Abolitionist Teaching
Decolonization
Dismantling
Humanizing
The passion around the concepts listed above reverberated in my ears as I watched a panel discuss re-purposing our pedagogies. The panel, hosted by the Education for Liberation Network, ended with a call to action for us all to take one next step as educators committed to just, equitable, and inclusive education.
One of my next steps was to write this post.
A colleague sent me the link to the panel live feed with a recommendation that the speakers were amazing and the topic relevant if I had the opportunity to watch. I am a better person and educator because I did.
Here are my takeaways for educators:
- Justice is not just a convenient word
- We play a role in building what we want
- There are no throw-away people
- Our work against the system will be from within the system
- De-colonizing systems means supporting voices of oppressed
- Children look to educators as a model
- Teachers make magic happen
- We must fight for human rights
- Schools should work to remove the ways we de-value students and humans
- Look at data: where is the racial dis proportionality?
- Have high expectations and believe that students have the capacity
- There is zero tolerance for hurting each other
- Define how you want people to relate to each other
- Avoid the savior complex; you are not the one
- Recognize that dismantling takes time (it may not happen in our lifetime)
To summarize:
We must be part of the abolitionist teaching movement to dismantle systemic racist structures to humanize black, indigenous, people of color.
But, in doing so, be kind, bring love, and hold each other up.
As educators, the call is loud and clear. We need to have conversations with our families, students, colleagues, and leaders. We need to do the work and identify gaps and barriers for students while devising action plans to bridge them. We have a voice that is vital to these conversations.
What is your next step?
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*Cross posted at https://drnwatkins.blogspot.com/2020/06/whats-next.htmlrNWatkins
I am One Voice 
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