to rate. This goes a long way Cesar Chavez video kit so glad that I asked. When assist you in this process! to help humanize the issue, that we had done earlier I was learning names, I Anonymous as well as let students see in the year. I am a true fan asked one-to-one, “Do you VIA TEACHING TOLERANCE MAGAZINE the ramifications of word ONLINE of the work you are doing go by a nickname?” and choice, past and present. at Teaching Tolerance. “What gender pronoun do EDITOR’S NOTE Caran Howard You have touched so many you prefer?” [One] student We agree! See “Check It Out” VIA FACEBOOK lives over the years here was surprised that I asked, in this issue to learn how in Elyria, Ohio, and I have but not offended. It made media specialists can help TELL US WHAT YOU THINK! learned right along with a great start for the year in diversify learning throughout Have an opinion about something my students. I never fin- our class, and the student the building. you see in Teaching Tolerance ish one of your units with- went on to become a strong magazine or on our website? out feeling that activist public advocate in the dis- WORD CHOICE MATTERS Email us at [email protected] fire ignited inside me and trict for transgender issues [On “An Educator’s Guide with the subject line “Letter can only hope and pray and felt comfortable bring- to the Immigration to the Editor.” Or mail a letter that my students feel that ing awareness to students Debate”] Let’s also address to 400 Washington Ave., same warmth and become in the class. how the terms “illegals” and Montgomery, AL 36104. conductors of change liveonfred throughout the years. VIA TEACHING TOLERANCE BLOG Thank you so much for today’s lesson! WHAT ABOUT MIX IT UP AT LUNCH DAY Dawn Neely Randall SCHOOL LIBRARIANS? VIA FACEBOOK [On “Picture Imperfect”] As much as I agree with OCTOBER 28, 2014 the points made in this Have you registered for Mix It Up at Lunch Day? STELLAR tolerance.org/mix-it-up/add TWEET

Chris Six @TheChrisSixGrou @hlthiskrieger @Tolerance_org “I could have used this when I was teaching!” — a retiree who never misses renewing SPLC membership. TED STRESHINSKY/CORBIS (CHAVEZ); JIM WEST (MIX IT UP) (MIX JIM WEST (CHAVEZ); TED STRESHINSKY/CORBIS

8 TEACHING TOLERANCE Ask Teaching Tolerance Be prepared to model this work by first acknowledging your own privilege. You can then help students build the “muscle” by encouraging them to exercise it with you. How you focus on this topic might be different depending on your classroom demographics, but the ability to recognize and discuss oppression and privilege is essential for all students who want to become agents of change. Affirm students when they acknowl- edge their own privilege and when they notice others taking privilege for granted. Expose them to the “gentle catalyst” approach, but also encourage them to stand up for themselves and others when privilege leads to injustice. Remind them that being aware is not enough— My child’s middle-school teacher thinks it is totally even allies can be blinded by appropriate to re-enact the Holocaust to learn. I am their own privilege. Q: In your lessons, teach horrified. What can I say? about systemic injustices that have led to inequity and about the history and scholarship The most important thing to tell you about the learn- and the Stanford Prison of resistance. When possible, is to say something and ing objectives for the activ- Experiment). These types provide concrete opportuni- say it soon. Most likely the ity and whether this con- of experiments are no lon- ties for students to challenge teacher sees simulations as tent is better served through ger conducted due to their practices that perpetuate a creative way to “bring his- other engaging activities detrimental psychologi- privilege. The White Privilege tory to life.” Begin by tell- that don’t carry the harmful cal effects on the partici- Conference offers a range ing her you’re concerned risks. Her attempt to make pants. If they’re not safe for of resources on this topic. If about the risks of simu- students feel what Nazis adults in a research lab, they possible, attend or arrange lations. When simulating and Holocaust survivors felt are not safe for children in a for students to attend. You the Holocaust, for exam- cannot possibly succeed— classroom. can also pursue professional ple, this teacher risks two and imagine the conse- development through their regrettable outcomes: On quences if it did. I’ve introduced my stu- WPC University. the one hand, students can For support, remind her dents to the concept of be emotionally trauma- there is a long research his- white privilege. They want tized, while on the other, tory of simulations designed to know what they can do. ASK TEACHING TOLERANCE! the activity trivializes one to reveal how easily one What can I tell them? Need the kind of advice and of the most appalling exam- group of people will hurt Confronting and interrupt- expertise only Teaching ples of oppression in his- others when instructed by ing privilege—of various Tolerance can provide? Email tory. In a collaborative and a person in authority (e.g., sorts—is work that happens us at [email protected] with supportive spirit, ask her the Milgram experiment over a lifetime of dialogue. “Ask TT” in the subject line.

ILLUSTRATION BY SKIP STERLING FALL 2014 9 first bell

BLOG 2.27.14 // CLASSROOM PRACTICE Quiet in the Classroom Consider this report card comment. It is very common. If you are a teacher, perhaps you’ve written it yourself: “He’s a great student, but he’s quiet in class. I wish he’d speak up more often. When he speaks up, he has a lot to offer.” Now, imagine if this comment were written about some other aspect of a student’s identity. I doubt it would be received as well. In fact, it might

TEACHING even cause an uproar. TOLERANCE Reader Exchange: HAVE I think back to my school “This is excellent! But also, please YOU SEEN OF THE BLOG days. I was, and still am, a be aware that if a student is non- OUR BLOG verbal in school but can speak quiet person. I am intelligent LATELY? by the usual metrics (strong fine and well at home, they might suffer from selective mutism. Check out some report cards and standardized test of the most talked- Students with selective mutism scores) and genuinely interested in learn- about blog posts. can be helped with iep intervening. My grades were sometimes docked Go to tolerance.org tions and with treatment help for lack of verbal class participation. I’d and search for from a specialist. Please don’t these headlines. answer when called upon, but I didn’t vol- overlook these students.” untarily raise my hand. I cringed at the q thought of it. And, I regularly saw com- “Introversion is not selective Telling the Story ments about being “quiet in class” and mutism!!! Introverts just need of Privilege needing to “speak more often.” School quiet time to concentrate. They q was a painful dance. need time to think before speaking. Talking can be physically But Slower… draining so they need quiet time q to recharge. As an introvert I have always made this a priority in my The N-Word: Connected Through classroom …” Historical Disconnect? GET THE FULL DISCUSSION HERE: q tolerance.org/blog/ Give the Kid a Pencil quiet-classroom

Kids in Birmingham Timeline: America’s First in the Family The LEAF Anthology for 1963 features firsthand Long Civil Rights March provides a truckload Urban Environmental FREE STUFF! accounts from adults details civil rights victories of information for Education supplies urban who participated in the and setbacks from 1865 to first-in-family college high school teachers with These Web resources offer children’s march—a great the present. From voting hopefuls—college prep lessons and projects that diversity-rich information way to introduce students rights to education and checklists, resources will prompt students to and materials for teachers. to the importance of housing, each timeline for advisors and advice think deeply about and act primary sources. The site item contains great from first-generation on environmental and sus- also has tips for teaching background information to college students. tainability issues. the movement year-round. support instruction. firstinthefamily.org nature.org/about-us/ kidsinbirmingham1963.org projects.propublica.org/ careers/leaf/resources-for- graphics/vra teachers/leaf-anthology- of-urban-environmental- education.xml

10 TEACHING TOLERANCE ILLUSTRATION BY ANDREW DEGRAFF Why I Teach

Lauren Allgood is a gifted and talented teacher with Metro Nashville Public Schools in Nashville, Tennessee. Tiny Differences

“WHY DO I TEACH?” is a question that My knowledge of solving equa- taught halfheartedly. Often, I teach I ask myself often, usually around tions did nothing to ease the pain of a with everything I have, only to real- 6 a.m. each Monday morning. The child growing up with an abusive par- ize my students are still struggling answer has changed over time. ent. Spending five hours a week in to understand the concepts. I tell my Before I set foot in a classroom, my math class was not going to com- students how rich their lives will be I had grand answers. I would be the pensate for hours spent waiting for a when they accept people who are not sole reason every one of my students family member who constantly for- exactly like them, only to see segre- would go to college. I would change got to pick up a student from school. A gated tables at lunch. I cannot always the life trajectory of each student I lively discussion about random sam- give my students the help they need, taught. I might have even imagined pling did not drown out the sound of a the love they deserve or the discipline a student thanking me in his or her growling stomach. And no matter how they want. Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech. great a teacher I became, these things But sometimes I can. Then, I began my teaching career, would always be true. I used to think that teaching was and my delusions of grandeur were Teaching is not always a traditional all about “making a difference.” Now, quickly dissolved. I was confronted success story, and on many days, I I think it is about making many small by the brokenness of the world like want to give up. My lesson might fall differences. One of the places where never before. flat. Other times, I know I’ve only I see these small differences the most

SHARE YOUR STORY What motivates you to get up each morning and serve students in our nation’s schools? We want to hear from you. Send your 600-word submission for the “Why I Teach” column to [email protected]. PHOTOGRAPH BY TOM GRISCOM FALL 2014 11 first bell is in seminars with my students. We BLOG 3.28.14 // APPEARANCE, RACE AND ETHNICITY choose an article, piece of artwork or video and discuss the big ideas and Complexities of Complexion values of the text. One of the greatest examples of this was when we By outward appearance, I look white. My skin tone is fair, my eyes watched and discussed a video about are hazel and my hair is dark blonde. By all accounts, I display the bullying. Students were able to share Norwegian-American traits from my dad’s side of my family. their experiences of loneliness and My mom’s Mexican-American side of my family shows through anger. We then pivoted to a discussion in my Spanish language skills, my affinity for Mexican literature on healing these hurts. I watched as and artwork, travel throughout Mexico, and investigating all there students shared their past experiences is to learn about the history of Mexico and the complex political in order to help classmates. Afterward, relationship that exists between our two countries. It is the reason I even shared some of my experiences why I am a bilingual educator today. on the topic. I was moved as I watched In a nation so fixated on defining ourselves based on my students care for one another TEACHING TOLERANCE and support each other. complexion and appearance, I have struggled my whole As a teacher, I will never know OF THE BLOG life to figure out where I fit in. What do you do when the how many SAT questions my stu- complexion with which you were born does not reflect dents aced because of my instruction. your culture or heritage? When people are quick to iden- I do not know if they were kind to an tify the privileges associated with being born with a light com- outsider because I was kind to them. I plexion, how do you convince them of the pressure associated with cannot know how their lives were dif- it? How does one explain the juxtaposition between being seen as a ferent because of our year together. “white” person but not seeing oneself that way? There are some things I do know, though. My attendance at a sporting event can sometimes completely change a student’s behavior in my classroom. Taking time out of my plan- Reader Exchange: ning period to listen to a student’s “Having blonde hair and blue eyes, but being part Ojibwa and not fit- struggles sometimes ends with a thank ting in either society by complexion and identity of culture is a daily you note found on my desk. When I burden. Add to that the assumed attention garnered when participating sneak a snack to a hungry student, I in either society. My tribal identity came from my mother and my father see her level of concentration increase. is all French, drop into that bowl of identity, historical racial trauma that Every so often, a pairing of students intimately touched my mother’s life and I was by consequence raised as who are very different from one a white child who participated in my tribal culture. Each day I walk the another results in a wonderful friend- fine line between how I view myself and how the world sees me.” ship. Many times, the greatest difference I make is to let one of my students “Thank you, I appreciate this post. I’m Mexican while my husband is know how beautiful he or she is to me. of English and Irish background and our daughters have his complex- I have one year with my students. ion rather than mine. I’ve watched my girls (the oldest is an 8th grader) One year to help them understand the navigate this world and I realize that my experience doesn’t quite pre- difficult concepts of seventh-grade pare them for the space that they inhabit. Thank you for sharing this math. One year to let them know they story with us.” are special to me. One year to make them smile. One year to let them GET THE FULL DISCUSSION HERE: know each of them is intrinsically tolerance.org/blog/complexities-complexion valuable. One year to let them know they are strong enough to conquer the obstacles that lie ahead. So, that is why I teach. I do not DID YOU KNOW? 47 percent of all SNAP recipients are children. want to miss a single opportunity to DID YOU KNOW? make those tiny differences. —Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

12 TEACHING TOLERANCE Down the Hall

Manuel J. Fernandez is the head of Cambridge Street Upper School Get Where in Cambridge, Massachusetts. You Need to Go

Manuel J. Fernandez caught the education bug in the early 1970s while working with youth as a community organizer and through a voluntary racial-imbalance busing program in Massachusetts. These early experiences set him on a career path that has been devoted to equity and culturally responsive education.

You’ve been the only man or person of color in most of the schools or districts you’ve worked in. What has that been like? I saw things that other people didn’t see. So it struck me that, “Wow, folks are really off the map when it comes to issues of equity around race and culture.” I can say most earnestly that in all the years I’ve been in education, very seldom have I met educators who didn’t care about children and who didn’t really want to do their best for them. But I’m never surprised at how little they know about the children who sit in front of them. The challenge for me and other administrators—and other people who have the sense of an expanded lens of understanding about what children need when they walk into a classroom—is we have to challenge people to reach beyond their own they actually build the curriculum— United States: We don’t talk about understanding and reach beyond and how we develop the right inter- race until we’re angry. Who ever their own life’s journey and experi- ventions and instructional practices knows what they’re talking about ences to see these children for who to respond to them. when they’re angry? And so we cause they are and what they bring to a more problems. We don’t create an classroom and a curriculum. Because How do you set the stage for poten- opportunity for people to have these tially tough professional-development conversations regularly. So in pre- Not all educators stand at the front of a class. sessions around issues of race, diver- vious schools, I tried to use humor. In each issue, we interview an outstanding educator who works outside the classroom. sity and social justice? There are some people who are not That’s the crux of the issue in the going to get the joke, some people

PHOTOGRAPHY BY KELLY DAVIDSON FALL 2014 13 first bell

Lessons Learned

Our online classroom resources are grade-specific and cover a range of anti-bias topics. Here are four of the most frequently visited in recent months. Find them at tolerance.org/activities.

Developing Empathy (Early Grades, Elementary, Middle and High School) Listen to the young people, and you’ll find your way. Contribute to a more respectful school community by encour- who are never going to invite you to were little? … I mean, this is beau- aging your students to be con- have that conversation. They’re just tiful. Look at all the diversity at this scious of other people’s feelings. going to be polite because that’s who table.” … I learned so much from they are. But there are other people them about what we need to be The Sounds of Change who, if you give them an opportunity doing, how we need to look beyond (Elementary, Middle and High to laugh, it relaxes them and once the black-and-white matrix and the School) they relax, they can hear you and they Latino/Asian matrix and start look- Explore the power of music to might even be able to come closer to ing a little deeper at what these evoke feelings and inspire social the table on that topic. youngsters are bringing to the table change by having students ana- every single day. And so I would say lyze song lyrics. What’s your advice for other to my colleagues in administration, administrators who want to cre- get in the cafeteria, get into the class- A Bullying Survey ate more culturally sensitive rooms, get on the playground, get (Early Grades) school environments? wherever you need to go. Be trans- Help your students recognize Talk to your students. While doing parent with our young people about anti-social behavior so they can lunch duty one day, I ended up hav- the world we’re in, the world that stop it or get help from an adult. ing a conversation with nine eighth- they’re facing, the skills they’re grade girls, and before I knew it, I going to need, the diversity that they A Bullying Quiz was talking to a young lady who came should be so delighted about. Listen (Middle and High School) here from Nepal [and] another young to the young people, and you’ll find Empower your students to pre- lady who came here from Brazil. Out your way. vent bullying by discussing the of those nine girls, seven of them realities of this harmful behav- were born in another country. All of ior and its effects. them spoke two languages; most of DOWN THE HALL them spoke three. And I asked them, Know an excellent administrator, librarian “What is [it] like being who you are or counselor we should interview? Tell us all in this community, from when you about them at [email protected].

DID YOU KNOW? In 2009–10, 53 percent of public school districts African-American youth are incarcerated at DID YOU KNOW? had high school students enrolled in distance higher rates and more likely to be committed to education courses. adult prisons than their white peers. —National Center for Education Statistics —The Sentencing Project

14 TEACHING TOLERANCE HONOR STUDENT IDENTITIES // BUILD INTERGROUP ED CAFÉ AWARENESS // SUPPORT DIVERSE LEARNERS

Resources

Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families aradvocates.org/assets/PDFs/K-12- Facilities Matter Education/Why-School-Facilities- Matter-2013.pdf

Education is an equal right, but not all School facilities affect: U.S. Department of Education schools are equal. Lots of factors con- k Learning. ed.gov/news/press-releases/more- tribute to disparities in school facili- k Teacher retention. 40-low-income-schools-dont-get- ties, including: k Instructional time. fair-share-state-and-local-funds- k Inequitable distribution of state k Participation in extracurricular department- and local funds. activities. k Disproportionate private funding. k Family involvement with school. National Education Association k Lack of transparency regarding nea.org/assets/img/content/NEA_ resource allocation. The structural safety of a school Rankings_And_Estimates-2013_ building—being warm, safe and (2).pdf 2013 A 2012 National Education Association dry—is only the beginning. All stu- (NEA) report lists the average per-students deserve amenities, such as the- The Nature Conservancy dent expenditure for public K-12 aters, gyms, science and technology nature.org/about-us/careers/leaf/ schools in 2011-12 as $10,834; however, labs and state-of-the-art resources, resources-for-teachers/ nationally this figure can range from that enhance learning across subject leaf-anthology-of-urban- $8,323 to $18,616 per pupil. areas and grade levels. environmental-education.xml

ILLUSTRATION BY MIKE ELLIS FALL 2014 15 ED CAFÉ

FAMILY AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Use Local Resources!

All communities have hidden resources that can liven up teaching and learning.

Survey Your Students Ask students what they know about where and with whom they live.

Listen. Incorporate. Invite. k Where in our community do you live? k What do you know about your neighbors? k Is there a community organization near your home? What is its name? Who runs it? Who goes there? k Where do you meet other people from your community? k What can your family share with our class?

Map Your Neighborhoods Map the areas where your students live. Visit. Review. Identify community resources.

Community Resources Schools and communities benefit from partnerships.

16 TEACHING TOLERANCE HONOR STUDENT IDENTITIES // BUILD INTERGROUP AWARENESS // SUPPORT DIVERSE LEARNERS

We cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community. CESAR CHAVEZ

ILLUSTRATION BY SUSAN ESTELLE KWAS FALL 2014 17 HONOR STUDENT IDENTITIES // BUILD INTERGROUP ED CAFÉ AWARENESS // SUPPORT DIVERSE LEARNERS

TEACHER LEADERSHIP Building Alliances

Alliances improve teacher collaboration, provide opportunities to give and Chapter 4 Culture and receive support and provide a sounding board. Communication in the Classroom How do my communica- INITIATE AN INTERDISCIPLINARY PROJECT tion practices measure up? What language myths exist in our school? How can MATH How do environmental issues influence language marginalize stu- EQ an individual’s quality of life? dents in my classroom?

ACTIVITY Chapter 5 Ethnic and Do I matter? Evaluate an individual’s power SCIENCE Cultural Diversity in to affect the environment by calculating EQ Curriculum Content How does affordable your ecological footprint. Identify ways to Who is represented in the health care influence an reduce your footprint. materials in our school? individual’s quality of life? How do materials enable ACTIVITY or limit my students? What Does your community ESSENTIAL QUESTION control do I have over enjoy access to afford- What influences materials in my own class- able health care? Gather a person’s quality of life? room? Do standardized How does feeling safe test scores carry too much and analyze statistics. influence an individual’s OBJECTIVE influence? How do we quality of life? Students will examine spe- change that? cific quality of life indicators ACTIVITY and assess overall quality of Are we safe and secure? Chapter 6 Cultural Congruity in Teaching life in their communities. Compare what it means to be safe in different and Learning locations. Contrast two How can I ensure that locations within your my instruction puts stu- How does sense of community influence dents first? What are the community. an individual’s quality of life? differences among coop- ENGLISH/ ACTIVITY erative, collaborative and LANGUAGE What worries your community? Identify group work? How do I ARTS a current concern, brainstorm possible know that my students are EQ actively engaged? solutions and write an action plan that SOCIAL works toward one of those solutions. STUDIES Chapter 7 A Personal Case EQ of Culturally Responsive Teaching Praxis How is my instruction rigorous? What routines are ORGANIZE A BOOK STUDY present in my practice? Culturally Responsive Teaching: Theory, Research, and Practice by Geneva Gay Chapter 8 Epilogue: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Looking Back and Challenges and Perspectives Pedagogical Potential of The Power of Culturally Projecting Forward What is the nature of story? Cultural Responsiveness Responsive Caring What building/district How is the personal story What does “from can’t to can” What is culturally responsive level support is required to important? How does this mean? What are the teacher caring? How do I put it to work implement components of relate to my practice? roles and responsibilities? in my practice? this work?

Gay, G. Culturally Responsive Teaching: Theory, Research, and Practice. New York, NY: Teachers College Press. 18 TEACHING TOLERANCE I need a tool to help me teach … diversity … literacy … identity … action … social justice … college and career readiness … equity …

AVAILABLE TODAY! You spoke. We listened. perspectives.tolerance.org Introducing Perspectives for a Diverse America, the first literacy-based curriculum that allows you to backward plan for social justice and college and career readiness. Perspectives is:

Simple Create, save and share learning 1 plans in one easy-to-use platform. Practical Access Common Core-aligned content that also 2 meets the needs of diverse classrooms. Powerful Engage social justice topics, and 3 empower your students to make change.

PERSPECTIVES for a DIVERSE AMERICA

A K-12 LITERACY-BASED ANTI-BIAS CURRICULUM

19 TEACHING TOLERANCETEACH FOR EQUITY. PLAN WITH PERSPECTIVES. It’s online, and it’s free. Try it today. perspectives.tolerance.org Check It Out!

Want help boosting cultural responsiveness at your school? Ask your librarian!

BY JOE HANSEN ILLUSTRATION BY JON REINFURT

TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY LIBRARIANS are smashing the stereotype of something that happens in childhood that obviously goes on throughout the the quiet, cardigan-clad lady who does nothing but check out books and child’s life.” shush noisy patrons. In fact, a growing number of school librarians and Teacher-librarian Crystal Brunelle library science experts are raising their voices to promote the vital role of Northern Hills Elementary School school librarians play in education. Nowhere is this truer than in the realm in Onalaska, Wisconsin, agrees with Naidoo. Brunelle knew that Hmong of social justice education, where school librarians—often referred to by students make up the largest minority the more accurate term “media special- authors. Thirty-four were about group at Northern Hills, so she made ists”—wield so many vital tools for chal- American Indians (18 authors), 69 con- sure she had Hmong books on the shelf. lenging bias and supporting equity. cerned those of Asian Pacific descent However, when a third-grade Hmong “Literacy is a civil right,” says Kafi (90 authors) and 57 were about Latinos student was surprised to learn he could Kumasi, assistant professor at Wayne (48 authors). Authors and characters check out books pertaining to his cul- State University’s School of Library and representing nondominant sexual ori- ture, she realized some of her students Information Science. “If we think of entations, religions, languages, income weren’t aware of what the library had to school libraries as natural repositories and ability levels also consistently fare offer. Dismayed, Brunelle went into pro- and agents of literacy, then by extension poorly in the publishing market. These motional mode, displaying the available libraries are also a civil right, and having a numbers have remained stagnant Hmong books prominently and look- school librarian is a civil right. Our role is for decades. ing for more, talking up the materials as instructional partners with teachers.” While many would agree this trend to students, trying to speak in Hmong should change on principle, the demand and inviting a Hmong author to speak Gaps on the Shelves for more diverse libraries should really at the school. The strategy worked. Research on the diversity of authors be driven by the emotional and devel- “They’ve learned … there are all these and characters in children’s publish- opmental cost to students, says Jamie books to choose from,” Brunelle says. ing consistently yields troubling data Naidoo, an associate professor at the “It’s exciting. And some of the students and highlights the need for skilled University of Alabama School of Library who are not Hmong are also enjoying library professionals. The University & Information Studies. Naidoo authored checking out those materials and asking of Wisconsin-Madison’s Cooperative the 2014 white paper “The Importance questions of their friends or just appre- Children’s Book Center (CCBC) tracks of Diversity in Library Programs and ciating the fun stories that are there.” statistics on people of color in pub- Material Collections for Children.” His Eventually, Brunelle applied the lished children’s books. Of the 3,200 conclusion? Never seeing themselves in same strategy to other culturally books received by the CCBC in 2013, books is devastating for children. responsive literature, and now her only 93 were about African Americans “It’s just sending the message that school library has a robust collection and just 68 had African-American they’re not important,” he says. “That’s of books in Korean, Urdu, Spanish,

20 TEACHING TOLERANCE Check It Out!

Ojibwe, Chinese and other languages. ∫ SCHOOL LIBRARIANS UNDERSTAND THE POWER OF WORDS. Most important: Students are aware of So for years the American Library Association (ALA) and its various divisions, them and use them. including the American Association of School Librarians (AASL), used the term “media specialist” to better capture the crucial role school librarians Stepping Out of the Stacks play in education. The usefulness of this more accurate term has its limits, Seeking out and promoting materials though: Not everyone knows what a media specialist does. Recently, ALA that represent diverse identities and and AASL have used the term “school librarian” in organization publications. experiences is just one way librarians can foster more inclusive school environments. Some librarians also take

FALL 2014 21 on instructional roles, working closely self-examination should be the first learning specialists or multicultural with teachers to incorporate culturally order of business. media publishers. If physically visit- responsive materials into the curricu- “A lot of my work is sort of the cere- ing a school isn’t possible, host a vir- lum. Others create library-based pro- bral work of librarians understand- tual author appearance via online tools, gramming designed to engage students, ing who they are and how they’re posi- such as WebEx or Google+ Hangouts. enhance their research skills and pro- tioned in the community,” Kumasi says k OFFER AN OPEN HOUSE. Other educa- mote intellectual curiosity. of her role as a librarian-educator. “If tors may not be aware of the research Kumasi notes that librarians often you don’t understand diversity from a skills, programming ideas or database have the research skills and access to cognitive and interpersonal view and access librarians possess. Hosting an data that can help schools get to know don’t understand your own worldviews open house provides the opportunity “Our role is as instructional partners with teachers.” their surrounding community. Looking and biases and stereotypes, you can’t to showcase all that the library—and at population shifts in census data, really be that culturally competent the librarian—has to offer. for example, can help identify ways a librarian that you might strive to be.” k CREATE A WEB PAGE. If teachers school’s demographics may be chang- aren’t reaching out, synthesize a clear- ing and whether or not the school’s pro- Library Marketing 101 inghouse of links, lists and resources. gramming meets these changing needs. Brunelle and other social-justice- The accessible format may increase the “Philosophically, you have to have a dis- minded librarians know that, to be likelihood they’ll pursue quality multi- position of questioning who’s left out of more effective in their roles, they must cultural titles. the picture,” she says. “market” the media center and make k ATTEND TO CULTURAL DIFFERENCES. But regardless of how a librar- it clear how their expertise can ben- Students may respond differently to ian uses creativity and skill to expand efit other educators—and their stu- learning opportunities based on their her role, Kumasi emphasizes that dents. “It’s incumbent on us to change lived experiences. Young people from perceptions,” says Sandra Hughes- communities that value oral history, for Hassell, professor at the University of example, may benefit from opportuni- North Carolina at Chapel Hill School ties to attend or participate in spoken Windows and Mirrors of Information and Library Science. word events. “Open mic” nights, media “We have to share something different; arts programs and literary magazines When Emily Style wrote her oft-cited we have to be something different if we are other ways to differentiate teaching paper “Curriculum as Window & Mirror” want them to buy into that new image library-based reading and communica- about the personal nature of multicultural of school librarians.” tion skills with students’ backgrounds learning, she could have been describing To do this, librarians who have suc- and preferences in mind. a library. The books and other media con- cessfully expanded their reach recom- k LEARN TEACHERS’ PERSPECTIVES. tained in a library collection can serve as mend a variety of techniques to spread Hughes-Hassell recommends that school both mirrors reflecting students’ own lives the word about resources and forge librarians take part in professional devel- and as windows into identities and experi- collaborative relationships. opment teachers attend—even if they’re ences unfamiliar to students. k NETWORK. School librarians can not required to do so. “Begin to under- “Oftentimes when we talk about broaden their impact by connect- stand the language of teachers,” she ‘diversity’ we automatically assume we’re ing with state American Library says. “Begin to understand the position talking about people of color or people Association chapters, joining dis- of teachers and what it is that teachers with disabilities, and it kind of gets mar- trict equity committees and engag- are trying to deal with.” ginalized,” Kumasi says. “Mainstream or ing professional learning commu- predominantly white communities need nities (either online or in person) to have an understanding of diversity ... focused on diversity issues and Toolkit for a number of reasons; not only to rein- library science. Help students make the most of force equality, but just for their own cul- k INVITE EXPERTS TO SPEAK. your school and community libraries. tural consciousness and to understand the Approach authors, child develop- visit » tolerance.org/check-it-out world is bigger than their small bubble.” ment experts, social emotional

22 TEACHING TOLERANCE NS ERSPECTIV TIO P ES.TOLE ES RANC U E.O Q RG L IA T N Begin by selecting an E S essential question (EQ) that S aligns to your instructional E goals. Questions like “What makes us who we are?” (Identity) and “How do communities become diverse?” (Diversity) drive inquiry and student connection with content.

EXTS L T RA T N E Check out Perspectives for a Diverse America— C our new FREE curriculum! Rigorous, relevant texts are at BY ADRIENNE VAN DER VALK the heart of Perspectives. Select from the anthology of short texts that meet the complexity demands of the Common Core and align to WHAT’S MORE EXCITING than starting a really great project? Finishing it, ABF anchor standards. of course! ¶ Teaching Tolerance has always provided quality anti-bias social justice lessons and teaching tools, and for years our community had been asking for a full curriculum. The widespread adoption of the Common Core State Standards offered an opportunity for TT to meet this KS TAS need: Why not go beyond the Common Core and offer an option that also aligns to learning targets that reduce prejudice, promote equity and sup- Practice UBD by selecting performance port intergroup relations? ¶ Three years, 300 texts, 130 tasks and strat- tasks next. Write to the egies, and 20 anchor standards later, Perspectives for a Diverse America Source tasks (3-12) require students to use the central text is ready—and we can’t wait for our community to begin exploring! as a source for argumentative, explanatory and narrative writing. “I see concrete, practical ways “I love the ability to tie the Do Something tasks (K-12) build civic engagement and assess to make everyday teaching CCSS and Anti-bias Framework progress toward culturally relevant.” together. Great UBD design.” anti-bias goals. —PILOT TEACHER —PILOT TEACHER

What is Perspectives? Why Perspectives? IES TEG RA Perspectives is a literacy-based, anti- Perspectives is ideal for educators who ST bias, social justice curriculum that is embrace both social justice values and aligned to the Common Core State backward planning. The curricular ele- Based on the EQ, the text, your selected Standards for Language Arts and ments are aligned to the four domains performance tasks and Literacy standards—and to the Teaching of the ABF: Identity, Diversity, Justice your students’ needs, select Tolerance Anti-bias Framework (ABF), and Action. Using the anchor stan- instructional strategies from a groundbreaking set of anti-bias standards and grade-level outcomes of the each phase of the learning plan. Learning plan phases align to dards. Its Web-based modular design ABF for backward planning allows you the reading, writing, speaking allows for maximum flexibility, cus- to engage a spectrum of social justice and listening goals of the tomization and differentiation. Use it to topics and cultural and social emo- Common Core. plan one lesson or integrate it through- tional competencies—critical in today’s out your scope and sequence. diverse classrooms.

ESSENTIAL QUESTION + CENTRAL TEXT + TASKS + STRATEGIES = LEARNING PLAN

FALL 2014 23 “The essential questions help keep my planning purposeful.” —PILOT TEACHER

“This is going to make my teaching more engaging and beneficial to my students.” —PILOT TEACHER

“The tasks and strategies are very creative and well-explained. It’s so easy and time-friendly to plug them into the learning plan.” 24 TEACHING TOLERANCE —PILOT TEACHER So…how will YOU use Perspectives? perspectives.tolerance.org

“I really like the diversity of the texts, including visual and multimedia.” —PILOT TEACHER

Toolkit See what a Perspectives learning plan looks like at three different grade levels. visit » tolerance.org/3-2-1-launch FALL 2014 25 BYOD? [BRING YOUR OWN DEVICE] BY SEAN PRICE ILLUSTRATION BY BYRON EGGENSCHWILER

THE PEW RESEARCH Center’s Internet & Center for Digital Education and the cases—they have backed into BYOD as American Life Project recently asked National School Boards Association, a solution to that problem.” over 1,600 experts what they thought the percentage of schools using BYOD BYOD is, on the surface, the most the future of the Internet would look has jumped from 34 to 56 in just the cost-efficient approach to integrat- like. Respondents replied that the last year. ing technology into schools. But while Internet would essentially become the So why BYOD instead of “one-to- some schools and districts have warmly equivalent of electricity—something so one,” a system in which schools pro- embraced it, many educators worry integral to our daily lives that it is prac- vide one device per student? about the potential for inequity: Some tically invisible. “Fundamentally, it’s school finance,” kids can bring better technology from Compelled by a similar vision of the says Julie Evans, chief executive offi- home than others, and some can’t bring future and the increasingly technolo- cer of Project Tomorrow, a California any at all. gy-driven nature of our society, more nonprofit that promotes innovation Elliot Soloway, a University of and more U.S. schools are adopting in math, science and technology edu- Michigan professor who special- “bring your own device” (BYOD) pol- cation. “Administrators have bought izes in technology in education, says, icies, encouraging students to bring into the idea that having a personal- “It’s a Band-Aid that makes people personal computers, tablets, mobile ized computing device in the hands of feel good, but you’ve got to ask the phones and other Internet-compatible every student is a good idea. But they hard questions.” devices to class to serve as learning aids. have not been able to figure out how According to the 2014 Digital School to pay for that on an ongoing and sus- Approaches to BYOD Districts Survey, conducted by the tainable basis. In many cases—in most Soloway observes that BYOD schools

26 TEACHING TOLERANCE RELYING ON PERSONAL DEVICES AT SCHOOL RAISES SERIOUS EQUITY QUESTIONS. fall into three main implementation heavy load created by BYOD, requiring backup devices. categories and that these categories a $325,000 upgrade. And, while inadequate funding for fall largely along economic lines. High-quality implementation public schools is one of the main driv- The first category includes schools of BYOD also requires professional ers of BYOD’s popularity, that same with the financial resources (tax base development. Jennifer Drake Sullivan, lack of funding prompts many schools and community support) to absorb the media coordinator at New Bridge to scrimp on one of the most important cost of software, training for teachers, Middle School in Jacksonville, North aspects of implementing BYOD effec- curriculum overhauls that integrate the Carolina, emphasizes that teachers tively: revamping the curricula. devices and—crucially—enough backup must be trained to cope with the lack “In a lot of cases, all you’re doing is devices to cover students unable to of uniformity among students’ devices. supplementing the existing curricu- bring their own. “It’s not the same thing as having a lum with a little technology,” Soloway The second category is made up of classroom full of laptops or tablets,” says. “The data says you will not see districts with shakier budgets. These she says, “because they don’t all have increases in student achievement schools really can’t afford a robust the same connectivity or ability to do under those circumstances. Student implementation framework for BYOD certain projects. That part is frustrat- achievement is associated with using like the schools in category one, but ing for some teachers who really want devices as essential tools.” For example, they sacrifice to at least find money for to use technology.” Budgeting for this instead of having students read a chap- backup devices. cost may be impossible for schools in ter on the solar system and answering The third category is where schools category two or three who may strug- questions about it at the end, a lesson with high free- and reduced-lunch pop- gle to even pay the Wi-Fi bill or provide designed with BYOD in mind might ulations often find themselves. They have problems similar to those in the second category, but those problems are more acute. Even with BYOD, DIGITAL COMMUNITY these schools can only provide adequate technology through fundrais- by Alissa Sklar ing. This category is at the highest risk for child-to-child inequity because of Implementing a BYOD policy is the perfect opportunity to emphasize digital the limited capacity to fill the gap if citizenship as part of your school’s culture. families or fundraising cannot provide needed devices. Set up clear guidelines. Schools need to inform students and families about What educators spanning all three when devices can be used, who is responsible for damage and what the con- categories discover is that, while BYOD sequences will be if devices are misused. saves money initially because schools don’t have to purchase expensive Talk about empathy and community. Defining your school’s expectations devices for every student, implement- of digital citizenship goes a long way towards avoiding problems. Integrate ing it still comes with an array of finan- concepts of safety, rights and respect for self and others—online and else- cial and social costs. where—into classroom activities and homework. Check out this example of proactive, pro-technology guidelines from the Trafalgar School for Girls in The Financial Cost Montreal, Quebec. trafalgar.qc.ca/page.cfm?p=848 One of the biggest costs is infrastructure. Superintendent Gail Haterius, Teach about privacy controls. It can be tempting to trade privacy for high who leads the school district in Mineral follower counts on Instagram, Tumblr or Twitter, but this leaves students Wells, Texas, knew that fast Wi-Fi was open to cyberbullying, trolling, identity theft and the possibility that their critical for BYOD to work. “The only digital footprints can come back to haunt them. Consider asking students to perk I can give my teachers is that we research privacy settings as part of an assignment. can let them use the Wi-Fi for personal things before school, after school and Emphasize that passwords are personal. Sharing passwords is too often at lunch,” Haterius says. Most of the viewed as a sign of trust in a relationship or friendship, but true friends would district’s schools are in good shape, never ask you to divulge this information and make yourself vulnerable. but the Wi-Fi systems at two schools have struggled under the unexpectedly

28 TEACHING TOLERANCE “It’s a Band-Aid that makes people feel good, but you’ve got to ask the hard questions.”

have students use their devices to a result, Baule notes, his colleagues k Set up an equity task force. This research the solar system, create their are uncomfortable assigning technol- group can be composed of teachers, own questions about it and research the ogy homework. “Even in an affluent students, parents and community answers to each other’s questions. school district there are still some kids members. It should identify whether Still, overhauling curricula to maxi- who don’t have access to the things they students are being left behind by BYOD mize the use of personal devices is costly, need,” he says. and find realistic ways to include them. both in terms of dollars and staff time. Soloway says one of the things kids The biggest challenges the task force need most is connectivity when they’re can expect to face are fundraising for The Equity Cost away from school, and many programs backup devices and finding out-of- BYOD poses social emotional risks to and districts are working to make that school Internet connections for low-in- students as well. Dyanne Schoterman, happen. In 2011, the U.S. government come students. former principal at Elizabeth Price moved to help with the Connect to k Make teacher training a prior- Elementary in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, Compete program. Families with one ity. BYOD requires creative teaching, says she witnessed the toll of inequity child participating in the National Sullivan says. “Give them ideas about during a school assembly in the gym. School Lunch Program may be eligi- what they can do with it so when they Shortly after Price Elementary had ble for discounted $9.95 broadband have those 30 different devices [in adopted BYOD—but had yet to pro- Internet access, a refurbished com- class], they can make it work.” Teachers vide devices for all kids—Schoterman puter and free digital literacy training. who get no training or poor training allowed students to bring personal Meanwhile, some districts have begun often just stop using the technology devices so they could play games, such providing low-cost mobile wireless completely. Schools that have already as Minecraft. devices to low-income students so they implemented BYOD are potential pro- She regretted that decision as soon can access the network at home. fessional development resources. she looked around the gym. The kids k Include students in BYOD planning. with devices were busily playing, hud- Doing BYOD Right Students are understandably enthusi- dled in groups. Those who couldn’t The capacity to implement BYOD is astic about using personal devices in join in were left to look over shoulders something each school’s staff must school. They are also resourceful, cre- or go reluctantly to do other activi- evaluate for itself; in all cases, equity ative and tuned in to both the tech- ties. “It was right in front of me,” she should be a central consideration. nology and social aspects underlying said. “There were the haves and the Educators who follow best practices BYOD implementation challenges. Ask have-nots.” for using BYOD effectively and equita- them what they think. While some students not having a bly in their classrooms offer the follow- BYOD policies will continue to chal- device is clearly inequitable, Sullivan ing suggestions: lenge educators as long as funding defi- does note that, in the six years she’s k Make sure the infrastructure is cits in public education persist. Many used BYOD, she’s never seen a kid adopt there. If your school isn’t planning to educators who’ve worked with BYOD a superior attitude because he had a upgrade its Wi-Fi system and designate say it can provide real benefits in schools better device than another kid. “It’s not an IT specialist, BYOD implementation when school leaders are conscious of its like the high-dollar sneakers,” she says. is probably headed for trouble. Talk to drawbacks and find creative and equita- Steven Baule, superintendent of superiors about anticipating the band- ble ways to address them. North Boone public schools in Illinois, width BYOD will likely demand. agrees, but his concern lies in what the k Provide backups. Even students students can accomplish academically who have devices may lose or break with their respective devices. Students them or become targets of theft. with iPads can obviously be much more Teachers need to know they’ll have Toolkit creative—and learn much more— enough devices for their lessons. Want another perspective on BYOD policies? Ask your students! than those who can bring Internet- This may require creative budgeting visit » tolerance.org/byod compatible gaming devices only. As and fundraising outside the school.

FALL 2014 29 30 TEACHING TOLERANCE A Conversation e Michelle Alexander

INTERVIEW CONDUCTED BY JUNE CARA CHRISTIAN PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROBERT HARDIN

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness is widely regarded as one of the most important books of the decade addressing the subject of racial justice. The author, Michelle Alexander, visited with Teaching Tolerance about writing The New Jim Crow, the realities of mass incarceration and how teachers can address this difficult topic in their classrooms.Teaching Tolerance will release a teacher’s guide based on excerpts from The New Jim Crow this fall.

FALL 2014 31 Why did you decide to write The New Jim Crow? what it is. Unlike the old Jim Crow, there are no signs alerting I was inspired to write the book mainly as a result of experi- you today to the existence of racial bias. The “whites only” ences I had working as a civil rights lawyer at the ACLU that signs are gone, and it’s easy today to be lulled into this belief began what I now call my awakening. I began to awaken to that people are at the bottom because they simply don’t work the reality that our criminal justice system now functions hard or are lazy or prone to violence. If we don’t pull back the much more like a system of racial or social control than a sys- curtain for young people and help them to see how uncon- tem of crime prevention and control. I wanted to share with scious bias operates, how systems of discrimination oper- others the facts, history [and] stories that I wish that I had ate, then they will continue to operate on a false belief that known long before in the hopes that others would begin to race discrimination is a part of our past and not our present. have the same kind of awakening and commit themselves to They will find themselves being part of the problem rather building a movement to end mass incarceration in America. than part of the solution.

In your book, you describe a racial caste system in the How do your book and the Teaching Tolerance teach- United States. What led you to use this term? er’s guide relate to the larger picture of teaching I use the term racial caste because I wanted to emphasize about civil rights? that mass incarceration functions as a complex system of Students are typically taught that racism was a thing of the rules, laws, policies and practices that lock a group of peo- past and now we are in a new time where race discrimina- ple—defined in large part by race—into a permanent section is illegal and we no longer accept or tolerate it. I think ond-class status. And that people who find themselves it’s critical for us to rethink how we teach civil rights in our cycling in and out of prison are often in that situation, not schools so that we teach it as part of an ongoing struggle. If because they lack motivation or lack the desire to support we are only [teaching] civil rights education as part of our themselves or contribute to their communities or support history, but not acknowledging the struggles that remain in their families, but [because] they’re trapped there by law. our present and how they are connected to the past, then we are doing young people an incredible disservice. We are How have we gotten to this point? not equipping them well to meet the challenges of our time. Many of the same attitudes that were used to justify and rationalize slavery and Jim Crow are used yet again in the What do high school students need to know about the era of mass incarceration. But if we look more to our recent role of race in the criminal justice system? history, we can see that the current system is traceable to It’s critical for young people to recognize that it’s not sim- a law-and-order and “get-tough” movement [that] origi- ply mean, cruel bigots perpetrating this type of discrimina- nated with former segregationists. This get-tough rheto- tion. The decision-making at every stage of our criminal jus- ric was very popular on the heels of the civil rights move- tice process is inevitably infected with unconscious biases ment, particularly among poor and work- and stereotypes. We all have them, all of us. No matter what ing-class whites who were fearful for their color we are, no matter where we came from or where own status and position as our society began we are raised. These biases are part of our culture, to change dramatically. But also this rheto- and they’ve been with us since the birth of this ric resonated with some segments of the nation. It’s important that we don’t simply deny African-American community as crime rates the reality of these biases or try to defend against began to rise in those communities. So peo- claims that bias exists but to just be honest about ple of all colors found themselves embrac- this reality so that we can have some hope of cre- ing law-and-order rhetoric and this punitive ating a justice system that is vastly more fair and impulse that washed over the United States. more compassionate than the one we have today.

Why teach about structural oppres- What else would you want students to under- sion and other systems of control? stand from reading and studying your book? Young people are not likely to get this infor- They have the power to change the system. It’s mation from any other source. If we are easy to imagine that a system like mass incar- ever going to overcome this, we first have to ceration can’t be dismantled. The same was be able to talk about it, describe it, to know said about slavery, the same was said about Jim

32 TEACHING TOLERANCE Watch tolerance.org for the release of the teacher’s guide— and for a LIVE webinar featuring Michelle Alexander!

Crow. And yet a powerful movement, led in large part by courageous, young people who were unwilling to accept the status quo, who were bold and brave and who were truth-tellers, helped to bring that Jim Crow system to its knees. I think it’s important that even as we learn about great injustice that we not become paralyzed by it but recognize that we are the change we’ve been waiting for and that young people—perhaps more than any other segment in our society— are the hope upon which future generations can rely.

Did you have any conversations while researching the book that were particularly memorable? I think that the conversations that stand out most in my mind were with people who were formerly incarcerated. It’s one thing to read statistics. It’s another thing to actually hear the stories of people who have been released from prison with $20 in their pocket, turned out onto the street. Nowhere to go, nowhere to sleep. If their family lives in public housing, that family risks eviction just by allowing a convicted felon back to hear that, in prison, people pass the book around from cell home. They try to find a job and virtually every employment to cell and are sharing it with their families so that their fam- application has that box on it asking the dreaded question, ilies can be better educated about the challenges they’ll face “Have you ever been convicted of a felony?” Many people are when they are released. To see others take it and run with it released from prison for the first time when they are just 19, in their own way and carry the work forward, it’s almost like 20, 21 years old and have to face the harsh reality that, for a relay race handing off so that this work can continue. And the rest of their lives, these are the barriers they are going for that I am incredibly grateful. to face. This is their new normal.

What part of the experience of writing and publishing The New Jim Crow has fulfilled you most? It is just so encouraging to see teachers putting it to good use in their classrooms, to see pastors and ministers put- Toolkit ting it to good use in their churches and sharing it with their Help students talk about justice by creating congregations. It’s encouraging to see young people orga- an interview with an author they admire. nizing around the book forming Students Against Mass visit » tolerance.org/michelle-alexander Incarceration chapters on college campuses. It’s encouraging

FALL 2014 33

404 Error: Teacher Not Found

ONLINE EDUCATION HELPS SOME STUDENTS—AND SHORTCHANGES OTHERS.

BY JOE HANSEN ILLUSTRATION BY PIETARI POSTI

AS A SOPHOMORE at Boston are turning to online courses as an Simba Information found that online International High School, Kendell inexpensive option for keeping strug- credit-recovery courses constituted Solis failed an English class. Two years gling students on the path to gradua- about half of all K-12 virtual education later, then an 18-year-old senior, Solis tion. But critics worry that using online in the United States. But how well these discovered he still needed the credit to schools indiscriminately and without students fare in the long run remains the graduate. So he enrolled in an online proper support simply masks achieve- big question in the online credit-recov- English class as part of Boston Public ment problems by enrolling at-risk, dis- ery debate; the growth of virtual educa- Schools’ online credit-recovery pro- advantaged or ELL students in easier tion has outpaced academic research. gram, which lets students take online online credit-recovery courses. Since 2006, University of California versions of classes they failed in a brick- That’s exactly what happened in Santa Barbara Professor of Education and-mortar setting. Solis passed the Manhattan’s Murry Bergtraum High Russell Rumberger has tracked class—which ostensibly covered the School for Business Careers. In spring California’s K-12 graduation landscape same material—but wonders how well 2014, media reports surfaced alleging the as director of the California Dropout he learned to read English. school was funneling hundreds of stu- Research Project. He’s taken notice of “It was kind of easy, from my per- dents through nonrigorous online classes the growing use of online credit recov- spective,” says Solis, a recent immigrant to boost grades and graduation rates. ery to battle California’s dropout prob- and English language learner (ELL). “It “Technology in education has been lem and attributes a recent 4-percent felt good because I got to recover my my thing for a very long time,” says John uptick in the state’s graduation rate to a grade. … But at the same time I would Elfrank-Dana, a whistleblower teacher national focus on graduation—and, per- read better if I hadn’t failed my sopho- at Murry Bergtraum. “I get really haps, to online credit-recovery courses. more year. I guess I would have learned annoyed when I see abuse; when I see “Unfortunately, I don’t think we more from my sophomore year than kids stuck in front of computers and the have any real data on it,” Rumberger what I did from the credit recovery.” goal is just to get the school’s numbers says, “but just anecdotally I know Stories like Solis’ are becoming up. And that’s what’s been going on.” it’s grown. … The traditional way was increasingly common as schools and making up a course or doing indepen- districts, under national and local pres- The Credit Recovery Question dent study. Now there’s more comput- sure to bolster student achievement, A 2010 survey by market research firm er-based credit recovery going on.”

FALL 2014 35 At-risk students need teacher attention, positive social interaction and encouragement——and virtual education gives them less of those things.

On its face, online credit This kind of setting concerns recovery is a success: A stu- Marie-Nathalie Beaudoin, author dent who was failing earns of Boosting ALL Children’s Social a diploma. But Rumberger and Emotional Brain Power: Life voices a common question: Transforming Activities. Students Did that student actually learn don’t just learn from the academ- the material? ics of school, Beaudoin says. They “The jury is still out about learn just as much through social- their effectiveness,” Rumberger ization, forging connections with says. “The concern I have is that teachers and learning about dif- it’s not as rigorous, and there- ferences in race or socioeconomic fore it’s not really a replace- status with their peers. ment for taking regular classes. “I’m very concerned by the It’s kind of a shortcut.” fact that so many children will A shortcut that is often have impoverished social and applied to vulnerable, at-risk emotional education through students. this process,” Beaudoin says of “Those are the kids who virtual education. “The social- are most likely to fail classes,” ization process of children is one Rumberger says. of the most important aspects of Supporters point out that their development.” credit-recovery opportunities Many experts point out that for these students can be the dif- school is just one of the ways that ference between leaving school children socialize; social emo- with a diploma and just leaving tional learning can also happen school. Boston Public Schools’ Credit with a teacher explaining it to me—like at church, on a sports team or in activ- Skills Recovery Program (CSRP), for in a class.” ities, such as band or choir. But where example, offers an online avenue for “old a student lives and attends school often and close” students like Solis, age 18 or ‘Social Impoverishment’ impacts his access to extracurricular older and within a few credits of gradua- The handful of students tapping away activities, and not all families have the tion. A 2012 University of Massachusetts at computer stations on a Tuesday time or resources to seek them out. evaluation tracked 441 students entering morning at Oregon Trail School “If the environment is already the CSRP, 90 percent of whom had been District’s Blended Learning Center impoverished … in any way, the virtual flagged as “high risk” individuals; 350 of (BLC) seem intent on their work. The education would just be another way them earned a diploma. BLC opened in 2012 and serves stu- of impoverishing that child’s develop- Salman Al Janabi, an 18-year-old dents ranging from competitive ski- ment,” Beaudoin says. Iraqi immigrant in the Boston Public ers who travel a lot to the children of Schools system, fit neatly into the itinerant laborers. These students take Virtually Inappropriate “old and close” mold and was working computer-based classes in a brick-and- In August 2012, Darcy Bedortha took toward graduating via online credit mortar school setting. a job as an English teacher for Insight recovery in spring 2014. It’s a popular program capped at 200 School of Oregon, a virtual charter “The online class is OK, but there’s students with a long waiting list and school run by K12 Inc., the nation’s nobody next to you to explain what is an 85-percent graduation rate. But the largest private K-12 online educa- the next step—you have to figure it out BLC has the feel of a library, silent and tion company. By the following fall, on your own,” Al Janabi says. “I don’t austere. If these students are socializ- Bedortha had 476 students in 30 differ- like this format. I like the one-on-one ing, it’s happening elsewhere. ent classes. She’d never communicated

36 TEACHING TOLERANCE with most of them. In November 2013, that the first attempts at virtual edu- virtual education models can work very she quit. cation focused on serving high-achiev- well when students are matched with Insight School of Oregon focuses ing students with offerings such as the appropriate program and levels of on at-risk students. Bedortha is still Advanced Placement classes and for- adult support, but otherwise can actu- haunted by the stories of the students eign language courses not available in ally exacerbate the deficits at-risk stu- she wasn’t able to serve. a school or district. Those efforts were dents experience. “The typical student would be on largely successful and continue to Bedortha didn’t feel her at-risk the fringes and not quite fitting in,” be, Barbour points out, because they students were served well by the Bedortha recalls. “They would talk focused on driven, self-starting stu- adults who signed them up for vir- about self-harm, and they would talk dents who often came from academ- tual school. Rumberger questions about surviving suicide. It’s the stuff ically achieving families and commu- whether at-risk students in California where you want to be able to visually see nities. For an at-risk student with less are being cheated out of learning their these kids and make sure that they’re structure, however, virtual education coursework. Time will tell if Solis, an OK. All I would get was a piece of paper.” may mean little or no actual learning. ELL student who wants to go to col- Bedortha’s experience illustrates an “If you’ve got a parent that is really lege, was given an adequate educa- important point: At-risk students need hands off and lets their child pretty tion. The answer to that question will teacher attention, positive social inter- much do it on their own, those stu- come when the world after high school action and encouragement—and virtual dents, if they don’t have that internal decides how well he can read. education gives them less of those things. self-directedness, self-regulation, Education tech expert Michael self-motivation, those students tend Barbour, director of doctoral stud- not to do well,” Barbour says. “But Toolkit ies at the Isabelle Farrington College that’s true in a brick-and-mortar Walk through the advantages and of Education and assistant professor environment as well.” disadvantages of a virtual educa- of educational leadership at Sacred Barbour’s opinion is common tion with your students. visit » tolerance.org/ Heart University, has studied virtual among those who study K-12 edu- teacher-not-found education since its infancy. He notes cation. Many experts point out that

The Language of Virtual Education

Virtual learning refers to using computer software, the Internet or Full-time virtual schools School-based credit-recov- both to deliver instruction to students. The explosion of K-12 virtual or programs: Distance edu- ery programs: Credit recov- learning options has yielded a variety of models designed for stu- cation programs that offer a ery courses taken during dents in different circumstances. Here’s a breakdown of some of the spectrum of full-time online normal school hours, after most commonly used terminology surrounding virtual learning. curricula. Often utilized by school, on vacation breaks or students who parent or work over the summer. Typically Blended learning: A learn- entirely conducted and full time, or who do not thrive taken by students currently ing model that combines vir- administered via computer in a traditional school set- enrolled in school. tual learning and in-person software or the Internet. ting. Increasingly relied upon teaching. Teachers and coun- to supplement or supplant Virtual charter schools: selors provide variable lev- Distance learning: A teach- home-school offerings. Full-time online schools that els of support depending on ing method in which lectures receive public funding but the environment. are broadcast or classes are Home-based credit-recov- are not subject to the same conducted by correspon- ery programs: Credit recov- regulations as public institu- Computer-based classes: dence or over the Internet ery available via institutions that tions. Some are run by for- A general term referring to without the student physi- teach courses entirely online. profit educational manage- courses in which the teach- cally attending school. May be taken whether or not ment institutions. ing and assessment are the student is enrolled in school.

FALL 2014 37 ˙˙ FIRST PERSON ÓÓ

BY ANONYMOUS

WITHIN THE PAST year, chose not to speak the most boring person in the world. I attended our district’s up: fear of many things, including I rarely talk about what I did over the screening of the Teaching Tolerance rejection, the possible impact on the weekend, or in the evening, or even over movie Bullied: A Student, a School successful career I’ve spent years creat- the summer, preferring to leave out large and a Case that Made History. About ing, and even an undercurrent of inter- pieces of my life in fear that some detail a hundred people were there, includ- nalized homophobia that I still haven’t would reveal my true nature. I have a ing high-ranking district administra- properly addressed. mental list of safe subjects to discuss. tors, teachers, concerned parents and I began to wonder what I would have It means when I am celebrating a students. After the screening, we broke shared at the meeting, and I began to new relationship or mourning the end into small groups to discuss the movie find the words describing what it of one, I cannot show any feelings. I and its impact. The facilitator of my means for me to be a gay elementary may be torn up inside, but I always have group suggested that those of us who school teacher. to be even-keeled, ignorantly happy, are gay talk about our experiences in It means I have learned how to live unconnected. the district. in and navigate two different worlds. It It means that in the staff room and at The facilitator, who knows me, takes much mental energy to try to hide staff meetings, I listen to my co-work- looked toward me to start the sharing. one world from another and to careers share stories about their spouses, However, because I didn’t know sev- fully keep them apart. often to much laughter, but that priv- eral people in the group and because It means I navigate the “dance of the ilege does not extend to me. there were no norms established or pronouns” when speaking, consciously It means I listen to homophobic talk even a suggestion of confidentiality, watching my language all the time. It from staff members and internally gri- I went silent. Several other people, can be exhausting. Once, when talking mace at the pain it causes. mostly straight allies, spoke of their with a parent about the house I share It means I have to excel at the craft perceptions of what it was like, yet I with my partner, I slipped and used the of teaching because I live in fear that remained mum. term we. She picked up on it immedi- I will be fired if my principal finds out It was a painful silence. On the drive ately, causing a moment’s panic. about me. Although not currently, I home, I reflected on the reasons why I It means my co-workers think I am have taught in states where teachers

38 TEACHING TOLERANCE can be fired just for being gay. Some If I feel comfortable enough to invite of the staff members who have said a co-worker into my house, then he or homophobic things in my presence were she needs to know, because I refuse to my administrators. live a closeted life at home. It means I must navigate uncom- I know that my decision means that fortable conversations when a well-in- I am not setting an example for my stu- tentioned teacher tries to set me up dents, particularly students who are with her single daughter or, even more gay (and may not know it yet). Were I uncomfortably, when a female teacher to come out now, maybe when it’s time asks me out herself. for them to recognize themselves, they It means I feel a sting every time will feel empowered because one adult our staff celebrates a wedding or baby who cared about them for a year in ele- shower because I know that, should I get mentary school had the nerve to show married or have a child, the staff would them how. not celebrate these events. On the drive home from the screen- It means I show up to staff social ing, that painful silence enveloped functions alone, if I attend at all. I’ve me, and it echoes within me today. learned that people disclose much Maybe someday I’ll have the nerve about their personal lives at these types to speak up. Until then, these words, of functions, so it’s best to skip them written anonymously, must suffice. entirely to avoid any probing questions. And perhaps the truth of my words I do not ever fool myself in thinking will echo within the thousands of that I am totally successful with this hid- teachers across this country who can ing. I know some of my colleagues have relate to them. started to connect the dots. I have to decide if or when I will tell a colleague.

Toolkit Put yourself in the shoes of a closeted teacher. visit » tolerance.org/classroom-closet FALL 2014 39 40 TEACHING TOLERANCE LUNCH LINES INEQUITABLE CAFETERIA PRACTICES STIGMATIZE LOW-INCOME STUDENTS.

BY DAVE CONSTANTIN ILLUSTRATION BY MARK SMITH

WHEN DR. RAJIV Bhatia walked into the lunchroom at Mission High School in San Francisco in 2007, he couldn’t believe what he saw. Bhatia, then director of environmental health at the San Francisco Department of Public Health, was there to study food systems and look for ways to increase nutritional quality. What he found would ultimately lead him to an entirely different investigation: a system of blatant segregation that seemed straight out of the 1950s. In one line cash-paying students waited to enjoy a wide selection of à la carte, or “competitive,” foods. In another, low-income, mostly minority students stood single file to receive pre- packaged free-or-reduced meals supplied by the National School Lunch Program (NSLP). “It’s like wearing a sign that says, ‘Hey, I’m poor,’” says Jeff Kapka, who grew up in a low-income family in the predominantly wealthy suburb of North Kingston, Rhode Island. At his school the kids stood in the same line but held different colored tickets advertising their lunch-purchasing status. Now a junior at the University of Rhode Island, Kapka can reflect objectively on growing up in relative poverty. “But back then,” he says, “I would have told you it was embarrassing.” Kapka and other recipients of government-assistance programs are no strangers to stigma. The term “food stamps” has become so politically

FALL 2014 41 loaded that, in 2008, Congress changed of hunger remains on the back burner. the official name of the Food Stamp That lack of awareness is what Program, the largest of the federal Bhatia set out to change when he nutrition assistance programs, to the saw what was happening in San Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Francisco schools. He was joined by Program (SNAP). But the stigma Colleen Kavanagh, founder and exec- remained, as it did for the NSLP—the utive director of Campaign for Better second largest of these programs— Nutrition, and Tara Kini, an attorney which serves free-and-reduced lunches at Public Advocates. to more than 31 million students annu- “When Rajiv told me what he saw, ally. With anti-welfare sentiment polit- I immediately knew we had to do ically de rigueur, the perception that something because it was illegal,” says those receiving government assistance Kavanagh. “But when we brought it up are “moochers” is arguably worse than with USDA, they said, ‘Well, that’s just ever—and even extends to children. San Francisco. No one else does that.’” “There’s this pervasive attitude Kavanagh wasn’t convinced. She put across the country that if people get together a study looking at high schools help, they’re lazy, they’re scamming nationwide, and found fully one-third the system,” says Kathleen Gorman, of school districts had separate lines who has managed the state of Rhode or service areas for NSLP and compet- Island’s SNAP Outreach Project since itive foods; one in 10 had what she calls 2001. “People have really gotten this “particularly egregious segregation.” idea that just because people don’t have California was among the worst. money they’re morally inferior. It’s get- According to Kavanagh, these ting a lot more attention.” schools were allowing two levels of When this kind of stigma enters food service, with low-income kids schools, it catalyzes in the high-peer- served meals of lower appeal and qual- pressure environment and combusts ity (if not nutritionally then at least in in ways that harm low-income youth. terms of appearance and presentation) In many cases, the stigma is so bad it while kids not receiving NSLP benefits becomes a barrier to proper nutri- enjoyed broad choices. “There isn’t any tion. Although U.S. Department of other place in our school system where Agriculture (USDA) figures for NSLP we let that happen,” she says. “They participation optimistically indicate don’t let kids pay for better teachers or majority participation rates, surveys better textbooks.” of individual districts show rates below The federal government main- 14 percent in some places. Many stu- tains strict standards on the nutri- dents would rather forgo their midday tional requirements of NSLP meals meals than take the walk of shame in and doesn’t allow the program to offer the NSLP line. And while legislators, noncompliant (i.e., many competi- interest groups and administrators tive) foods—thus, the separate tick- know hunger affects classroom per- ets and lines. According to Kavanaugh, formance and continue to focus efforts however, schools’ internal accounting on improving lunchroom nutrition, the is often not kept separate, exacerbat- issue of stigma as an underlying cause ing what she sees as a serious problem:

Mix It Up at Lunch Day is a great way to break down social barriers in the cafeteria. Let TT help you plan your event! mixitup.org

42 TEACHING TOLERANCE Class at Lunch? π FACT Π Separate lines and col- SNAP and NSLP are not synonymous. All kids from families or-coded tickets aren’t receiving SNAP are eligible for NSLP, but SNAP isn’t a require- the only lunchroom ment for NSLP eligibility. Children from families with incomes practices that reinforce at or below 130 percent of the poverty level are eligible for free class inequality. Some meals. Those with incomes between 130 percent and 185 percent school fundraisers, for of the poverty level are eligible for reduced-price meals. example, offer cafeteria privileges. One Teaching Tolerance reader recently raised the alarm about Administrators operate on the belief skyrocketed. Lunch lines were sim- the misuse of a “Fast that competitive foods generate reve- ilarly integrated in all San Francisco Pass” program that nues necessary to keep school budgets middle and high schools during the allows students with a solvent when, in fact, the opposite is 2010–2011 school year. Bhatia calls it special $10 ticket (pur- more often the case. Without evidence “the most effective and quickest advo- chased at registration to on the books, however, “They don’t cacy work I’ve ever done.” support the athletic pro- even know they are losing money.” These types of changes are happen- gram) to go to the front She adds that, rather than increas- ing in more and more school cafeterias of the lunch line. For ing the cost of competitive food, dis- across the country. Cheaper and better students without Fast tricts often decrease food costs in the technology is allowing the broader use Passes, this system has NSLP program to keep their budgets of nondiscriminatory electronic debit consistently resulted in balanced—essentially rerouting money cards or PINs. New rules on commu- waiting longer to eat and intended for low-income kids’ food to nity eligibility based on a district’s finding that the most cover the costs of competitive foods SNAP enrollment are poised to go popular foods are gone they’re not allowed to eat. “I think this nationwide in the coming school year, before they reach the whole thing evolved unintentionally which should make the NSLP avail- counter. The message with a blindness that people were cre- able for more students and potentially to students? Money ating a de facto separate and unequal reduce the stigma. trumps equality. system,” says Bhatia. But—based on what happened with Bhatia’s response was to conduct San Francisco—instituting a nondis- Clearly, scrubbing all a pilot study in three San Francisco criminatory food program is the sur- traces of stigma from schools in 2009 and 2010, integrating est path to eliminating stigma. the cafeteria won’t hap- the lines by bringing competitive foods “I would argue that there is abso- pen overnight, but a lit- into compliance with NSLP nutritional lutely no way to have two separate pro- tle awareness goes a requirements. Uniform electronic grams and not stigmatize the low-in- long way. Seeking out debit cards replaced segregated lunch come kids,” says Kavanagh. “My hope and eliminating the lines and made it impossible to visu- is that we can just make it so hard to do most obvious causes of ally distinguish between prepaid cards it, that people will rethink what they’re inequality in the lunch- and NSLP funds. The bookkeeping also doing and have that eureka moment room can pave the way changed. Whereas before, NSLP and that San Francisco had.” for more educators competitive-food revenues had been and students to recog- lumped together, they would now be nize and redirect subtler tracked independently. Federal leg- biases before they have islation to this effect was put in place a chance to take root. in 2010. The results of this groundbreak- Toolkit ing pilot study were dramatic. Make your school cafeteria a more equitable place. Participation in the NSLP increased visit » tolerance.org/lunch-lines by 58 percent, and school revenue

FALL 2014 43 CASE STUDIES ON Diversity & Social Justice Education

BY PAUL C. GORSKI & SEEMA G. POTHINI

SAMANTHA, A VIVACIOUS seventh has touched base several times with responds. “I’ll do it next time. I promise.” grader at Hillside School, a middle her colleagues who have Samantha’s Regardless of how often she calls school in the predominantly low-in- younger siblings in their classes to see Samantha’s parents, nobody answers. come mountainous outskirts of north- whether they were noticing similar Imagine how successful Samantha could ern Virginia, loves science class. By all patterns. To the contrary, she learned be if only her parents cared enough to apparent accounts, Samantha has a gift that her younger siblings always turn support her education, Ms. Grady has for the sciences, too. She aces all of her in their homework. often thought to herself. quizzes and tests and regularly helps Ms. Grady has reached out to As a conscientious teacher, Ms. classmates who are struggling with Samantha every way she knows how, Grady wants to support Samantha. On experiments. from pleading with her to offering the other hand, she has roomfuls of This makes it particularly diffi- to give her more advanced work that other students who also need her atten- cult for Ms. Grady to understand why might engage her in new ways. On sev- tion. And, when it comes down to it, Ms. Samantha rarely turns in her sci- eral occasions she has asked Samantha Grady’s grading policy is clear: stu- ence homework. Wondering whether why she rarely turns in her homework. dents are allowed to turn in one home- there was an issue at home, Ms. Grady “It’s nothing,” Samantha typically work assignment one day late without

This text is an abridged excerpt from chapters 1 and 2 of Case Studies on Diversity and Social Justice Education, reproduced here with permission of Routledge.

44 TEACHING TOLERANCE “From the moment she gets home from school until her dad returns from work, she’s babysitting Francis and Kevin, her younger siblings. She’s busy taking them to the playground, cooking them dinner, helping them with their homework.”

penalty—she calls this her “life hap- It never occurred to Ms. Grady to taking them to the playground, cook- pens” rule; but in every other instance, visit Samantha’s home. “Wow!” she ing them dinner, helping them with failure to turn in homework results in a responds, taken aback by her col- their homework.” grade of “0” for that assignment. league’s “direct action” approach to “Well,” Ms. Grady reflects, “that One day after school Ms. Grady student success. “What did you learn?” explains why her siblings’ homework approaches Mr. Burns, a social studies “A lot,” he answers, explaining that is always in on time and how well teacher at Hillside who had taken a par- Samantha’s father finally found a steady Samantha does helping her classmates ticular interest in Samantha during the job four months after the local mill with their work.” previous academic year. shut down. As she has done for years, “Now all I have to do is figure out “I know,” Mr. Burns says. “Brilliant Samantha’s mother continues to piece what to do about Samantha’s grade. young woman. I had the same experi- together multiple jobs. “She usually And I wonder how many of my other ence with her. I didn’t know what to sneaks in the door around 11 p.m., an students are in similar situations,” Ms. think until I decided to pay her fam- hour or so after her husband, trying not Grady says. ily a visit at home.” Having grown up to wake the kids,” Mr. Burns explains. There exists no magic formula for in the area and attended Hillside as a “From the moment she gets home solving the conundrum in which Ms. low-income student, Mr. Burns bristled from school until her dad returns from Grady finds herself. This is why, in our at some of his colleagues’ deficit-laden work, she’s babysitting Francis and estimation, we must develop and hone perceptions of the local community. Kevin, her younger siblings. She’s busy the sorts of competencies that help us

FALL 2014 45 to make sense out of real-life messiness. STEP IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM OR PROBLEMS POSED BY THE CASE Otherwise, we risk allowing ourselves to be swayed by popular mythology (“poor Begin by naming the challenges or problems (or potential people do not care enough about their problems) that are explicit and immediately apparent to you. children’s education”). We risk respond- Once you have a grasp of those more obvious dynamics, try to ing without a contoured understanding dig a little deeper. Look for less explicit, not-so-obvious exam- for why certain conditions exist in our ples of existing or potential bias, inequity, interpersonal ten- classrooms and schools. 1 sions, stereotypes, prejudices, or assumptions. What does the We have the power to strengthen case tell us about school or classroom policy, about instructional prac- our abilities to create equitable learn- tices or curricula, about individuals’ attitudes that might hint at some- ing environments and to maintain high thing deeper than those surface-level biases and inequities? expectations for all students by considering contextual factors in addition to STEP TAKE STOCK OF VARYING PERSPECTIVES the everyday practicalities of our work as we shape our professional practice. Our case has at least a couple of obvious stakeholders. Our first task, then, for Step 2 is, as best we can, to walk in Ms. The Case Method Grady and Samantha’s shoes. How might they, given who they One tool—and, in our experience, a par- are in relation to one another, be experiencing the situation? ticularly effective one—for strengthen- Complicating matters, despite being at the center of the ing those abilities is what is commonly 2 scenario, Samantha and Ms. Grady are only two of many called the “case method.” The premise affected parties. Samantha’s parents, whose other two children, Frances of the case method is that by analyz- and Kevin, also attend the school and in the future might even have ing real-life scenarios based on actual Ms. Grady as a teacher, are involved. Then there are Samantha’s class- events, such as the situation involving mates, the “bystanders.” How might Ms. Grady’s decisions affect other Samantha and Ms. Grady, we can prac- students who are from families in poverty? tice applying theoretical ideas (such as educational equity) to on-the-ground STEP CONSIDER POSSIBLE CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES professional practice.* Our process for analyzing educational Our next task is to imagine the potential challenges and opportu- cases is comprised of seven steps. The nities presented by the case. Start with the individuals involved. steps are accumulative, building steadily We might surmise that Ms. Grady has an opportunity to develop and holistically toward a set of informed, a deeper understanding of low-income students—of both the mindful responses to often complex hurdles they might face and the resiliencies they demonstrate. Of classroom and school situations. 3 course, she also faces a number of challenges, not least of which is overcoming her own biases. What sorts of opportunities and challenges does the case present for Samantha? For her classmates? We also want to consider the institutional challenges and opportunities. We might assume, by way of challenges, that Ms. Grady might not get a tremendous amount of support if she chose to enact a homework policy that did not conform to those of her colleagues. An institutional opportunity, on the other hand, might be the chance to collabo- rate toward more equitable school-wide policies and practices in order to more effectively engage low-income students and families.

STEP IMAGINE EQUITABLE OUTCOMES

[W]e turn, in Step 4, to imagining what a fair and equitable resolution to the situation might look like. This is a critical step, as Steps 5 through 7 are designed to facilitate the process * Darling-Hammond, L. (2006) Powerful Teacher Education: Lessons from Exemplary Programs. of working toward the outcomes we define in Step 4. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. 4 First, it’s important to distinguish equitable outcomes

46 TEACHING TOLERANCE We have the power to create equitable learning environments and to maintain high expectations for all students by considering contextual factors.

from equal outcomes. Equality, as we see it, connotes sameness. Equity, on the other hand, connotes fairness. Equity takes context into account. Second, remember to think both immediate term and long term. What can be resolved right now, on the spot, and what will equity look like once it is resolved? You might decide, for example, that Ms. Grady needs to find a different strategyright now to communicate with Samantha. Perhaps an equitable outcome would be professional development on socioeconomic issues for the teachers at Samantha’s school or a strengthened relationship between Ms. Grady and Samantha’s parents. Finally, be specific. Identify very specific, on-the-ground outcomes. How, specifically, will things be different in that classroom and school if we commit to resolving the issue and all its complexities equitably?

STEP BRAINSTORM IMMEDIATE-TERM RESPONSES

Now that you have some equitable outcomes in mind, it is time to begin brainstorming strategies to get us there. What are some of the things you might do right now, if you were in Ms. Grady’s shoes, to achieve those outcomes? This is a brainstorm, remember, so do not overthink. 5 All we are doing here is making a list. It’s an informed list, based on all the work we have been doing in the previous steps. But it is still just a list.

BRAINSTORM LONGER-TERM POLICY A Few Final Thoughts STEP AND PRACTICE ADJUSTMENTS We recognize, of course, that in the heat of the moment we do not always have In Step 6 we turn to longer-term strategies, often for more time to sit down and think through the substantive change. This is where we might brainstorm ways seven steps of a case analysis process. to bolster awareness about the sorts of challenges Samantha The point is not to memorize these faces throughout the school, if that is one of our equitable steps. Instead, the idea is to use them outcomes. It is where we focus on things such as institu- to practice our skills by reflecting on 6 tional culture, school-wide practices, or even district policy, classroom situations through a diver- if we believe they need to be altered in order to achieve our equita- sity and social justice lens. Practice ble outcomes. enough, and that view will become sec- Here, again, we’re brainstorming. Try not to self-censor. Just focus ond nature. on recording whatever ideas come to mind based on Steps 1 through 5.

STEP CRAFT A PLAN OF ACTION

During this, the final step, we craft our brainstorms into a set Toolkit of specific actions that will result in the equitable outcomes Apply the seven-step case we imagined in Step 5. How would you respond in order to method to another case—or to a case of your own. ensure, to the best of your knowledge and power, equity for visit » tolerance.org/case-studies 7 everybody involved?

FALL 2014 47 Meet the Family BY WARREN HYNES ILLUSTRATION BY SARAH HANSON

WHEN JULIE HIRCHERT sees her students in the classroom on the first day of school each year, it’s often not the first time she’s met them. Like many culturally responsive educators, Hirchert uses home visits to form bridges to her students and their communities and to create space and trust with families from the very beginning of their impact. More administrators, spread the word to their colleagues at of their relationship. however, are taking note of the impor- staff meetings and in training sessions. “I think it’s the most important tance of home visits and grappling with Many districts also hold testimonial investment of teachers’ time,” says the scalability challenge: How can a sessions to increase staff interest and Hirchert, a middle-school math teacher school or district launch and maintain participation. Michelle Mares, home in Romulus, Michigan. “It allows you to a successful home-visit program that visit coordinator for Denver Public reach your students in a different way benefits all students? Schools, helps ramp up investment by than you did before. This is the founda- fostering friendly competitions among tion for anything else that is important.” Build Investment participating schools, such as catering The social, emotional and academic “Just go with the willing and it will lunch for the school that conducts the benefits of home visits are well docu- spread,” says D’Lisa Crain, administra- most home visits in a pay period. mented and widely acknowledged. tor of the Department of Family-School The compensation that staff mem- But although the number of teachers Partnerships in the Washoe County bers receive for the training and time it doing home visits across the country is (Nevada) School District. takes to conduct home visits is another steadily growing, the consistency with Crain’s approach includes identi- key way to build investment. Gretchen which these visits are conducted var- fying teachers who advocate for home Viglione, an elementary-school teacher ies greatly, a fact that limits the scope visits and giving them opportunities to in Sacramento, California, who has

48 TEACHING TOLERANCE instead of being in the classroom. Also, and training for a home-visit program, schools with Title I funds may be able many do not. In these cases, strong part- to use that funding creatively to sup- nerships can be the key to success: The port teachers and staff in schoolwide ideal home-visit model features part- home-visit efforts.” nership, for example, among the school district and a nonprofit, the local teach- Offer Training ers’ union or a local college or university. Home visits can do more than bring k SPECIALIZED NONPROFITS The teachers and parents together as edu- California-based Parent/Teacher cational partners; when executed skill- Home Visit Project (PTHVP) is widely fully, they can also help bridge cultural considered the pioneering nonprofit gaps between schools and families. specializing in home-visit program- “It’s a hands-on cultural diversity ming. The organization hosts an annual training opportunity,” says Linnette conference featuring up to 400 edu- Camacho, administrator of the Family cators, promotes regional gatherings Education Department in Springfield and publishes home-visit newsletters. (Massachusetts) Public Schools. “It pro- HOME WORKS! and the Flamboyan vides an opportunity for the teacher, par- Foundation also work to provide ent and student to be on the same turf.” the support, guidance and financial To maximize the benefits of this resources necessary to coordinate and opportunity districtwide, successful train all participants and stakeholders. home-visit programs offer training and k HIGHER ED. INSTITUTIONS Colleges preparation that emphasize best prac- and universities can help support tices for connecting and communicating home-visit programs, from training with families, particularly when bridging cultural differences. Debriefing also becomes part Non-Negotiables of a sustainable training model. St. Paul, Minnesota’s home-visit The PTHVP has established five “non- program, which is coordinated by negotiable” best practices for launching a the local teachers’ union, holds its sustainable home-visit program. debriefing sessions in the autumn and spring. “Staff has time to talk 1. Make visits voluntary for educators and as a group and in small groups or parents, but seek at least 50 percent par- pairs about the joys and strug- ticipation from a school’s staff. conducted home visits for five years, says gles they’ve had with this round 2. Compensate educators for their home- compensation gives the program respect. of visits,” says Nick Faber, coor- visit work, and train them effectively. “It’s a way of hearing from your school, dinator of home visits for Saint 3. Always send educators out in pairs. ‘Yes, we believe in you and yes, we’re Paul Federation of Teachers. 4. Visit a cross-section of students—ide- going to pay you to do this,’” Viglione says. Faber says teachers also share ally all of them—rather than target any In districts where funding is tight, concerns they’re hearing from particular group. compensation may require creative parents so the union can better 5. Focus the visits on building relationships. scheduling and budgeting. advocate for parents’ needs. This “There are not always funds to learning is then funneled back The organization also states that it’s compensate teachers for their work in into the school community via helpful for schools to decide if it wants home visits outside of a teacher’s con- Professional Issues Committee educators to visit families once or twice tract hours,” says Sonia Galaviz, a fifth- meetings and negotiations. per year, and whether that first visit will grade teacher and teacher-educator in take place before the school year begins. Boise, Idaho. “Many schools have work Create Partnerships Some districts also follow up home visits days before the school year begins. An While some schools and districts with family dinners at the school to con- administrator could give teachers leave may have the internal exper- tinue deepening school-family ties. during those days to conduct visits, tise to coordinate the logistics

FALL 2014 49 “[Home visits] change the power dynamic of the traditional teacher-parent relationship. You create the possibility for the Critical Training family to gain power by sharing what they know to be true. Elements If we’re going to walk the walk of teachers and parents as co-educators, we have to share that power.” Training and preparing for a home CARRIE ROSE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, PTHVP visit can be as important as the visit itself. Consider these pointers from the experts when designing the pro- in-service teachers to helping to locate director of the PTHVP in Sacramento fessional development for your translators. University staff with expe- and a former teacher, recalls one home home-visit program. rience engaging families are often visit she conducted with a family whose eager to meet with administrators and son didn’t like to write. Levasseur dis- k Review logistics, such as how to educators to discuss best practices, covered that the family’s Hmong culture make contact, how and when to research in the area of home visits treasured oral storytelling, and the boy schedule visits, whether and how and what might be the best approach valued this. Back at school, she began to record discussions with families and fit for the local community. The handing the boy a tape recorder for writ- and what to do with the documen- University of Montana’s Institute for ing assignments. He then recited his sto- tation and data. Educational Research and Service, for ries and transcribed them into writing. example, serves as a statewide coordi- “I would have never learned any of k Remind teachers to leave nator for home visits. that during a parent-teacher confer- assumptions behind and keep an k TEACHERS’ UNIONS Teachers’ unions ence,” Levasseur says. open mind regarding each family such as the National Education Home visits have the power to and their culture. Association (NEA) and the American debunk all kinds of misconceptions Federation of Teachers (AFT) can about students and their families, even k Some prior knowledge is essen- support home-visit programs in a few for teachers who share a similar back- tial, such as whether a translator ways. State association affiliates of the ground. Kara Wilson, who was raised will be necessary (it is not appropri- NEA and AFT can access various funds on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation, ate to use the student as a transla- through the local district teachers’ teaches on the reservation in Poplar, tor), whether the home has a work- association to increase family involve- Montana, and also conducts home vis- ing telephone number or if the child ment through home visits. Districts its. Wilson admits she’s made assump- lives between two households. could even partner with the local asso- tions about some families she’s visited ciation and share the costs associated based on things she’s heard. k Coach teachers to establish with training teachers and staff and “But after I got to know them, it the purpose for the visit ahead of compiling any data and documentation changed my view of them,” Wilson says, time. Goals should focus on get- resulting from the home visits. “and it may have changed their view of ting to know the child as a learner me as well.” and setting the stage for partner- Sharing Results Wilson says she would value a home- ship, not on problematic behavior Collecting data before and after home visit program whether she worked on a or performance. visits offers evidence that the program reservation or not. has contributed to improvements in “If more teachers went out and vis- k Model how to talk about both the areas such as attendance, behavior, stu- ited, they would find their jobs easier student and the family. Some fam- dent achievement and family involve- because the parents trust them and they ilies may have significant needs. ment. It’s an unexplored frontier for trust the parents and they have a com- Connecting them to resources can many schools, but an important one. mon goal,” Wilson says. “It pays off.” benefit their child’s learning. “If you can’t say, ‘Here’s how we’ve impacted kids to achieve,’ your likelihood of continuing funding is going to Toolkit be greatly reduced,” Crain says. Home visits help students, families Anecdotal evidence can also be and educators. How can they work powerful, particularly when it helps in YOUR school? educators confront their blind spots visit » tolerance.org/ meet-the-family and biases. Lisa Levasseur, project

50 TEACHING TOLERANCE Abuse of Power MOST BULLYING PREVENTION IS AIMED AT STUDENTS. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN ADULTS ARE THE AGGRESSORS?

BY ALAN MCEVOY ILLUSTRATION BY DANIEL ZENDER

A CHERISHED BELIEF runs deep in our teachers, an ugly undercurrent of My personal interest in the phe- psyches: a belief in the compassion of mean-spirited and disdainful conduct nomenon of teachers who bully has its teachers whose heroic efforts trans- toward students also exists. This con- roots in childhood experiences with a form the lives of students. There is duct constitutes a corruption of the few teachers and coaches who waged truth in the narratives that support role of educator and does enormous a daily reign of terror over students. As this view, but there is also a darker side damage to students, colleagues and the an expert in school violence, my pro- to this mythos. In a small minority of public’s faith in schools. fessional interest originated years ago

FALL 2014 51 while doing teacher in-service train- k Enabled by inaction of reflects the politically sensitive ing on bullying. While—like most school systems. nature of implicating educators at trainers on bullying—I focused on k Undetected by outsiders. all during a time when the profes- abusive behavior among students, Bullying fundamentally dis- sion at large faces myriad account- I also raised concerns about the rupts the trust and nurturing rela- ability challenges. conduct of adults. This usually pro- tionships necessary to achieve any Several generalizations can be duced a hush in the audience, fol- school’s mission. Most observers made regarding the patterns sur- lowed by requests to speak with me within and outside education would rounding bullying behavior in privately. Teachers and administra- agree that fair and civil treatment of teachers. tors revealed demoralizing experi- students is—or at least should be— k Bullying behavior often involves ences of a colleague’s cruel behav- embedded in the ecology of aca- the public humiliation of targets. ior toward students. The common demic work. However, the oppo- k There is typically a high degree denominator in these narratives site is true: The problem of educa- of agreement among students (and tor-student bullying colleagues) on which teachers is compounded by a engage in bullying behavior. The shroud of silence surrounding general absence of k Teachers often bully in their own school policies and classrooms, where students witness teachers who engage in toxic bully- procedures written the behavior but other teachers don’t. ing behaviors is unlikely to persist. to handle allegations k Teachers are perceived to bully of abusive conduct. with impunity; they are seldom held Efforts to reduce accountable for their conduct. was a sense of powerlessness and peer-on-peer bullying have taken k Schools generally lack a means the conclusion that little was being on the momentum of a significant of redress for students (or their done or could be done to mitigate reform movement in education. parents) who register complaints the problem. At present, 49 states have passed against a teacher who has been per- I define teacher bullying asa pat- laws intended to address bullying; ceived to bully. tern of conduct, rooted in a power most include policy guidelines for When students are targeted by differential, that threatens, harms, schools. A huge volume of resources teachers, they often feel shamed humiliates, induces fear in or causes and training programs has also and powerless. In many cases, they students substantial emotional emerged as a lucrative cottage become unable to establish posi- stress. In determining whether industry in marketing “bully-proof” tive relationships within school. teacher conduct crosses a line into curricula. Conspicuously absent Teacher bullying can also have a bullying, a “reasonable person” from this literature, however, is an contagion effect, indicating to stu- standard applies. Quite simply, oth- emphasis on how to address abuses dents that the bullying of a partic- ers render an informed judgment of power by educators toward the ular individual is acceptable and that the teacher’s actions toward students they serve. making the individual vulnerable students are neither legitimate nor To date, there are no national to more abuse. reasonable professional conduct. studies on patterns of bullying Perhaps the most distress- In order to address the phe- by educators, and only a few lim- ing aspect of bullying behavior in nomenon of teachers who bully ited studies exist that begin to teachers is how easily it persists. students, the education profession document the phenomenon. In a Colleagues may know about the needs to grapple with several incon- 2014 publication titled Bullying behavior through rumors or per- venient truths. In general, bullying Surveillance Among Youths, the sistent complaints, but think there by educators is: Centers for Disease Control and is nothing they can do. School offi- k Rationalized by offenders. Prevention acknowledges that cials may have reason to believe it k Normalized by students. its report “excludes abuse perpe- is occurring, yet fail to act. Almost k Minimized or ignored by col- trated by adults against children without exception, offending leagues who remain silent. or youths.” Perhaps this absence teachers mask their mistreatment

52 TEACHING TOLERANCE What Behaviors Increase School of students as part of a legitimate both students and staff. Teacher con- role function, using the rhetoric of duct should also be identified in each Liability? “motivation” or “discipline” to jus- school’s code of ethics. Demonstrating indiffer- tify their actions. If accused, offend- k Use in-service time to discuss ence to or lack of concern ers may minimize or deny the con- appropriate and inappropriate for persistent complaints duct and claim it was a joke or a mis- teacher behavior, especially in the about a teacher’s conduct. communication. Ignoring the prob- context of disciplining students. lem of teacher bullying compounds k Establish a means to address com- Claiming to have inves- it by giving license to any educator plaints about alleged bullying by a tigated allegations with- who believes that he or she can act teacher. The right to redress—a pro- out providing credible evi- with impunity toward students. cess by which grievances can be heard dence. (note: An informal Inaction supports a discrimina- and settled—is a basic civil right. discussion with the alleged tory and hostile environment that k Track formal and informal com- perpetrator does not consti- undermines learning and teach- plaints, including student com- tute an investigation.) ing—and puts schools at legal risk. ments on course evaluation forms. But the shroud of silence surround- Allegations of bullying should be Failing to follow poli- ing teachers who engage in toxic included in annual evaluations. cies and procedures when bullying behaviors is unlikely to k Sanctions for bullying should not addressing allegations of persist. Several lawsuits have been be limited to “counseling.” Attorney teacher bullying. filed, and more are on the horizon. Alice Vachss (alicevachss.com) has I have served as an expert wit- developed a model school policy that Claiming that there is ness in a handful of cases cen- includes a “Statement of Standards no history of complaints tered on allegations of bullying and Protections” to address abuses against a teacher when by educators. In some instances, of educational authority. documentation of such the school was seeking to dismiss For every teacher who engages in complaints exists. a teacher or coach who engaged this abuse of power, there are many in a pattern of abuse that reached more teachers who care deeply and Silencing students or staff a crescendo of student and par- try to mitigate the enormous dam- who register complaints ent complaints. Often a high-pro- age this behavior inflicts upon our with threats of retaliation, file incident became the prover- students—and our educational or taking no action against bial last straw that could no longer ideals. They should not bear this staff members who are be ignored. In other instances, the burden alone. Policies can help. known to have made school itself had been named in a Speaking up can pave the way. such threats. lawsuit because it had enabled abusive conduct through indifference Ignoring targeting of stu- to persistent complaints. dents based on race, School officials have a duty of gender, sexual orien- care to protect students; their tation, ethnicity, dis- failure to act despite notifica- ability, religion, nation- tion of a problem enhances liabil- ality or any other ity (see sidebar). But schools can immutable characteristic. (and should!) reduce bullying by teachers and staff members. Recognizing this truth and being Toolkit willing to take action are difficult Intervening with teachers who bully requires skill and preparation. Use these but necessary first steps. reflection exercises to begin within. k Write or adjust bullying policies visit » tolerance.org/abuse-of-power to explicitly address the conduct of

FALL 2014 53 2014 And the Winners Are… Award g Excellence in teaching

BY MONITA K. BELL A second-grade teacher educates his stu- relations and promote equity in their school The awardees welcomed TT into their dents about labor injustice by having them communities all year long. That’s why they classrooms last spring, where our staff gath- grow and clean cotton plants. A middle are among the five recipients of the 2014 ered footage and used it to create profes- school teacher dispels myths about the Teaching Tolerance Award for Excellence sional development materials. In July, the Arab world by having students write their in Teaching. winners gathered in Montgomery, Alabama, own textbooks about the region. Another “The winners of this award are expert for a teacher leader summit during which implements talking circles in her classroom social-justice educators,” said Teaching they participated in interviews and work- so effectively that students throughout the Tolerance Director Maureen Costello, “and shops designed to capture their unique campus now use them to resolve conflicts. who better to learn from? We believe their contributions and share them with the The visionary educators behind these work will inspire other teachers and encour- larger TT community. practices use their talents to celebrate diver- age them to lead and innovate in their own It is our pleasure to introduce you to sity, reduce prejudice, improve intergroup school communities.” these five exemplary educators.

CHRISTOPHER AVERY Steppingstone Scholars • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Chris Avery is a teacher, writer and consultant who engages his students intellectually by challenging them to think along social justice lines—globally. As the director of programs at Steppingstone Scholars, he applies this philosophy in his work helping underserved students achieve academic success. He also wedded creativity and rigor in his former role as a world cultures teacher at The Haverford School, where he had his students write their own textbooks that challenged prejudices about the Arab world. Avery fosters incredible rapport with students, empowering them to make choices that improve their own lives and their diverse world. He incorporates this talent into his consulting work for TURNING STONEchoice, a nonprofit dedicated to helping students make self-empowering decisions. He is also the author of ANGST, a young-adult novel about navigating high school.

AMY VATNE BINTLIFF Oregon Middle School • Oregon, Wisconsin Amy Vatne Bintliff brings her deep commitment to human rights advocacy and multi- culturalism to her day-to-day teaching. She is an educator, researcher and writer who believes strongly in listening to the voices of adolescents. She practices this belief by creatively incorporating the Teaching Tolerance Anti-bias Framework (ABF) into her curriculum and restorative justice-based discipline planning. Bintliff sought training as a human rights educator through The Advocates for Human Rights and has facilitated restorative justice circles since 2003. Her circles impacted students so deeply that some of them petitioned the school for more circles, which are now used throughout campus and are available to all students. Bintliff is also the author of Re-engaging Disconnected Youth: Transformative Learning through Restorative and Social Justice Education.

54 TEACHING TOLERANCE PHOTOGRAPHY BY TODD BIGELOW & DAN CHUNG CHRISTOPHER HOEH Cambridge Friends School • Cambridge, Massachusetts Christopher Hoeh seeks challenges as an educator, teaching his second-graders sophisti- cated and complex topics like American slavery, Jim Crow and current labor injustice, nota- bly through his academically rigorous, multidisciplinary and yearlong social studies curriculum. After tracking their own processes of growing, picking and cleaning cotton from a classroom plant, Hoeh’s young students—without his prodding—determined that the cotton gin was an instrument of enslavement. This year, his students took action based on their cotton-growing experience and learning, protesting unfair labor practices via peti- tion. Hoeh is also a leader in his school, facilitating anti-racist study groups and sharing his substantial experience as a mentor to other practicing teachers.

BARRIE MOORMAN E.L. Haynes Public Charter School • Washington, District of Columbia Barrie Moorman engages her students by taking them out of the classroom and into the community. As an educator of many low-income students and students of color in the D.C. area, she wants her students to feel connected to their city and view its monuments and history as their own. This year, Moorman devoted her spring break to taking students on a civil rights road trip across the South. In preparation for that trip, she arranged for her students to meet with U.S. Rep. John Lewis, who answered their questions and enabled them to connect their learning to a person who brought the movement to life. Talking about race and identity is a priority in Moorman’s classroom. Examining these topics is, she feels, critical to developing the skills students need to interrupt inequity and achieve successful outcomes. Moorman also leads Race and Equity in Education Seminars.

MICHELLE NICOLA Bridger School • Portland, Oregon Michelle Nicola sees creating a more equitable world as the ultimate adventure of her life. Nicola’s students, idealism and love of community inspire her as a Spanish and language arts teacher who also teaches about the power of kindness and respect. In her former role as a Spanish teacher at De La Salle North Catholic High School, Nicola advised a heritage club for students of all backgrounds, moving away from a “fabric and foods” approach to teaching about culture in favor of delving further beneath the surface. This year’s club theme, “What does it mean to be an ally?” exemplified Nicola’s aim to be the best ally possible for her students. She is also committed to making school fun for students. While her students outwardly bemoan it, Nicola is always ready to turn her classroom into a theater, dance club, kindergarten or soap opera.

Watch our winners in action at tolerance.org/blog/ meet-2014-teaching-tolerance-award-winners. FALL 2014 55 “WE SPOKE THE RIGHT THINGS”

BY MONITA K. BELL PHOTOGRAPHY BY JESSE ETSLER

A 6-YEAR-OLD SAW FIRST-GRADE TEACHER CAROL Myers has taken numerous elementary classes on field trips to the Muncie Children’s Museum in Muncie, SOMETHING NO ONE ELSE Indiana, but the fall 2013 trip was different. DID. HER RESPONSE TAUGHT While half the first-grade class attended the museum’s program on THE COMMUNITY ABOUT fire safety, the other half freely explored the museum, including the popular train exhibit that depicts the town of Muncie in miniature. FAIRNESS—AND THE POWER It was upon examining the figurines in the exhibit that 6-year-old OF CHILDREN’S VOICES. Madisyn Jones noticed something amiss. The typically quiet little girl turned to her student teacher, Brooke Forler, and asked, “Why aren’t there any black people in the train exhibit?” Forler looked more closely at the figurines. “I pointed to a figurine of a darker complexion and said, ‘Do you think that one could be African- American?’ [Madisyn] said, ‘No, it doesn’t look like me,’” said Forler.

56 TEACHING TOLERANCE “It’s not fair that I can’t see anybody that has my skin or someone that looks like me.”

“And then I said, ‘Well that’s a prob- those steps to work with the commu- Check out Using Their Words, a web- lem, isn’t it? So let’s see what we can nity, help us out and share the story,” site featuring social justice projects do about that.’” said Jennifer Peters, director of exhib- for early grades written for elemen- True to her word, Forler consulted its and education for the museum. tary teachers by elementary teachers. with Myers—her mentor teacher at the “It’s such an important story to tell.” usingtheirwords.org time—and her Ball State University edu- Thousands of people have viewed the cation professor, Eva Zygmunt, about display since the museum’s train exhibit how to proceed. The three educators opened in 1996, but no one had ever matter and everyone can make a differ- wanted to engage the entire class in a mentioned that it was not representa- ence—just as the Longfellow Elementary lesson that would respond to Madisyn’s tive of Muncie’s population. Madisyn’s teachers did when they helped the observation but were concerned the 6-year-old eyes had seen something first-graders write their letter. children wouldn’t understand the social that so many adults had not noticed. With the museum’s enthusias- justice implications. They were wrong. The keen sense of justice and injus- tic support, Forler and her colleagues Later that week at the major- tice Madisyn demonstrated is a qual- began the search for representative ity African-American Longfellow ity of early childhood many educators figurines. It was a tough journey—and Elementary School, Forler told the nurture successfully, engaging chil- one that reinforced the importance of first-graders about what had happened dren in first grade—and even younger— the project. They began with a search at the museum and asked how they felt in social activism. It starts with listening of local stores, including the original about it. The robust discussion that and sending the message that all voices supplier for the train display, but found followed didn’t take much prompt- ing from the teachers. While none of Madisyn’s classmates had noticed a problem with the exhibit, they agreed with Madisyn’s perspective. “They said things like, ‘Yeah, we should be able to see ourselves in the train exhibit because it’s not fair that I can’t see anybody that has my skin or someone that looks like me,’” Forler explained. “We discussed that, if we’re not okay with something, it’s perfectly fine to raise questions about it and try to make a change.” The lesson culmi- nated in the class working together to write a letter to the museum voicing their concerns about the lack of diversity in the exhibit and offering to help rectify the problem. “We were excited that they took

FALL 2014 57 Prior to Madisyn speaking up, the miniature town of Muncie had no African-American residents.

no figurines of color at all. They were π FACT Π prepared to order blank figurines and In May 2014, the Muncie City Council awarded Madisyn Jones the citizen paint them when Zygmunt came across recognition honor for her contribution to the museum. She is the youngest a promising set of advertised figurines person in Muncie history to receive this award. online. What they found on opening the set was unacceptable, to put it mildly. “All the African-American figurines, The selection featured tiny people of experience taught her the importance of except for one, were part of a prison color engaging in various recreational adults who support children’s desires to set, wearing orange and working out in activities and wearing a variety of cloth- act and their abilities to think deeply and a yard,” lamented Zygmunt. The only ing, including business attire. Finally, critically about the world around them. nonprisoner was stealing a woman’s the teachers were ready. The museum “Appreciate the depth of kids’ knowl- purse—another dead end. was ready. It was time for the first-grad- edge,” she said. “Be open-minded and Then one of Zygmunt’s colleagues, ers to finish the job they had started. talk to them.” a train enthusiast, caught wind of the The class returned to the museum To help her students draw a con- story and pointed the team to a company in February 2014, bursting with excite- nection between what happened at that produced figurines that worked. ment. On her seventh birthday, Madisyn the museum and the broader world of placed the first figurine in the display. social activism, Myers taught her class All the mini-members of the Muncie about another young girl who spoke up. diorama, she said, could be happy now “The best way I could explain it to Teaching Tolerance that their new neighbors had arrived. my first-graders was that Madisyn was Resources on Activism By speaking up and taking action, our Ruby Bridges,” Myers explained. Madisyn and her classmates became part “Just saying that really helped these Inspire your student activists! of a story they may never forget. Peters kids understand what Madisyn had has already witnessed two of the students done. She wasn’t just complaining; she Lesson series on art and activism telling others about what happened at noticed something that really did need tolerance.org/lesson/art-and-activism the museum, and Myers notes the expe- to be changed.” rience has prompted some of Madisyn’s The similarity is not lost on Madisyn. “Defining Activism” other “quiet” classmates to become more “We both spoke up,” she said, “and tolerance.org/lesson/defining-activism outspoken in class. we spoke the right things.” The experience has changed “Identifying the Need for Activism” Madisyn, too. “It just really opened tolerance.org/lesson/ Madisyn up,” Myers reflected, “and identifying-need-activism she’s very vocal now—maybe too Toolkit much sometimes.” Make the most of your field trips by helping students “read” for “Gloria and Rosa Make Beautiful Music” Myers acknowledges it’s not social justice. See page 62. always clear how to tap into the activ- visit » tolerance.org/we-spoke ist natures of young students, but her

58 TEACHING TOLERANCE staff picks

Teaching Tolerance staff review the latest What We’re Reading in culturally aware literature and resources, offering the best picks for professional development and teachers of all grades.

The pages of March: Book One take readers on a visual journey through the mem- ories of John Lewis, congressman and civil rights activist. This graphic novel (part one of three), written by Lewis and Andrew Aydin and illustrated by Nate Powell, flashes back to PROFESSIONAL Lewis’s childhood, his growing awareness of DEVELOPMENT race-based violence and inequity and his first We Don’t Need Another encounter with the words of Dr. King. Hero: Struggle, Hope and MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL Possibility in the Age of High-Stakes Schooling “An accessible gem for creatively by Gregory Michie

teaching the movement.” Catch the Fire: An Art- —Adrienne van der Valk Full Guide to Unleashing the Creative Power of Youth, Adults and Communities by Peggy Taylor and Charlie Murphy

MIDDLE & HIGH SCHOOL Changers Book One: Drew by T Cooper and Allison Glock-Cooper

In Out of My Mind, a novel for upper elementary book by Dorothy M. Steele and Becki Cohn-Vargas Darius & Twig by Walter readers, Sharon M. Draper tells the story of Melody provides valuable tools for creating classrooms in Dean Myers Brooks, an 11-year-old who lives with cerebral palsy. which students are comfortable enough to excel. ELEMENTARY Although Melody has never been able to speak or PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SCHOOL walk, she is gifted with an exceptional memory and Each Kindness by a talent for words. When a new assistive technology Incorporating primary-source documents, Neal Jacqueline Woodson, device named “Elvira” finally Bascomb weaves a fascinating narrative around the illustrated by E. B. Lewis “A compelling allows her to have a voice, search for and capture of Adolf Eichmann, one of the Hope Somewhere in Melody sets out with cour- story of what most infamous enforcers of the mass extermination America: The Story of a age, tenacity and wit to over- it means to of Jews during the Holocaust. The Nazi Hunters: How Child, a Painting, and come the prejudices of her be heard.” a Team of Spies and Survivors Captured the World’s a President by Sydelle peers and teachers. —Steffany Moyer Most Notorious Nazi is a won- Pearl, illustrated by Astrid Sheckels ELEMENTARY SCHOOL derful resource for teaching “A must-read middle and high school students for any ad- Identity Safe Classrooms: Places to Belong and Learn about this shameful but import- vanced world reminds teachers how important it is to truly see our ant period in our world’s history. history class.” students. A combination of research and practice, this MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL —Annah Kelley

@Tolerance_org FALL 2014 59 staff picks

“A beautiful ode to the power of imagination.” —Monita Bell

“From antiquated laws to violence against women, the plot of The Roundhouse takes the reader deep into the realities of a system that relegates Native Americans to second-class citizenship.” —Alice Pettway

“A must-read for pre-K-5 classrooms!” —June Christian

When the poet who lives just above Juliana’s Although the protagonist of Louise Erdrich’s apartment introduces her to poetry, the girl The Roundhouse is 13 years old, this novel is far no longer feels alone but instead learns how more than a coming-of-age story. It’s a wrench- words can transform the world. Judith Ortiz ing look at the many inequities faced by the Cofer’s La Poeta del Piso de Arriba, the Spanish Native-American community. Through Joe’s version of the original The Poet Upstairs, com- young eyes, we see injustice not as a vague and bines with Oscar Ortiz’s lush images of tropical distant system, but as a personal tragedy that spaces and wildlife to illustrate the wondrous must be righted at all costs. With proper scaf- capabilities of the creative mind. folding, The Roundhouse can open the door to ELEMENTARY SCHOOL meaningful conversations about tough topics. UPPER HIGH SCHOOL In Promoting Racial Literacy in Schools: Differences That Make a Difference, Howard The 20th anniversary edition of Katie Kissinger’s “Social emotional learning in C. Stevenson answers a question that is often All the Colors We Are: The Story of How We a post-Trayvon Martin world.” left out of prejudice-reduction discussions: Get Our Skin Color not only describes how —Emily Chiariello How do we help students of color negoti- people acquire their skin color—through ate racial stress? Promoting racial literacy in their parents, their ancestors and sun expo- schools prepares students and staff to read, sure—but also offers wonderful activities for recast and resolve racially stressful environ- teachers to use with young students to help ments that can undermine student success. them better understand how their skin color PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT is unique to their identities as well as respect- ing and affirming the skin color of their peers. PRESCHOOL AND ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

60 TEACHING TOLERANCE What We’re Watching

The Memphis 13, directed by Daniel Kiel, about the topic of same-sex marriage in appropriate legal action when a middle looks back on 1961, a pivotal year for the general. Some see LGBT rights as the unfin- schooler commits murder. (88 min. / desegregation of Memphis city schools. ished business of the civil rights movement. classroom version 52 min.) Local NAACP leaders, noting that most Others see same-sex marriage as an affront valentineroaddocumentary.com school integration efforts in the South to their values and their church community. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT began at the high-school level, urged black Still others suggest that marriage equal- families to enroll their first-graders in for- ity does not trump other pressing priori- The Graduates/Los Graduados, a two-part merly all-white elementary schools. That ties—poverty, education, employment, etc. documentary by Bernardo Ruiz, exam- fall, 13 5- and 6-year-olds became some of The take-home message of The New Black ines some of the many barriers to gradua- the youngest individuals on the front lines clearly supports marriage equality, but the tion experienced by Latino youth (includ- of the civil rights movement, an approach film engagingly captures the diversity of ing discrimination, poverty, homelessness, the NAACP hoped would preclude inci- perspectives found not only in Maryland, gang membership, undocumented sta- dents of violence. The Memphis 13 cap- but across the country. (55 min.) tus and teen pregnancy) through the eyes tures their experiences—some devastating, newblackfilm.com of six young people struggling to make their some uplifting—along with those of their HIGH SCHOOL futures. Ruiz does not simply point to the parents, teachers and classmates. While obstacles, however; instead, he urges view- the film grapples with the strategy and eth- In Valentine Road, director Marta ers to take a vested and sustained interest in ics of involving children in movements for Cunningham examines the circum- Latino youth. Through interviews with prom- social change, this tribute to the Memphis stances surrounding the murder of eighth- inent Latino writers, actors, activists and 13 focuses primarily on the courage of these grader Lawrence “Larry” King at his school elected officials, the film offers many sug- tiny crusaders. (35 min.) in Oxnard, California. This emotionally gestions for ways schools and communities thememphis13.com charged film documents the school’s reac- can better support this quickly growing and MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL tion to Larry’s exploration of his gender often marginalized population of students. identity and expression, and the commu- Ultimately, The Graduates/Los Graduados The New Black was primarily shot in nity’s response to Larry’s killer, 14-year- exposes how fault lines in U.S. education sys- Maryland during the lead-up to the 2012 old Brandon McInerney. Through inter- tematically affect Latinos and challenges us general election when “Question 6”— views with teachers, families, students and all to take action through community-based also known as the Same-Sex Marriage community members, Cunningham chal- initiatives. (Available in English and Spanish. Referendum—appeared on the state’s bal- lenges viewers to imagine how their own Part I: “The Girls” 55 min. / Part II: “The lot. In this documentary, director Yoruba school and community might treat a teen- Boys” 55 min.) Richen talks with African Americans from age boy who wore makeup, jewelry and high pbs.org/independentlens/graduates/ many walks of life about Question 6 and heels, and to consider what constitutes PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

PHOTO COURTESY OF LEANDREW WIGGINS FALL 2014 61 Gloria and Rosa Make Beautiful Music

BY CYNTHIA LEVINSON

GLORIA AND ROSA SAT CROSS-LEGGED on the floor in Gloria’s “That was beautiful!” she exclaimed. room, braiding their dolls’ hair. As usual, Rosa was humming. Every Thursday for the next month, Rosa listened to “DUM duh, duh DUM duh,” she sang softly. Her head Gloria’s lessons, even though Gloria kept making mistakes. bobbed from side to side as she wove strands of her Finally, Gloria asked Rosa, “Why don’t you take lessons, too?” doll’s hair right-over-middle, then left-over-middle. Back “We don’t have a piano,” Rosa answered. and forth. “What about at school?” “Why do you hum that song?” Gloria asked. She “Hernandez doesn’t have a piano, either.” reached for a pale blue ribbon to tie the bottom of a braid, “It doesn’t? What do you do in music class?” Gloria asked. even though stray tufts of hair jutted from her doll’s scalp. “We sing,” Rosa said. “We don’t have any instruments.” “It helps me keep track,” Rosa answered. “On the “None?” duhs, I cross one hank of hair over the middle one. On the Gloria told Rosa about the keyboards, drum sets and DUMs, I pull them tight. Try it.” recorders at Zavala, the school she attended. “Not me,” Gloria said. “I don’t have a good voice like “I wish we had those,” Rosa said. “My teacher says our you do. If I sang, even our dolls would run away!” She school can’t afford to buy instruments, but it’s not fair!” made her doll’s legs run toward the door. “It’s a pretty “You’re right,” Gloria agreed. “Hernandez deserves the song, though.” same things Zavala has.” “My abuela taught it to me,” Rosa said. “Her mother “Every school does!” taught it to her when she was a little girl in Mexico. It’s “That’s true,” Gloria said. “Let’s talk with our music called ‘Cielito Lindo.’” teachers tomorrow and compare notes with each other “What does the name mean?” Gloria asked. after school.” “Well, cielito means bit of sky, and lindo is pretty. Together, The next afternoon, the girls met at Rosa’s house and they mean lovely little one. That’s why I sing it to my doll.” discussed what their music teachers had told them. Rosa held her doll up, its hair sporting sparkly tur- “My teacher says there’s not much money for our quoise ribbons. school’s music program,” Rosa said. “The only way we can Gloria said, “Her braids are perfect!” buy instruments is to raise money, but instruments are “Gloria!” her mother called from downstairs. “Your very expensive.” piano teacher’s here.” “Hmmm,” Gloria frowned. “Our school’s band booster “Time for my lesson with Miss Rostov,” Gloria said to club helps us get instruments. What if we ask them Rosa. “See you after school tomorrow?” for suggestions?” “Could I stay and listen?” Rosa begged. “Please?” “That’s a good idea,” Rosa agreed. “We should also “Playing in front of people makes me nervous,” Gloria show them why all the kids in our community should have admitted. instruments at school.” “I’ll be very quiet,” Rosa promised. “What do you have in mind?” Gloria asked. Reluctantly, Gloria agreed that Rosa could stay. Sitting “Well, I’m a good singer, and you’re a wonderful pianist…” behind her friend in the living room, Rosa barely breathed. “Oh, no! I can’t do that!” Gloria exclaimed. Even so, Gloria knew that Rosa was listening. She stum- “You won’t be alone!” Rosa replied. “We’ll do bled over the simplest pieces. But Rosa didn’t notice. it together.”

62 TEACHING TOLERANCE ILLUSTRATION BY BLANCA GÓMEZ Looking down at her fingers and taking a deep breath, Gloria finally said, “OK. I can do this.” “We can do this,” Rosa smiled, grabbing her friend’s hand. The next week, Gloria’s mother drove the girls to the booster club meeting. After all the business on the meeting’s agenda had been covered, the club president said, “I understand some young people would like to speak.” Rosa stood. “Yes, sir,” she said. “And sing.” She nudged Gloria, who added, “And play.” Gloria had borrowed an electronic keyboard from Zavala, and the girls hauled the instrument to the front of the room. In unison, they stated, “We would like to show you how kids in our community can make beautiful music together.” “But,” Rosa explained, “we can only do it if we all have the same chance.” “Some of the schools in our community don’t have any instruments,” Gloria chimed in, “but we hope we can Questions for Readers change that.” RIGHT THERE (IN THE TEXT) On the keyboard, Gloria accompanied Rosa as she sang What does Gloria’s school have that Rosa’s school does not? “Cielito Lindo.” THINK AND SEARCH (IN THE TEXT) When the girls finished their performance, the members What obstacles do Gloria and Rosa face when they try to of the booster club cheered. solve the inequity between their two schools? As Rosa and Gloria returned to their seats, the club AUTHOR AND ME (IN MY HEAD) president said, “It’s not right that some of our schools Why do you think Cynthia Levinson chose the title “Gloria have enough money to buy instruments and others don’t.” and Rosa Make Beautiful Music”? What is the meaning of He turned to the other members and asked, “Do you think this title? we could help by sharing the money we raise with other ON MY OWN (IN MY HEAD) schools in the community?” Have you ever noticed that your school has some things The club members voted and agreed unanimously. other schools do not, or that other schools have things your “It’s a start,” the president said. school needs? Explain. Gloria and Rosa said, “Lovely!”

FALL 2014 63 ONE WORLD tolerance.org to hang on a classroom wall. It is created with just that purpose in mind. Enjoy! with just that is created It wall. hang on a classroom to Teaching Tolerance and participating artists encourage educators to clip the One World page World clip the One to educators encourage artists and participating Tolerance Teaching !

ILLUSTRATION BY MARY KATE McDEVITT INTRODUCING THE TEACHING TOLERANCE ANTI-BIAS FRAMEWORK DOWNLOAD A road map for anti-bias TODAY! tolerance.org/ education at every grade level anti-bias-framework The Anti-bias Framework provides a common language and organizational structure—perfect for teachers who embrace both social justice values and backward planning.

ANTI-BIAS FRAMEWORK K-2 Grade Level Outcomes and Scenarios

Anchor Code Grade Level Outcome Anti-bias Scenario Standard

Identity 1 ANTI-BIASID.K-2.1 FRAMEWORKI know and like who I am and can talk For show and tell, Joi brings in a about my family and myself and name picture of her family on a church some of my group identities. camping trip. “My family goes camping 3-5 Grade Level Outcomesa lot. I like and camping,” sheScenarios says. “I’m a Identity 2 ID.K-2.2 I can talk about interesting and healthy Christian, and sometimes my family Anchor ways that some people who share my goes camping with the church. I’m Code Grade Level Outcome Anti-bias Scenario Teaching Tolerance Standard group identities live their lives. also a big sister, so I have to help my parents take care of my little brother, Identity 1 ANTI-BIASID.3-5.1 FRAMEWORK Identity 3 ID.K-2.3 I know thatI all know my groupand like identities who I am are and canespecially whenOmar’s we mother go camping.” is serving as a part of me—buttalk about that I myam familyalways and ALL myself and chaperone on her son’s field trip. On 6-8me. Grade describe our Level various group Outcomesidentities. the bus ride, theand teacher, Scenarios Ms. Robin, overhears a conversation between Identity 2 ID.3-5.2 Identity 4 ID.K-2.4 I can feel goodI know about about myself my withoutfamily history and Omar and Peter. “What is your mother Anchorbeing meanculture or making and otherabout people current feel and past con- Code Grade Level Outcome wearing on herAnti-bias head?” Peter Scenario asks. Standardbad. tributions of people in my main identity anti-bias framework groups. “It’s called a hijab,” Omar replies. IdentityI see 1 ANTI-BIASthatID.6-8.1 the way FRAMEWORK my familyI know and and I like do who I am and can comfort- Patrick is being raised in a traditional Identity 5 ID.K-2.5 “Many Muslim women wear them.” K-12 Anchor Standards and Domains Identity 3 ID.3-5.3things is bothI know the same thatably allas andmytalk group differentabout identities my family are and myself and Christian home. This year in Mr. from how otherpart ofpeople whodescribe Ido am, things, but our none and various Iof them group fully identities. Sanderson’s social studies class, he 9-12 Grade Level Outcomes“Why does she wear it?” and Scenarios IdentIty dIVeRSIty am interesteddescribes in both. me and this is true for other has been learning about the world’s Identity 2 ID.6-8.2 people too.I know about my family history and culture different beliefs systems. Patrick “Our religion teaches us that the hijab 1. Students will develop positive social identities 6. Students will express comfort with people who I like beingAnchor around peopleand how who I are am like connected As childrento the collective are funneling enjoys into her the company of friends from Diversity 6 IdentityDI.K-2.6 4 ID.3-5.4 I can feel Codegood about myGrade identity Level Outcomeis a way of being humble and modest.Anti-bias Scenario based on their membership in multiple groups are both similar to and different than them and me andStandard different fromhistory me, and and I canculture be of classroomother people on ina Monday my morning,different Ms. religions and is interested in without making someone else feel badly Muslim women wear it to show they in society. engage respectfully with all people. friendly to everyone. identity groups. Franklin overhears a conversationtheir beliefs and practices. Though he 2. Students will develop language and historical 7. Students will develop language and knowledge Identityabout 1 whoID.9-12.1 they are. I have a positivebetween view twolove of students. myself, God.” including an As part of a class project, Identity 3 ID.6-8.3 I know that overlapping identities combine remains devout, he wonders if being and cultural knowledge that affirms and to accurately and respectfully describe how awareness of and comfort with my membership Rebecca completes the following Identity 5 ID.3-5.5 I know myto family make and me I who do things I am and the that none of my curious makes him a bad Christian. accurately describes their membership in people (including themselves) are both similar I can describe some ways that I amin sim multiple- “What groups did in you society. do last weekend?” Kev- personal mission statement: “I Diversity 7 DI.K-2.7 same as andgroup different identities from on other their people own fully defines Patrick talks to his Sunday school multiple identity groups. to and different than each other and others in ilar to and different from people who in asks Lisa. am more than one identity. I will Identityand 2 groups,ID.9-12.2me and or Iany know otherI how know person. to my use family what history and culturalteacher back Mrs.- Patterson who assures 3. Students will recognize that peoples’ multiple their identity groups. share my identities and those who have “My moms took me to the zoo!” Lisa celebrate all of my in-group and I learn from home, schoolground and otherand can describe how my ownhim identity that he can be Christian and identities interact and create unique and 8. Students will respectfully express curiosity other identities. replies. out-group identities and work Identity 4 ID.6-8.4places thatI matter feel good to me.aboutis informed my many and identities shaped by and my membershipbefriend andin learn from people of complex individuals. about the history and lived experiences of to understand how they overlap know they don’tmultiple make identity me better groups. than peo- different religions as well. In fact, her I want to know about other people and “You have two moms? Do you call both to make up who I am as an 4. Students will express pride, confidence and others and will exchange ideas and beliefs in an Diversity 8 DiversityDI.K-2.8 6 DI.3-5.6 I like knowingple with people other who identities. are like me Ms. Ramirez hasbest divided friend herof thirty class yearsinto is a Jewish how our lives and experiences are the of them Mom?” individual. I will not allow others healthy self-esteem without denying the value open-minded way. Identityand 3 differentID.9-12.3 from me,I knowand I treat that alleach my groupsmall identities groups forwoman and a mappingthe she grew activity. up with! Identitysame 5 andID.6-8.5 different. “I call them Mamma Kendra and and dignity of other people. 9. Students will respond to diversity by building person withI know respect. there intersection are similarities of those and Asidentities the students create are unique gathering toto begin put me into boxes.” Rebecca Mamma Sam,” Lisa says. 5. Students will recognize traits of the dominant empathy, respect, understanding and differences aspectsbetween of mywho home I am culture andwork, that she this overhears is true for one student,explains to her peers in small- Diversity 7 DI.3-5.7 I have accurate, respectful words to de- culture, their home culture and other cultures connection. and the otherother environments people too. and culturesJoao, tell the others that he doesn’tgroup discussion that being a JUSTICEACTION I know everyonescribe has how feelings, I am similar and I to and different and understand how they negotiate their own 10. Students will examine diversity in social, Diversity 9 DI.K-2.9 I encounter, and I can be myself inwant a Jonah, a classmate who usesstudent, sister, female, Latina, IDENTITY want toIdentity get fromalong 4 people withID.9-12.4 people who share who aremy identities DIVERSITY identity in multiple spaces. cultural, political and historical contexts diversity of settings.I express pride and confidencea wheelchair, in inmy his identity group. JustSpanish as speaker and dancer are similar to andand different those who from have me.other identities. rather than in ways that are superficial or without perceiving orMs. treating Ramirez anyone is about else to as intervene all interconnected and equally Diversity 6 DI.6-8.6 I interact with people who are similar to Darius tells Melissa that he thinks he oversimplified. inferior. and facilitate a discussion withimportant. Joao She displays her Diversity 8 DI.3-5.8I find it interestingI want to thatknowand groups different more aboutof from other me, peo and- I show respect might be gay. Melissa is taken aback. Diversity 10 DI.K-2.10 and the rest of the group, she hearspersonal mission statement on peopleIdentity believeple’s 5 different livesID.9-12.5 andto all thingsexperiences, people. andI recognizelive and I know traits of the dominant culture,She and my Darius have been close friends another student say, “Joao, Jonahthe outside of her class binder. their daily liveshow into differentask questions ways. respectfully home culture and and other cultures, andfor Imany am years. No one in Melissa’s Diversity 7 DI.6-8.7 has a lot to share with our group. It’s JUStICe ACtIOn listen carefullyI can andaccurately non-judgmentally.conscious and respectfully of how I express describe my identitycircle as identifies I as LGBT, and she feels important for us to all work together. ways that peoplemove (including between those myself) spaces. are that her family would not approve. 11. Students will recognize stereotypes and Diversity 9 DI.3-5.9 I feel connected to other people and You shouldn’t think that his physical 16. Students will express empathy when people similar to and different from each other After gathering her thoughts, she hugs relate to people as individuals rather than Diversityknow 6 howDI.9-12.6 to talk, workI and interact play withcomfortably disability and respectfully makes him with a less all importantSheri is a student ambassador, are excluded or mistreated because of their and others in their identity groups. Darius and tells him she wants him representatives of groups. identities and concern when they themselves others even when we arepeople, different whether or theymember are similar of our to or group.” different welcoming new students and Diversity 8 DI.6-8.8 I am curious and want to know more to know he can be himself with her. 12. Students will recognize unfairness on the experience bias. when we disagree. from me. showing them around the individual level (e.g., biased speech) and about other people’s histories and She just wants him to be happy with 17. Students will recognize their own Diversity 10 DI.3-5.10 school. She mentions to one new Four Anti-bias Anchorinjustice at the institutional or systemic levelStandards GradeDiversityI know 7 that DI.9-12.7lived theLevel wayexperiences, groupsI have of and the people Ilanguage ask questions and knowledge himself. to accurately Because neither knows much responsibility to stand up to exclusion, student, Kyle, that she helped PERSPECTIVES FOR A DIVERSE AMERICA >> CRITICAL PRACTICESare treated respectfully today, and the and way respectfullylisten they carefully have describe and non- how peopleabout (including what it means24 to be gay, Melissa (e.g., discrimination). prejudice and injustice. found the school’s Gay-Straight been treatedjudgmentally. in the past,myself) is a part are of both what similar to and differentaccompanies from Darius to see their 13. Students will analyze the harmful impact of 18. Students will speak up with courage and Alliance (GSA). Kyle tells her bias and injustice on the world, historically and makes them who they are.each other and others in their identityhistory groups. teacher, Mr. Gilbert, who has a respect when they or someone else has been Diversity 9 DI.6-8.9 I know I am connected to other people that he is actually transgender today. safe zone sticker on his door. hurt or wronged by bias. Diversity 8 DI.9-12.8and can relateI respectfully to them even express when wecuriosity are about the histo- and changed schools after 14. Students will recognize that power and 19. Students will make principled decisions about different or rywhen and livedwe disagree. experiences of others and exchange beginning transition. Sheri tells Domains privilege influence relationships on Outcomes provide a common him that she will be discreet when and how to take a stand against bias and ideas and beliefs in an open-minded way. interpersonal, intergroup and institutional injustice in their everyday lives and will do so Diversity 10 DI.6-8.10 I can explain how the way groups of people and assures him that the levels and consider how they have been despite negative peer or group pressure. Diversity 9 DI.9-12.9are treated today,I relate and to theand way build they connections have with other administration is welcoming. PERSPECTIVES FOR A DIVERSE AMERICA >> CRITICAL PRACTICES 26 affected by those dynamics. 20. Students will plan and carry out collective been treatedpeople in the past,by showing shapes them their empathy,group respect and Kyle recounts this story fondly at 15. Students will identify key figures and groups, action against bias and injustice in the world identity and understanding,culture. regardless of our similarities or a later meeting with the school’s seminal events and a variety of strategies and and will evaluate what strategies are most differences. counselor. allow educators languagephilosophies relevant to the history of social andeffective. illustrate what Diversity 10 DI.9-12.10 justice action and history around the world. I understand that diversity includes the impact of unequal power relations on the development of group identities and cultures. to engage a range organizational© 2013 Teaching Tolerance tolerance.org anti-biasPERSPECTIVES FOR A DIVERSE AMERICA >> CRITICAL PRACTICES attitudes 28

of anti-bias, structure. and PERSPECTIVESbehavior FOR A DIVERSE AMERICA >> CRITICAL PRACTICES may look 30 multicultural and like in the classroom. social justice issues.

“I’m creating a better curriculum because of the Anti-bias Framework. It’s making me a better teacher.” —AMY BINTLIFF, Oregon, Wisconsin tolerance.org/anti-bias-framework FALL 2014 65 TEACHING TOLERANCE Non Profit Org. DON'T MISS OUT! U.S. Postage A PROJECT OF THE SOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER Renew your free subscription today to receive PAID 400 Washington Avenue • Montgomery, AL 36104 Southern Poverty new issues of Teaching Tolerance magazine. Law Center tolerance.org/subscribe

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