School Leaders, Not Politicians, Should Be Making Decisions about How to Teach Our History

Everybody’s gettin’ bands, we just dance to different drums. I like who I’ve become. -Jay Z,“Sorry, Not Sorry” Allow me to apologize in advance because…

A Year Later, One Thing Is Clear: Being ‘Woke’ Isn’t Nearly Enough

It has been a year since the murder of George Floyd and the “American Spring” that followed it. Corporate America, sports leagues, marketing firms, and…

The Real History of Teachers Being Complicit in the Miseducation of Black and White Children

As we celebrate and honor what would have been Malcolm X’s 96th birthday this week, I can’t help but think of his legacy in the…

EXPLAINED: The Truth About Critical Race Theory and How It Shows Up in Your Child’s Classroom

What is critical race theory? Critical race theory (sometimes abbreviated to CRT) is an intellectual approach to looking at U.S. society with a belief that racism…

We Can’t Protect Our Students From Racism, But We Can Prepare Them to Combat and Reject It

On January 6, when an angry mob stormed the Capitol, I was in the middle of teaching my 7th grade English language arts students about…

Here’s How Culturally Sustaining Curriculum Roots Students in a Legacy of Strength

I started my teaching career teaching music. I’d been a professional musician for a decade—performing, touring and recording jazz and Latin music. With some experience…

Schools Need to Teach the Hard History of Asian Americans

Like so many Asian Americans, I was not surprised when I heard the news that the mass shooting in Atlanta targeted six Asian American women.…

It’s Time to Add Multicultural Literature to the Academic Equation

The teaching population in the United States is 87% white female, the typical educator a blonde or brunette under the age of 35. Dominating the…

My Teacher Didn’t Know How To Be Culturally Responsive, But These Standards Will Help the Next Generation of Teachers

When I was eleven, my teacher divided our class into groups of four to complete a project on the United States Constitution. The three other…

To the People Pushing Back on Culturally Responsive Teaching During Black History Month

A war has been waging in my home state of Illinois, and the battle lines have been drawn. In one corner of the ring—the “uber…