Back to School Lesson Planning

It's that time of the year! If you have not started back to school yet, you are about to! 

When educators think about preparing lessons for the upcoming year, we ask reflect upon the previous years and ask ourselves some questions: 

"What worked before?"

"What did not work?"

"What resources can I bring into my classroom that will interest the students?"

"How can I respect the different cultural backgrounds of my students?"

... and many, many more.  

We hope part of the reflections that you are doing include giving space to the intersections of teaching, learning, and race. 

Two amazing resources that were published this past year came from some amazing authors that are personal friends of ours. 

Teaching for Black Lives
Excerpt from the introduction:  We do not expect Teaching for Black Lives to end police violence against Black communities, stop anti-Black racism in schools, or end the school-to-prison pipeline. We do, however, see this collection as playing an important role in highlighting the ways educators can and should make their classrooms and schools sites of resistance to white supremacy and anti-Blackness, as well as sites for knowing the hope and beauty in Blackness. The ferocity of racism in the United States against black minds and black bodies demands that teachers fight back. We must organize against anti-blackness amongst our colleagues and in our communities; we must march against police brutality in the streets; and we must teach for Black lives in our classrooms. We call on others to join us in this fight.

 https://www.teachingforblacklives.org/


 The History of Institutional Racism in U.S. Public Schools
Excerpt: This is a book of hope as well as condemnation. The emphasis is on restorative justice and reconciliation. The graphic depictions of the history of racism and discrimination unite the struggles of resistance movements – including Black Lives Matter and the Badass Teachers Association. It is a call for the re-Imagining of public schools as places of racial justice that welcome every child in a society that recognizes the nation has an ethical responsibility to honor the civil rights of children and ensures that each child has the very finest education U.S. public schools can provide.

http://garnpress.com/books/the-history-of-institutional-racism-in-us-public-schools/

Ethnic studies is the critical analysis and study of the roles of race and culture on identity and experience. It teaches the histories and cultures of marginalized groups such as African Americans, Latinxs people, immigrants, and others. Curriculum also explores the ways people create power, justice and agency in their own lives, as well as in society and within political and economic systems.

 Doug Edelstein, retired, Nathan Hale High School (Social Equity Educators)


Below are several links to help you on your journey: 

Decolonizing Education Through Dismantling Hierarchies v

https://teacheractivist.com/2018/07/15/decolonizing-education-through-dismantling-hierarchies-a-four-part-series/

Why We Still Need Ethnic Studies and Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies https://www.huffingtonpost.com/susan-m-shaw/why-we-still-need-ethnic-_b_9009954.html?ncid=engmodushpmg00000004

What Educators Can Take From #BlackLivesMatter http://www.onyxtruth.com/2015/05/13/what-educators-can-take-from-blacklivesmatter/

Dual Language Literacy Is Ethnic Studies
https://www.google.com/amp/s/southseattleemerald.com/2017/10/18/op-ed-dual-language-literacy-is-ethnic-studies/amp/

‪NAACP proposes adding ethnic-studies curriculum to Seattle schools https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/naacp-proposes-adding-ethnic-studies-curriculum-to-seattle-schools/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=article_title_1.1

One Powerful Way to Institutionalize Racial Justice in Our Schools

http://citizenshipandsocialjustice.com/one-powerful-way-to-institutionalize-racial-justice-in-our-schools/

Can Ethnic Studies Improve Student Achievement? Researcher Says Yes  https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/can-ethnic-studies-improve-student-achievement-researcher-says-yes-n255131

‪Arizona judge says ban on ethnic studies is unconstitutional https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/arizona-judge-declares-ban-ethnic-studies-unconstitutional-n833126

STUDENTS’ YEAR-LONG SOCIAL JUSTICE PROJECTS COMBAT ISLAMOPHOBIA AND RACIAL, GENDER STEREOTYPES
https://southseattleemerald.com/2017/05/28/students-year-long-social-justice-projects-combat-islamophobia-and-racial-gender-stereotypes/

The Benefits of Ethnic Studies Courses

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2018/07/09/san-francisco-state-finds-evidence-ethnic-studies-students-do-better#.W0Q8QXZ4Iq2.twitter

Ethnic Studies In Seattle: A look inside the classrooms of antiracist educators
https://iamaneducator.com/2018/05/22/ethnic-studies-in-seattle-a-look-inside-the-classrooms-of-antiracist-educators/

How an Ethnic Studies Class Took to the Streets and the Internet to Support Standing Rock
https://www.yesmagazine.org/for-teachers/teacher-stories/how-an-ethnic-studies-class-took-to-the-streets-and-the-internet-to-support-standing-rock

Our History Matters
PSU'S CAMPAIGN FOR ETHNIC STUDIES
https://www.pvdstudentunion.org/ethnic-studies/

Happy planning!