Anti-Racism, Bias, Relevance, and Cultural Responsiveness

Space to explore“When teachers give students the space to explore how what they are learning connects to the current realities of their personal lives, local community, and wider world, students become engaged and excited about school.”

The systemic racism that has stratified our country since white people first came to these shores has been made even more plain by the disproportionate impact the pandemic has had on Black, Latinx, and low-income communities. Many of these students have experienced and continue to experience trauma related both to COVID-19 and to dramatic examples of racial injustice, particularly toward Black people by white people. Anti-racism is gaining traction as an essential approach to dismantling systemic racism, and students must see the adults in their school taking a proactive approach to being anti-racist. Part of this approach is uncovering and addressing biases and embracing curriculum and other strategies that are culturally responsive and relevant to the families and students in the district and/or school community.

Guiding Questions

Evidence-based Resources“Select anti-racist resources that are evidence-based. This may seem obvious, but it’s important to choose with careful deliberation.”

What do we need in order to continue our growth as an anti-racist community?
What professional development will help us ensure that we are always thinking about relevance, bias, and cultural responsiveness within our practice?

Use these selected strategies and resources

High-leverage Strategies	Aligned Resources
Help staff and personnel at all levels, from districts to schools, identify and eliminate implicit bias.	Build professional development around Teaching Tolerance’s Equity Matters: Confronting Implicit Bias webinar on creating equitable classrooms.
Build awareness and understanding among staff to better understand cultural differences.	Use this set of resources from Understood to help staff learn how to make sure families of color are heard by the school: Why Families of Color May Feel Uncomfortable Communicating with Teachers, an article by Afrika Afeni Mills, MEd Tips for better parent-teacher communication, a video of an expert chat with Afrika Afeni Mills, MEd Perspectives: How to Make Sure Black and Brown Families Are Heard by the School, advice from six Understood experts and teaching fellows

Build competencies among teachers around culturally responsive education (CRE).	Use these CRE resources to build professional development for your teachers: Virtual Culturally Responsive Resources: Middle Schoolers and Virtual Culturally Responsive Resources: High Schoolers both include a curriculum, a syllabus, and other practical resources such as a video playlist, a book list, and activities and guidance for caregivers (Center on Culture, Race & Equity, Bank Street College of Education). Culturally Responsive Teaching: What You Need to Know provides the research base and rationale for culturally responsive teaching (CRT) and describes what it looks like, how to put it into practice, and ways to make family connections more culturally responsive, including a family survey in English and Spanish (Understood).
Expose teachers to explicit strategies to become anti-racist educators.	Share and discuss these powerful resources on racial justice: 6 Ways to be an Antiracist Educator, an Edutopia video of educator Dena Simmons on engaging in antiracist work in the classroom. Black Lives Matter at School – Resources, from NEA Ed Justice, which include classroom-appropriate lesson plans, guides on how to have tough conversations with peers and students, and more. The Center for Racial Justice in Education’s curated lists of resources for a variety of essential areas, including: Resources for Talking about Race, Racism and Racialized Violence with Kids A Racial Justice Guide to the Winter Holiday Season for Educators and Families

Nurturing Instructional Leadership during Remote and Hybrid Learning