Connections to Social Justice Standards: Identity, Diversity, Action
Strategies:
1. Defining and Expressing Identities
2. Decentralizing Dominant Identities in School Spaces
3. Decentralizing Dominant Identities in Curricula
4. Avoiding and Challenging Stereotypes
When asking students to explore issues of personal and social identity, teachers must help establish braver spaces where students are seen, valued, cared for, respected, and have opportunities to learn from one another’s experiences and perspectives. Teachers can show they value students’ lives and identities in a variety of ways. Some are small, like taking the time to learn the proper pronunciation of each student’s name, respecting their pronouns and learning about their families. Others require more time and investment, like building a curriculum around personal narratives or incorporating identity-based responses into the study of texts.
At the community level, it is important to understand neighborhood demographics, strengths, concerns, conflicts and challenges. Like students themselves, these dynamics may change frequently and affect how students engage with learning materials.
By embodying the following mindsets, educators can show students that their experiences are central to the learning process:
- An asset-based view of youth and identity groups.
- A commitment to avoiding and challenging stereotypes.
- A sense of openness and cultural humility.
- A willingness to let students define their own identities.
Remember: Perfection is not expected, grace is appreciated, and effort matters. Being open to learning and unlearning as you center your students’ experiences is key to upholding the type of culture and climate that allows them to thrive.
Defining and Expressing Identities
Students can define and share their identities through an identity chart or an identity map exercise like the one created for the film Bibi (see Appendix C: Online Supplement). Once students have defined their identities, teachers can then create space for students to share their stories. Whether it is sharing a family or personal history or discussing their responses to a prompt, this activity allows students to learn how to honor one another’s identities and lived experiences.
Decentralizing Dominant Identities in School Spaces
How you choose to design and decorate your classroom sends a message to your students about your values. Decentralizing dominant identities and making thoughtful, inclusive choices about bulletin boards, posters, book displays, etc., are effective ways to ensure all students’ identities and experiences are reflected. The LFJ article “I Start the Year With Nothing” provides insight into the importance of classroom decoration and design.
A nonjudgmental audit of classroom decor involves interpreting the messages conveyed by the images on the walls and the books on the shelves. Teachers can audit their classrooms or invite others in to “read” the implicit and explicit messages sent by the decor and the arrangement of the classroom.
Auditors ask questions like:
- Which identities can students see when they walk into my classroom? Which are absent? What message does that send?
- Which identities can students read about when they look through my class library? Which are absent?
- How do the materials in my classroom reflect my students’ identities? Are all my students represented? Are they all represented in similar, equitable ways?
- What first impressions are given when entering my classroom? Who would feel welcomed in this space? Who might feel uncomfortable here? Why?
Depending on the answers to these questions, adding posters, texts and other visuals can signal to your students that their experiences are important in your classroom community.
This same “reading” process can be applied to auditing the messages conveyed by the arrangement of materials and furniture or the seating chart (if applicable). An auditor of the classroom setup might ask:
- What does the arrangement of the room say about how I view my power as a teacher?
- What does the room arrangement say about how I view my students’ autonomy? Are all areas of the room and all materials accessible to all students? Are different spaces clearly defined and easy to maneuver between?
- What does the room arrangement say about how I view collaboration? Is there a designated space for students to come together and problem-solve or hold class meetings? How is my classroom a student-centered space?
- What does the arrangement of students say about how I view identity? Do I encourage students to collaborate with those whose identities differ from their own? Do I divide students by gender when asking them to line up or take their seats? Would a trans or nonbinary student feel included in my classroom?
Based on your responses to the questions, adjust your classroom setup to foster student collaboration, agency and learning across lines of ability, race, gender, ethnicity, religion and more.
Decentralizing Dominant Identities in Curricula
Just as decentralizing dominant identities in the classroom is important, the same is true of curriculum. Choosing texts that reflect classroom demographics and following the readings with discussions or reflective writing assignments can provide teachers with powerful information about their students’ hopes, concerns, strengths and life circumstances.
When looking for texts, try to find what renowned educator Rudine Sims Bishop, Ph.D., refers to as “mirrors and windows” for your students. Mirror texts reflect students’ own experiences and identities. Window texts offer them insight into experiences and identities that differ from their own. Encourage students to find ways to convert windows into “sliding glass doors,” seeking out opportunities to engage more actively with people who are different from themselves.
These practices open channels of understanding among students. Successful conversations about issues of identity frequently lead to deeper dialogue about students’ own backgrounds and the experiences of others. As you plan to diversify your curricula, be sure to avoid falling into the “heroes and holidays” trap. Examples of this include teaching about Black history only during Black History Month or teaching about Native and Indigenous peoples in a stereotypical manner that treats them solely as historical figures. Focus on including multiple perspectives—including modern perspectives—within each unit and across the year. More information related to Beyond Heroes and Holidays from Teaching for Change is listed in Appendix C: Online Supplement.
Avoiding and Challenging Stereotypes
Teachers and students enter the classroom with implicit biases: ideas about groups of people that create stereotypes based on false or limited information. Often, these stereotypes are so common that people do not challenge them. However, to effectively engage in social justice practices, it’s important that educators not only avoid stereotyping but challenge these preconceptions when they arise.
Avoiding or challenging a stereotype might look like:
- Cultivating awareness of one’s own biases. This includes considering the deficit views teachers may have about multilingual students, students of color, students with disabilities or students from low-income households. Teachers sometimes hold the beliefs that these groups of students are less capable or that their families do not care about their education. These are false assumptions that lead to a lower-quality educational experience for these students. Upon recognizing these biases, teachers can establish high expectations for all students and provide extra support where necessary.
- Working to increase empathy among students. Include activities that increase empathy, encourage civic action and promote intergroup engagement. Stereotypes become less powerful the more exposure students have to people whose identities differ from their own.
- Checking your language. Be aware of and avoid all generalizing or essentializing language. For example, it is common for educators to use gendered language that implies generalizations about “boys” and “girls” or to use the word guys when getting the attention of the entire class.
- Being aware of stereotypes students express. Instead of administering quick punishments, challenge stereotypes with questions or dialogue that fosters learning.
