Teaching for Justice and Belonging

Create a classroom with a culture of true belonging, liberation, and justice for all Teaching for Justice and Belonging: A Journey for Educators & Parents provides a practical and powerful blueprint to unrooting racism in the educational setting. The book is an easy-to-understand guide designed to cultivate an educational experience that inspires a culture of true belonging, liberation, and justice for all. Relying on case studies, thorough research, and deeply personal and enlightening experiences drawn from the lives of the authors themselves, Teaching for Justice and Belonging also offers: Demonstrations of how to explore personal and collective racial identity to learn more about oneself and others Support for making systemic change within the spheres of influence of educators and parents Real testimonials and stories to guide readers on their own healthy anti-racism journeys A central piece of any anti-racism roadmap, this book is perfect for K-12 educators, administrators, and teacher leaders. It will also earn a place in the bookshelves of pre-service teachers and parents interested in unlearning racism and encouraging diverse voices in the education system.

About the Authors ix Acknowledgments xi Chapter 1 Welcome to Our Garden 1 Dear Parents and Educators 2 Before We Begin 3 The Seed Growth Metaphor 10 Tehia 12 Lucretia 14 Reflection and Practice 17 Chapter 2 SOIL: The Groundwork 19 Race 22 Racism 23 White Space 24 Whiteness 25 Racial Ignorance 25 Microaggression 25 Justice 26 Belonging 27 Antiracism 28 Reflection and Practice 31 Chapter 3 SEED: Self-Assessment 33 How We Learn 34 How We Grow 40 How We Begin 45 Reflection and Practice 46 Chapter 4 ROOT: Build Racial Competency and Understanding 47 Amy, White Mom of Five 47 How to Become Rooted 58 Becoming Rooted Together 61 For Parents and Educators of Color to Consider 62 For White Parents and Teachers to Consider 65 Reflection and Practice 67 Chapter 5 SPROUT: Early Growth and Signs of Hope 69 How to Sprout 78 Reflection and Practice 80 Chapter 6 BUD: See and Celebrate Growth 83 How We Started with the Staff 88 How We Started with the Students 90 Seeing and Celebrating Growth 95 How to Bud 100 Reflection and Practice 101 Chapter 7 WEED: Uproot Growth Inhibitors 103 Susan, Latinx High School Teacher 103 Extraction 105 Perfection 107 Isolation 107 Denying the Dignity of Others 109 Fear of Discomfort 110 Lack of Fortitude 111 Lack of Self-Care 112 Punishing Ideological Differences 113 Imbalanced Teaching 113 Valuing Ideology over Empathy 115 Ignoring How Children Experience Race/ism 115 Bystander 116 Not Noticing and Confronting White Supremacy Norms 117 White Tears 118 Thinking We’re Done 119 Reflection and Practice 120 Chapter 8 BLOOM: Mature into a New Normal 121 Tiffany, White Mom of Four 122 As Teachers Bloom 125 As Teacher Leaders Bloom 133 As Parents Bloom 135 The New Normal 138 Reflection and Practice 140 Conclusion 143 Appendix A: KWLH Chart to Explore Your Knowledge Base 147 Appendix B: Self-Care Plan 149 Appendix C: Not Judging a Book by Its Cover: Social Justice Book Rubric 151 Appendix D: Tatum Book Small Group Study Guide 155 Appendix E: Content Analysis Chart 161 References 163 Resources 169 Index 175