Everyday Antiracism: Getting Real About Race in School

417 Pages·2008·1.889 MB·English

by  Pollock, Mica

Education $24.95 Edited by
MICA
POLLOCK
AN ESSENTAL TOOL FOR EDUCATORS AND PARENTS DETERMINED TO
MOVE BEYOND FRUSTRATIONS ABOUT RACE IN SCHOOL
How should teachers respond when children ask challenging questions about race? How
should teachers handle the use of the “N-word” or discuss “achievement gaps” with
colleagues? How can teachers avoid unwittingly making children of color speak on behalf of
their entire group? In more than fi fty original pieces written especially for this groundbreaking
book, Everyday Antiracism offers practical advice for teachers and parents.
E
Leading educators—among them Beverly Daniel Tatum, Sonia Nieto, and Pedro Noguera—
V
describe concrete ways to analyze classroom interactions that may or may not be “racial,”
deal with racial inequality and “diversity,” and teach to high standards across racial lines. E
Topics range from using racial incidents as teachable moments to valuing students’ home
worlds and helping parents fi ght ethnic and racial misconceptions about their children. R
Questions following each essay prompt readers to examine everyday issues of race and
Y
opportunity in their own classrooms and schools.
D
“TEACHERS AND PARENTS OFTEN WANT TO ACT ON THE ISSUE OF RACISM, BUT
DON’T KNOW HOW. THIS ONE-OF-A-KIND VOLUME IS THE BLUEPRINT; NO ONE A
SHOULD TEACH ANOTHER DAY WITHOUT READING IT.”
Y
—TIM WISE, AUTHOR OF WHITE LIKE ME

“IN THE STRUGGLE FOR A MORE JUST AND EQUITABLE SOCIETY, EVERYONE A
HAS A ROLE. EVERYDAY ANTIRACISM SHOWS HOW ORDINARY PEOPLE CAN BE
MINDFUL AND PURPOSEFUL IN CONFRONTING DISCRIMINATION AND TAKING N
CONCRETE STEPS THAT, LITTLE BY LITTLE, CHANGE THE WORLD.”
—LINDA DARLING-HAMMOND, CHARLES E. DUCOMMUN PROFESSOR OF T
EDUCATION, STANFORD UNIVERSITY
I
R
“IT’S RARE TO FIND A BOOK AS THEORETICALLY RICH AND PRACTICALLY USEFUL
AS THIS ONE. EVERYDAY ANTIRACISM HELPS US SEE HOW EVERYTHING THAT
A
HAPPENS IN SCHOOL HAS RACIAL IMPLICATIONS—AND HOW IN BIG AND
LITTLE WAYS WE CAN ALL BE AGENTS OF EQUALITY. WHAT AN IMPORTANT AND C
HOPEFUL RESOURCE THIS IS.”
—BILL BIGELOW, EDITOR OF RETHINKING SCHOOLS MAGAZINE I
S
GETTING REAL ABOUT RACE IN SCHOOL
M
MICA POLLOCK is an associate professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
An anthropologist of education, she previously taught tenth grade and worked in the civil
rights fi eld. She is the author of Colormute: Race Talk Dilemmas in an American School Thea Abu El-Haj • Eduardo Bonilla-Silva • Ron Ferguson
and Because of Race: How Americans Debate Harm and Opportunity in Our Schools.
Patricia Gándara Vivian Louie Sonia Nieto
• •
Pedro A. Noguera Sanjay Sharma Christine E. Sleeter
• •
Beverly Daniel Tatum Angela Valenzuela and many more
• •
Edited by MICA POLLOCK
www.thenewpress.com
WINNER OF THE 2005 OUTSTANDING BOOK AWARD FROM
Cover photograph by Isak Tiner, Photonica/Getty Images
THE NEW PRESS Cover design by Christine Sullivan/Cstudio Design THE NEW PRESS THE AMERICAN EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH ASSOCIATION FOR COLORMUTE
EVERYDAY ANTIRACISM

EVERYDAY ANTIRACISM
Getting Real About Race in School
EDITED BY MICA POLLOCK
©2008 by Mica Pollock
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, in any form, without written permission
from the publisher.
Requests for permission to reproduce selections from this book should be mailed to:
Permissions Department, The New Press, 38Greene Street, New York, NY 10013.
Published in the United States by The New Press, New York, 2008
Distributed by W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., New York
library of congress cataloging-in-publication data
Everyday antiracism : getting real about race in school / edited by Mica Pollock.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-59558-054-2(pbk.)
1. Racism in education—United States. 2. Educational equalization—United
States. I. Pollock, Mica.
LC212.2.E94 2008
371.82900973—dc22 2008000843
The New Press was established in 1990as a not-for-profit alternative to the large, com-
mercial publishing houses currently dominating the book publishing industry. The
New Press operates in the public interest rather than for private gain, and is commit-
ted to publishing, in innovative ways, works of educational, cultural, and community
value that are often deemed insufficiently profitable.
www.thenewpress.com
Book design by Westchester Book Group
Composition by Westchester Book Group
This book was set in 10/13New Caledonia Roman
Printed in the United States of America
2 4 6 8 10 9 7 5 3 1
Contents
Acknowledgments xi
Suggestions for Using This Book xiii
Introduction: Defining Everyday Antiracism xvii
SECTION A
RACE CATEGORIES: WE ARE ALL THE SAME,
BUT OUR LIVES ARE DIFFERENT 1
Part I: Remember That Racial Categories Are
Not Biological Realities 3
1. Exposing Race as an Obsolete Biological Concept
Alan H. Goodman 4
2. No Brain Is Racial
Mica Pollock 9
3. Getting Rid of the Word “Caucasian”
Carol C. Mukhopadhyay 12
Part II: Get Ready to Talk about a Racialized Society 17
4. Beginning Courageous Conversations about Race
Glenn E. Singleton and Cyndie Hays 18
5. Talking Precisely about Equal Opportunity
Mica Pollock 24
6. Nice Is Not Enough: Defining Caring for Students of Color
Sonia Nieto 28
Part III: Remember That People Do Not Fit Neatly and
Easily into Racial Groups 33
7. Following Children’s Leads in Conversations about Race
Kimberly Chang and Rachel Conrad 34
8. Observing Students Sharing Language
Ben Rampton 39
Part IV: Remember That People Are Treated as Racial Group
Members and Need to Examine That Experience 43
9. Strengthening Student Identity in School Programs
Patricia Gándara 44
vi CONTENTS
10. Uncovering Internalized Oppression
Angela Valenzuela 50
11. Helping Students See Each Other’s Humanity
L. Janelle Dance 56
Part V: Emphasize Individuality 61
12. Constructing Colorblind Classrooms
Samuel R. Lucas 62
13. Knowing Students as Individuals
Joshua Aronson 67
14. Showing Students Who You Are
Heather M. Pleasants 70
SECTION B
HOW OPPORTUNITIES ARE PROVIDED
AND DENIED INSIDE SCHOOLS 75
Part VI:Remember That Students Experience Racially
Unequal Expectations about Their Brainpower 77
15. Helping Students of Color Meet High Standards
Ronald F. Ferguson 78
16. Providing Supportive Feedback
Geoffrey L. Cohen 82
Part VII: Counter Racially Patterned Skill Gaps 85
17. Teaching and Transcending Basic Skills
Amanda Taylor 86
18. Grouping in Detracked Classrooms
Beth C. Rubin 90
Part VIII: Help Students Gain Fluency in “Standard”
Behaviors While Honoring the “Nonstandard”
Behaviors They Already Have 97
19. Standards vs.“Standard” Knowledge
Edmund T. Hamann 98
20. Valuing Nonstandard English
John Baugh 102
21. Teaching Students Fluency in Multiple Cultural Codes
Prudence Carter 107
CONTENTS vii
Part IX: Defy Racially Based Notions of Potential
Careers and Contributions 113
22. Challenging Cultural Stereotypes of “Scientific Ability”
Maria Ong 114
23. Finding Role Models in the Community
Meira Levinson 120
Part X: Analyze Racial Disparities in Opportunities to Learn 125
24. Providing Equal Access to “Gifted” Education
Karolyn Tyson 126
25. What Discipline Is For: Connecting Students to the
Benefits of Learning
Pedro A. Noguera 132
SECTION C
CURRICULUM THAT ASKS CRUCIAL
QUESTIONS ABOUT RACE 139
Part XI: Create Curriculum That Invites Students to
Explore Complex Identities andConsider
Racial Group Experiences 141
26. Using Photography to Explore Racial Identity
Alexandra Lightfoot 142
27. Exploring Racial Identity Through Writing
Jennifer A. Mott-Smith 146
28. Involving Students in Selecting Reading Materials
Christine E. Sleeter 150
Part XII: Create Curriculum That Analyzes
Opportunity Denial 155
29. Teaching Critical Analysis of Racial Oppression
Jeff Duncan-Andrade 156
30. Using Critical Hip-Hop in the Curriculum
Ernest Morrell 161
31. Engaging Youth in Participatory Inquiry for Social Justice
María Elena Torre and Michelle Fine 165
Part XIII: Create Curriculum That Represents a
Diverse Range of People Thoroughly and Complexly 173
viii CONTENTS
32. Arab Visibility and Invisibility
Thea Abu El-Haj 174
33. Evaluating Images of Groups in Your Curriculum
Teresa L. McCarty 180
34. Teaching Representations of Cultural Difference Through Film
Sanjay Sharma 186
35. What Is on Your Classroom Wall? Problematic Posters
Donna Deyhle 191
36. Teaching Racially Sensitive Literature
Jocelyn Chadwick 195
Part XIV: Create Curriculum That Discusses History
Accurately and Thoroughly 199
37. Making Race Relevant in All-White Classrooms:
Using Local History
Mara Tieken 200
38. Teaching Facts, Not Myths, about Native Americans
Paul Ongtooguk and Claudia S. Dybdahl 204
SECTION D
RACE AND THE SCHOOL EXPERIENCE:
THE NEED FOR INQUIRY 209
Part XV: Investigate Learning Experiences in Your Classroom 211
39. Inviting Students to Analyze Their Learning Experience
Makeba Jones and Susan Yonezawa 212
40. Interrogating Students’ Silences
Katherine Schultz 217
41. Questioning “Cultural” Explanations of Classroom Behaviors
Doug Foley 222
42. Creating Safe Spaces in Predominantly White Classrooms
Pamela Perry 226
43. On Spotlighting and Ignoring Racial Group Members
in the Classroom
Dorinda J. Carter 230
Part XVI: Spearhead Conversations with Students about
Racism in Their Lives and Yours 235
44. Racial Incidents as Teachable Moments
Lawrence Blum 236
CONTENTS ix
45. Debating Racially Charged Topics
Ian F. Haney López 242
46. Developing Antiracist School Policy
David Gillborn 246
Part XVII: Talk Thoroughly with Colleagues
about Race and Achievement 253
47. Focusing on Student Learning
John B. Diamond 254
48. Moving Beyond Quick “Cultural” Explanations
Vivian Louie 257
49. Naming the Racial Hierarchies That Arise During School Reforms
Rosemary Henze 262
50. Spearheading School-wide Reform
Willis D. Hawley 267
Part XVIII: Analyze, with Colleagues and Students, How
Your Race Affects Your Teaching 273
51. Responding to the “N-Word”
Wendy Luttrell 274
52. Engaging Diverse Groups of Colleagues in Conversation
Alice McIntyre 279
53. Locating Yourself for Your Students
Priya Parmar and Shirley Steinberg 283
54. Expanding Definitions of “Good Teaching”
Lee Anne Bell 287
SECTION E
ENGAGING COMMUNITIES FOR REAL 291
Part XIX: Inquire Fully about Home Communities 293
55. Valuing Students’ Home Worlds
Eugene E. García 294
56. Getting to Know Students’ Communities
Leisy Wyman and Grant Kashatok 299
57. Helping Students Research Their Communities
Kathleen Cushman 305
Part XX: Discuss Parents’ Experiences of Racially Unequal
Opportunity 309