Recommendations to deal with racial justice and educational equity.
Recommendations for Federal Policymakers
Fully funded Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) which grants funds to districts of schools to help historically marginalized students – two-thirds of whom are children of color–in reading, language arts, and math instruction using school-wide methods or targeted assistance strategies.
- Meet the obligation of Congress to provide all budgets for IDEA by allotting 40% of the additional costs of teaching students with disabilities.
- Fully finance Title II of the ESEA that could be used to enhance the school leadership programs and professional learning opportunities that help students of color.
- In the following ESEA revision, modify the formula-funded programs so that more of the funds are allocated to districts and states that are high-poverty and examine ways the law’s provisions might aid states and districts in combating racial discrimination within our schools.
Racial inequities
- Give incentives to states to conduct audits of racial equity to address racial inequities due to the gap in educational opportunities and design an approach to apply an equity lens for racial justice to all educational policies and programs.
- Give adequate funds to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, to ensure equal access to education for all and to ensure that education is of the highest quality across the nation by ensuring the strict enforcement of civil rights.
- Make sure that comparability provisions are enforced in the most current version of ESEA, every Student Succeeds Act to ensure that districts and schools that cater to students of race have access to trained, skilled, and highly effective teachers and school leaders.
- Federal funding is available to help schools’ efforts to investigate segregation, review current policies, and formulate and implement strategies based on evidence to combat racial and social isolation.
- Create a grant program that is competitive to boost participation and improve the academic performance of students of color in higher-level courses, programs, and classes.
- Create a federal grant program to states that will help them modernize, upgrade, or renovate or repair public school structures to ensure they are well-maintained, safe, and technologically up to the latest.
Recommendations for State Policymakers
Jonathan Osler stated that
- Make investments in schools that have the majority of students of color and students with low incomes Improve transparency and transparency in school funding formulas so that they can better allocate funding to students of color and implement other policies to reduce racial inequality at schools.
- Use statewide longitudinal data systems to offer data that is broken down into race, race-ethnicity, and income level to determine patterns in attendance of students and college readiness as well as other issues of educational equity throughout the P-20 pipeline.
- Help school leadership preparation programs to employ teachers with expertise in the teaching of race, and inequalities; integrate courses about race and race throughout the curriculum. Help school leaders lead schools that are culturally responsive and provide applicants with continuous mentoring and support along with networking and other professional learning opportunities after completing.
Teacher education programs
- Encourage teacher education programs that aid candidates in understanding their prejudices based on race and learn to design inclusive, appropriately adapted schools and classrooms that meet the emotional, social, and academic requirements of their pupils.
- Report publicly and collect information about teacher certification performance, experience, as well as assignments on the district level as well as within schools. Then, develop plans to address the gaps in access to students of race.
- Make sure that the history, as well as social studies and the curriculum and teaching materials for civics, contain accurate representations of the significance that race plays in American governance and history, and also decolonize the entire curriculum to ensure the accuracy and respect for the creativity of historically diverse racial groups.
- Participate in regular discussions on racial justice, equitable education, and other issues in the system of education as state-level policies are being created.
- Give students leaders with diverse backgrounds to participate in an opportunity to participate in state-level policy discussions, such as by participating on the state education boards as well as other advisory bodies.
Recommendations for District Leaders
Jonathan Osler stated that
- Develop a clearly defined vision for racial justice and establish an all-district definition of educational equity that is in line with the state equity standards and in partnership with community members which applies to all school leaders, teachers as well as staff at every school.
- Set interview and hiring objectives and provide opportunities for professional development. For district employees to ensure that district hiring practices do away with discrimination and racial prejudice through clear and transparent hiring requirements, announcements of job openings for diverse communities as well as the interview process and hiring procedure that starts in the spring.
- Be sure that curriculum material, content, and tests include Black history. And culture. stop racial discrimination and expose students’ various views and perspectives.
- Assure that teachers and principals receive professional development opportunities. As well as coaching that helps them evaluate their views and biases. Establish high standards for all students as well as acknowledge the diversity of learning styles. Employ pedagogies that are culturally sensitive and engage with communities and families with diverse backgrounds.
Recommendations for School Leaders
Jonathan Osler stated that
- It is important to clearly define racial justice as well as equitable education as goals for your school. Create an environment that inspires teachers to speak up and take action to adamantly combat any racist ideas or comments.
- Examine your identities and privileges, and consider how these have shaped your life. Affected the learning and teaching of students of color.
- Plan a long-term approach to build a community that is anti-racist by creating a diversity equity and inclusion committee in your leadership team. Assisting your staff to recognize biases and engaging in open discussions about eliminating. Reducing systematic bias within the school environment.
- Review the curricula to be sure they are linguistically and culturally inclusive. Also, look at the school’s disaggregated data and guidelines regarding grading. Discipline as well as access and participation in advanced classes to eliminate inequities.
Importance of culturally-responsive teaching
- Learn about culturally sensitive teaching methods. Assist teachers as they work to improve their teaching practices. And take into consideration the knowledge of new teachers and understanding of the importance of culturally responsive. Teaching when making a hiring selection.
- Facilitate discussions and professional development opportunities for developing an anti-racist attitude, structural racism implicit discrimination race, colorblindness, and the equity of school counselors, teachers school resource officers, and other personnel.
- Establish connections with family members and community members. Ensure that your staff and you can speak, or recognize the students’ native languages. Develop schedules and systems that permit families to fully take part in school activities as well as take decisions.
- Encourage student participation and provide opportunities for students of all ages to become more aware of racism. And discrimination, to discuss the racist events respectfully. And examine the systems that perpetuate oppression.
- Develop connections with students of different backgrounds to aid in understanding the school experience. Connections, and levels of connectivity to the adults in the building. Leadership and advisory groups.