A Social Justice Newsletter for Educators

Easing Into 2022

I hope you had a good break. “Good” defined as you choose, in whatever composition that might be of excitement and calm, action and rest, recovery and celebration, extroversion and introspection. I hope you had time to spare for all the things that felt important and worthwhile. In my own case, this meant many days of ice skating both on a mountain lake and in the rink. While I’m still improving my technique, my confidence enjoyed a significant boost.

image credit: Spelic

A friend recently recounted the details of a skating tour he completed on Lake Baikal. It sounded remarkably adventurous and fascinating. I asked him when the trip took place. He said, “two years ago, right before the pandemic hit.” Immediately I was struck with the astounding reality, that yes, in mid-March we will mark a full two years of life in the shadow of COVID-19. In many respects we’re in a very different place. We know more, we have vaccines, we understand which mitigation strategies are most effective. And yet it overwhelms me to see that we’re still very much in it. Dodging infection, hoping against hope that we will emerge unscathed or without serious damage – all that while trying to lead lives that are fulfilling and worthy. It’s a strange and tedious balancing act at which we may be a tad better, but find little joy in the accomplishment.

I suppose my point is: If you’re feeling heavy or still in recovery mode, it’s no wonder. Uncertainty, loss and frustration will accompany us into 2022. I’m glad if we can teach on campus under reasonably safe conditions, see each other, welcome students and do the things we do best. (*Reminder: I’m in Austria – FFP2 masks, regular PCR testing are required in schools; ventilation is understood as key.) At the same time, let’s also be mindful of how we may find ourselves struggling in any number of ways, both visible and invisible. Rather than demand optimism, let’s remember to be kind, understanding and as patient as we possibly can be with our students, colleagues, families and ourselves.

Coping with challenging behaviors

Dr. Rosemarie Allen is associate professor at the School of Education at Metropolitan State University of Denver whose research is focused on discipline policies and outcomes in early childhood classrooms. In her TED talk above she talks about what adults can do to mitigate challenging student behaviors, taking into account common racial and gender disparities. Near the end she points out:

“Children don’t suspend themselves; it takes an adult to do that. When we focus on our own behavior, give children the tools they need to regulate theirs, look for what’s good, right and amazing in every single child, we can stop suspensions and keep our babies in school.”

What struck me during her talk and in an interview she gave on the preschool to prison pipeline was how familiar the teacher behaviors she described were. I felt both called out and called in:

“We have to get over being mad. See, we don’t talk about this. We get mad at children and we stay mad at them long after. We have to be the grownups, shift the attention from trying to fix a child who’s only being a child to how you will respond to that behavior and really help the child through it?”

As painful as it is to admit, I recognize that description. I have been angry with children and sometimes needed more than a minute to get beyond it in order to build the relationships my students and I require to make learning possible. As we prepare to return to classes and try to meet students where they are, I hope this reminder that acknowledges our flawed, fraught teacher selves while also emphasizing our agency to manage our emotions effectively comes as a welcome support.

Meeting Students Where They Are

In our ongoing efforts to understand students, I also want to highlight this Learning For Justice article, “Let’s Talk About Nonbinary.” Author, Jey Ehrenhalt, who identifies as non-binary, offers three very clear tips for ensuring that your practices are nonbinary-affirming. We tend to think of gender identity as topics for the secondary level and that’s simply not true. Ehrenhalt writes:

“As a nonbinary-identified individual, my experience of my own gender has not wavered since I realized it at the age of 3. What has evolved, however, is others’ ability to honor and acknowledge my gender identity based on the language available at the time.”

All of our students are concerned with questions of gender identity and we need to be as inclusive as we can, in word and deed. Fortunately, we live in a time where resources around this and other identity themes abound. (Try this singular they video on for size.)

Finding Delight

I want to close out this month’s edition with some bright, fun spots: a game, a playlist, some science humor.

• A word guessing game that has been making the rounds might be for you: Try Wordle.

• Black folks in country music? Listen to this Spotify playlist and read an outstanding essay.

• Two planetary raps by TikTok phenomenon, @keatsdidit that made me laugh and think: If The Planets Had Bars and the sequel, Pluto Drops A Freestyle

Friends, I wish us all a brilliant start into this next leg of our school year. Take good care of yourselves,

Sherri