Seven Black Boys

It's been quite some time since I wrote a blog post. I took up blogging because writing is, for me, a coping mechanism, and a way to get the thoughts and frustrations that plague my mind out into the world. Over the past 5-6 years, most of my thoughts and frustrations were about feeling helpless. I felt helpless teaching in a school system that allowed overt racism, and punished teachers like me for standing up for children of color. And I did so unapologetically. The writing helped.

Nine months ago, I resigned from my teaching job. And nine months ago, I got my life back. I am part of a secret club now, whose members have been liberated from what I can only say is the most racist school district I've ever known of. We are the only people that know the peace that comes from  leaving such a toxic environment.

I have had nine months to recover. I am a central office administrator now,  someplace else, and essentially have my dream job. The skills I built as a result of fighting the white power structure in an affluent and racist school district have served me well. But the stories of the students continue to plague my thoughts. I am gone now, I am free of the sickness, but the stories stay with me. For the past few weeks one in particular has weighed heavily on my mind.

After ten years in the same school, a school I loved, I was transferred out as my punishment for reporting the principal when four little girls expressed their discomfort when he put his hands on them. It wasn't really up to me, it's the law. Teachers are mandatory reporters when things like this happen, but nevertheless, I was severely punished, and the principal, well...he wasn't. He is a member of the white power structure that protects the whiteness and power of its members, and has a stranglehold on a diverse school district that deserves so much better.

I went to my new school silently. I intended to remain silent, other than what I needed to do for my students. I was a fish out of water, and knew that the only things this new staff knew about me were the suburban legends they had heard about my hatefulness. I tried to just stay away form the fray, teach, and go home. Months into this new assignment, I was in the gym with the rest of the teachers and the entire student body. We were waiting for a diversity assembly to begin. The kids were waiting patiently, talking, giggling and laughing, as they should be. I kept my eyes on my students, as any teacher should. But the makeup of my class is worth telling you about.

This was the year that a social worker, with big aspirations of power and control, was put in charge of instruction. Her claim to fame was what we called W.I.N. - WHAT I NEED.  It was a class that was supposed to provide students with support or enrichment, depending on what they need. I was assigned 15 Black males. Each one was an 8th grader, and I was told to teach a reading intervention for fluency. Fluency? For 8th graders? Are you sure? I had questions. How were these students identified for this intervention? They were identified based on one NWEA score. I said repeatedly, as I am a data person, "NWEA DOES NOT MEASURE FLUENCY." But they basically told me to do it anyways. I spent a little time making sure I was right, and I looked into each students academic history, only to discover that maybe 2-3 of them needed help with comprehension, but the rest were more "teacher-challenged" than they were reading challenged. I was happy to have each one of them with me, because it meant they were not subjected to some of the other teachers that have such disdain for students like them.

When we got to the gym, we were the first ones there and my kids went straight to the top of the bleachers where they waited for the assembly to begin. I stayed in the middle of the gym, checking on them, talking to other kids when this happened...

A white teacher made eye contact with me from across the gym, she had a look in her eyes like, "Watch this..." And I most certainly did. She climbed to the top of the bleachers, to the top row. She yelled at seven of my Black male students to stand up, she counted them off, and ordered them to walk down the bleachers and out of the gym. They complied. They didn't argue. They walked out, in a line, seven 8th grade Black males, in front of the entire student body and the teaching staff. I followed them. The teacher had taken a different route and met up with us out in the hallway. She was shocked to see me there talking to them. She immediately began to berate them. She was yelling. I don't like yelling. She called one of my students out by name, wondering where he was, and angry he wasn't standing there waiting for her. I cut her off and explained to her that I had given him permission to use the restroom. She yelled some more. At me. And then continued to berate my seven young students. You are probably wondering what they did, I think that is a fair question.

When the student she had identified by name returned, the yelling and berating continued, and their big offense? Giggling and laughing. I wondered if maybe she had seen something I didn't, and there was a reason they were being removed in such a disgusting and embarrassing way. This is where I stepped in and stopped her.

You cannot understand this feeling until you have done something similar. But I put myself between those seven Black boys, and that loud, racist white teacher and told her to stop. Then she amped up her rhetoric and yelled at me about how this was none of my business and she didn't understand why I was there. She had a genuine look of shock on her face that I would do this. How dare I stand up for these children? How dare me.

She turned really red and stomped away in anger. I turned to the kids. I asked them what they wanted to do. She told them the only way they could go back in was if they sit right up in front where she could humiliate them further. I was reminded by their responses to me that they were just kids. They were kids in Black bodies though, some of those bodies were that of a grown man. But they were kids. They said they didn't want to go back in and be embarrassed because everyone on our side of the gym had watched. But they really wanted to see the show. My heart broke. I had been here before. And now I was angry. I turned and looked at the dozen or so white teachers that stood silently through this entire scene.

I turned around, walked right past each one of them, walked across the entire gym in front of the entire student body, and asked my principal for help. I didn't know her well, and knew that most of what she knew about me was what a bunch of salty white people told the masses to convince everyone I was crazy. If expecting Black and Brown children to be treated with dignity makes me crazy, then yep. I am batshit crazy.

I don't remember the words I said, they were packed with emotion, and probably curse words, but she got right up and did exactly what the kids needed her to do. We went out the other side of the gym, walked around back to where the boys were waiting for me. The teacher was back out there yelling again, and when we walked up she started yelling at me in front of the principal. She was told to leave in no uncertain terms. The principal talked to the kids, asked them what they wanted and needed, and they told her. They wanted to watch the assembly. So we all walked to the other side of the gym, where they didn't really see everything, and she found a spot for them where they stayed for the duration of the assembly, the remainder of their dignity in tact.

After, I had to meet with the teacher since she was yelling at me too. I remember in the meeting when I mentioned race, she almost left. She was livid, and said "I am not going to sit here if you make this about race." I think what I said was, "You identified seven Black boys, marched them out of the gym in front of the school and berated them. This is about race." The meeting ended well, I assured all that I would not have an issue working with her, and I wouldn't, until she starts screaming at Black kids again.

She humiliated those boys that day. I will never forget their faces while she was yelling. They did not argue, they did not respond, they just took it. They took it, and then took it some more. They were used to this. They KNEW if they tried to ask why they were lined up and removed they would end up in trouble. They knew because this is their life. I watched all seven of those faces that day. They still haunt me, along with so many others.

Many of us wrote to the superintendent and the Board of Education. Letters from a small handful of teachers and parents went ignored. Not one of us received a response, and certainly no apology. That was the same year the white US History teacher told the three Black boys in his class they they were "sleeping through their own history" and that when Black people are killed, they deserve it. He doubled down the next day, and told the class that the Black kids were lucky to even be able to attend that school, since it wasn't long ago they would not have been welcome.

I don't know what happened behind the scenes of any of this. But I do know neither teacher was punished or disciplined. One was transferred, to a school where that kind of behavior would be far more acceptable, especially since I was transferred out of it. The other left on his own accord and is now teaching in a predominantly white district. But there was no outrage about the incident.

Correction, there WAS outrage. There was outrage that these teachers were called out for their racist and disgusting behavior. There is always outrage when the white adults feel attacked.

I woke up this morning at 4:00 am. Like normal. And I checked my Twitter feed to see what was happening in the world. A video popped up. It was a video of three white men chasing and murdering a Black male while he was out jogging.

This man was murdered over two months ago, and no charges had been filed. But the video, which the authorities have had the entire time, shows very clearly that he was murdered for jogging. If an anonymous person had not released this video to the public, this man's family would never see justice. They may STILL never see justice. Trevon Martin was gunned down too. His killer is free.

This may seem like a stretch when I tell stories of Black male students being screamed at, and humiliated, but it really isn't. When I watched the video this morning, which I will not share, I thought about all of the times I have put myself between Black or Brown children, and the white people that believed they had the right to destroy them. It wasn't necessarily the screaming teachers I thought about, and there had been many before this assembly incident, and more after. It was the faces of the silent white teachers, knowing that this was wrong, and doing nothing about it. It was the faces of every person that has stood silently, while people like me try like hell to protect our most vulnerable children.

Screaming in the face of a young Black male is a far cry from murder. But the sickness is the same. It starts with schools, and communities, that treat our Black and Brown children like they are not worthy of sitting in the same classrooms as their white privileged counterparts. And it ends with law enforcement covering up the murder of a Black man trying to take a jog, but instead being shot and killed for absolutely no reason at all. Every silent person is complicit in the death of this man. Every silent teacher is complicit when Black boys end up on the school-to-prison pipeline, having missed out on the education they deserve and have a right to, but do not receive because they walk around in Black or Brown bodies.  Everyone who remains silent, because THEIR kids are ok, or because THEIR kids are getting what they need, is complicit in allowing a society that makes it unsafe to drive while black, or to sit in your backyard while black, or to sit in your own apartment while black, only to be gunned down by a stranger.

Schools are supposed to be a beacon of hope and safety. They are anything but.

Teach with FIDELITY? No thank you.

Have you heard the latest buzzwords in the education world? Fidelity. Rigor. Research-based. College-ready. They get thrown around like chicken nuggets in a cafeteria food fight.

The first time someone told me to teach a program with "fidelity" was roughly 10 years ago and I remember doing a double take when I was told that if I JUST teach the math program with FIDELITY my students will learn. If I don't, that's why they don't get it. I even tried it once, for a hot second. And then I knew it was a buzzword that had to go. But it is still swirling in the heads of people that make decisions about teaching...but never actually do it. 

What does it mean to teach with "fidelity?" It means you are loyal to the program. You teach it EXACTLY as it says to teach it. And you never ever waiver. And that is an AMAZING plan! If you want your students to fall behind or to get stuck wherever they may be in their learning. I fought it in the beginning because I felt like I needed to be a voice for my students. I tried to teach a math lesson with "fidelity" to my 5th graders all those years ago. And in the middle of the lesson I could clearly see that some of them were completely and totally lost, while others had already figured it all out and were ready to move on. But my directive was to teach with "fidelity" and apparently that meant that the kids who were lost, and the kids that already mastered the skill, would just have to suck it up. What was important? Teaching the PROGRAM with fidelity. I have never and will never teach a program with fidelity. I refuse to, due to the fact that my job is to teach the KIDS and not PROGRAMS. Thankfully for me, nobody has asked me to teach anything with fidelity in some time. 

I was talking about the amazing resources teachers create with one of my nerdy teacher friends and she said, "I feel like fidelity is the antonym of differentiation." She is so smart. The idea of teaching a program with fidelity is everything that is wrong with our schools. People that don't teach, telling people that do teach, how to do something that they aren't able to do, is what is wrong with education. It's about control. It's about money in some cases (new programs cost a fortune). And it is about blame. It's about blaming teachers for the failures of our students on standardized tests. Educational "leaders" can then sit around and discuss how the teachers have failed to teach with fidelity. The worst test scores I have ever seen are from people that teach to a program. And it's not rocket science to figure out why. 

Real teaching is about figuring out where your kids are, and meeting them right there. Rick Wormelli said, "Fair is not always equal." And he couldn't be more right. If you hear someone tell you to "teach with fidelity" you can be certain they haven't stood in a diverse classroom in quite some time. And if they have, they didn't do a very good job. Students come in all shapes and sizes, at every level, with emotional needs, with learning disabilities, with genius IQs, and with a plethora of experiences that makes each one of them unique. There is NO program that can meet all of their needs. 

Instructional programs can be an excellent framework and starting place, but that's all they can be. Great teachers use them that way, but find innovative strategies, engaging lessons, and differentiated resources to teach each kid, on any given day, based on what THEY need and not what the program says to do next. 

When you tell teachers to teach programs with fidelity, you strip your greatest resource of their ability to create and innovate and help the kids they have right in front of them. So my advice to any teacher that is told to "teach it with fidelity" is to smile and nod. And then do what you know you have to do for your students. Our kids deserve better than a canned program that promises the world. They deserve a teacher. And teachers deserve some credit. 

Recently I was sitting with some administrators that I had just met. We were talking about the work I do in curriculum and assessment, and the ELA materials I create for teachers.  They figured I must have the right answer since I have a doctorate in curriculum and instruction and have taught all subjects and numerous grade levels. They asked me, "How would YOU make sure that teachers teach a new program with fidelity?" 

My answer was simple. I wouldn't. Ever. 

SIX DAYS LEFT: Black History is OUR History

There are still six days left to teach Black History to the nation's children.

Why do we need Black History Month? Personally, I wish we didn't have to have a special month. But without it we may never know that there is more to Black American history than slavery. Morgan Freeman said it perfectly when he stated, "Black history is American history."

All throughout the year we teach the curriculum required of the state and national government. If we never veer away from the required curriculum, students may never learn of some of the most amazing historical figures, or learn of some of the most tragic events in the history of this nation.

I am 45 years old. I have multiple degrees including one in social studies. I only recently learned about the Chicago 50 from a friend preparing to use this event as an anchor in her ELA class.

A few months ago I was talking with another friend about something I was creating and he suggested I include information about Emmett Till. And my response was, "Who is Emmett Till?"

Last year while I was on vacation I was searching for a movie to watch on the plane. I picked Hidden Figures. And my mind was BLOWN. I had never even heard rumblings about the amazing women of NASA, without whom space may not be quite so well traveled.

Just days before I watched it I was in my 7th grade classroom wrapping up a lesson about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  I was pretty proud of myself for having taken the time to teach some important Black history to my students that February and I asked them what they thought. I asked them what they learned. And I will NEVER forget what happened next. One of my most brilliant students (I have so many BRILLIANT kids!) raised his hand and said, in the most respectful way, "Dr. Shamey, we don't learn anything new during Black History Month. I didn't really learn anything."

WAIT...WHAT??? But I just spent three weeks teaching about Rosa Parks and MLK, and watching his inspiring "I have a Dream" speech. We made wall posters of the faces of Black History Month that I bought on Teachers Pay Teachers. Certainly I hadn't wasted everyone's time when I showed the movie Ruby Bridges!

Oh but I did. Just like so many teachers do every single year. I had no idea! I asked for him to explain to me what he meant, and this amazing young man that I am quite certain will change the world one day, explained it so eloquently. He said we all do the same stuff. He said we mean well, but we teach kids about the same few people every single year. He started to name some of the movies they've seen a million times. He mentioned the cartoon "My Friend Martin" and I saw the recognition on the faces of every single kid in the room! They had seen that movie so many times. He said, "We watch it every year." And the kids around the room all agreed by nodding or agreeing with his statements.

Was it true? Was I wasting everyone's time every year during Black History Month? I was supposed to be among the enlightened! But this amazing 12-year-old certainly enlightened me last year. And I took what he said very seriously. This year I decided to create something for teachers to use during BHM that would be different. I wanted to teach things the kids didn't already know. I wanted to use clips from speeches they hadn't already seen a million times. I wanted to be different. I wanted to actually TEACH something they didn't know.

Last week one of my kids raised his hand and asked me this question: "Why are you so passionate about Black History Month? I have never had a teacher care so much about it. And I had a Black teacher that didn't care like you do!"

I looked around at the silent agreement on their faces and explained. The student that asked me was a young 11-year-old African American male. I told him quite simply, "YOU are the reason I am so passionate about Black History." And I pointed right at him. And then I pointed at the student next to him, and the one next to her and then the next one and the next one. Because I heard my students the year before. I wasn't going to do the same old thing this year. I was going to make a difference. And it seemed that I had in that moment and I was proud of myself as well as my students for engaging in such amazing discussions about things that really matter.

I had just finished showing a clip from Season 4 of Blackish and I had watched it so many times that I could sing every word and dance right along with the characters. And, of course, I did.

I used that episode as the focus of one of the activities I created for teachers. It was meant to be a one day lesson. It took me three days to get through it because of the dialogue, new learning, questions, and discussion that took place as a result of watching the clip WE BUILT THIS.

That clip changed my world.

It puts to words what I must have known intellectually, but hadn't quite wrapped my brain around. This country was built by Black people. For free. The White House. UVA. Railroads. All of it. Built FOR FREE. That clip changed me. And requires me to ask more questions and teach more truths and be more vigilant about knowing the real history of this country.

When we dissected the clip "FREEDOM" my kids couldn't believe that it was not long ago when it was illegal for a black person to marry a white person. Their faces said it all. They found that to be the most asinine thing they had ever heard! But it was real. And in some ways still is today.

We have a long way to go in our education system to actually teach Black History. It is time to acknowledge and act on the fact that Black History is OUR history. Black History is AMERICAN history. 

Until Further Notice: ONLY KIDS VOTE

It's been one heck of a week for kids and teachers. My Facebook feed is flooded with articles, memes, comments and declarations about gun control and how incredibly stupid it is that a teenager can walk into a store and purchase an automatic weapon. My newsfeed tells me that there are so many people that believe what I do. We want gun regulation. We want gun laws. I am not one of those people that would say "I don't want to take your guns! I just want background checks!" If you hear me saying that, you know I have gone crazy. I don't just want laws that say mentally ill people can't purchase semi-automatic weapons. I WANT THE GUNS GONE. I want them destroyed and dismantled and turned into something that has value. Like maybe a table or some furniture. I don't know what they are made of, but I am sure we could melt them all and make pretty things for living rooms and kitchens across the country. Or maybe patio chairs? I don't really care. Just get rid of the guns because the kids and teachers are afraid to go to school. Our SCHOOLS have become a battleground.

I also know, however, that there are plenty of people that check their Facebook Newsfeed and see stories about how guns don't kill people...people do. And deranged people at that. I know that Facebook can tell which of us will appreciate memes or articles that say mean things about the teenagers that are letting their voices be heard. If your Facebook feed includes a lot of criticism of the children and the teachers that are begging for help, you might be a part of the problem.

Last week a teenager armed with an assault rifle walked into Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida and open fired. 17 people, children and teachers, lost their lives. This was the 18th school shooting since January 1. It is February. The first 17 seemed to go largely unnoticed. But this one is different. Yes, the number of casualties makes it even more newsworthy. But this one is different because the kids have had enough. And they are taking their message to social media, the legislature and to the streets. And some conservatives just don't care for their opinions.

This young woman, Emma, gives me hope for our future. If you haven't watched her message to the NRA and to POTUS, WATCH IT NOW.

Some of the things being said about the children include:

"Their sorrow is being hijacked by left-wing groups. They are being used to further a liberal political agenda."  (Former Rep. Jack Kingston R-Ga)

"Do we really think 17-year-olds on their own are going to plan a nationwide rally?" (CNN Contributor)

"The kids are not even Parkland students, they are attention-seeking actors." (Aide to Florida Representative, Republican Shawn Harrison)

"The kids are children of FBI agents trying to cover for the mistakes of the FBI."

And my personal favorite:

Yes, Bill. They should. Do you want to know WHY they should? Because these teenagers just experienced the most horrific thing I can ever imagine because you and your friends can't help but pander to the NRA and all of the power and influence they have. And Mr. O'Reilly, we have all seen your meltdowns when someone doesn't have the cameras ready for you. You aren't exactly the pillar of remaining calm and not being overtaken by emotion. And didn't you just lose your job at FOX News because you can't treat women with any decency? Should the media be promoting what YOU think? Particularly since you are facing extreme peer pressure and are likely still very emotional about having lost your pulpit to spread your grossness?

The President's lovely son has taken the time to "like" some of the crazy stupid conspiracy theories..which says a lot about his intellect and ability to analyze information.

Stephen Colbert disagrees with them all. And SO DO I. I have said it before and I will say it again...kids will change the world.

Stephen Colbert Believes in the KIDS

"There is one group that does give me hope that we can do something to protect the children, and sadly, it's the children." - Stephen Colbert.

He is right. The Parkland kids filled up busses and headed to the State's capital to have their voices heard, only to watch the lawmakers vote NO on a ban of assault weapons.

Stephen Colbert said, "Well I hope these kids don't give up. Because this is their lives, and their future. Someone else may be in power, but this country belongs to them. And there is reason for hope."

Colbert said the first thing that made sense to me in so long. Let's FLIP the voting age. Colbert suggests..."I think we need to change the voting age - until we do something about guns, you can't vote if you're over 18."

I will give up my vote. Because I have spent more hours in rooms full of children than you could imagine. I have also spent plenty of time in rooms full of adults. I am not an expert on much. But I know this...the kids are so much wiser. they are kinder and more accepting. They see the craziness around them and want it to stop.

And if anyone thinks for two seconds that KIDS can't change the world? You should try talking to them. They're brilliant. They know more about the world than most adults I know. They are insightful and thoughtful. And they think what we are doing is insane. And they're right. And they aren't going to take it for much longer.

Last week I walked into my classroom to find a sixth grader stuck between a cupboard and a wall, in a little "cubby" in my room. This isn't something out of the ordinary when you teach 11-year-olds, except that when I asked what he was doing, he explained that they were searching for safe places to hide in our classroom. When I asked him what he was doing, I would have preferred one of the standard answers, like "just seeing if I fit." Or "I wanted to see if I could lick the wall all the way in the back." But he wasn't. He was searching for a safe place to hide in case we are faced with an active shooter in our school. It's not right. But there is something that can be done. We can stop and listen to the kids. They're right. And THEIR lives are the ones in danger when they are simply trying to do their social studies.

Get ready America. The KIDS are coming. 

Their, They're, There...

I don't know if anyone else has noticed...but A LOT of young people are suffering from lack of guidance and knowledge of all things grammar related. Punctuation. Parts of Speech. Words. Spelling.  At some point over the past decade or two...we have lost our way.

When I was a kid, we diagrammed sentences. I loved it! 

Diagramming Sentences = AWESOME

Yes. I am one of the people that is ALWAYS silently (or not-so-silently) correcting your grammar.

And I KNOW I am not the only one. And because I am not the only one...we HAVE to remember to teach kids about grammar. The pendulum of what/how we teach is always swinging. People in positions of power will say...you can't teach grammar in isolation, it should be done in an integrated way through all subjects and while reading and writing. The only problem with this is that it doesn't work. I went to school in the 70's and 80's. I can recite 20 adjectives on demand. I can come up with 30 prepositions in a short minute. And I know the difference between they're, their and there. I also know how to correctly use to, too and two. And never screw up your and you're. I can identify the subject, object (direct and indirect), and verb of any sentence. 

When did we stop teaching the basics? How does one become a brilliant writer if they can't put together a sentence, or spell basic words? Or know how to use punctuation? I've had entire papers turned into me over the course of the past decade that didn't include a single period, comma or exclamation point. And the use of dialogue in writing? Forget about it. Kids aren't being taught sufficiently about how to use dialogue in writing. I contend that we do a disservice to American children each and every day when we ignore the Language Standards, because the state assessments are more focused on reading comprehension. And our focus on comprehension seems to have us moving n the wrong direction as well. When the third grade rule goes into effect in Michigan, we are going to have grown people in third grade. 

When I first started digging into the Common Core for ELA, (and I had to do that all on my own...) nobody mentioned the Language standards. I found them later on, and decided to make some things that would help teachers to teach LANGUAGE. It is the cornerstone of reading and writing. I compare grammar, punctuation and spelling to kids knowing the basic facts in math. It is SO MUCH HARDER to do algebra or geometry if you are not fluent in numbers. If you don't have multiplication tables memorized, or know how to divide numbers the long way, or know how to add/subtract/borrow and all of the other basic math concepts that give children the confidence to do higher level mathematics. 

4th Grade Language                        5th Grade Language                6th Grade Language

                    

When I discovered the Language Standards, I decided to dissect them and create something that would make it EASY AS PIE (like my simile?) to teach all aspects of the CCSS for your grade level. I even started making the middle school version. But I put my focus back on elementary because, frankly, middle school teachers aren't that nice. I get to say this 'cause I am one of them. But whenever I get mean feedback on a product that I spent 100 hours making, it is usually a middle school teacher that says it. What is that all about??? 

Seventh Grade Language

I didn't really know what I was going to make once I started digging into the CCSS for Language. But it ended up being something cool that I loved using with my sixth graders.

Please. Do us all a favor and explicitly teach grammar, punctuation, word origins, parts of speech, and sentence structure. Even if someone tells you that it is all integrated into your reading unit or your writing unit...do it anyways. Your students won't understand different types of pronouns, or parts of speech, or how to use a semicolon, UNLESS YOU TEACH THEM. Kids shouldn't be starting high school with no knowledge of words, commas, sentences, or parts of speech.

We gotta start teaching the basics. We all know that the kids WILL be judged if they can't tell a future employer the difference between to, too and two.

Stop Being Racist

A couple of weeks ago my associate superintendent tweeted the following...and three simple words caused SUCH A STIR. Which words? STOP BEING RACIST.

When his tweet first went out I had no idea. I don't go on Twitter all that much, but after getting some text messages I decided I should. And I am SO glad I did! What Dr. Johnson had to say on this day was something teachers and educators all over this country need to hear.

When I first started getting texts about his tweet, they were all similar, and from the people I am close to in my school district. My friends said things like, "It's about time." and "Yay...Thank you Dr. J!"

And then I started to hear all of the things that people I am not surrounded by all the time thought about his tweet. The comments were more like:

"This isn't leadership."

"I can't believe he said we were racist."

"He should have to take that tweet down, it is offensive and wrong."

I have actually had some really valuable conversations about racism in our schools as a result of his now-infamous tweet.

Teachers I value have asked me things like, "Do you really think we are racist? I am not racist!" We talked through the difference between being overtly racist and being a part of a system that is plagued with institutional racism, as many of our country's schools are...including my own district. I always go back to the data to reason with people and to help them see the impact schools have on kids of different races.

Here is one data point that I have been using to respond to this idea that institutional racism doesn't exist:

You are reading this right. By the end of 5th grade, 89.9% of our African American students are not proficient in mathematics. (Source: mischooldata.com) I can't imagine how kids feel sitting in math class, just starting middle school without basic math skills. And they received the same instruction all the way through. That's how institutional racism works. And we have to start talking about it, in every community, in every state. Here is a glimpse of reading proficiency:

Out of the almost 200 African American students that just started high school, almost 70% of them are not proficient readers. High school is hard enough when you can read anything that is put in front of you. Imagine how difficult it is to keep up in a chemistry class when you can't understand the text.

The anger around his three simple words was startling. Even to me. And for all that think he should have to take it down, or that saying "stop being racist" is in some way a testament to his leadership abilities, I ask you to sit down and really think about that. If you were offended by those words, it's time to look within.

I am here to tell you that THIS is leadership. We have to look institutional racism right in the face and do something about it. Every single one of us. I have no criticism for my leader, I have only one thing to say to Dr. Johnson...Thank you. And I double down on his message to all of us.

Stop being racist.

The starting line...

Watch this. Just watch it. I am going to write about this amazing video...as soon as I stop crying.

https://www.facebook.com/mikey.wycoff/videos/10210529953382118/

I just sat down at Starbucks to create some curriculum and write some assessments...and I checked my Facebook. My former teaching partner, who I have not blogged about yet...because I always cry when I consider where we are today, sent me the above link to the most important video I have seen in a long time. Shawn is the most amazing teacher I know. We shared five years and hundreds of kids during our time together. It was the most amazing experience of my life. We called it KASHAM. (He is KA and I am SHAM) More on KASHAM later...but this reminded me why I believe what we did for five years was magical. The video was sent with a simple message: "What an honest lesson about life."

Shawn and I made it work for five years because we could have conversations like this one. We could discuss with each other the different experiences our kids had, and that they were all coming from different backgrounds. We both believe that every kid deserves the very best education we can give them, but understand that some came to us with hurdles in front of them, while others had a clear path to the finish line. If you watched the video you know that it shows you very clearly that kids have NOT all had the same opportunities. As teachers we MUST acknowledge this...even if society will not.

"We would be foolish to not realize we have been given more opportunity. We don't want to recognize that we have been given a head start. But the reality is...we have. Now...there is no excuse. They still gotta run their race. You still gotta run your race."

Yesterday I blogged about Operation Common Good. And this video reminded me of exactly why I started OCG over a decade ago. I realized that the kids in my classes were not starting on the same line to begin the race. Some were hungry. Others were worried about not fitting in with their more wealthy counterparts. Why would you try out for cheerleading when you know you can't afford all the swag that the coach will require you to purchase? In a world full of UGG boots and North Face coats, it is brutal for a kid that cannot afford either. My colleagues and I, along with thousands of kids, we made sure that we did our part to help the kids that are already starting behind everyone else.

"Because the reality is, if this is a fair race and everyone is back on that line...I guarantee some of these Black dudes would smoke all of you. And it's only because you have this head start that you are possibly going to win this race called life."

Look at the faces of the kids left in the back when the race begins. Not one of the things that allowed others to move closer to the finish line before the race started was a decision that they made, or a choice that they had. This is EVERY DAY in school. When we start a new unit in our classes, we have to remember that some of our kids are far behind their peers. When I worked with Shawn, I saw every day how he helped kids to get closer to that line. He gave up his lunch just about every day for five years. And by choice, our kids would come in and sit with him and practice math. I have never seen anything like it, or ever worked with anyone more committed to leveling the playing field.

"Nothing you have done has put you in the lead right now."

I would have been one of the kids in the front of the line. I am clear about that. Having never known hunger in my life, and having supportive parents and an amazing extended family, I know what I don't know. I know so many people that believe that the world provides the same opportunities to all kids. They think it is up to individuals to decide whether or not they will utilize those opportunities. I wonder if they have ever looked behind them to see who is starting the race from far behind.

"If you didn't learn anything from this activity...you're a fool."

Every teacher, administrator, parent, child, human should watch this video. And we should all work together to build opportunities for kids that haven't ever been up front when the race begins. For some kids, that is every hour of every day they spend in school. This must change.